Okay, so.. The iBasso DX80.. Where to start??


 
First things first..
I bought these two players with my own money. I have no affiliation with either company. I am simply someone who is wanting to upgrade from my iPhone 6. Now.. I know what you all are going to say.. The iBasso DX80 is $360 the Fiio X3ii is only $180, so half the price. How dare you try and compare the two. lol.. All I can say is bare with me.. My reasoning, both have the Cirrus Logic CS4398 as their DAC chips. The thing I wanted to compare was how did the implementation of 2 Cirrus Logic CS4398s (1 for each channel) improve the sound from the Single chip execution, or is it all marketing and there was no discernible difference to be noted? In addition, was either of the above a valid step up to the essence of what a Hi-Res Player SHOULD sound like. 


 
So as you can see, the iBasso is definitely a taller unit, just the same basic thickness. 
From there.. Where to start? 
 
Build quality:
X3ii is very well built, as the DX80 is as well. Both are primarily Aluminum bodies;Therefore, also very light and sturdy. Where the X3ii felt small, the DX80 seemed to fit my hand just right for that secure grip you get with the X3ii's bigger brother X5ii. Buttons are nice and clicky! I love clicky buttons. All ports are tight, stable, and sturdy no wobble what-so-ever. Some people dislike the tighter ports, I love them, it provides the feeling that it will easily provide years of quality connectivity.
 

 
Screen Quality:
The X3ii definitely is nowhere near as nice of a screen. From Pixel density to viewing angles. However, at half the price, sure, it's definitely acceptable. I have no real issue viewing it in the daylight as I'm at work on a work site or driving around. The DX80 is definitely of Cellphone quality, therefore, you get all the benefits of the cellphone experience. So those looking to upgrade their player don't have to feel like they are degrading in screen to get better audio quality. One thing so far, hopefully will be improved with firmware updates, is the accuracy of the touchscreen. Perhaps an option to calibrate it by tapping on a couple of edges. Either way, it's pretty good right now. 
 

 
Okay.. So sound..
Once again.. This is still just an initial impressions, as I just got the DX80 this afternoon.. 
So jumping from an iPhone 6 to the X3ii was quite a pleasant jump. Nothing major, but definitely a noticeable difference. Easiest way to explain the jump is adding a quality amplifier like the Fiio E12A, Oppo HA-2, or the Cayin C5 to one of your favorite Smartphones. Definitely certain passages are clearer and cleaner (less distortion and congestion) on the X3ii than your current smartphones, especially my iPhone 6. That could be due to the larger soundstage to put everything.. But either way, it can be attributed to the abundance of power and Audio chip.
 Now onto how it compares to the DX80.. There is already a noticeable jump in sound quality from the X3ii. With each adjustment of the EQ there is a noticeable increase or decrease in that frequency. Which overall means I have to adjust the sliders less drastically to get the desired sound I prefer from a specific song. I love my Sub-Bass- (30hz) and a very mid-centric sound.. Therefore my overall EQ looks like an upside down U or really a lowercase n. With this, it stays pretty flat with only minor adjustments on the 33 hz and 1k hz being raised 2 positions. 
   

 
     I can now understand why iBasso decided to use 2 CS4398s for the sound processing.. Each channel reproduces the sound effortlessly with ease. Details are easily discernible. Listening to The Beatles is mind altering.. Lol.. Never realized they had so many random noises and conversations going on in the background of the music.. Especially tracks from their Yellow Submarine era.. The Tesseract Polaris album was already amazing on the iPhone 6.. But now you get the instrument separation that one expects from a Hi-Res player. 
One more thing I have to say about the DX80, usually with this much clarity, I usually suffer from "Ear fatigue" within a few minutes of listening, because usually I have to raise the mids up on most players, so with the fact that I don't have to do that on the DX80 and still get the same Clarity I want, I can listen to this at a comfortable volume and still get all the bass, mids, and highs I could ask for. Further more, since I don't have to raise it up as much background noise floor is also dead quiet. So it's definitely blacker of a background than the iPhone 6, and on par if not lower than the X3ii, which is very well known as having a very low noise floor.
 

 
     This DX80 is the jump I was looking for from a smartphone to a standalone Hi-Res DAP. I can't recommend this product enough! It's truly astonishing what iBasso has created with the DX80, as I believe this will be where they are planing on taking us with the DX200. Only it will be on that next plateau. Meant to compete with the top tier DAPs. I understand why they are discontinuing their DX50 & DX90 line up.. The DX80 as their entry level, and DX200 and their Top tier DAP.. And to be honest, the sound is good enough to compete with DAPs of up to about $600 anything more than that, and you start entering the next level of products like the Astell & Kerns, Luxury & Precision L5 Pro, or the Onkyo DP-X1, Sony NE-ZX2, or even the Fiio X7.. 
In any case.. Anyone looking for a TRUE step up from a smartphone and future-proof your mobile setup for at least a couple of years, and looking to spend less than $500.. Give this a shot.. You won't regret it. More to come after this breaks in more.. But as you can tell.. It's already made a fantastic impression on me. Well worth every penny of the $365 I paid for it with shipping. By the way, with the new Firmware 1.3.0 a lot of issues that initially plagued the DX80 are gone. There are still a few, but don't feel like any are major deal breakers.

