[ndburley]

I'm also curious about XD05 sound.. Is it rather warm like the X3 DAP? Or is it more transparent and dynamic?

I would say the XD-05 gives a cleaner and clearer detailed sound rather than warm one. I am not an expert by any means so describing it the best I can.  
When listening to the XDuoo X3 this player has a clean and detailed sound and the same can be said about the XD-05 but a fuller stage. It is like how sound would come across if Spock could tell you about music, clean to the point and nothing missed. I have fed it through a valve amp and the warmth you can notice but on its own very analytical but loosing detail from any of the ranges. The bass boost can be turned on and you notice it but it manages not to spill over at all into the mid range.
Again it depends on the headphones also, I use the BeyerDynamic DT990 Pro 250ohm mainly but otherwise the Soundmagic PL21 on ear. I do use my Koss Porta Pro with the X3 while walking to work and that can sound really warm but that is just the headphones. 

 

[sepinho]

Is that a 1/4" or a 1/8" headphone jack on the XD-05? It looks huge in the pictures.

 

[ndburley]

  Is that a 1/4" or a 1/8" headphone jack on the XD-05? It looks huge in the pictures.

Its the bigger jack 6.35mm 

 

[sepinho]

Yay, that means I can use my Fostex T50RP in a portable setup. Not-so-yay: I need a 6.3-to-3.5 for everything else.

 

[ndburley]

  Yay, that means I can use my Fostex T50RP in a portable setup. Not-so-yay: I need a 6.3-to-3.5 for everything else.

I have an adapter, i prefer it to be small to big than big to small, it always seems the stress from big to small may stress the plug out.

 

[mrinspire]

Yeah, me too

 

[ShreyasMax]

I am by no way a heavy user as I normally have a good listen at the weekend and use it for a few albums most evenings but it has 5 bars. Out of these 5 bars i have only ever got it to drop by 2 and that was after about 3 evenings of use on and off switching between aux and the pc. I have not fear that the XD-05 could last around 8 hours + more on the plus side. Using it last night and tonight and its dropped 1 bar now that is about 4 albums, I will not charge it and see what I can get out of it.  

Hello there, I'm currently using the original FiiO X3 paired with the E12A through line out, fed to the Fidelio X2 by Philips. I'm wondering if the XD05 connected through the coaxial input from the FiiO player would be a significant upgrade in terms of sound quality.

Thanks in advance,
Cheers

 

[ndburley]

Hello there, I'm currently using the original FiiO X3 paired with the E12A through line out, fed to the Fidelio X2 by Philips. I'm wondering if the XD05 connected through the coaxial input from the FiiO player would be a significant upgrade in terms of sound quality.

Thanks in advance,
Cheers

Really hard for me to give opinions on that as I do not own the E12A amp (I think my wife has got it for me for Christmas though as it was on my wish list) From reviews the E12A along with most Fiio products get good reviews. The XDuoo is more than an Amp as it will take optical and on my pc its a DAC so when listening to my tunes I use it instead of my sound card. I cannot fault it as it is powerful and very clear but also be used in many ways with added filters depending on how you are using it. It also has a front display with battery monitor, which filter you are using and what frequency it is coming through as. Compared to the E12A the XDuoo appears to be bigger but not enough to stop you using it on the go. You ca OTG it to your phone be it Apple or Android it is a jack in the box of tricks, you can just do a lot with it. Now if it sounds better that would be hard to say we all like different things but the XDuoo used as a DAC has a clean, clear sound with great separation and clarity I find. As an amp it clearly reproduces the quility of the play it is fed and you have 2 gain settings and a bass increase switch on the front. I have even fed it a valve pre amp and it amped the warmth nicely and does give plenty of power to drive most headphones. I feel the sound would be hard to beat as I love the clarity and detail as a DAC while as an amp I am sure it would give most a run for their money. (may let you know after Christmas if I get the Fiio ) 
I would also like to add that the sound when used as an amp feels fuller when powering higher ohm headphones, I noticed a real difference between my BeyerDynamic 250ohm and Soundmagic P21 for example, the XD-05 just amplified it perfectly keeping the sound clean.

 

[RedTwilight]

  Really hard for me to give opinions on that as I do not own the E12A amp (I think my wife has got it for me for Christmas though as it was on my wish list) From reviews the E12A along with most Fiio products get good reviews. The XDuoo is more than an Amp as it will take optical and on my pc its a DAC so when listening to my tunes I use it instead of my sound card. I cannot fault it as it is powerful and very clear but also be used in many ways with added filters depending on how you are using it. It also has a front display with battery monitor, which filter you are using and what frequency it is coming through as. Compared to the E12A the XDuoo appears to be bigger but not enough to stop you using it on the go. You can OTG it to your phone be it Apple or Android it is a jack in the box of tricks, you can just do a lot with it. Now if it sounds better that would be hard to say we all like different things but the XDuoo used as a DAC has a clean, clear sound with great separation and clarity I find. As an amp it clearly reproduces the quility of the play it is fed and you have 2 gain settings and a bass increase switch on the front. I have even fed it a valve pre amp and it amped the warmth nicely and does give plenty of power to drive most headphones. I feel the sound would be hard to beat as I love the clarity and detail as a DAC while as an amp I am sure it would give most a run for their money. (may let you know after Christmas if I get the Fiio ) 
I would also like to add that the sound when used as an amp feels fuller when powering higher ohm headphones, I noticed a real difference between my BeyerDynamic 250ohm and Soundmagic P21 for example, the XD-05 just amplified it perfectly keeping the sound clean.

