LiquidFX

Thanks peekarwe for pointing out my mistake. I corrected already.. probably my dylexsia acting up again

I'm a newbie here, but let me try to explain. Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. The head-out circuit means that the signal will pass through the head-out amp, the volume control circuit, and the equalizer circuits if any. These circuits will tend to color the sound a bit, which could be a good thing if you like the built in circuits (which are frequently of low quality, low powered components to save on cost and batteries). The line-out reproduces the signal more faithfully as it doesn't pass through the abovementioned circuits. It could be more neutral sounding which is better if you want to amp the output. And in order to tell if its a line-out/head-out, if the output signal is affected by volume controls, equalizer settings, etc, it is probably a head-out. If the output signal remains consistent regardless of how much you tweak the volume control, the equalizer etc, that means its probably a line-out. AFAIK, only the NJB3 has a true line-out that is not affected by equalizer (EAX), volume or anything else. The IRiver 550's line out volume is affected by the built-in volume control, thus its not considered a "true" line-out in the sense. Am I right?

MX500 has a very short cable, so you might want to consider that before getting.

No, that's the price for the 20GB. The Creative Sale is over though, the CreativeX website still has the new Jukebox 3 (20GB) at S$299. I can't find the refurbished set for purchase online. I got the refurbished set because according to the salesperson, the refurbished sets are either sets that retail shops return (due to poor sales) or sets that are sent back for repairs... And if my set is a returned set, its as good as new... And if its a repaired set, that's even better, because that means that some engineer has already replaced the faulty component and then TESTED it to make sure everything is working first... peekarwe: Thanks for the info.. I'll try that tonight. I own several copy protected CDs that I want to rip (e.g. Lady Sings the Blues 1) into my MP3 player, and I am holding off the purchase of some other copy protected CDs (e.g. Norah Jones - Feels like home) because of ripping issues with copy protected CDs. Don't worry, I will definitely buy the CDs first. Just checking.. does anyone know where to get the NJB3 spare battery? Thanks!

Yeah, they can hear you speak bad about their mothers from 2 rooms away!

I just rip my CD into MP3 using EAC and compress using the LAME codec at alt-insane 320kbps settings. Been having some problems with copy protected CDs though I got the NJB3 at 249 as a refurbished set as the new sets are all sold out at the fair.

Actually, I didn't get a PCDP... Guess what I got? NJB3 at the recent Creative sale...

Thanks for the information! Just FYI, I could find the mouse shaped charger that can charge dual plainviews together (as mentioned in http://www.sgheadphones.com/index.php?show...&hl=plainviews) at Suntec City Harvey Norman.

Hi, I know this question might have been asked to death here, but are there any local (i.e. available in sg) batteries that provide the same (or almost the same) type of voltage and steep voltage drop off as the Plainviews? Getting plainviews from the States and importing them into Singapore is very expensive, so I am looking if there are any local variants that provide the same functionality. Thanks!

Anyone knows where to get this in Singapore? And at what price? I know CreativeX is selling for $325 for the 20GB model. Thanks!

Actually, I've managed to borrow the imp-550 from a friend last week to try it out. And I don't like the sound either. Like Absolute0, I think it sounds kinda harsh too. I played a few Norah Jones mp3s (LAME encoded alt extreme, 192kbps) on it and her highs (which are not really that high anyway) sounds bad and distorted on my E2Cs which are connected to the imp-550 lineout which I used to test. The problem is not due to the inability of the E2Cs to handle the highs, because those exact same mp3s sounds superb when played using the same pair of E2Cs from my Ipaq 3970! So I conclude that my Ipaq 3970 sounds better than the imp-550 to me when playing Norah Jones. I think I will probably get the Panasonic. BTW Northern Oak, if you are just playing redbook CDs, maybe you could consider the Sony D-EJ2000?

Actually, the microdrive is not a solid state drive. Flash based storage like CF (Compact Flash) and SD are solid state, but not the microdrive. According to specifications, the amount of shock a microdrive can take while in operation is exactly the same as the amount of shock that a 2.5" drive (that most HDD-based DAP players are based upon) can take (175G) Check these links out Hitachi Microdrive Specifications (PDF) Toshiba 2.5" HDD specifications Food for thought if you're thinking of getting a Muvo or microdrive based DAP.

Take note that the mx500 cord is a bit short. the MX-500 can be had at Tower Records Suntec at about $35 brand new.

Thanks Ma6Jie, the SLCT810 definitely looks more well built than the iRiver. Did you have a chance to listen to the iRiver? Which one do you prefer?

Wow. Thanks for the insights. I think the choice is clear, IRiver! Here I come!