They're big but so is their sound!
 

 
Classic Sony style packaging.
 

 
English and Japanese wording 
 

 
Like gems in a ring setting.
 

 
Even the accessories are given great attention to detail. Kudos Sony!
 

 
 
THOUGHTS:
 
When it's all said and done, are these absolutely perfect for the sound signature I've looking for? YES!!
 
I completely understand why it takes manufacturers a couple of generations to get it just right in terms of sound. Remember, Sony manufactures their own Balanced Armature drives. Therefore, they get to tune it to exactly the sound they want, not just what what Knowles produces or any other manufacturer of Balanced Armature drives. The first generation XBA series were quite amazing honestly for Sony's first execution. Everyone raved how much better their 2nd gen were (XBA-10 through 40's). This new generation is no different. They've really gotten the hang of it down. In addition, know exactly what they need to do in order to get their Sony Signature sound.
 

 
BASS:
 
These sounded great out of the box.. The only reason why I burned them for 30-40 hrs, was only due to the 12mm Dynamic Driver, as Balanced Armatures don't require burn in. 
 
After the burn in period, the bass settled out deeper and had a quicker thump. Listening to Fear Factory's new album Genexus was a pleasant walk in the park for them. Even listening to bands like Fleshwrought the song Mental Illness from their Dementia/Dyslexia that contains blast beat drumming amongst some of the fastest on a legitimate song, (there are faster blast beats for world record purposes, but that's not musical, nor will I be listening to audio that fast on a daily basis to enjoy. lol )
 
MIDS:
 
The mids are honestly very reminiscent of my XBA-1's they are so forward without being bloated. Granted if you alter the EQ, they will and can be.. which is a good and bad thing. What I mean by that.. some music requires a different sound signature and needs that boost in the mids, while others require just a slight dip in EQ for the mids. I prefer their sound with no EQ in general. For example, while listening to Anup Sastry's song Titan on his self-titled album Titan, there are additional guitar parts only on the left channel and later switches to the right channel. I haven't heard that so clear and pronounced on any other IEM with exception to the XBA-1's. Even the XBA-3's due to the additional BA drivers and no crossovers, caused it to sound recessed in comparison. 
 
HIGHS:
 
The only issue I had here was solely dependent on amped or not. Let me explain before I get to the details. Amped: regardless of the bass in the song had, the highs shine through, cymbals are well defined and I can differentiate which ones were being hit and where they were located on the drum set. Unamped: if bass is too heavy in the song, if they aren't dialed back just a hair (depending on volume of course) the cymbals can still be heard and are distinguishable.. However, they have a faint distortion to them.. Like a slight extra sizzle.. And once again.. If I dial the bass back a hair, I don't have that problem.. but hey... honestly.. that's going to pretty much always be the case of Amped vs UnAmped.. In addition, I'm being VERY picky.. however, since I noticed it.. I have to list it as a subjective con.. 
 
Most people probably won't care.. but then again.. Most average customers probably wouldn't buy IEM's in this price range.. most average consumers (like my wife) are more than satisfied with her UrBeats, and "Can't tell the difference".. Ugh.. who did I marry? lol.. 
But back to my point.. Since the majority of us aren't "Average consumers" I figured that we are the people I should be writing this review towards. 
 

 
COMFORT:
 
Dadgum.. Do I have to talk about this??.. lol..
Okay, so sadly, I turned my self off from these due to this fact alone.. Seriously, if they were the size (thickness) of the XBA-3's I'd be completely fine with them.. However, sadly for my ears, they are too thick.. If Sony is listening to this, Keep this configuration but put the nozzle in an angle, that would make the fitment SO much more comfortable.. They have no problem angling all of their affordable line ups (MDR-XB110 or the MDR-EX50's for example). The nozzles themselves are just right for my ears though.. I had no issues with finding the perfect fit as I always do with every other Sony product I've ever used. 
 
CONCLUSION:
 
Although I have stated they are the perfect sound signature I have been after this whole time.. now I am faced with another issue that I wasn't expecting. The thickness of the housings. For some this may not be an issue. For those lucky individuals, all I can say is get these if you're on the fence of getting them. They sound amazing! Thank you Sony for taking the time to perfect this Hybrid technology.