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Topic: Which portable Audio-Player to buy? (Read 5409 times) previous topic - next topic
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Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Hi!

I want to buy a portable Audio-Player pretty soon and I'm somewhat undecided which one i should buy. It should be small and light cause i want to do some jogging/running with it (so it should have some antishock too), it should have good audio quality (headphones are secondary, I will buy some better headphones anyway) and I should be able to store alot of music on it (so a MP3 Player based on Memory Sticks is a no go for me). Its also pretty important that it got a good battery runtime (I'd prefer some good Li-Ion rechargeables) and it should not cost more than 250 - 300 bucks (but it would be nice if its alot cheaper cause i got no money at all right now, Im a student). Most of my audio files are MP3 files, so it should be able to play them straight or at least to convert them without problems (ATRAC for example). Possible usage of the storage as a pc harddisk would be an advantage but thats not necessary for me.

I heard alot about the new Hi-MD Players from Sony, so are they any good? Which media should i prefer? MP3 Player with Harddisk or MD / Hi-MD Player? Is it better to go with MP3 or would it be better to go with ATRAC Plus for example? I'm pretty new to the whole audio subject so any advice would be a great help. If u could point me to some specific models from well known good quality manufacturers that would be much appreciated too. 

Please notice that I'm no audiophile at all, just a mortal music listener, in a blind test i probably couldn't keep apart MP3 and Wav  .
So even if ATRAC / ATRAC Plus should be worse quality than MP3 its not necessarily the better choice for me.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #1 –
You should have used the search...

Look here for an objective blind-test 128kbps multiformat test results Test Results

I think MD is a good portable device, but if you care about quality, MP3 should give you better results at certain bitrates.

I own a CD-MP3 player. It handles hundreds of tracks, but of course, I think I couldn't jogging with it (at least with my model, but there are specific MP3-CD players ready for make sport with them, but those cost a little more, of course).

The good of the HD is the size, and it doesn't skip. I don't know if the HD is fragile, but someone could tell you this.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #2 –
I'd go for the HDD type player. Small, holds LOTS of music, and the recent ones are very durable. If you want long, long battery life then don't go the iPod way - better to look at an iRiver, Rio, or iAudio.

I have an iRiver H140, and have never regretted the choice. I use it every day.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #3 –
I would get a 2nd hand HD player. If you want something new, HD and Hi-MD are both good. If you are a computer guy go with the HD. If you like to have your music on physical discs go with MD. HD is more convenient, MD more stylish.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #4 –
Thx alot guys for the fast answers. I think it will depend mainly on the price if i buy the hdd one or the MD one. Btw how about the Creative Nomad Muvo2 with 1.5GB or 4.0GB? Can anyone recommend that one? I saw it got some really good reviews and its not that expensive. And yeah i already thought about the iRivers, they are pretty stylish and got alot of good reviews too. The problem is their price, its a bit expensive compared to other players...

Anyways what i like about the new HiMD players from Sony: they got awesome battery runtimes, up to 37 hours! Of course they are worse audio quality and they got less storage space.  What I really would like to know is if there are skipping issues with MD players when I do my sports...

Hmmm hard decision, I still don't know which to buy lol. But thx anyways guys, its much appreciated. 

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #5 –
Hi there!
You should look at this. I was already discussed here.
Sorry for my poor English, I'm trying to get better... ;)
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he didn't exist."

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #6 –
I now have a Hi-MD, and despite some reservations about having to transcode to ATRAC, Atrac3plus @ 256, quality is excellent and I am not getting obvious transcoding artifacts from mp3s with typical portable use. Battery life is excellent, still in excess of 25 hours at this higher bit rates. This is even better if you go for the lower rates of course.

If you like to exercise, MD's simply don't skip. If only it did have that native mp3 support.

1 Gb is more than enough for me. 8 hours at 256, 16 hours at 132 (still quite good for portable use). Hell, is you need more, take another disc with you.

