Review: Fiio E7
Jul 29, 2010 at 12:02 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 548

Conrthomas

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Yesterday, I received my Fiio E7 USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier in the mail.
 
Out of the Box:
The E7 came in a nice, easy to unwrap plastic box-like-thing, and was undamaged on arrival. I ordered mine from Micca Store through Amazon.com. The ETA was August 3rd, but I actually got it much earlier, having ordered it USPS on July 24th.
 
What's In the Box:
Fiio E7 DAC/Amp
Silicone sleeve for E7
Velvet pouch for E7
Large, thick rubber band for securing E7 to portable audio player
USB-Mini Cable
3.5mm right angle to 3.5mm straight 4" patch cable
Instruction Manual
 
First Impression:
Very small. Also very Very nice construction, anodized aluminium and what looks like a plexiglass screen. The OLED display is bright, but not overly bright, in my opinion. It has an overall rugged look and feel. The 3.5mm jacks have a lot or push-in force and pull-out force, meaning you can't accidentally unplug it. Very nice, I plugged it into my Windows & PC and it instantly recognized it as a USB DAC and started working immediately.
 
EDIT:
 
Sound:
(Disclaimer: I was using non-burned in ATH-A700s.)
The sound out of this little box is nothing short of amazing in my opinion, at this price point. There was an instant improvement in sound quality over the line out and headphone out of my M-Audio USB interface. The frequency range is very wide and large enough to cover the audible range of just about any headphones.The Bass is balanced, not overpowering, even on the 0 bass boost setting. The bass boost setting, labeled "EQ" in the system menu (?) works great too. on settings 1 and 2 there isn't a whole lot of noticeable boost. Ont the highest boost setting, 3, there is an increased bassiness that is not overpowering. The midrange is balanced and clear, and probably only sounds a little scooped because my ATH-A700s don't have as much midrange as other headphones. I found the highs to be clear and crisp. It is also worth mentioning that when used with a line out cable for an iPod, the sound from the player is much better.
 
Overall impression:
Great little amp, definitely worth the price. Comes with great accessories and even greater sound. The overall sound it somewhat warm, which is great because it reminds me of the warmth of classic tube amps. I will definitely be bringing this with me on plane rides and car trips, especially given the 80 hour battery life.
 
Jul 29, 2010 at 12:14 PM Post #2 of 548
Hey,
 
Glad to hear that we got it to you so quickly. Amazon tends to be really conservative with their delivery estimates, but our FiiO orders are typically shipped in 24 hours and from there takes 2-3 days to reach most US destinations.
 
I'm eager to read more about your impressions of the E7. 
 
Jack
 
Jul 29, 2010 at 12:34 PM Post #3 of 548
I am hesitant to say my first impressions, because I was using the SC's as said above. I did however plug it in to my PC and plug my 'phones in, and WOW there was an amazing improvement over the headphone out of my M-Audio USB recording platform. I didn't anticipate it to be such a noticeable difference, but the clarity and bass were WAY better than any other sound card I've ever heard.
 
EDIT: I am also very thankful for the quick delivery, this now means I can take my ATH-A700s, my E7, and my iPod (with Line Out cable to hook up to E7) to Florida with me next week! Sweet!
 
Jul 30, 2010 at 11:45 AM Post #7 of 548
Yup, 99 USD. And extremely fast shipping in US I might add.
 
@Jack-Micca
Yes I have that one. I ended up using the line out on the back for my headphones, because the headphone jack is so bad.
 
I will probably finish this review tonight when I get home from work.
 
Jul 31, 2010 at 3:48 PM Post #9 of 548
I just started using the Fiio E7 myself, my experience has been pretty positive with most phones not all. Grado 325is sound pretty amazing with the E7. Senn 595's not bad. Shure SE 530 not good at all. What are you thoughts on Fiio E7 with Senn 650's?
 
Jul 31, 2010 at 4:20 PM Post #10 of 548
I was going to get one of these to complement some RE-0, but I ordered the RE-Zero instead, which are much easier to drive.
I think I'll opt for a full-size amp next like the Matrix M-stage, but I can see myself coming back to this if I ever need more juice or a cleaner output fro my iPod. I need some MS-1s...
 
Jul 31, 2010 at 5:13 PM Post #11 of 548
Hi. 
 
I'm new here. Just wanna know if this will be good buy for my ATH-M50s to go with my ipod or my laptop. Sorry if i haven't provided enough information 
smile_phones.gif

 
Thanks
 
Jul 31, 2010 at 5:31 PM Post #12 of 548
Quote:
Hi. 
 
I'm new here. Just wanna know if this will be good buy for my ATH-M50s to go with my ipod or my laptop. Sorry if i haven't provided enough information 
smile_phones.gif

 
Thanks


I don't know much about your phones, but from the specs they could probably do with a little more juice. Have you noticed whether they sound worse out of your iPod than something like a computer headphone out? Have you tried amping them at all?
 
If you do get one, also make sure you get a LOD (line-out dock) like the Fiio L3, otherwise the sound won't be so great, and there won't be much volume gain.
 
Oh, and welcome to Head-Fi. Sorry about your wallet.
 
Jul 31, 2010 at 11:29 PM Post #13 of 548


Quote:
I just started using the Fiio E7 myself, my experience has been pretty positive with most phones not all. Grado 325is sound pretty amazing with the E7. Senn 595's not bad. Shure SE 530 not good at all. What are you thoughts on Fiio E7 with Senn 650's?


I personally have not tried them with the 650s, sorry...
 
Aug 1, 2010 at 11:53 AM Post #14 of 548


Quote:
I don't know much about your phones, but from the specs they could probably do with a little more juice. Have you noticed whether they sound worse out of your iPod than something like a computer headphone out? Have you tried amping them at all?
 
If you do get one, also make sure you get a LOD (line-out dock) like the Fiio L3, otherwise the sound won't be so great, and there won't be much volume gain.
 
Oh, and welcome to Head-Fi. Sorry about your wallet.


They sound the same whether connected to my ipod or my laptop. I really couldn't tell the difference. And I've never amped these phones.
 
This amplifier is as expensive as my headphones itself
smile_phones.gif
 But I'm thinking that it will be useful when I buy better headphones than ATH-M50s in the future.
 
Aug 1, 2010 at 4:00 PM Post #15 of 548
Quote:
They sound the same whether connected to my ipod or my laptop. I really couldn't tell the difference. And I've never amped these phones.
 
This amplifier is as expensive as my headphones itself
smile_phones.gif
 But I'm thinking that it will be useful when I buy better headphones than ATH-M50s in the future.


I'd trawl some reviews, see whether they need amping or not. They're considered starter-portables, so I would guess they wouldn't benefit much.
The Fiio probably isn't worth it for you for the amp (at this point, anyway), but the DAC functionality will probably be a sizable improvement over your onboard sound card. You'll probably also get a cleaner sound out of your iPod mostly because of the LOD  (which you must get
beyersmile.png
) bypassing the iPod's internal amp... which is a bit muddy.
 
If that's enough to sell you, go for it. Keep in mind that that it might not have the massive juice required to run some 'more serious' cans, like the K701. You'll find that a good amp is normally comes to the same price as the headphones, if not more. It's just the way things fly. However, it's good to get into amps fairly early on so you don't end up listening to HD650s out of your laptop sound card.
smile_phones.gif

 

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