# What is a good battery replacement for the stock battery in Fiio E11?



## Stealth3si

My battery just died and I would like to know what battery is there to replace it with? what mah should I loook for? THer eis one on eaby called BL-5B. is ti good? how long does it last? i need one that will last 18 hours.


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## ClieOS

You can either get a genuine one from Nokia or get this one from eBay. It is not really 2050mAH but more like 1400mAH. Still it is longer lasting than the stock version.


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## Stealth3si

what about this one? is it really 2430 mah?


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## ClieOS

The gold one is more or less known to have smaller capacity than the stock one.


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## Stealth3si

i don't disagree but would you care to prove this?


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## ClieOS

stealth3si said:


> i don't disagree but would you care to prove this?




Read the negative feedback of that seller.

Plus, you have to break physic's law to fit that much Li-ion into that small a space.


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## mdyoung216

I bought this battery:
   
http://www.ebay.com/itm/260796737435
   
  And this Charger:
   
http://www.ebay.com/itm/140674698715
   
  I like this charger over the type the Micca Store sells because it has a LED window to show the battery is charging, and fully charged not just a light that blinks on and off.


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## Roller

Unfortunately FiiO went with one of the worst battery types in existence, as if they went with the BL-5C type, they would get 2-3 times more battery runtime for a battery that's around 1mm taller. Never understood that line of thought and that was never explained by feiao. Unfortunate.


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## Stealth3si

According to the instructions of the seller, 
   
   
  
   


> > The battery must be fully recharged before use.
> > A temporary short capacity of new battery will be resulted from not used for a long time, it is normal, the total capacity will be reinstated via used for 3-5 times.
> > *When first get the battery, use it out, charge for 10 hours for the first three times, use it out again, then it only need to charge about 5 hours for normal use.*


 
   
1.) Can I charge the 2050mah bl-5b in the e11? If the red light turns off does this mean the battery is fully charged?
   
2.) When I first get the battery, do I charge it 10 hours or do I use it out then charge it 10 hours?
3.) After I charge it 10 hours for the first time, do I use it out again, charge for another 10 hours, then use it out again and charge for another 10 hours? Next do I need to use it out before I charge it next time?
4.) Do I fully recharge it before _every _use?


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## ClieOS

roller said:


> ..Never understood that line of thought and that was never explained by feiao. Unfortunate.



It is probably because BL-5B is the most popular battery in China and used by other gadgets there as well. It is a choice of convenience.



stealth3si said:


> According to the instructions of the seller,
> 
> 1.) Can I charge the 2050mah bl-5b in the e11? If the red light turns off does this mean the battery is fully charged?
> 2.) When I first get the battery, do I charge it 10 hours or do I use it out then charge it 10 hours?
> ...



1) Yes. When the red light is off, the battery is fully charged.
2) You can charge it right away, then use it out. The point is to 'cycle' the battery capacity, how you do it is less important.
3) You can repeat it one or twice, then it should be fine.
4) You don't have to, but it is usually considered better to recharge Li-ion as often as you can. But once in a while (say every month or two), you will want to cycle the battery to keep it in an healthier state.


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## Roller

Quote: 





clieos said:


> It is probably because BL-5B is the most popular battery in China and used by other gadgets there as well. It is a choice of convenience.


 

  
  Might be in China, but on the rest of the world, the standard for its kind is the BL-5C, costing the same, having a very similar form factor, minimal weight differences and far longer battery runtimes. Basically it was one of the worst design decisions FiiO took regarding E11. At this point in time I expected portable amps to provide longer battery runs, as in at least an entire day (24h), just like the old faithful PA2V2 can (around 100h).


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## ClieOS

BL-5B is 890mAH as listed by Nokia, while BL-5C is 1020mAH. That's only a difference of less than 15%. From the past experiments I did on various E11's batteries, I know E11 will roughly consume 55mA per hour in regular use (high power mode, high gain, Lv2 bass boost. Volume around 3 to 3.5 / 9 with a 32 ohm dynamic IEM). So the stock E11 battery (rated 800mAH) usually last around 14.5 hours or so - even with genuine BL-5C's 1020mAH capacity, it will run about 19 hours or so (in linear estimation, might be shorter if voltage isn't dropping linearly). I won't call that 'far long'. Though it longer, it is definitely not going to be 2~3 times longer than BL-5B unless Nokia is packing magic dust inside it. The aftermarket BL-5B battery (the 2040mAH one) I mentioned earlier has been tested to have roughly 1400mAh in capacity and an estimated run time of around 24 hours. That is already better than the stock BL-5B and BL-5C.


