[Caboose]

Didja' hear sound of ripping cellophane tape and cardboard?........The nice man in the brown shorts (that's the UPS guy for our non-US friends) just paid me a visit. I am holding in my hands my new X5L. WOW!, I've read a bunch on here about how well-constructed it seems to be and how small. I knew the dimensions, but was still expecting something much bigger. I'm loading it right now and will give some initial impressions (non-audiophile, unfortunately) when I have some listening under my belt.
Dean

 

[akwok]

Pictures! PICTURES!

I am anxiously waiting for mine too, can't wait to see how the sound quality is unamped!

 

[DJ Mauler]

me too PICTURES PICTURES PICTURE

 

[Caboose]

Guys,
I'm not too good at the picture thing, and couldn't produce anything that hasn't been posted in the DAPREVIEW or IAUDIOPHILE sites anyway.
However, I will give my very immediate impressions:
The build seems to be of excellent quality - as posted by others here who own it. Also, when they say it's smaller than they expected, believe them. It's smaller than the iPods I'm used to seeing.......and what can I say, it's BLACK!! (yeah, I have the E4's on order too).
Sound Quality: I don't have a lot to compare it to, but I can't imagine it really being much better. It sounds to me like I'm listening to the CD (actually better, but that's just the joy of actually listening to this player talking)

.
So far, I've listened to some of the following (through Radio Shack Pro 35A's):
Andre Rieu (classical) - Excellent.
FatBoy Slim - Excellent
Green Day - Excellenet
Harry Belafonte - older recording. wanted to hear something older that wasn't digitally recorded. As expected, lacking a bit, but because of the original recording, not the player.
Tragically Hip - Outstanding, but of course, this is one of my favorite albums ("Up to Here").
Controls (UI): As with most new electronics I get, I usually pitch the manual for a couple of days so I can just guess my way through things. So far, the user interface on this is no big mystery. As with anything, there are some things to get used to, but with such a feature intensive device, there's going to be a learning curve. It's not completely intuitive, but it's certainly not befuddling either. The controls are solid and don't seem to be prone to misfires (accidentally pressing). The display is nice, bright and clear. I haven't tried out any video yet, but I will. Besides, I bought this for music. The display will suit that purpose just fine.
Misc: The dongle for USB connection, AC, etc. is small. Will I lose it?....probably not. Will I be careful where I put it....YEP! Upload speed from my notebook PC to the X5 is very fast - compliments of the USB 2.0, I guess. I'm no expert on the software, and again I don't have a lot to complare it to, but it is intuitive and works well. I'll try to review this further when I have more time to play with it.
So far, so good! I will tell you this. I like the no plastic look of this DAP. It looks and feels like a high-quality piece of equipment.....and it should for the price. I will complare it to the iPod only because that seems to be the yardstick that people use. With regard to build-quality, my opinion is that the X5 has it all over iPod. I've only compared it to my co-workers, so not an exhaustive test by any stretch, but those are my first impressions.
I'll certainly comment more as I have more time to play with it.

 

[rbf1138]

Oh god...only one more day before I have one in my hands, as well...I'm dying here for this thing....

 

[darkninja67]

I have had my X5 for some time now and love it.
I sold my iPod and Karma due to the new addition. Enjoy yours as it is a very nice device. Video is decent if you know the limitations. Animations on it are good. Watching a 2 hour movie on it? Not so good.

Great sound, battery life and a solid build make this the player to beat.

 

[luuk]

I totally agree with you darkninja. I only wonder when the new firmware will come out(with id3tag hopefully). Did you get some extra's caboose? I got the dock, and must say it works fine, but the colour is a bit different(it's a little lighter and I don't think it's because of the light or something like that).
Really want to know something about the remote, with some pictures if possible. I posted some pictures of my x5 on the "portable rig" forum, if you want to see the beauty relaxing in it's dock. One thing I already lost: the rubberthing that is in the place where the subdock goes. but there was a extra one send with the package, so thanks to cowon for that.
sorry for my bad english, I'm tired, got alcohol in my blood etc.etc.

