FiiO X5 High Resolution Music Player (2nd Generation)(Titanium)

by people ...

Product Specifications

All new digital audio architecture: JZ4760B + SA2000 + PCM1792A + PGA2311A. Native DSD64/128 support and SACD ISOs.
High gain reaches 14V (+/-7V), 40% higher than the 1st gen X5, putting the op amps in their best working range, greatly increasing dynamics.
Top shelf PCM1792A from Texas Instrument coupled with new OPA1652 gives great dynamic performance
The X5-II makes use of two crystal oscillators, one each for the 44.1kHz and 48kHz frequency multiples.
Compared to the 1st gen X5, the new X5-II is 15% lighter and 12% smaller.

Product Description

FiiO X5 (2nd Generation) High Resolution Music Player (Titanium) 2015 NEWEST MODEL

Product Reviews

streaks ahead of the iPod, with some caveats

After researching this obsessively for a couple months (if not more), I decided to take the plunge and purchase this. I’ve never heard of the brand and honestly, didn’t think that an mp3 player with expandable storage even existed. The few negative reviews I found regarding the player were only for minor technical glitches, so I thought “go for it”.Got it in the mail with a 128gb micro sd card so I could start putting my music on it right away. This device does not have any onboard storage of its own, so you will need a memory card to use it. It has two memory card slots that specs say will support up to 128gb each, but I’ve read that some users have placed 200gb cards in it and had no trouble. I haven’t tried that (but I probably will).If you have a lot of music like I do, prepare to take a long time to transfer music to the memory card(s). I have approximately 100gb of music, so I’ve spent most of this week off and on transferring music. I say “off and on” because, well, life gets in the way and you have things to do other than sit in front of the computer all day eyeballing your transfers. You can use the included mini USB cable to hook the device to your computer and do it that way, or you can use an sd card adapter to put the memory card in the computer just by itself. I opted to hook my device up to my computer. Computer spots it right away as FiiO X5.What’s in the box? There are three skin stickers included. A US flag, a wood-grain themed skin, and black carbon fiber skin. Also included is a silicone case already placed on the device. I didn’t realize this and was nervously looking for the sd card slots before I realized “hey, there’s a case on here”. Case fits really well but is easy to remove when you want to. There is a short stereo cable adapter and two screen protectors as well. One screen protector is already on the device display. I’m impressed with this before I even start using it, because you don’t get all these little extras with an iPod. Don’t get me wrong; I have an iPod classic and love it, but iTunes has just gotten way too cumbersome to use and that makes using my iPod not as much fun. That, and my music collection has nearly outgrown my iPod’s fixed storage space.The device itself has an nice HD display with four or five different themes that you can switch to. All are vivid and bright. The menus are sharp on the display. The click wheel is similar to the iPod in most ways, but instead of the forward and backward clicks you would expect on an iPod, you have designated buttons on this device for forward/back/menu and volume. All buttons are easy to navigate and aren’t as easy to mistakenly click as you might think. Sometimes these buttons are a little laggy, but I think that’s because I have so much music. There are designated volume buttons on the side, plus you can use the click wheel too. I like that feature and find that I use the click wheel for volume when listening to music more than the actual volume buttons. The device will turn itself off after a period of time to save battery. It will support any type of music format: ogg, wav, mp3, mp4, flac, ape, aac, so don’t worry about converting all your music so that it will play. The device is weighty and has an aluminum metal body instead of plastic. I like the feel of it. It feels durable and substantial. I mean, who wants to pay this amount of money for a player and worry about it getting messed up whenever you take it out?Sound? WOW. I recently purchased as a Mother’s Day gift to myself a pair of beats pro dj headphones (the ones with the aluminum on the earcups) and already knew they had really good sound. When I paired those with my new mp3 player, I was blown away. I have heard sounds in my music that I never heard before. I read reviews where people mentioned this and were similarly blown away, but thought that they were just making it up. They weren’t kidding. Music really does sound amazing on this device.I’m still exploring all that this player does, but so far I’m really really impressed with it considering it’s a brand I’ve never heard of before and have never seen in a store. It’s got great sound, has awesome features, and it doesn’t feel like it’s got to be treated with kid gloves every time I use it. That’s a plus right there, because I’m going to take this on the road with me. I’ll be jamming all the way to California :)UPDATE 8/30/16- I have been able to figure out how to make playlists for this device. It’s rather a clunky method, because you can’t really do it like on an ipod, but it’s possible! I saw on the Fiio forums where someone downloaded foobar2000 and created m3u playlists within the app then transferred them to the device. It is possible to create OTG playlists on the device but that’s only as you listen to one song at a time. Playlists you create with foobar2000 will only show up under “categories”! Nowhere else will show your playlists and it must be on the memory card containing the music. You cannot edit the playlist on the device other than deleting it entirely. Searching takes a ridiculously LONG time if you have a large collection of music like me because you have to manually scroll through the list. They really need to add a search function to this. Seems like such a basic thing but for some reason it’s missing? Taking it down a star for that, but I’m still in love with it! I’m listening to it right now in fact. Hope this helps.UPDATE 10/14/16 they’ve made a search feature available on this device! I’m so jazzed. Works pretty well so far. Hold down the shortcut menu button in any category or folder and use the previous and next buttons on the bottom to alternate between letters and numbers for your search. Use the scroll wheel to choose your letters and numbers. This added feature is a very welcome addition.UPDATE 4/3/17: I’m still loving this player but have switched from the clunky and not-very-intuitive foobar2000 to MediaMonkey. I’ve given up making playlists at the moment because it’s still rather difficult. Searching on the device is better but still awkward if you’re only allowed to choose the first letter of either artist, song, or album. There is still room for improvement as far as searching.