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## Stealth3si

should i stop charging the dead battery now?


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## ClieOS

Get yourself a multimeter (or volt meter) and measure the voltage of the battery, see if it is just under 2.7V. If it is, it could be that the protection circuit on the battery that stop you from charging it. You might have to force charge it (* charge it for a long time, like 24 hours or so) to revive the battery, if it is revive-able. If the battery is stone dead after long hours of charging, then you can pretty much throw it away. 

In the future, you need to remember you can't let Li-ion battery's voltage drop too far off from the minimum (which will be 2.7V, but the protection circuit might cut you off under 3V). Li-ion must maintain a minimum voltage to be functional., that's why it is advisable to recharge your battery often.


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## Stealth3si

clieos said:


> Get yourself a multimeter (or volt meter) and measure the voltage of the battery, see if it is just under 2.7V. If it is, it could be that the protection circuit on the battery that stop you from charging it.


 
i don't have one unfortunately.
  
   


> You might have to force charge it (* charge it for a long time, like 24 hours or so) to revive the battery, if it is revive-able. If the battery is stone dead after long hours of charging, then you can pretty much throw it away.


 
i'm recharging it 35 hours so far and red light is still on..i'm guessing it's really dead...
   
   
  Quote:


> In the future, you need to remember you can't let Li-ion battery's voltage drop too far off from the minimum (which will be 2.7V, but the protection circuit might cut you off under 3V).


 
do i need to buy a volt meter and how often must i use it to monitor a battery?
   
   
  Quote:


> Li-ion must maintain a minimum voltage to be functional., that's why it is advisable to recharge your battery often.


 
I recharged it 1-2 times a day. ever since I received the e11 and its stock battery (one month ago) there were a total of 3-4 times where i 'cycled' the battery, that is, i accidentally used it out (because i forgot to recharge it that day and it drained) and then I immediately fully charged it. I used it every day since I got it.
   
   
1.) FYI, I never turn off my e11. it's either on because I'm listening to it or it's on while it's recharging. Should I turn it off when it's recharging? And my e11 usage is high mode, low gain, boost level 2. How many battery hours would that allow per session?
   
2.) Further, every day I take a couple of breaks, during which i recharge it in the E11 by plugging in the usb charge cable. normally the charge would finish before i get back since i haven't used it long enough. Sometimes though it's still recharging it when i get back -- should i let it finish recharge or can i interrupt the charge to resume usage? and is there anything important i should know if after I interrupt the charge?
   
3.) And every night I fully charge it (the red light is off by the next day.) At this point, should I unplug the charger cable and the e11? I have the e11 turned on 24/7 since i can't be bothered to switch it on/off and go back to my normal listening volume every time I use it.


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## SteveSatch

Is this battery as good as the original/IEM/Nokia one?
   
  http://www.ebay.com/itm/BL-5B-battery-NOKIA-3320-5200-5300-6120-N80-N90-etc-/180668215393?pt=US_Batteries&hash=item2a10aa3061


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## ClieOS

stealth3si said:


> I recharged it 1-2 times a day. ever since I received the e11 and its stock battery (one month ago) there were a total of 3-4 times where i 'cycled' the battery, that is, i accidentally used it out (because i forgot to recharge it that day and it drained) and then I immediately fully charged it. I used it every day since I got it.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




I believe the stock battery actually comes with warranty. You might want to check with the seller to see if you can claim it or not.

