Audio Xduoo X2 DAP Impression

geek0killer

Disciple
After reading many good reviews about Xduoo X2, I took the plunge. Sold my Sansa clip+ to raise money and bought the X2. Anyway I have another Sansa Zip to compare so no problem there. It's been two months now so I can write my impression after fair usage.

Built:
The built is sturdy secured in a aluminium housing. Making it little heavier though. Design is not very tasteful but that's subjective. The screen is reminiscence of Sansa zip. X2 has the same OLED screen. Easily readable in daylight.

Sound:
The very first day I listened to X2, I didn't quite like it. Although, the first thing that hits your mind is much larger soundstage in comparison to Sansa. It gives you a nice 3D presentation. The Bass is clean, tight and punchy and the separation is good too. But, something is not quite right about the highs. If you were to sit in a auditorium the voices seem as if sitting somewhere in the last rows-- Distant.

I paired X2 with Fiio E11. That pairing didn't go well. Fiio is dark and narrow sounding. Result was bloated bass and sub-dued soundstage. Second pairing was my new acquired 'Meier Audio StepDance'. Results were very good. It fixed the distant sound adding more sparkle to the treble. Adding M50 to this equation, sound gets really bright, with deep bass and fairly good imaging. This turned out to be a very good sounding setup. It excels on all fronts. I never understood the hype around M50 but this setup makes M50 sound fuller, richer and more vibrant. Even though M50 has just 32 ohm impedance but boy how well it improved with this amp. Even though fatigue sets in after a couple of hours because of more sparkly treble.

Coming back to the X2 another grudge I hold is the UI. It's so bad it get on my nerves finding songs on a 32GB card. I had planned to buy a couple of 64GB cards and transfer my collection that certainly would not happen. I juggle between three 32GB cards if that wasn't frustrating enough now I have to press up/down button on the DAP like crazy. The battery meter is inaccurate. It shows full bar and then nose-dives. Battery life is good though. Haven't measured but runs around 10 hours. Charging time is very less. You cannot listen to X2 while charging. There is a equalizer but no customs settings. You are stuck with the presets.

Finally, I found something very strange and bothersome. There was huge stuttering on Flac files encoded above 1000kpbs. It lasts around 2-3 seconds. But quite frequently. I was using Strontium 32GB Class 10 cards. I updated my firmware to version 7 but that didn't solve the problem. So I copied some Flac files to a Strontium 32GB Class 10 'Nitro' card and there seems to be no issue for now. But it's strange as it should not have happened with normal class 10 cards.

Conclusion:
Given that Xduoo X2 is a an entry level portable DAP from a not so well known Chinese company but it fared well. Everyone wants to know if it is better than Sansa. The answer might be yes--in the sound department. As a rockbox possibility has been ruled out, Xduoo seriously needs to come up with a new UI and better buffer management for Flac files.

P.S. The 'soft' preset on equalizer somewhat sound better in case you don't like the distant voice too.

Edit: The stuttering problem seems to be on Mp3 files too. But for a fraction of a second. Also when you search files while music playing in the background. Major disappointment.
 
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Nice review mate , have purchased one recently waiting for it to come. Regarding stuttering as per many head-fi users it is due to the tags associated , happens mostly with flacs and some mp3 files too.
Moving from Sansa to X2 , fingers crossed as of now :)
 
Nice review mate , have purchased one recently waiting for it to come. Regarding stuttering as per many head-fi users it is due to the tags associated , happens mostly with flacs and some mp3 files too.
Moving from Sansa to X2 , fingers crossed as of now :)
Thanks. I am waiting for Fiio M3. If it doesn't have usual narrow sounstage like cheap Fiio products then would sell X2.
 
Well I received my X2 and I am loving the way my audio gear sounds with the X2 and beats all the disadvantages present in the player.

Pros
I) Mind blowing instrument separation, bass quantity and quality both have noticeable improvements and the sound imaging is perfectly as per my liking i.e. spacious in nature
ii) For my Fidue a73 don't need to take the volume beyond 18-20 out of possible 40 and for my HD 598s 28-30 whereas the Sansa Clip volume had to be almost maxed out most of the times
iii) The form factor and the looks are a big hit for me with good finishing
iv) Decent playback time of 12-13 hours (not done charge to charge testing as yet)
v) The best music player I have listened till date with my previous sources being Sansa Clip + , Apple Ipod Touch, Cowon S9

Cons
While navigation is not much laggy however the disadvantages I found in the player are purely from the functionality perspective which are listed below
I) Need to place the entire collection in a single folder as there is no songs,artists etc bifurcation and hence navigation is a headache when you have huge no of tracks
ii) Shuffle function implementation is not upto the mark with same songs repeating after 4-5 songs unique songs get played
iii) The screen guard provided gets scratched even with a minute nail touch
iv) No custom equalizer

p.s:- Not observed the prominent stuttering effect mentioned in most of the reviews , however neither do I tag my audio files which is the reason the stuttering supposedly exists
 
I forgot to update. I formatted my card with SD Formatter with Full 'overwrite' method and the stuttering went off. Also, I came to know there are custom firmwares for the X2 here: http://redfx.ucoz.ru/publ/download_a/1-1-0-22

As there was a discussion on head-fi where many were saying the firmware v5/v6 sound better, so you can try that or the custom firmware posted above. I just flashed the firmware but yet to test it.
 
Edit: And......the stuttering is back! Some head-fiers say X2 has some problem with tags. I have put the tags on all my collection so and it's not practical to remove them all so I have to deal with this nuances until Xduoo comes up with a solution.
 
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