[Saoshyant]

  @bertha
 
Thanks for the suggestions. 
 
What are other peoples recommended heaphones in the £100/$160 bracket. Can we add more to the list?
 
Thanks guys

 
Too bad its a little out of your price range, the Dunu DN-1000 to me sounds amazing on the X3.  Rather nice clarity for classical pieces, and is capable of enough bass to be fun as well, plus it allows for some variation in it's sound depending which spacers you use.  I'd have to second the HF5 as well, an amazing IEM for it's price for classical.
 
Oh, and while this information is certainly not helpful because they're not easy to find these days.  The Hifiman RE-0 sounds quite good, to me at least, on the X3.

 

[Mr Trev]

Anybody else find that since 3.0, if you run the battery down to the point the x3 shuts itself off, you need to poke the reset button to get it to turn back on after its charged?
Happened to me a couple of time now. I'm also thinking my battery isn't all its cracked up to be, has anybody tried ordering another one from Fiio yet? My warranty just expired, and I really don't want to have to ship it China to get it replaced, but I'm sure I've read a person can just order a replacement.
 
@Andymaxwell : I've got a pair of gr07be that sound pretty good. Also a pair of pfe111s which are pretty good, plus a xba1  - which if you can get past the cable -  sounds good too.

 

[aangen]

I ran my battery down on my X3 (with 3.0) this weekend until it shutoff by itself. (Twice) I put it on the charger and it worked just fine after the charge. But then my IEMs cost over twice what the X3 cost so that must be why.

 

[howdy]

I sold my X3 probably 6+ months ago, anyways what are some of the major improvements that have taken place since that time as far as the sound goes. Is the SQ changing with the FW updates? the reason i ask is that the person i sold it really does not use it and offered it back at a ridiculous price break, i sold it for 180 and they offered it back for 100 bucks. So i think that is a wise investment for myself.
 
Thanks in advance.

 

[Mr Trev]

I ran my battery down on my X3 (with 3.0) this weekend until it shutoff by itself. (Twice) I put it on the charger and it worked just fine after the charge. But then my IEMs cost over twice what the X3 cost so that must be why.

You could always lend me a pair of your IEMs and I'll see if that helps
 
Don't matter how many or how long I push the buttons it just won't turn on till i stab the reset. Maybe this is the indication I need to show the battery has gone fubar. My laptop battery will go completely flat before the laptop even has a chance to hibernate, maybe this is the same type of thing. Of course this happens 1 month after the warranty expires....

 

[Wokei]

I sold my X3 probably 6+ months ago, anyways what are some of the major improvements that have taken place since that time as far as the sound goes. Is the SQ changing with the FW updates? the reason i ask is that the person i sold it really does not use it and offered it back at a ridiculous price break, i sold it for 180 and they offered it back for 100 bucks. So i think that is a wise investment for myself.

Thanks in advance.

sweet deal ....slightly improved ui ....better mp3 decoding .....sq ...some like it some prefer the older fw ....but all in all ...if it were me ...I'll get it as a spare ..juz in case

 

[gatucho]

The onkyos es-fc300 are quite good for $120, currently I consider them to be the best bang for the money in sq, finish and looks. There are pricier versions but their sq is the same.

The monster turbines copper can also be obtained cheap and sincerely I find that only iems in the level of the se846 are sufficiently better to care. Although bear in mind that I prefer dynamic, big-cans, sound.

 

[Mmet]

after the new firmware update ... and the enhanced decoding ..sound quality , is the measurements of S/N ratio & THD are the same ?.... if not what is the new measurements ?
 
and if i want to mod the DAC section with wm8741 ... is it will work fine ? and will measure better in terms of sound quality ... i know it will affect the battery life ... but not caring as i want to use the player with external amp 

 

[ati832]

I picked this up at auction for 25 pounds was a steal and it is an amazing player also.

 

[Andymaxwell]

Thanks @Saoshyant and @gatucho , it's true it's worth mentioning the more expensive headphones. If you don't mind getting them from China the Dunu DN-1000's can be got for just over £100, so that's great....although I'll keep to UK based suppliers. 

 

[FritzL]

What is the general opinion on using a portable headphone amp with the X3? I got an E6 free with a pair of headphones I bought and really liked the sound. But I am wondering if there was no improvement in sound quality but I like it because it is louder. Currently looking at E11, E12, JDS Labs C5 and C&C BH2. It seems like Schiit does not make a portable amp. But I am not sure the X3 needs a portable amp. I would only want one if it improved the sound quality.

 

[meat01]

I don't think the X3 needs an amp.

 

[TrollDragon]

I use the E12 / X3 combo for the DT880 Pro's, the E12 adds the extra headroom without having to switch the X3 into High Gain.

 

[Smurfs2010]

  What is the general opinion on using a portable headphone amp with the X3? I got an E6 free with a pair of headphones I bought and really liked the sound. But I am wondering if there was no improvement in sound quality but I like it because it is louder. Currently looking at E11, E12, JDS Labs C5 and C&C BH2. It seems like Schiit does not make a portable amp. But I am not sure the X3 needs a portable amp. I would only want one if it improved the sound quality.

I haven't had my X3 and JDS Labs C5D combo for long but I can tell you that I don't hear any improvement in sound quality,  However, the bass boost is very helpful with my AKG cans and my Shure SE425s.  I do like the combo.  Amp/DAC will help provide some robust sound to your headphones.

 

[x RELIC x]

What is the general opinion on using a portable headphone amp with the X3? I got an E6 free with a pair of headphones I bought and really liked the sound. But I am wondering if there was no improvement in sound quality but I like it because it is louder. Currently looking at E11, E12, JDS Labs C5 and C&C BH2. It seems like Schiit does not make a portable amp. But I am not sure the X3 needs a portable amp. I would only want one if it improved the sound quality.

First off what headphones are you driving?

The X3 is basically an e17 that can decode and playback music. It even has a slightly more powerful amp section than the e17 so for efficient headphones/earphones it should be more than adequate. If you prefer bass boost from a portable amp you should know that the X3 treble/bass controls are hardware based and analogue, and are very good.