FLAC compatible portable player

[ErnieM]

I'm looking for a high audio quality portable player that I would only use during air travel.

My headphones are Sennheiser PXC 250 noise cancelling.
I don’t need more than 4 to 5 GB of memory. 8 GB is plenty.
I’d like the player to play FLAC files
I would never use it for video.
An FM radio is nice, but not necessary.
I don't need a pedometer, video camera or an app that washes my dishes

Initially I considered the iPod nano, but at $ 145 for the 8 GB that's too much. Even the 5th gen nano at $135 sounds like paying for Apple's admittedly beautiful design, but I'm more concerned about audio quality.

I know iPods can be reprogrammed to play FLAC, but what really attracts me is the Sansa Fuze 8 GB at $70 or possibly the Sansa clip 8 GB at $60.

Is Sansa the way to go? What about iRiver? Or the Rio Karma?

 

[GranteedEV]

I realize you're trying to save some money, but according to head-fiers this is supposed to be flat-out amazing - with super high SQ through a great headphone out and an excellent, top-grade dedicated line-out in case you ever need to use a HP amp or aux cable with it:

http://mp4nation.net/catalog/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_36_58

I'm gunna buy [strike]me[/strike] my sister one for christmas.

 

[ErnieM]

I forgot to mention another issue: the battery life needs to be able to carry me through a 24 hour itinerary in the air. I frequently fly across the Pacific and don't want the thing to poop out six or eight hours into a 16 or 18 hour flight!

 

[MinusTheBear]

First off, if you want a PMP that plays FLAC I would forget about Apple all-together. Apple players are over-priced and especially for what your needs are. It also locks you into proprietary software and offers "no drag and drop" of your files onto your player.

The best budget player on the market today is the Sansa Clip+ and they are a fraction of the price of the equivalent iPods. The Sansa Clip+ also has literal flat frequency response and does not suffer from bass roll-off when hooked up to low impedance headphones which many PMP's do. This has been shown in 3rd party testing.

Amongst having the best audio quality it also has the best features for your needs. It supports the lossless format FLAC (amongst many other lossy formats) but also supports expandable memory via MicroSd Slot in which you can add an excess of 32gb (depending on the size of the card). This player is really small so it has great portability.

The Sansa Fuze is also an excellent player with excellent features, better battery life, and UI than the Clip+ but is also bigger. It also is more expensive and has some features which you don't need like video support.

Either of these Sansa models I would recommend. I have used both.

 

[ErnieM]

Thanks Bear. I'm thinking the Fuze becaue of the battery life and my needs when flying across that big pond, the Pacific!

 

[GranteedEV]

I forgot to mention another issue: the battery life needs to be able to carry me through a 24 hour itinerary in the air. I frequently fly across the Pacific and don't want the thing to poop out six or eight hours into a 16 or 18 hour flight!

The one I recommended supposedly only has around 12hours of battery life which is indeed on the low end (my walkman has like 45 hours). IIRC you can turn the line-out off though which might give you more battery life.

BUT on that note - don't airplanes have AC outlets you can charge it on while you listen?

 

[MinusTheBear]

If extended battery life is another concern you would have to look into the Cowon portable media player models which offer up to 40-50 hours of battery life with music. Such models as the Cowon D2+, Cowon S9 and their newest model the Cowon J3.

 

[MinusTheBear]

Thanks Bear. I'm thinking the Fuze becaue of the battery life and my needs when flying across that big pond, the Pacific!

With manufacturers specs battery life is rated with using low bit rate files. The Fuze, while a great player, the battery will not last for a 24hr plane ride and would need to be recharged within that time. The only PMP's that will make it through 24hr's continuously playing FLAC music files are the Cowon models I listed above. They are also superb portable players but also more expensive.

 

[ErnieM]

Granteed EV:

don't airplanes have AC outlets you can charge it on while you listen?

Some carriers do, some don't. I don't want to be at the mercy of any particular airline when trying to drown out the crying baby two rows back on a 16 hour flight . . .

 

[GranteedEV]

I definitely second the cowons, they're great players too, my buddy has one (S9) and it's nice and transparent.

 

[ErnieM]

The Fuze, while a great player, the battery will not last for a 24hr plane ride and would need to be recharged within that time. The only PMP's that will make it through 24hr's continuously playing FLAC music files are the Cowon models I listed above. They are also superb portable players but also more expensive.

I don't need 24 hour battery life as sometimes I do shut off my music and watch the movies, depending on what's offered And, I could feasibly recharge the unit during a layover. The longest flights tend to be 14 to 16 hours, though total transit time often is 24 to 36 hours. . .

As for the Cowon units, wow - they're more than the iPods! I could buy TWO Sansas and just switch out when the battery dies on the one!!!

Actually, I think the Sansa Fuze sounds the best for my budget and needs.

But, I'm still interested in any other thoughts and views.

 

[adwilk]

iPods are cheap cheap cheap on craigslist... I've probably bought 10 of em in the past few months...

Use Rockbox to unlock it.. .plays .FLAC and all kinds of stuff... I love it...

 

[its phillip]

Cowon players are my number 1 pick

Sansa does make some good cheap players as well.

 

[MinusTheBear]

If you are willing and able to partially re-charge the device during a plane flight than the Fuze would be a great choice. I don't know of any portable devices besides the Cowons that would easily be able to handle 14-16+ hrs using lossless music files such as FLAC on a single battery charge. The great thing about the Fuze is that it also supports expandable memory via a MicroSD card. You can find 4gb, 8gb, 16gb cards etc for cheap.

 

[sholling]

You can buy refurbished Fuses cheap (8GB for $50) and then add another 8GB micro SDHC card and load as many as 25-30 CDs. I haven't tried FLAC on the Fuze because I save my FLACs for home and load VBR MP3s on my music Fuze. I also keep a separate Fuze for audio books.

 

[MinusTheBear]

The Cowon touchscreen PMP's are priced more in Apples territory. The main advantage of the iPod touch is the Wi-fi capabilities and Apps. The main advantages of the Cowon touchscreen is the much superior battery life, amoled screen, expandable memory (S9 does not have this feature), superior equilizer/customization, drag and drop, ripping software of your choice.

 

[Sheik_Yerbutay]

The Cowon's are real nice and play movies as well!

I am a huge fan of the Rio Karma's that are no longer being made though. It was the first player to play flacs natively, has a very good DSP, and a 5 band parametric equalizer. I recently found a guy on ebay who refurbishes them and converts them to use flash drives up to 128GB! Not the newest but definitley one to consider for traveling.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Rio-Karma-20GB-1-8-HD-32GB-CF-Card-64GB-SSD-Drive-/160483346361?pt=Other_MP3_Players&hash=item255d8d87b9