The Fiio X5 Thread

[CosmicHolyGhost]

So is the amp portion in X3 that produces the most heat?

This is a good idea to use X3 as the DAC/transport and then LO analog signal to external amp.

Just my speculation.... I just want to say that I am truly satisfied with this portable setup (x3 + amp) there r still usability improvement to be made but I will just wait for incremental update....

I may even sell my AK100 and use $ to upgrade full sized headphonea for home use...

 

[cyberalpha11]

Quote:

Just my speculation.... I just want to say that I am truly satisfied with this portable setup (x3 + amp) there r still usability improvement to be made but I will just wait for incremental update....

I may even sell my AK100 and use $ to upgrade full sized headphonea for home use...

I thought eventhough X3 is quite on par with AK100 in term of SQ but the overall SQ in AK100 is still much better than X3, right?

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

I thought eventhough X3 is quite on par with AK100 in term of SQ but the overall SQ in AK100 is still much better than X3, right?

I am no good in describing sound.....


If you like Bill Evans' Waltz for Derby (24bit) flac, Ak100 alone is good enough but the bass maybe lacking but overall mood is really better than X3.

If you need some Hard Bop like Lou Donaldson's Alligator Bogaloo, you will want to amp both... And then at 61 HO of Ak100 performed badly with X3 LO

If you put on full vol AK100, the result is totally horrible... So you may need to invest further to mod Ak100 and the overall Ak100/120 and firmware (russian and official ) fiasco left a bit sour feeling to me and I lost some faith in Iriver

I will most likely buy X5 bcos I trust Fiio to get it right

 

[kkcc]

I thought eventhough X3 is quite on par with AK100 in term of SQ but the overall SQ in AK100 is still much better than X3, right?

I would definitely say sound wise AK100 is just on par with X3. Personally I like sound of X3 better. Considering the price difference, I probably won't trade the AK100 for AK120 if it sounded better or as good as the X3.

 

[AmberOzL]

X3 is better than AK100 which costs 3 times X3.
 
X5 will be better than AK120 which costs 3 times X5.
 
One should see how manufacturer can be greedy or friendly.
 
Ps: That's my guess that X5 will sound better than AK120, surely nobody knows how X5 sounds but more I read James's idea and plans about X5 more I trust this newcoming Reference DAP.

 

[kkcc]

X3 is better than AK100 which costs 3 times X3.

X5 will be better than AK120 which costs 3 times X5.

One should see how manufacturer can be greedy or friendly.

Ps: That's my guess that X5 will sound better than AK120, surely nobody knows how X5 sounds but more I read James's idea and plans about X5 more I trust this newcoming Reference DAP.

You guess could be true.

But AK120 is much harder to beat as it truly sound great, in a tiny package no less. Even my much bigger HM-901 would need the upgraded balanced amp board to match/beat it. Will certainly be a tall. order for X5 and hope James and team will succeed.

Also, X3 is only better than AK100 only on soundrice ratio and we all know as much as we care about the sound, other factors also affect our overall experience and satisfaction of a portable device...

 

[AmberOzL]

Quote:

You guess could be true.

But AK120 is much harder to beat as it truly sound great, in a tiny package no less. Even my much bigger HM-901 would need the upgraded balanced amp board to match/beat it. Will certainly be a tall. order for X5 and hope James and team will succeed.

Also, X3 is only better than AK100 only on soundrice ratio and we all know as much as we care about the sound, other factors also affect our overall experience and satisfaction of a portable device...

I will also get X5 too and If I can manage my budget I am thinking about getting HDP R10, I could do a little comparison in between but I am not an audiophile nor Mr. Golden Ears. I am just a person who is in love with music so I wouldn't take my review very seriously 

 However on user experience part, I can do nice things explaining how easy to use or how it drives me crazy 

 
Edit: I am not paying 1300 euro for AK120 so you can do the comparison in between not me 

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

X5 will probably not be accessible to all until 2014? It gives me time to upgrade IEM in preparation for it also....