FiiO’s Tour de Force

Attending a scoring session with a full orchestra is a very wonderful thing. When it’s for the first TV show you’ve created, it becomes even more memorable. The talented composer back then, who has since gone on to many illustrious things, waved his baton and guided topflight studio musicians through the rousing theme song he’d essayed for my show. I can distinctly remember getting the chills.After that, I’d hear this same theme song countless times in dubbing rooms, on the air, on vinyl, on audio cassette, on VHS, on laserdisc, on DVD, on 5.1 computer systems and even in a few dance clubs.I’d also heard it on an iPod using compressed audio. What can I say? It’s not ideal, but I also admit to eating microwaved ramen noodles.Anyway… last year I heard this very same tune in a lossless file, wearing top flight headphones, using a digital audio player made by a Chinese company named FiiO. This time I perceived things I’d only heard one time before… during that initial scoring session. I got the chills again. Every facet was there. I discerned a light tapping and realized that was the composer’s baton. I could hear subtle shifting in seats from the musicians as well as sheet music turning. None of this was distracting, instead creating an immersive aural experience and taking me back in time. It was incandescent and suddenly I started ripping a thousand plus CD collection into FLAC files so I could reacquaint myself with why I purchased all this music in the first place.The first FiiO I owned was their budget player X1. After years of listening to the compressed audio of an iPod, hearing true lossless and hi-res music was a reawakening for my ears even on their cheapest DAP. After that, I was bequeathed their superlative original X5 player, a powerful DAP with a potent amp and massive storage capacity via dual microSD cards. The X3 2nd Generation came next, a stellar piece of kit in a compact form with clear detail and well balanced, neutral sound.Then, FiiO opted to improve upon something already great… so we have this X5 2nd Generation, easily the best DAP they’ve ever made and the choice audio player within this price range and even many that cost more. This is wondrous, pure audio. Nice high end, full midrange and rich but not too oppressive bass. Music I’ve heard for years, I’m hearing anew. No need for an external amp as the X5 II easily drives most headphones on its own, but the addition of an amp will truly resound. This is a pleasure to listen to and a greater pleasure to own.I’ve read a few skeptics claim no one needs a standalone DAP and music sounds the same on a smartphone. FiiO caters to those with enthusiasm for their audio collections versus the average person’s casual listening. Look, everyone has different tastes. Some prefer Sevruga caviar over lumpfish roe. Others savor Domaine Ramonet Montrachet Grand Cru while the rest are just fine with “Two Buck Chuck.” These FiiO DAPs, while priced affordably, aren’t being marketed towards folks whose music collection is lumped alongside apps that tell them when their dry cleaning is ready. “Lawrence of Arabia” is a fantastic movie, but there’s a distinctive difference between watching it in a world class movie theater versus an iPad surrounded by distractions. The person watching it on a mobile device will feel they’ve seen the movie, but they didn’t truly experience it. As far as audio… FiiO gives you a chance to convert your CDs into lossless formats, as well as download hi-res tracks, and fully immerse yourself without getting texts from somebody asking you where to get good pho at three in the morning. You’re hearing something special.The FiiO X5 II has working voltage that reaches 14V at high gain. This DAP is able to decode DSD64/DSD128 in hardware as well as play SACD ISOs directly. Lossless formats are supported such as WAV, FLAC, APE, WMA, ALAC, AIFF up to 192 kHz/24 bit. There’s no jitter, which is greatly appreciated. This is a dedicated music player that isn’t preoccupied with multitasking like a smartphone. When a phone gets too busy with Safari while playing in your car, you might not like what you’re hearing.If you’re worried about what to replace your classic iPod with, look no further… the X5 2nd Generation is easily one of the best digital audio players currently available. The UI is easy to learn and besides improving on the sound of its predecessor, the new X5 is lighter and more compact, lending itself easily to transportability.It takes three hours to charge and I clocked battery life at approximately eleven hours.I clocked it while listening.

Love this thing.

A good successor to the iPod Classic for us MP3 horders.

Awesome for 24 bit music!

My iPod died, plus I had so much music I couldn’t fit it all on a 180g iPod. This provides 24bit music output, making it better than the iPod.

Three Stars

……

User friendly even for seniors

I bought this as a gift for my mother. The one I bought was previously used.My first impression is that the user interface is pretty friendly for the basics like finding and…

Awesome. Sounds great and more punchy if i connect …

Awesome. Sounds great and more punchy if i connect to A5 headphone amp. The only downside for me is no short cut access to EQ. But im still happy with it and no regret.

I love the sound quality and the sheer power of the …

I love the sound quality and the sheer power of the output. It handles my heavy headphones with ease.The FLAC capability is particularly useful.

Meh

Unimpressive sound. Bulky. UI is laggy compared to the 5 year old device it is replacing. Dual card slots is nice though.

Go Hi-Fi!

Amazing sound and a great deal! Music sounds incredible just make sure you play “lossless” files and use a good pair of headphones.

Good basic audiophile quality for the money.

Excellent sounding for the money. Love having 2 micro SD card slots. Good build quality. Battery life is adequate at best. No problems in the 7 months of ownership.