 
Oh dear all this is pushing my wallet to the edge... 

 

 

[Aradea]

I am still considering between this and ibasso D14

 

[ShreyasMax]

Really hard for me to give opinions on that as I do not own the E12A amp (I think my wife has got it for me for Christmas though as it was on my wish list) From reviews the E12A along with most Fiio products get good reviews. The XDuoo is more than an Amp as it will take optical and on my pc its a DAC so when listening to my tunes I use it instead of my sound card. I cannot fault it as it is powerful and very clear but also be used in many ways with added filters depending on how you are using it. It also has a front display with battery monitor, which filter you are using and what frequency it is coming through as. Compared to the E12A the XDuoo appears to be bigger but not enough to stop you using it on the go. You ca OTG it to your phone be it Apple or Android it is a jack in the box of tricks, you can just do a lot with it. Now if it sounds better that would be hard to say we all like different things but the XDuoo used as a DAC has a clean, clear sound with great separation and clarity I find. As an amp it clearly reproduces the quility of the play it is fed and you have 2 gain settings and a bass increase switch on the front. I have even fed it a valve pre amp and it amped the warmth nicely and does give plenty of power to drive most headphones. I feel the sound would be hard to beat as I love the clarity and detail as a DAC while as an amp I am sure it would give most a run for their money. (may let you know after Christmas if I get the Fiio ) 
I would also like to add that the sound when used as an amp feels fuller when powering higher ohm headphones, I noticed a real difference between my BeyerDynamic 250ohm and Soundmagic P21 for example, the XD-05 just amplified it perfectly keeping the sound clean.

Thanks for the inputs, appreciate it. Of course sound preferences are always subjective as you rightly say.

Will look forward to your comparisons after Christmas then!

Cheers & Happy holidays

 

[ndburley]

   
Oh dear all this is pushing my wallet to the edge... 

 

I think you would love it but don't make yourself broke

 

[RedTwilight]

  I think you would love it but don't make yourself broke

 
Haha thanks, appreciate your concern. =) My wallet is strong willed that way, can probably last till next or following payday. Oh but Canjam is in Feb. Hm...

 

[SZGSS]

XDuoo  XD-05 already releasing.
I found it in aliexpress.
 
http://hz.aliexpress.com/item/New-arrival-XDuoo-XD-05-Portable-Audio-DAC-Headphone-AMP-support-native-DSD-decoding-32bit-384khz/32575963957.html?spm=2114.01020208.3.41.WNnJ4J&ws_ab_test=searchweb201556_7,searchweb201644_2_79_78_77_82_80_62_81,searchweb201560_5
 
 
http://hz.aliexpress.com/item/2016-New-arrival-XDuoo-XD-05-Portable-Audio-DAC-Headphone-AMP-support-native-DSD-decoding-32bit/32577386004.html?spm=2114.01020208.3.73.TYSm31&ws_ab_test=searchweb201556_7,searchweb201644_2_79_78_77_82_80_62_81,searchweb201560_5&smToken=702189e975634885919947a4826bef8a&smSign=fyIubUnjWeZi8BH8wwPHuQ%3D%3D

 

[haens]

quick impressions after I received it today - stay away from it. the volume output is so loud its practically unusable. its like it was made by deaf people for deaf people otherwise I have no explanation why would anyone want it to play loud like that.
 
DAC function into active speakers - I almost blew my speakers of (and I didnt even have my foobar on full volume). I had to set foobar volume level to +- 5 % (of the full scale) to be at normal listening level. which is meaningles because all other system sounds play at "normal" volume which is insanely loud and I believe could damage your equipment.
 
Coax in - again too loud. I believe you could easily damage your ears when not careful. with more sensitive IEMs (BA - my Heir 8.0) very shortly after the volume knob starts to turn (1-2 mm turn) I get to level way beyond my usual comfortable listening level. I have to do really slight changes (around 1/10 mm) with the volume knob to try to get to volume level I would like and I still cant get there, its either little bit louder or little bit quieter than I would like it to be. it gets little bit better with not so sensitive IEMs (my Vsonic 07BE) but still far from being comfortable for normal listening usage. with overear HP (Hifiman HE-300) the situation is little bit better than Vsonic meaning I can turn the volume a bit more and I think its finally enough that I could get to volume level I want. but still its in the first 20 % of the volume knob turn.
 
Android phone - just did a short comparison and the situation is better than Coax in. the volume knob is not so sensitive and I was able to find good listening level and when listening with my Heir 8 it was similar to listening through Coax with HE-300.
 
another issue - slight channel imbalance. I noticed the right channel plays a little bit "louder" (or more like the center of the sound is more shifted to the right side) than left, also when turning volume from 0 up the sound comes from right side first. it is present in Coax mode, Android mode and even in the Line in mode so my guess is it has something to do with amp section...,
 
so my advice - dont use it as DAC, be extremely careful when using it in Coax mode and if possible dont use it at all. unless there comes some fw update that deals with the loudness and channel imbalance its just waste of moneys -_-