E11 should turn itself off when recharging, but that's beside the point - you should turn it off from time to time, as 'deep cycling' (which is basically what you were doing) is bad for battery life in general. But even so, the battery should easily last more than a month. There might be something there. Anyway, you don't have to recharge it too often. Unless you really do drain it out completely before the end of everyday, my advise is to only charge it once per day. In normal use, you can expect E11 to run over 10 hours in high power mode.



stevesatch said:


> Is this battery as good as the original/IEM/Nokia one?
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/BL-5B-battery-NOKIA-3320-5200-5300-6120-N80-N90-etc-/180668215393?pt=US_Batteries&hash=item2a10aa3061




Unless someone have bought the same battery from the same user and tested it, no one really could tell you how good / bad it is.


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## Stealth3si

so after the first few 'cycles,' during normal usage i should turn it off when i'm not using it and recharge every 2-3 days and then 'cycle' it once a month?
   
  by 'cycle' do you mean to use it out (over multiple sessions) w/o recharging it yet turning it off when not in use between teh sessions and finally recharge it after it drains?


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## ClieOS

stealth3si said:


> so after the first few 'cycles,' during normal usage i should turn it off when i'm not using it and recharge every 2-3 days and then 'cycle' it once a month?
> 
> by 'cycle' do you mean to use it out (over multiple sessions) w/o recharging it yet turning it off when not in use between teh sessions and finally recharge it after it drains?




if you are using it almost 10 hours a day, then you should recharge it afterward, perhaps over night.

if you are using it only 5 hours a day, then you should recharge it every 2 days, but every night is fine just as well.

If you are using it 1~3 hours a day, then recharging it every 2 or 3 days is fine, so is every nigh.

The key is not to run the battery to completely flat. If you can't be sure, just turn it off and recharge it every night (heavy use) or two (light use).

A cycle generally refer to running the battery from full charge to relatively low level (i.e. 10%~30%). A deep cycle means it is run from full to empty . A deep cycle is generally something to avoid, so is not running cycle at all (keep recharging even it is 96% or so all the time). That is, you don't want any of the extreme.


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## Stealth3si

Then what does it using it out mean? To use it until the battery  runs out then fully recharge it?
   
  if that is the case, I can use a timer to time how long the battery will last per session. i can use the timer to gauge when I approach the 10-30% threshold...


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## ClieOS

You can do that, since you don't have a volt meter.


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## SteveSatch

I got them (bought four for $10 shipped).  So far all I can say is they got here and charged.  They work in the E11.  I rarely use my E11 for more than 4-5 hours without charging the battery.  I'll only use this new one though for a bit and report if it's any different.  At least it was cheap, arrived, looks legit, and took a charge.
  
  Quote: 





stevesatch said:


> Is this battery as good as the original/IEM/Nokia one?
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/BL-5B-battery-NOKIA-3320-5200-5300-6120-N80-N90-etc-/180668215393?pt=US_Batteries&hash=item2a10aa3061


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## PurpleAngel

Quote: 





stealth3si said:


> Multimeter
> I don't have one unfortunately.


 
  There is a digital multimeter model DT830, usually sells and ships for around $5-$8, eBay.
  Only $4 from China.


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## Stealth3si

do I need a volt meter at this point? and how and when do I use it to monitor the volt level? don't tell me i gotta take out the battery every day to measure it..how many hours does this battery last?
   
  edit: well i guess if i forget to trigger the timer i woudl need a volt meter to be safe and measure it...
   
  wuld this one do the job?


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





clieos said:


> It is probably because BL-5B is the most popular battery in China and used by other gadgets there as well. It is a choice of convenience.
> 1) Yes. When the red light is off, the battery is fully charged.
> 2) You can charge it right away, then use it out. The point is to 'cycle' the battery capacity, how you do it is less important.
> 3) You can repeat it one or twice, then it should be fine.
> 4) You don't have to, but it is usually considered better to recharge Li-ion as often as you can. But once in a while (say every month or two), you will want to cycle the battery to keep it in an healthier state.


 


  I just got the battery in the mail today! Woohoo!
   
  It says "2012.02" on the hologram sticker. I wonder if that means the date it was manufactured?
   
  As for charging the battery, is it possible to overcharge it with the e11's USB charger cable coming from the mini USB charger outlet adapter?
   
  Is it better to recharge as often as I can when I'm not using it while it's still on or when I'm not using it while it's off? Aside from the cycling, I plan to discharge the battery's capacity down to 20% (i.e. if a full discharge lasts 20 hours I will discharge it until 16 hours) and then turn it off and only then I will finally fully charge.
   