 

[Caboose]

Luuk, I didn't get any extras...... yet. I think I will pick up a dock since I will use this a lot at work. I may pick up an extra dongle (for USB and AC adapter connection) if those are available. I may also pick up a case, but I may wait to see what becomes available in the aftermarket. I have a feeling that this is going to be a verrry popular player so there should be a fair amount of accessories available later on. Based on some things I've read - I think from Uncle B here on Head fi - I don't think I will get the remote. I won't have a need for it very often, and he commented on it causing some wierd noises through the headphones. I was thinking about getting an amp, but honestly with the volume and outstanding sound quality I've heard from the X5, I don't think I need one.

 

[uncle b]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caboose I was thinking about getting an amp, but honestly with the volume and outstanding sound quality I've heard from the X5, I don't think I need one.

I agree, Caboose, the sound is so freakin' good, I've felt no need to carry around any amp with me...maybe when I'm hangin' at home. Also, I kinda wish I did get the cradle, instead of the remote. Ah, well...

 

[Caboose]

Well....I'm back at work and listening to the X5L. GAWWD!! This thing sounds great!!

I'm sorry if I'm sounding like some kind of fanboy. I'm sure many other DAP's sound great too. I was just playing with the EQ. Just so everyone is crystal clear on this point - There are 6 presets (Rock, Jazz, Vocal, Classical, Pop, Normal) and 1 User setting. But, they are all user adjustable. For example: I can go into the Rock preset and adjust the bass up or down, or go into Vocal and adjust any of the 5 levels (60, 250, 1K, 4K and 12kHz) up or down (from 0 to 10). so effectively, you have 7 user-adjustable EQ settings.
There certainly is nothing lacking from a bass or volume standpoint.
Again, I only have experience with this player, so I can't and won't criticize any of the others (except for my limited experience with apparent build quality), but I can't imagine how anyone would be disappointed with this player. I can't wait to get my E4's to see how much better this experience can get.
Do yourself a favor and at least check out the X5. iAudio needs to do themselves a favor though, and get these things out there in "brick-and-mortar" stores so that people can test them head to head against the competition.
Happy listening, Dean

 

[rbf1138]

Caboose, keep us posted on how the X5 sounds with the E4...I'm sitting here staring out the window waiting for my X5 to be delivered, and I'm considering buying some new headphones and the E4 are a top consideration.

 

[Caboose]

Will do. Actually, I'm listening through my cheapo Radio Shack Pro 35A's and they really do a bang-up job for $20 (on sale) headphones. I will do a bunch of listening through these so I can give a good comparison between them and the E4 IEMs (probably on the headphone forum, though).
Happy waiting. I can just picture you with your nose pressed against the window. I could never be a UPS guy. The temptation to dangle the package out the window at the end of the driveway and slowly drive away while the intended recipient chased me down the street would be too much

 

[darkninja67]

Quote:

Originally Posted by luuk I totally agree with you darkninja. I only wonder when the new firmware will come out(with id3tag hopefully). Did you get some extra's caboose? I got the dock, and must say it works fine, but the colour is a bit different(it's a little lighter and I don't think it's because of the light or something like that). Really want to know something about the remote, with some pictures if possible. I posted some pictures of my x5 on the "portable rig" forum, if you want to see the beauty relaxing in it's dock. One thing I already lost: the rubberthing that is in the place where the subdock goes. but there was a extra one send with the package, so thanks to cowon for that. sorry for my bad english, I'm tired, got alcohol in my blood etc.etc.

I read in the other thread you were looking for Alessandro MS-1 cans? I have a pair that I am looking to sell. email me at darkninja67@hotmail.com if interested.

I love my X5 too. The dock works very well for me.

 

[eeerie1]

Do we know for sure that the new firmware will support ID3 database? If so, I'll be ordering one real soon!

 

[Caboose]

I don't think anyone (except Cowon) knows that for sure at this point. It is the educated speculation though. I think the beta-testers from whom I've read reviews have pressed Cowon pretty hard on the ID3 issue and they seem to be fairly confident that Cowon will take their advice.
Is ID3 as big a deal in Europe and Asia as it is here? The reason I ask is because, up until very recently, Cowon hasn't had a US customer base demanding ID3 (for the X5, that is). However, they've been out for a while in Europe and Asia, so, if those users have been demanding it, there would be that much more momentum already built up.
We'll see. Fortunately, I don't even know what I'm missing yet.