rgr555
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2014
- Posts
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- 38
A shootout between the NWZ-A17 and FiiO X5 high-resolution players seemed like a good idea, as they're nearly the same price. The X5 is more powerful and can play full-size headphones a lot louder, but it's bigger and bulkier; I prefer the NWZ-A17's user-interface and easier-to-read display. The X5's controls are awkward to use, and worse yet, it occasionally stops playing tunes (the reset gets music back on track). The X5 sounds warmer and fuller paired with my Audio Technica ATH-M50x and Sony MDR 7520 headphones. The NWZ-A17 was lighter in tone, with a smaller sound stage. The X5 opens up the sound; it's less inside my head, and the X5 also did a much better job with difficult-to-drive (300 ohm impedance) Sennheiser HD-580 headphones. The NWZ-A17 didn't cut it with the HD-580s.
Continuing with Logitech UE 900 in-ear headphones, the X5 and NWZ-A17 were more evenly matched, but the tonal differences were still there. The NWZ-A17's sound is more present; the X5 is sweeter and more laid-back. Which is better is very much a question of personal taste. I prefer the X5, you might love the NWZ-A17.
http://www.cnet.com/news/sonys-tiny-high-resolution-audio-player-might-be-the-next-big-thing/#ftag=rss.audiophiliac.ftag
Continuing with Logitech UE 900 in-ear headphones, the X5 and NWZ-A17 were more evenly matched, but the tonal differences were still there. The NWZ-A17's sound is more present; the X5 is sweeter and more laid-back. Which is better is very much a question of personal taste. I prefer the X5, you might love the NWZ-A17.
http://www.cnet.com/news/sonys-tiny-high-resolution-audio-player-might-be-the-next-big-thing/#ftag=rss.audiophiliac.ftag