I was going to buy a small hard disk based mp3 player to replace my aging Net-MD, but since getting my Hi-MD as a gift, I've come to realise why I like the MD format.

In reality, I'm sure either will probably suit your needs.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #7 –
Yes, that's all right but HiMD still lacks the native mp3 support and is still infested with DRM shit and it doesn't seem to change so this is why I'm still sticking without portable player
Sorry for my poor English, I'm trying to get better... ;)
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled, was convincing the world he didn't exist."

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #8 –
Quote
Btw how about the Creative Nomad Muvo2 with 1.5GB or 4.0GB?
If you're gonna get yourself a HD player, you might as well go for the ones with much larger capacity. (e.g. 20 or 40 Gb's)

I recently bought an iRiver ifp-899. It holds a 1Gb flash memory and supports the ogg format. The battery time is pretty impressive with its 40 hrs with one AA battery. A bit less when playing ogg files. It has no moving parts which can be a good thing when running/jogging.

As for the MD or HD players, I can't really tell if they are more sensitive to shocks and shakes than flash memory players. (I kind of_think_they are) The same goes for the sensitivity to humidity if you're sweating or if it's raining. Worth checking out though.
//From the barren lands of the Northsmen

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #9 –
I have a Creative Muvo TX 512 MB. Very good quality, small size, enought music for me (8,5 hours at 128 kbps), loads very fast (real USB 2.0) and last very long time on an standard AAA battery (even better if you buy a pair of 850 mAh rechargables ones).

Now they are on a very competitive price. Worth to check.
Just a thought...
 

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #10 –
Recently I purchase a Rio Karma and am very happy with it. No issues at all.
However I am still a little worried about using it for jogging or other impact activities because it is HD based and in case I have any problems maintenance would be a problem (I'm in south america).

For sure I will sell my Net-MD.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #11 –
I just bought a Sony MZ-NH900 and I couldn't be happier with my choice eventhough I must admit that encoding Atrac3plus is a major pain in the ass using my P3 and that usb transfers are somewhat slow (about 3x cd-r). The jogging issue was a major factor for me.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #12 –
Hello,

I have an old sony minidisc player and a new apple ipod. The hassle with the minidisc player was getting songs onto the discs... because I got it so long ago, the only way to get songs on it from the pc was to record at realtime, which was a hassle. Just being able to drag songs over to a usb device is much more convenient. Neither of these players has skipped for me when I go jogging, but I worry too much that I may drop my beloved ipod, so I still job with my minidisc player. I have to admit that I have a lot of fun swapping out the discs on an MD player.

Basically, I don't think any of your player choices will skip. If you want something really great for working out, get a small, flash based mp3 player. There are a lot of wonderful choices out there for this kind of player. It's easy to switch music on and off, they are durable, and most are way cool looking and can act as removable usb hard drives.

-rex

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #13 –
Wow, you all made my day guys. I didn't expect such a great ressonance on my post, but I'm really happy with all your answers. I knew this is the right place to ask questions like that and your answers are more than appreciated. I surely would like to buy a player with a bigger HDD like 20 to 40GB but they are still quite expensive, and even the top range HiMD players are cheaper. So i will definetely make my choice between a good rated HiMD and a 1.5 to 5 GB HDD MP3 player (like Muvo, Carbon or Nitrous)...

I will check back if I made my choice and post my experiences with my new baby...

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #14 –
Edit;found the answer in another thread...so if you can delete this mods

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #15 –
I was planning to buy a player too, and I'll finally buy a Rio Karma (as soon as I get some cash ). Why? Because is the only one that can play back Ogg Vorbis & FLAC.

Good Points:
·Long batteries life (15 hours)
·Dock with RCA plugs (making it easy to connect it to your stereo/hifi system) and a RJ-45 connector (amazing).
·Cheaper than other players

Bad Points/Things to improve (for next release?):
·Not possible to use it as a HDD (for storing photos for example)
·Joystick controller (I prefer iPod controls)

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #16 –
Quote
I have a Creative Muvo TX 512 MB. Very good quality, small size, enought music for me (8,5 hours at 128 kbps), loads very fast (real USB 2.0) and last very long time on an standard AAA battery (even better if you buy a pair of 850 mAh rechargables ones).