  I'm afraid if I fully charge it every time I turn it off it may reduce the battery's capacity. Likewise, I'm worried if I charge it over night or forget to unplug the USB charge cable immediately after the red light goes off then it will overcharge and damage the battery.
   
  Thanks


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## ClieOS

Quote: 





stealth3si said:


> I just got the battery in the mail today! Woohoo!
> 
> It says "2012.02" on the hologram sticker. I wonder if that means the date it was manufactured?
> 
> ...


 

 Yeah, it probably is when it was manufactured.
   
  You shouldn't be able to overcharge E11's battery since it has an internal protection circuit to stop you from doing that.


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## Stealth3si

The battery is fully charged in a few hours, at least it appears that way. The red light is off. Should I wait for several more hours or am I good to go?


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## ClieOS

You are good to go. It will likely take another cycle or two for the battery to reach 100%, but there is no reason why you can't use it now.


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





clieos said:


> You are good to go. It will likely take another cycle or two for the battery to reach 100%, but there is no reason why you can't use it now.


 


  Great! So far it's just 3 hours in. I'll keep ya updated on how many hours it fully discharges for the first 2 or 3 cycles. How many hours is it suppose to last at 100%?


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## Stealth3si

I jsut cycled it once. that discharge session lasted around 15 hours or more....now i just fully discharged it again at 10 hours! WTH it lasts just as long as the old battery so is it defective ?...lol i just told the seller a few days ago i was gong to test for any defects well there we have it...it's gonna cost a heluva lot mroe than the product itself to send it back...ugh
   
  any thoughts?


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## ClieOS

stealth3si said:


> I jsut cycled it once. that discharge session lasted around 15 hours or more....now i just fully discharged it again at 10 hours! WTH it lasts just as long as the old battery so is it defective ?...lol i just told the seller a few days ago i was gong to test for any defects well there we have it...it's gonna cost a heluva lot mroe than the product itself to send it back...ugh
> 
> any thoughts?




You need to keeps all the setting constant between different battery run to have a valid baseline for comparison. If you don't know how to do it, check out my E11's review on the battery test section. If you did keep all the setting the same, try doing the battery run a few time. Also, let the battery charges for slightly longer.


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





clieos said:


> You need to keeps all the setting constant between different battery run to have a valid baseline for comparison. If you don't know how to do it, check out my E11's review on the battery test section. If you did keep all the setting the same, try doing the battery run a few time. Also, let the battery charges for slightly longer.


 

 Good article...
   
   
  Well.. my settings were the same on both cycles, except for the volume which fluctuated between 2 and 3. Based on your battery test section, my configuration is more like a hybrid combination of your 1st and 2nd configuration tests: high power mode, low gain mode, Lvl 2 bass boost, volume 1.5-2.5 using 80 ohms headphone.
   
  As for the battery charge, I left it on charge overnight.
   
  Right now I've just begun my third cycle, that is, I'm on my third discharge session and so far it's been discharging for 40 minutes. Once it fully discharges tomorrow or Saturday I'll post here to let you know how long it lasted. Then I'll fully recharge it overnight, thus completing the cycle for the third time.
   
  I also find it a bit confusing for you to advise against completely draining out the battery for any purposes yet recommending me to 'cycle' the battery for the first few times (or 1-2 times every month or two,) which requires me to use out the battery.


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## ClieOS

My advise is against completely cycle the battery all the time every time, as that will shorten the battery life and possibly over-drain that battery if you are not careful. Li-ion actually like to be charged often. However, if you don't cycle at all, the chemical inside the battery will degrade by itself - so the solution is to cycle it from time to time, just not too often, and that'll keep the battery active for a longer period of time. The reason to cycle it on the first use is because the battery is in storage for a while before you get it, so you need to cycle it a few times to activate all the chemical inside. This is called conditioning the battery.


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## H20Fidelity

I usually don't let my battery drop below 50% before each charge. then only once a month fully discharge by letting run flat (or below 25%). It's better for your battery's life span if you ask me. So charging every second day seems to work well.


