ADL X1: The X1 presents with a larger space than the X3 headphone out, and about on par with the FSM-02 V2, however the bass is less prominent. Overall the sound quality is similar to the X3 and the FSM. 7.5/10 Disclaimer: Lieven and I both received a free Fiio X3 from Fiio. The Headfonia Store does sell some Fiio products, as well as other popular products mentioned here such as Astell & Kern, Altmann Tera, Hifiman, Fostex, etc. For pop, jazz, and other closed miked modern recording, Yamaha EPH-100 gives the best sound, nice bass, full bodied and rounded vocal, soft and smooth treble that never have any problem with sibilant. Superlux HD 381F also pairs nicely with X3, but EPH-100 sounds nicer with better detail. It is a modest boost but a boost nonetheless by going balanced. Certainly, it has more power than the 80mW unbalanced output of the Colorfly C10 and slightly better SNR numbers to boot. However, compared to the older X3ii, the power output of the X3iii has dropped a little from the >200 mW rating on the previous release. Dynamic Range

In general, balance between lows and highs is very good. No matter how big the bass, or how trilly the treble, lows and highs maintain great balance and detail at all safe listening levels. Alongside the X7 Mark II, FiiO F5 and F9, FiiO made a big push for increased performance using their tried and tested value for money message that has served them well down through the years. As mentioned just a bit ago, the midrange falls in line with the bass experience, and the entire bottom and middle sections of most of my listening tests were extremely linear feeling. Meaning, equal bass, and mids without either feeling more prominent than the other. FiiO X3 is a digital music player manufactured and marketed by FiiO Electronics Technology. The player utilizes a built-in Wolfson DAC, and is capable of reproducing music sampled at 192kHz with a sample size of 24-bits per channel, in addition to functioning as a USB audio interface. The X3 is a mid-level member of the FiiO X Series of portable music players. It supports major lossy music formats such as MP3, and lossless music formats such as FLAC. Very few if any earphones out there should stump the X3’s amp section. It is most comfortable with earphones that average >8Ω under load, but is more than capable even below that.Try as I might I could not get any connectivity from my Chrome Book (Asus Flip). I do know the new Q5 will work from the same Chrome Book so perhaps FiiO is using a set of drivers specific to just the most popular platforms for their mid to low-end Linux DAPs. Performance Design-wise the Mark III is a huge step up from the older shape of the X3ii. It looks far more modern and slimline than the two previous X3 generations. For those that have seen, used or own a second-generation X1, the X3 Mark III form factor is very familiar. In fact, face down you could argue that the Mark III is a blown-up X1 Mark II.

The amping on the X3 Gen 2 has also had a change from the original X1. Specs-wise, the X3 2G is now positioned more for higher sensitivity headsets and earphones than the older X1 with a slight decrease in proportional gain for specific loads. Gone now is the 16-300ohm rating and in comes now 16-150 ohm rating with an increased SNR to 114db from the older 104db. It also marked a new stage in their own in-house R&D capability with the expansion of their proprietary Linux OS where once HiBy Music reigned supreme. Previously the OS was used in a gingerly fashion with the X1 2nd Gen. Mixed results ensued.The X3 Gen 2 also weighs almost 30g more than the X1 out of the box and combined with the added girth it does feel more substantial than the X1 in day-to-day use. Outs Like the previous generation X3 the new X3 Mark III does not have any onboard memory. Instead, you have a single micro SD slot to the left side panel for cards up to 256Gb official. The FiiO X3 features a prominent bass region, especially the mid bass which is bumped up a bit. With bassy songs and already bassy headphones, I’ve felt a need to EQ down the bass a bit at some times(a rare for me). But of course, the slight bump in mid bass prominence isn’t to be taken as an overly big one, its just a sonic feature of the X3. The extension of the X3 has no visible problems.