Now they are on a very competitive price. Worth to check.
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=249332"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]



I've been looking, myself; but for smaller Flash-based. 
I had narrowed my choice down to:
iRiver iFP-790 256 or 512  (plays Ogg, not expandable, on expensive side, some reports of lousy CS) 
RIO FORGE 256 (sd mem card expandable, many reports of problems and lousy CS) 
MuVo TX FM 256 or 512: (Not expandable, no bad cons or complaints from many reviewers)

So I am going to get the (Flash-based) MuVo.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #17 –
I had seriously considered buying a flash-based DAP but now that I bought a HD-based one I am very happy. I just want to have my entire collection with me, without having to go to the PC and transfer files to the unit once I tire of the material stored in memory. I don't have to wonder "hmm, which albums should I listen to?" I have everything on the unit...grab it and go.

HD units do cost more and I would NOT use them in active pursuits. But it puts a big smile on my face to know that I can have hundreds and hundreds of albums on a small 1/2 pound device.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #18 –
Quote from: JayDPiii,Nov 12 2004, 09:49 AM

Quote from: glauco,Oct 22 2004, 12:15 PM

So I am going to get the (Flash-based) MuVo.
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=253409"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


MuVo are simply the best for the value. For price under $100, you almost got everything.

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #19 –
Get the iPod Mini. A friend of mine uses it for jogging and absolutely swears by it.
iTunes 10 - Mac OS X 10.6
256kbps AAC VBR
iPhone 4 32GB

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #20 –
Quote
I was planning to buy a player too, and I'll finally buy a Rio Karma (as soon as I get some cash ). Why? Because is the only one that can play back Ogg Vorbis & FLAC.
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=253359"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


AFAIK the iAudio M3 also supports Vorbis & Flac.

Quote
Good Points:
·Long batteries life (15 hours)
·Dock with RCA plugs (making it easy to connect it to your stereo/hifi system) and a RJ-45 connector (amazing).
·Cheaper than other players
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=253359"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


I'd be interested in the battery life when playing FLACs
I would never listen to FLACs on a portable. It'll just drain battery power too much.
Also, you'll quickly run out of space. So, for me FLAC playback capability is rather unimportant.

Quote
Bad Points/Things to improve (for next release?):
·Not possible to use it as a HDD (for storing photos for example)
·Joystick controller (I prefer iPod controls)
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=253359"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


Not possible to use the Karma as portable hard disk ?
Not nice ... I didn't know that.


SebastianG  (happy iRiver H120 owner)

Which portable Audio-Player to buy?

Reply #21 –
Quote
Get the iPod Mini. A friend of mine uses it for jogging and absolutely swears by it.
[a href="index.php?act=findpost&pid=253890"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

That is quite odd. To me, the iPod mini serves no purpose (other than a fashion accessory).

Is it wise to use a hard drive-based player in an activity like jogging? I don't know. I don't know how they design these players to withstand external motion. A little swaying back and forth is probably fine and "designed in", but hard jolts certainly aren't. I lean toward caution because I read about the failure rate of these devices.

What good is a device that can only store 4GB? You can't store a collection of music on a footprint that small...so you are forced to copy material back and forth from your PC to the DAP every so often. In that case, you might as well stick with a flash-based player. They are certainly cheaper and yes, some are even smaller than the Mini.

And that may be the crux of the matter: the Mini is so overpriced. $249. The 40GB Zen Xtra I just bought costs $50 less and can store 10 times as much music. That is such a tremendous improvement in value that I don't care about the size difference. If you've been carrying around a portable cassette or CD player for years, a DAP like the Xtra is no burden.

If I were a jogger, I would opt for one of those 1-ounce MuVo TXs with built-in FM radios. I have seen some as cheap as $59 retail.