Need a new audiophile grade mp3 palyer.

[Wafflesomd]

Well, becuase of unfortunate events, my good ole Iriver h120 got fried while on vacation.

I really wish Iriver would continue production of ther h1xx and h3xx series. But, since that wont happen, and I'm 100% sure that I wont be able to get an RMA, since I dont have any records of the purchase, I might as well look at a new one.

Iriver does have h140's and h320's on their site every once in ahwile, I'll probly pick up on one of those, cuase rockbox makes em sound amazing.

Other than that, anyone else have any good suggestions, I want something that holds alot and sounds great along with my Sony MDR v6's.

Sigh, H120, ye barely knew ye.

 

[FierceTIMbo17]

I dont consider any mp3 player to be of audiophile quality because mp3's are severly compressed killing the quality of music. Howver i would suggest an ipod because they more accessories for them than every other mp3 player combined.

 

[Sheep]

I dont consider any mp3 player to be of audiophile quality because mp3's are severly compressed killing the quality of music. Howver i would suggest an ipod because they more accessories for them than every other mp3 player combined.

You say MP3 players suck, and recommend an Ipod for an AVphile? FTW?

Go creative, at least they have EQs.

SheepStar
Woo post 4000!

 

[masak_aer]

You say MP3 players suck, and recommend an Ipod for an AVphile? FTW?

Go creative, at least they have EQs.

SheepStar
Woo post 4000!

Congrats! I just saw that...

 

[Wafflesomd]

Um fierce, ipods suck, anyone who likes music knows that.....


An EQ isnt really an issue, as rockbox ( alternative player OS) has so many sound options, EQ, cutoff, gain, its nice.

I'll look into creative.

 

[JaceTheAce]

MP3 players aren't audiophile grade by any means, but I do have an iPod that I use when I study at the university library. I like it for what it's used for.

 

[WorldLeader]

Go find an old 12" PowerBook and use that. You get much more space and "audiophile" quality (due to a digital output) plus it is really portable and features the outstanding quality of OS X. You can easily find them below $1000 if you look.

If you aren't expecting audiophile quality, then just pick up one of the many MP3 players out there and go with it. I have an iPod with a Y cable and a dock and it sounds fantastic, but people love to bash the frontrunner so go figure.

 

[Hi Ho]

I have a Creative Zen Micro Photo and I absolutely love it. I use it for all of my music, at home and on the go. All of the files on it are 192k WMA format and I'll bet no one would be able to tell that it is not the original CD playing.

 

[FierceTIMbo17]

You say MP3 players suck, and recommend an Ipod for an AVphile? FTW?

Go creative, at least they have EQs.

SheepStar
Woo post 4000!

I never said ipods were good just the most convenient

 

[JoeE SP9]

Using any lossy compression scheme means that audiopile quality is not relevant. Even at the highest bit rate a direct comparison between a CD and a MP3 file will allow anyone to hear how much MP3 compression damages the music.

 

[JoeE SP9]

I have a Creative Zen Micro Photo and I absolutely love it. I use it for all of my music, at home and on the go. All of the files on it are 192k WMA format and I'll bet no one would be able to tell that it is not the original CD playing.

If you try this on some decent gear it is easy to hear the difference.

 

[Reorx]

Microsoft Zune for the win.
http://news.com.com/Microsofts+Zune+to+rival+Apples+iPod/2100-1041_3-6097196.html

It's a video ipod + games + wifi + more?

 

[WorldLeader]

Zune FTW?? No way, Apple doesn't exactly sit on their (butts) when they are the leader in the industry. Remember, you never saw this from me:

And no, I can't tell you where that picture is from.

 

[jaxvon]

I believe that might be a photoshop.

 

[abboudc]

I believe that might be a photoshop.

Maybe. But it also may be real. Check out Apple's patent filings:
http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=1973

 

[WmAx]

Even at the highest bit rate a direct comparison between a CD and a MP3 file will allow anyone to hear how much MP3 compression damages the music.

Your statement at face value is accurate. But it seems [to me] to imply that you mean mp3 always causes audible artifacts. That is not the case when using the proper encoder, modes, and general music[as opposed to specific test signals known to break the psycho-acoustic model used for the encoder]. Also, for someone to 'hear' for themselves, they need to use properly prepared test samples(time synced, etc.) and evaluate in a double blind test comparator program on the computer such as PCABX or the Foobar ABX plug-in module. Otherwise, psychologically rooted bias is a factor that can not be ruled out.

-Chris

 

[JoeE SP9]

In my home with my rig I can hear the difference between an MP3 and the original RBCD file in every instance. The differences are so obvious double blind testing is unnecessary.

 

[WmAx]

In my home with my rig I can hear the difference between an MP3 and the original RBCD file in every instance. The differences are so obvious double blind testing is unnecessary.

What encoder[and version]? Which encoding mode? What bit rates? Which music sample? Did you prepare the sample correctly(time sync, etc.)? You need to use DBT to get an accurate assessment. Control trials of high quality encodes do not support that people hear an 'obvious' difference unless (1) a poor encode is the problem [or] (2) an unusual sample breaks the psycho-acoustic model of the encoder

-Chris

 

[rtcp]

I would consider the iAudio line from Cowon. I don't have any experience with them personally, but it seems they put some consideration into the way their products sound. They have good power output, and native FLAC support, among other things.

http://www.cowonamerica.com/

 

[Hi Ho]

In my home with my rig I can hear the difference between an MP3 and the original RBCD file in every instance. The differences are so obvious double blind testing is unnecessary.

That is the reason double blind tests exist! Your brain can play unimaginable tricks on you. I'll bet if you did a double blind test (properly) the difference would be significantly less or even dissapear (with properly encoded material).