[Moscow]

Best deal for your budget is the Pioneer XDP-300R, it can be have from Amazon Japan for $250

Checked Amazon, this DAP is over $300. Guess I missed a chance.

 

[dc430]

Checked Amazon, this DAP is over $300. Guess I missed a chance.

Pick the one sold by Amazon, should have a 5000 yen discount upon checkout

 

[harishmirror]

Have used the E11K for a while and planning to upgrade to A5. Anyone advice if A5 is a good choice to go with Sony Z5? I am just confused between A5, PHA1A and PHA3

 

[Voxata]

I can only tell you the A5 is a huge upgrade from what you've got. I don't think there is much better out there for the $.

 

[Light - Man]

  Have used the E11K for a while and planning to upgrade to A5. Anyone advice if A5 is a good choice to go with Sony Z5? I am just confused between A5, PHA1A and PHA3

 
My advice is to try to avoid amping if possible and get some headphone that suits your music player.
 
You are better off telling people what gear you already have so they can advise you better.
 
I am not a fan of the A5 (as I have stated before and will likely say it for the last time).
 
You could also look at the Topping NX5 amp or Cayin C5 amp.
 
At the moment I am listening to the Huawei Y6ii smart phone which sounds surprisingly good with my Yamaha HPH-MT220.
 
The game has moved on recently and I reckon Fiio will have to get new people on board or they will be left behind. All IMO! 

 

[Voxata]

Why? The A5 is superb for the money, and the sound is much thicker than no amp at all on my cans with aid to a black background, resolve from my X5 with all the details coming through. The best part is the soundstage is not sacrificed. I can also drive IEMs or power hungry cans. Your advice is concerning and biased against Fiio. My portable combo is fantastic, even at driving the HE-560 it punches above its price point. It's no desktop rig but for a portie.. awesome!

 

[Light - Man]

^ It is just my honest opinion - people can take it or leave it - I have no issue with Fiio - I just wish it was better.
 
I notice on HF that there are fan boys on all the big brand threads hyping stuff that IMO are over hyped including the Chord Mojo.
 
I prefer the E12A but that is also not perfect but I do understand that people who have hard to drive H/phones may need an amp.
 
No doubt that the Fiio amps are well made and well priced and the Fiio rep is very polite. 

 

[ceemsc]

My advice is to try to avoid amping if possible and get some headphone that suits your music player.

I take it you mean avoiding External amping rather than amping in general as all audio signals need amping to hear them even it is by the amp module on the source / DAP.

Also something needs to provide the voltage & current to the headphone drivers be it onboard or separate. How much energy does that drain overall? Surely expecting the source to handle every part of the audio chain is quite a demand on a singular 2000 mAh battery assuming it is also not dealing with phone/wi-fi functions as well...

Are there DAPs/sources out there that provide dedicated high-end amping to drive anything? From what I've seen, the focus & headline was on the premium DAC and only able to adequately drive sub-100 ohm impedance headphones accurately; restricting headphone choices.

The point I'm making is that external amps provide practical advantages...

 

[Voxata]

I've no reason to hype Fiio as a "fanboy". I praise this amp for its capabilities and because it is a move forward for Fiio compared to their previous products. Before owning this combo I hadn't looked to them since the original E11 and an E09K I stumbled across. Fiio changing my mind deserves a nod for sure.

Also it is fairly common that DAPs usually have stronger DAC than amp sections so added amps are usually of benefit. To me the addition of the amp was a boost in SQ and well over the X5 itself and also the E12 it replaced that came with my stack (only bought the two because of a great deal, glad I took the dive). I'm all about criticism of a product, but outright meritless bashing of a great product deserves a response so that readers don't make assumptions based on such.

 

[TheoS53]

I've no reason to hype Fiio as a "fanboy". I praise this amp for its capabilities and because it is a move forward for Fiio compared to their previous products. Before owning this combo I hadn't looked to them since the original E11 and an E09K I stumbled across. Fiio changing my mind deserves a nod for sure.

Also it is fairly common that DAPs usually have stronger DAC than amp sections so added amps are usually of benefit. To me the addition of the amp was a boost in SQ and well over the X5 itself and also the E12 it replaced that came with my stack (only bought the two because of a great deal, glad I took the dive). I'm all about criticism of a product, but outright meritless bashing of a great product deserves a response so that readers don't make assumptions based on such.

Agreed, however I personally also feel we have somewhat of a responsibility to criticize a bit more than praise products. At the end of the day, no company is doing us a favour by "allowing" us to buy their products. They need us, they depend on people buying their products. By taking their products, they expect a payment in return (the basic concept of a sale), and I feel that at any point, if something is expected in return, you have every right to scrutinize that product whichever way you see fit. 

But I agree, sometimes people do tend to go a little overboard with the bashing. It's not entirely their fault though, because if the product wasn't flawed, there'd be no reason for them to criticize it. I feel it's when their concerns and criticisms aren't taken into account by the manufacturer for their future products, and constantly repeating the same mistakes, that the consumer's frustration boils over to a point where it may appear like needless, over-the-top bashing

 

[brugis]

Any one try a Ibasso DX90+Fiio A5+Audio tehnica MSR7?

 

[Hijodelbrx]

Compared to the E12/E12A, the A5 hasn't generated anywhere near the 'buzz' of it's predecessor's. Leaves me wondering if, as an E12 owner, would getting an A5 be considered a move up or a lateral?

 

[Voxata]

Issue I had with the E12 on my X5 was a compressed soundstage. The A5 solves this with better sound as well. If you can recoup a decent amount for the E12 highly worth it and is what I did.

 

[ViolinsNVolta]

Just got my A5 to go with my X5ii. I previously had the e12 with X5ii. I have terrible ears but one thing I can say for sure- at higher volumes, music is much more tight and clear with the a5. The e12 seemed to lose control of music at higher volumes...became almost unbearable...please excuse my lack of audiophile terminology.
Also, my 2 more sense-
T90's + a5 + x5ii > T90's + Portaphile 627x + iPod (160gb)

 

[LoneRanger]

Issue I had with the E12 on my X5 was a compressed soundstage. The A5 solves this with better sound as well. If you can recoup a decent amount for the E12 highly worth it and is what I did.

 
I've got the E12 also and I like it but do find that there is quite a bit notable hiss in the background - does the A5 solve this problem (especially with iem's) ?