[oldmate]

When is the X3 stacking get getting released James??

 

[viperman3]

James, any ETA on when next firmware update will be released? 3.21beta has been out for some time now.

 

[sparda0]

I am planning to buy this DAP next week. I've heard it twice and I was blown away with its SQ. I prefer neutral sound with clear and detailed mids. However I am torn between this and the X1. I am afraid to experience all the software bugs present and mentioned in this thread.
 
Can anyone tell me which sounds better and more neutral? X3 or X1? I am using a pair of Sony EX-510 IEM which sounds neutral on the Voodoo'd Galaxy S1 with Wolfson DAC. 
 
Which is better guys among the three? X3? X1? or if anyone used a Galaxy S1 with Voodoo Sound. Please give me a brief comparison. 
 
Most people say that the Wolfson DAC used on X3 makes it a lot better than most of the competition on the same price bracket. 
 
My Samsung Galaxy S1 with Wolfson WM8994 blows away every Walkman and iPods i listened to.

 

[betula]

  I am planning to buy this DAP next week. I've heard it twice and I was blown away with its SQ. I prefer neutral sound with clear and detailed mids. However I am torn between this and the X1. I am afraid to experience all the software bugs present and mentioned in this thread.
 
Can anyone tell me which sounds better and more neutral? X3 or X1? I am using a pair of Sony EX-510 IEM which sounds neutral on the Voodoo'd Galaxy S1 with Wolfson DAC. 
 
Which is better guys among the three? X3? X1? or if anyone used a Galaxy S1 with Voodoo Sound. Please give me a brief comparison. 
 
Most people say that the Wolfson DAC used on X3 makes it a lot better than most of the competition on the same price bracket. 
 
My Samsung Galaxy S1 with Wolfson WM8994 blows away every Walkman and iPods i listened to.

I would not worry about the bugs. These are just minor issues for some people. 98% of X3 owners use it without any problem. Including me. SQ is really amazing for the price. 

 

[sparda0]

Thanks but can you share a comment about its SQ compare to X1? I like X1's UI and yes, design better than X3 but I am really worried about it offering less than X3 in terms of neutrality and SQ.

 

[KLJTech]

Sorry if this is a stupid question but once you've updated your firmware (by loading the new file on your MicroSD card) and its working fine can you then delete the FW # file? I don't know if the FW file (after the update is run) updates the information on the onboard memory and is then no longer needed.
 
Thanks in advance. 

 

[bruce1967]

  Sorry if this is a stupid question but once you've updated your firmware (by loading the new file on your MicroSD card) and its working fine can you then delete the FW # file? I don't know if the FW file (after the update is run) updates the information on the onboard memory and is then no longer needed.
 
Thanks in advance. 

You can delete it after the update. It's no longer needed after that.

 

[bruce1967]

  Thanks but can you share a comment about its SQ compare to X1? I like X1's UI and yes, design better than X3 but I am really worried about it offering less than X3 in terms of neutrality and SQ.

I'm not an audiophile but I own the X3 and had the X1 for awhile before I sold it and I prefer the sound of the X3 much more than the X1. It just seems like its much warmer and richer...more organic and natural I guess. Plus it's more powerful. I also prefer the buttons over the scroll wheel which seems flimsy and too sensitive to me.

 

[TheoS53]

 
I'm not an audiophile but I own the X3 and had the X1 for awhile before I sold it and I prefer the sound of the X3 much more than the X1. It just seems like its much warmer and richer...more organic and natural I guess. Plus it's more powerful. I also prefer the buttons over the scroll wheel which seems flimsy and too sensitive to me.

I think it would be best to say which cans you were using with each device. the X3 paired with a certain set of cans may sound better than when it's paired with the X1..and the opposite may be true for a different set of cans

 

[sparda0]

So you are current using the X1? With your statements it seems like the SQ difference is quite huge, right? How about comparing it to a Samsung Galaxy S1 with Voodoo Sound, any thoughts?

 

[bruce1967]

  I think it would be best to say which cans you were using with each device. the X3 paired with a certain set of cans may sound better than when it's paired with the X1..and the opposite may be true for a different set of cans

True...I was using mostly the DN-1000 and Brainwavz S5 with both units.

 

[jared basshead]

So my curiousity always takes the best of me so I had e11 but never planned to use it with X3 but thought let's AB the amp section of x3 and e11. So here's what I feel
X3 to e11 the background seems more darker and organic, mids are little forward while highs the opposite. I like it...
And then straight from x3, the amp section of x3 seems more transparent than both E11 and amp section of e7. There's more detail that I seemed to miss on others. I like them more now. Good job Fiio

Note : something tells me e11 is more powerful than x3 stand-alone, theres just more room on the volume pot, a 30' turn is loud enough on low gain while I need to be around 70-80 clicks on x3 on low gain

 

[Ananasov]

Hey guys,
 
How does x3 matches with grado s80? 
 
Can you recommend anything else at that price range?

 

[Andymaxwell]

  Thanks but can you share a comment about its SQ compare to X1? I like X1's UI and yes, design better than X3 but I am really worried about it offering less than X3 in terms of neutrality and SQ.

Try this review. Found it quite handy for your exact query.
 
http://headfonics.com/2014/10/the-x1-dap-by-fiio/

 

[baudm]

  I would not worry about the bugs. These are just minor issues for some people. 98% of X3 owners use it without any problem. Including me. SQ is really amazing for the price. 

Honestly, we should worry about the bugs. I was very excited when I first got my X3. A Hi-Fi DAP which could also be used as a DAC for under $200? That's a really good price to performance ratio right there. However, it's primarily a standalone music player which means that the user has to deal with its user interface--which sucks, big time.
 
1. The one bug that really annoyed me since day 1 is that it doesn't remember the path of the currently playing song. This means that if you navigate back to the main menu, and go back to "now playing," you can no longer go back to the list of the songs. It's a freaking annoying bug, really. I don't know why it's still not fixed now.
 
2. Say you wanted to play songs from a particular artist which starts with the letter L. Good luck with that. It'll take about 20 seconds to scroll from either A through L or Z through L if you have a substantial amount of songs with different artists. It's that frustrating. Now what if you wanted to play songs from another artist (close to letter L) but you accidentally went back to the main menu? See bug #1.
 
3. There should be an option from within the "now playing menu" to change the bass and treble gain. Why? If you want to change the settings, you'd have to go back to the main menu. Now what? See bug #1.
 
4. Firmware v3.0 introduced a grid-based UI and circular menus. Seriously? Who's the genius behind that dimwit move? I've been using v3.x of the firmware for 3 months now but my muscle memory can't still grasp the fact that in order to go to the right item in the "now playing" menu, you'd have to hit the "left" ('up', actually) button (the 'up' button is positioned to the right of the 'down' button).
 
5. Playlists, not just a single playlist (favorites).
 
To lessen my frustrations, I simply use it as a DAC when I'm at home or at work. Other than these problems, it's actually pretty good (sound quality-wise).