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## zazex

I bought a few BL-5B batteries from a top rated eBay seller; the price was very good.
  They all took a charge.  I carry a couple of them in a small zipper pouch - if the battery
  in my E11 happens to run out of juice, I know I've got charged backups with me.


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## Stealth3si

The third discharge session lasted 10 hours 40 minutes.
   
  I'm going to let it recharge over night. Right now it's 9:45pm and I'll unplug the charge cable tomorrow either morning time or just before sunset.
   
  Should I use it out again to see if I get more hours or do you think this is the most I'll get out of it?


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## H20Fidelity

Quote: 





stealth3si said:


> The third discharge session lasted 10 hours 40 minutes.
> 
> I'm going to let it recharge over night. Right now it's 9:45pm and I'll unplug the charge cable tomorrow either morning time or just before sunset.
> 
> Should I use it out again to see if I get more hours or do you think this is the most I'll get out of it?


 


  I think you're good to go now. Just use it normally.


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## ClieOS

It is unlikely you will get more than what you already have.


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





h20fidelity said:


> I think you're good to go now. Just use it normally.


 


  Quote: 





clieos said:


> It is unlikely you will get more than what you already have.


 

  
   

  
  OK. Thanks.
   
  Weird though ..I'm curious about this...
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



   
  based on ClieOS's battery tests, a configuration of high power, high gain, Lvl 2 bass boost, volume 4, on 32ohm dynamic IEM, the E11 lasted around 14-15 hours on a stock 800mAH battery full drain.
   
  His conclusion was the E11 should easily last longer than the quoted 10 hours.
   
  Mine however seems to be struggling to barely last 10 hours using a 1400mAH-2050mAH battery full drain within a very similar configuration that I'm on:
   
  It is high power, low gain, bass boost level 2, volume 2-2.5 on 80 ohm headphones.
   
  Obviously, the only differences in my config is the low gain mode and 80 ohm headphone and based on this I figured mine would've lasted about the same 14-15 hour range.
   
  Now, I don't doubt ClieOS's knowledge because he seems to know what he's talking about but it would appear either
   
  a.) my FiiO E11 is defective
  b.) the new battery is defective
  c.) both are defective
  -or-
  d.) a Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro 80 really drains power quickly.
   
  Is my situation normal or could there be somethin 'fishy' going on here....


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## ClieOS

What is there so hard to understand? DT770 Pro 80 has a full size transducer (>30mm, probably >50mm as I don't know the spec) and relatively low sensitivity (96dB) with while my 32 ohm IEM has a <10mm transducer and >110dB in sensitivity. The difference in size of the voice coil alone will mean the Beyer will suck up a lot more current than my IEM. You can't really compare how a full size behaves to an IEM, that's just simple physics and electronics.


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## SteveSatch

Dude, it's a battery.  Charge it.  Use it.  Recharge it.  Repeat.


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





clieos said:


> What is there so hard to understand? DT770 Pro 80 has a full size transducer (>30mm, probably >50mm as I don't know the spec) and relatively low sensitivity (96dB) with while my 32 ohm IEM has a <10mm transducer and >110dB in sensitivity. The difference in size of the voice coil alone will mean the Beyer will suck up a lot more current than my IEM. You can't really compare how a full size behaves to an IEM, that's just simple physics and electronics.


 


  Nothing actually.
   
  That's what I thought!
   
  Come to think of it the old battery didn't last as long this one, probably 2-4 hours less IIRC.
   
  Guess I'll just recharge it every 1-2 nights and cycle it every 3 weeks (which works out to be once every month and two times a month every other month.)


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## Stealth3si

Quote: 





stevesatch said:


> Dude, it's a battery.  Charge it.  Use it.  Recharge it.  Repeat.


 

  
  Don't be an intelligent donkey. just dont wanna leave any pebble or stone unturned...


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## TnTzDad

I'm a moron.  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




  Apologies to ClieOS.


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## ClieOS

NVM.
  
 Please read back carefully. E11 uses BL-5B, *not* BL-5C.


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## Pedro Oliveira

Hi guys. I am buying a fiio e11.... wich is the best and longest life battery i can get to replace the stock one?
  
 Cheers...


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