FiiO X Series

The FiiO X Series is a line of portable music players designed and manufactured by the Chinese company FiiO Electronics Technology.

FiiO X Series

Manufacturer	FiiO Electronics Technology
Type	Digital media, Portable media player, USB audio interface
System on a chip	Ingenic JZ4760B[1] or Rockchip RK3188
CPU	XBurst1 (MIPS32)[1] or Cortex A9 (ARMv7)
Removable storage	microSD slot accepts SD, SDHC, and SDXC cards up to 128 GB
Input	Physical buttons
Connectivity	USB 2.0
Power	Li-Ion rechargeable battery
Website	www.fiio.com.cn

Models

• All models support digital audio sampled up to 192 kHz with samples of up to 24 bits.
• All models support the lossless audio formats FLAC, ALAC, Monkey's audio (APE), WMA Lossless, and WAV.
• All models support the lossy audio formats AAC, MP3, Ogg Vorbis, and WMA.
• All models support gapless playback and hardware (non DSP) bass and treble controls.

Model	Released	MSRP	Display		SoC	RAM	Storage		Battery Capacity	Audio Output	Connectivity		DAC	USB DAC	DSD Support	Dimensions	Weight
			Screen	Touchsceen			Internal Storage	microSD Slots			WiFi	Bluetooth
X1 [2]	2014	$100	TN 320x240	No	Ingenic JZ4760B Xburst1 (MIPS32)	—	None	1	1700 mAh	Single 3.5 mm jack, headphone/line-level selectable	No	No	TI PCM5142	No	No	96.7 × 57.7 × 14.1 mm	106 g
X1 (Second Gen) [3]	2016	$120	IPS 320x240						1800 mAh			Yes	TI PCM5242			97 × 55.5 × 12 mm	102 g
X3 [4]	2013	$300					8 GB		3100 mAh	Three 3.5 mm jacks: headphone, line-level, digital		No	Wolfson WM8740	Yes	Yes	109 × 55 × 16 mm	122 g
X3 (Second Gen) [5]	2015	$200					None		2600 mAh	Two 3.5 mm jacks, headphone, shared line-level/digital		No	Cirrus Logic CS4398			96.7 × 57.7 × 16.1 mm	135 g
X5 [6]	2014	$350	IPS 400x360					2	3700 mAh	Three 3.5 mm jacks: headphone, line-level, digital		No	TI PCM1792A			67.6 × 114 × 15.6 mm	195 g
X5 (Second Gen) [7]	2015	$350							3300 mAh	Two 3.5 mm jacks, headphone, shared line-level/digital						109 × 63.5 × 15.3 mm	165 g
X5 (Third Gen) [8]	2017	$350	IPS 480x800	Yes	Rockchip RK3188 (ARMv7)	1 GB	32 GB		3400 mAh	Two 3.5 mm jacks: headphone, line-level/ digital One 2.5 mm jack: balanced headphone port	Yes	Yes	AK4490			114.2 × 66.2 × 14.8 mm	186 g
X7 [9]	2016	$550						1	3500 mAh	Two 3.5 mm jacks: headphone, line-level/ digital			ES9018S			130 × 64 × 16.6 mm	220 g
X7 Mark II [10]	2017	$650				2 GB	64 GB	2	3800 mAh	Two 3.5 mm jacks: one for headphone, line-level/ digital one for shared LO/Coaxial out One 2.5 mm jack: balanced headphone port			ESS9028 PRO			128.7 × 67.2 × 15.5mm	212 g

Reception

Main article: FiiO X3 Portable Music Player

FiiO X3 with headphones

In reviewing the FiiO X3, LA Times' music critic Mark Swed concluded it is a better alternative to an iPod. Swed noted that the X3 utilizes that same digital-to-analog converter that is found in much more expensive players, such as Astell & Kern models that are being sold for $699 and $1,299. In his opinion the FiiO X3 may not have A&K’s sweet and open sound, but it could be purchased for around $200 as of April, 2013.^[11]

Steve Guttenberg of CNET compared the FiiO X5 to the Apple iPod Classic and the not-yet-released PonoPlayer. He found the "iPod sounded vague and blurry next to the pristine X5" when playing identical ALAC audio files. The review also noted that the PonoPlayer plays fewer formats than the FiiO X series players, but costs more than the X3.^[12][13]

A review of the X3 in Hi-Fi World reported that the sound and amplification are good, but added that the interface was "least intuitive" and "inelegant." The conclusion was: "a fine budget starting point in high-resolution digital."^[14]

X1

The X1 features physical buttons and a spin wheel which "clicks" when rotated.^[15] Each "click" of the wheel moves the selected item up or down. There are three buttons on the side of the device, one is used to power up/down the device and put it in sleep mode, while the other two raised buttons function for volume. In addition, when in sleep mode and playing music, the volume up/down buttons can be used for skipping a song or going back a song in the selected album/playlist.

References

1. Undersys; et al. "Thread regarding FiiO X3 and X5 hardware on the Rockbox Technical Forums". forums.rockbox.org. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
2. "X1 Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
3. "X1 2nd gen Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
4. "X3 Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
5. "X3 2nd gen Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
6. "X5 Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
7. "X5 2nd gen Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
8. "X5 3rd gen Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
9. "X7 Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2017-02-22.
10. "X7 Mark II Spec Sheet". Retrieved 2019-04-03.
11. Swed, Mark (29 August 2013). "New audio player Fiio X3 tops the iPod, and is cheaper too". LA Times. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
12. Guttenberg, Steve (14 May 2014). "Why wait for the Pono portable high-resolution music player? The FiiO X5 is here now". cnet.com. CNET. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
13. "FiiO's nifty $200 portable high-resolution music player is a knockout".
14. Keywood, Noel (January 2014). "FiiO X3 Review". Hi-Fi World. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
15. "Fiio X1 Review: High-Resolution Audio for Everyone". 19 March 2015.