 

[kimvictor]

I went for the AK100. Buying locally tomorrow.
Here is why I didn't go for the X5: (many are speculations, as many of you may know)
1. Design(I really liked the design/case of ak100)
2. Size
3. Ease of buying(in Korea)
4. Price(you can find AK100 for less than $500 new in Korea)
5. AK100's ability to be used as a DAC
6. AK100's potential upgrade(aka modding)
7. Release date of X5(it's taking too long)

 

[kkcc]

Quote:

I will also get X5 too and If I can manage my budget I am thinking about getting HDP R10, I could do a little comparison in between but I am not an audiophile nor Mr. Golden Ears. I am just a person who is in love with music so I wouldn't take my review very seriously 

 However on user experience part, I can do nice things explaining how easy to use or how it drives me crazy 

 
Edit: I am not paying 1300 euro for AK120 so you can do the comparison in between not me 

 
Will try to give some impression.  I'm not a professional reviewer and is way too lazy to properly A/B equipment!  I promised a few members in PM to share my AK120 vs HM-901 impression but had been too lazy to type up anything proper...
 
1300 euro for you guys really sucks while we get it under 1000 euro in Asia!

 

[Deviltooth]

Bluetooth doesn't sound good and eats battery power rapidly. I certainly don't need it in a device with the sole purpose of delivering a premium audio experience.

 

[AmberOzL]

Quote:

 
Will try to give some impression.  I'm not a professional reviewer and is way too lazy to properly A/B equipment!  I promised a few members in PM to share my AK120 vs HM-901 impression but had been too lazy to type up anything proper...
 
1300 euro for you guys really sucks while we get it under 1000 euro in Asia!

Well I hope you enjoy it then because if I could find it around 800 900 euros I would consider it seriously but with that price, no way 

 Good luck and A/B job 

 

[kkcc]

Quote:

Well I hope you enjoy it then because if I could find it around 800 900 euros I would consider it seriously but with that price, no way 

 Good luck and A/B job 

 
Long story short, soundwise I'm liking 901+balanced board more than the AK120 on most tracks/genres and when paired with most of my IEMs.  The single exception was with XBA4 which sounded markedly better on the AK120 for some reason.

 

[AmberOzL]

Quote:

 
Long story short, soundwise I'm liking 901+balanced board more than the 120 on most tracks/genres and when paired with most of my IEMs.  The single exception was with XBA4 which sounded markedly better on the AK120 so some reason.

XBA4 has impedance of 8, AK120 OI is 3 or 3.5. I am sure its FR chart is changed a bit but apparently that sounds better in this way 

 I removed HM901 from my list due to build quality problems and service of Hifiman. Fang doesn't seem very keen on communication and care about us. I respect him and his job, he brought a lot of delightful equipment but sometimes it doesn't feel correct. HM901 is one of these products in my eyes. Doesn't matter how good it sounds if I buy it, it will drive me crazy I know it.

 

[CosmicHolyGhost]

Quote:

I went for the AK100. Buying locally tomorrow.
Here is why I didn't go for the X5: (many are speculations, as many of you may know)
1. Design(I really liked the design/case of ak100)
2. Size
3. Ease of buying(in Korea)
4. Price(you can find AK100 for less than $500 new in Korea)
5. AK100's ability to be used as a DAC
6. AK100's potential upgrade(aka modding)
7. Release date of X5(it's taking too long)

Hello, I hope you will enjoy your purchase tomorrow.  since X5 is not yet released commercially, it does not make sense to compare it on certain attributes such as design, size and stuff.
 
However if we down a notch to compare it with X3:
 
1. Design, Agree totally, the design of AK100 is more sleek
2. Size, X3 is bigger but it is not crazily big and will fit in most jeans/pants pocket.
3-4. X3 is still cheaper
5. I feel that even if it can be used as a DAC, the lack of Line Out and Optical Out will prevent you to connect to home equipments
6. My feeling to the modification on the market is a reminder of the design flaws in the product itself and the hefty cost. The upgrade to X3 I can think of right now is buying an external amp and better iem
7. X3 will be released next month
 
My experience with AK100 so far.
1. Bought immediately when my friend told me in a dinner party about a DAP that can support 24/192 FLAC
2. Felt that there is something missing with the sound quality
3. Searched on internet and stumbled upon head-fi and the discussion of RWAK

4. Found out the release of Ak120 to fix the problems of AK100...

5. Bought a portable amp but still not satisfied with the SQ, tried many different vol output

6. Bought Fiio E17 to improve SQ

7. Learnt about Fiio X3
 
and PROBLEM SOLVED!