KVR Audio

Joxer the Mighty · Post by **Joxer the Mighty** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:14 pm

OK, I've had my iPod for a few weeks now. I love how convenient it is and how well it interfaces with the mac and itunes, but I just can't get past the fact that it sounds like ass. Can anyone out there recommend a better sounding player?

Lazlo Minimart · Post by **Lazlo Minimart** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:19 pm

I just bought an iAudio G3 1GB flash player. Thing is tiny, runs for 50 hours on a AA battery, fast USB 2.0 connection (appears as a hard drive for drag-and-drop loading), plays virtually any media format out there, has an FM radio... oh, and sounds excellent.

iAudio makes hard drive players, as well, if 1GB isn't enough for you, and I'm guessing they sound great, too.

o'malley · Post by **o'malley** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:21 pm

I can recommend one NOT to get... I had a creative nomad for about 5 months before it died... piece of crap

... It sounded like crap too, and was a pain in the arse to use.

butter · Post by **butter** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:36 pm

Creative is good about making products that no one in their right mind should buy. Especially their sound cards.

FLAME ON!

Joxer the Mighty · Post by **Joxer the Mighty** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:41 pm

Thanks for the posts so far. 'I Don't Recommend' posts are also very much appreciated.

BTW, no argument from me when it comes to Creative.

Lawnmower Of The Damned · Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:45 pm

My Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra works wonderfully and sounds great with my Etymotic ER-4Ps. It also has USB 2 and shows up as a drag and drop compatible disk drive that can store data files as well as audio.

It has a 4 band graphic EQ, as opposed to the bothersome "Bass Boost" found on most portables. I'd prefer a paragraphic EQ, but I suppose that would scare off the average consumer

The battery is a rechargable lithium ion, which lasts about 8 hours, I think.

My Nomad is in great shape and I use it 5 hours a day, 6 days a week.

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:49 pm

I really like my iriver. Solid.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:53 pm

I have an iRiver HP-120. I have no complaints with sound quality, and it can record to wav from a microphone as well.

Not sure how the new ones with the colour screens are though.

ericj23 · Post by **ericj23** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:57 pm

http://www.bang-olufsen.com/web2/system ... prodid=402 is apparently very nice sound wise

but its £350 and needs an sd card to run

and bang and olufsen are the epitome of style over substance - mr jobs aint even close to these danish chancers

so don't give them any money OK

adydub · Post by **adydub** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:57 pm

My Sony NW-HD3 sounds great to my ears - which is why I chose it over the i-pod.

Using something other than the supplied earbuds is essential for any mp3 player though. An i-pod will sound a lot less sucky through better phones.

Lazlo Minimart · Post by **Lazlo Minimart** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:01 pm

adydub wrote:My Sony NW-HD3 sounds great to my ears - which is why I chose it over the i-pod.

Using something other than the supplied earbuds is essential for any mp3 player though. An i-pod will sound a lot less sucky through better phones.

Good point. I have Koss portable phones. They sound incredible.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:03 pm

ericj23 wrote:so don't give them any money OK

Ah, but it is sooo sleek and alluring.

Warmonger · Post by **Warmonger** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:08 pm

How about build quality? I have an older Samsung MP3 player, and the battery door was held in place by a tiny piece of plastic, which has broken off. Before that, I had another one that I dropped from about 4 feet, and it completely died. I'd much rather have a rugged MP3 player with good ergonomics than a pretty one with flimsy controls. I think I'd go for an iRiver before anything else, but I haven't read much about build quality of any players.

Lazlo Minimart · Post by **Lazlo Minimart** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:16 pm

iRiver's are very, very solid players. Unfortunately, my ifp-799 developed a hiss in one channel, which is apparently common in that particular device. I had to switch.

foosnark · Post by **foosnark** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 8:16 pm

omalley wrote:I can recommend one NOT to get... I had a creative nomad for about 5 months before it died... piece of crap ... It sounded like crap too, and was a pain in the arse to use.

I still have my 2 year old MuVo, works just fine, sounds alright (not awesome but it was $50 and I didn't expect better) and with the firmware update, I have no complaints about usability. Build quality was just fine.

I'm thinking of getting a Zen Micro or Zen Touch because so many comparison reviews praise them highly.

What is the best sounding portable mp3 player?