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HWZBB - The only BlackBerry community you will want to be in Singapore. Singapore BlackBerry users, unite!

Fiio E7 Headphone amplifier + DAC

What is life without good music? Yeap; Many of us would probably feel or rather just accept the stock-kit or rather the earphone packages that comes with our devices or portable media player (such as ipods). But once you have set your heart down on some higher end hardware or headphones, or once you have tried them, chances are, you might actually start thinking about it.

Truth to be told, BlackBerry media output has always been above average (vs other brands), such as the BlackBerry 9780/9900 or BlackBerry PlayBook. But with investments into other earphones, using amplifiers to ‘clean’ your audio is important.

I admit, I use original iTunes media on my devices, so are the tests right here.

Here are some specifications:

Well, as we saw above, the packaging seems decently good. There is a short summary at the back on the box.. I meant summary of the functions.


As we can see above, the cables provided in the box are rather thick, feels of high quality.



Other accessories that came with it includes the band, silicon skin and a furry pouch.





With my devices with phone capability linked via the old AUX cable (from the E5), the amplifier shut itself down with all configs back to default each time i had a message or call. I’m not exactly sure why was this so, but this maybe a point to consider for those hoping to use this on with their mobiles. It could be due to the GSM signals or my device sudden surge in activity. Though I realized something; If i connect to my BlackBerry or iPhone (actually any phone) and turn off the remember last volume option on the E7, the shutting down problem isn’t present.

Fiio got back to us on this issue soon after; Apparently, it is a bug after all. According to them: “the problem is due to phone signals causing the amp to restart (no idea why though, scientifically, or technically…). The same issue also arises when you plug this into devices and you over-draw power from it. However it’ll be solved if you turn off some functions such as battery charging, it’ll work fine as well. The same issue also aroused from fiiO e5.”

Though I dont have any issues with my E5… Well, this is one big point to consider!

With the E7 on, my Jaybird EN1 is no longer suffering from the loss of mids and highs. Of course an amplifier would not make a earphone sound like a full fledge studio system, But at least this does make it sound much better. Something good to note would be that the EN1’s bass is much more cleaner.

A feature of the E7 that I actually like to use is the bass boost (which came in the E5). On the E7, it’s different when we compare with the lower end E5. The bass boost feature on the E7 puts a nice EQ that adds midrange and low end body to the sound, and the effect is actually quite well implemented, with no noticeable distortions, but what’s noticeable is the nice body and warmth that you get from the boost. The boost comes in four steps which should satisfy bassheads a lot. The boost really works in adding musicality and its just lovely.

A lot of headphones and earphones can benefit from the boost, so the E7 is worth the try just for that function alone. It is not a bassy, bass-head boost on the first 2 steps; rather, it’s a nice boost for midrange and low end body, and a lot of you will appreciate it. The E7 is one instance when equalizers can be good for you, and I truly think that the bass boost on the E7 should be relabeled as fun-factor boost.

The Fiio E7 sound signature can be said to be quite neutral and smooth. Overall the sound is rather pleasing without harshness or piercing sound. Slight warm sound, and overall very good for a budget DAC. While it lacks the technicalities to challenge bigger (and pricier) DACs, the overall sound signature is refined and pleasing, and definitely a step up from my laptop’s built in sound. What’s nice with the E7 is that it doesn’t try too hard to show details, but it does everything well and I really have nothing to complain about with the overall sound.

The soundstage really fills up nicely when compared to a regular iPod or laptop out. What is most noticeable is how the E7 fills up the center part of the soundstage. Without it, I’m hearing a separate soundstage on the left and the right side, and a big gap in the center area.

However, as mentioned by “lengbebe” on HWZ, there is some distortion when i use my EN1; when i change the EQ modes, it became even clearer that there was some static available, especially at volumes of over 30. (maximum is 60). Well, perhaps its due to it being digital signal rather than analouge? I’m not too sure about this either. I’m also puzzled why only got bass boost, yet dont have treble boost. So this is pretty much more suited towards music listening, rather than towards acoustic, classical or vocals monitoring.

Using the LOD (aka line out dock) to bypass the internal amplifier (in this case) of the Apple Ipod, sound quality was way much better. Lo, mids, highs all saw considerable improvements.

Overall for now, this amp is very user friendly and value for money. A close competitor to this will be the iBasso D0 which is released just this year whilst its good to note that E7 was released way back in 2010.

For those whom are interested in this, its available at $120 with 1 year local warranty and registered mail, $123 with courier delivery. Contact here. (Normal retail price: $135)

*Test kit: Jaybird Endorphin Rush EN1 earphones, Ultimate Ears Super.fi 4vi, Sennheiser CX300II, Creative Aurvana DJ headphones, Creative Zen X-Fi Gen 1, Ipod Mini Genereation 2, BlackBerry Curve 8320, BlackBerry Curve 8900, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, BlackBerry Bold 9780, BlackBerry Bold 9900.

Note: Fiio E5, E6 and E17 reviews should be up soon. This initial review was done in June 2010. Further edited and worked upon in 2012.

Category: Reviews

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