FiiO X3 Mark III Portable High Definition Audio and MP3 Player 192Khz/32Bit Bluetooth 4.1 Satnav Wheel

Product Information

EarSonics S-EM6 Crystal Edition: The Fiio X3 is similar in presentation to the Nova-N3, and performance isn’t too far off between the two. The X3 does have slightly better dynamics and a slightly more presentation depth, but the differences are small. 5.5/10 Shonuyn 306a: The 306a has an overall good sound with the P2+1, but the bass isn’t all that strong and there is a slight hiss. The midrange is pushed a bit forward, and the overall sound signature isn’t as dynamic as the X3 headphone out. 5/10

You’ll just need a good portable amplifier to strap to the X3II if that is the case. If you are going to do that, I suggest the XRK Uber. It pairs nicely with the X3II and will make it sound yummy, velvet-like and very dense feeling.

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I find that the biggest presentational emphasis of the X3iii is in its low-end and vocal presence with a slight lower treble emphasis but not as dominant as,say, the M3s. It does push out vocals a bit more than the X1 2nd gen for sure and its planted warmer bass response will stand out a lot more than previous iterations. Bass I actually wish a lot more DAPs and sources would sound like that. I subjectively enjoy that type of sound field in my preferred music listening. I don’t like harshness. Those who enjoy a more simplified and enjoyably soft approach to it all will really feel at home with the X3II. I found the FiiO X3 III to sound neutral and to couple well with most headphones I own. Its sound is balanced and it does not lean towards any particular colouration, thus being able to reproduce all genres without any bias. In short, the FiiO X3 III appears to be well-designed and not to have any flaws that make music sound differently from what it should. The X3iii uses a SOC Linux variant built from the ground-up by their in-house software programming team. It looks very similar to the previous HiBy UCOS of the Gen 2 but this time FiiO own and update it 100%.

The FiiO X3 III can also be used as a DAC for a computer, much as the bigger sibling the X5 3rd Gen. It needs a USB cable for the connection and it allows to play the music on the PC using the X3 III as the source. Alas, the FiiO X3 III does not seem to work as a DAC under Linux as the FiiO X5 3rd Gen does – as confirmed by FiiO themselves – nor under macOS. In some ways, I find the tonality and presentation of the X3iii a slight return to the original X3 only just that more resolving and refined sounding. there is an option to enable or disable a tone when one uses the scroll wheel and selects menu items;The 3rd Gen X3 also marks the first time they have gone dual DAC at this price point with a pair of TI PCM5242 DAC chips, one per channel. This is combined with no less than 3 separate PCB boards for the DAC, amp and Bluetooth module in an effort to reduce any potential interference with the quality of the output. Bluetooth All-new power management features: including deep-sleep mode for instant-on usage without battery drain Of course, it is a complete redesign compared to the original X3 but not so much of an evolution when compared to the X1 and X5 which now pretty much sets the bar or road map for the type of design FiiO is after. 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

The X3 has the looks, and it seems to be made well. For most intents and purposes, Fiio offer Kitchen Aid performance at Oster prices. Charging is a little faster at 3 hours vis USB compared to the 3.5 to 4-hour cycle of the older gen 2 X3.hours is about what I am getting. This is of course not exact, full brightness is used as well. If there is huge interest in getting an exact number, I may do a full day test. But for now, what is on paper is pretty accurate. FiiO recommends using a power bank on the go. I always found the X3ii to be the drier and the more neutral of the two with a balanced, lean and clean presentation though with a bit more single-ended power. The X3iii is a fuller, rich sounding presentation with a more planted low end and a stronger even harmonic bias in its timbre. Simply put it is much smoother but more dynamic sounding than the older X3ii. The local enthusiasts were excited to hear that the X3 sample unit has finally landed and so I invited them to play with it on the store, despite the local distributor not yet having a unit. Most of the comments were positive but there was a comment mentioning that there is a lag when moving between songs though it doesn’t happen all the time. Perhaps it’s a function of the file size (I had mostly AIFF and WAVs in the player) or the caching side of the player hitting the limit. While not super speedy as the Altmann Tera, I personally have no complaints about the speed of the UI. It works just fine in my opinion. A new version and a new layout, the Fiio X3iii isn’t only a technical update. The new Fiio X3iii measures 59mm x 114mm x 12.8mm and weighs only 126g. That makes it a light and sexy, easy usable and transportable player with a small non-touch screen sized 320×240, and that last one for me is the weakest point of the new player. Another point a lot of ink has been spilled about, is the reactivity of the scroll wheel. Seeing there’s no touch screen, the scroll wheel is the most important “button” of the players. Compared to the very first Fiio scroll wheel, the Chinese company has come far. In fact they once again managed to make it more reactive and responsive, but it of course always remains a scroll wheel. The X3 3rd Gen is part of that Infinity sound pitch of summer 2017. Alongside the F5 and the Q1 Mark II everything was about enhanced portability and the inclusion of a balanced output or cable capability. The X3 Mark III is no different in that respect with a balanced output to match up with the F5, F9 or F9 Pro. FiiO is pitching the balanced output as enhancing the X3 Mark III staging and detail performance over the unbalanced output. Dual DAC