Pls recommend me a mp3 player.

[fkchan 0]

Hi,

can anyone recommend me a mp3 player that is better in sound quality playing vocal / instrumental such as string/violin , Piano sounds ? thanx

[idkfa 0]

Well, actually you should be asking for a headphone recommendation instead of a mp3 player recommendation for your specific taste in music. Most important qns is still always, budget. How much. Headphones or earphones are the deciding factor in sound tastes.

 

If you want to know about DAPs(digital audio player)'s build quality or sound quality, it helps to know that creative mp3 players are still the top at the signal to noise ratio chart at 98db. iPod is very stealth about their snr, but tested results shows ard 93~95db. iRiver is at 90db.

I would recommend a player that perhaps has a eq table to suit your taste. apple or creative is good. They all have adjustable equalisers. Creative have a 5 band and apple, not so sure. But apple has a clean neutral sound. iRiver has 2 band and loads of fancy sound modes. SRS, WOW and so on which I never use.

 

I woud strongly suggest you get a creative player which is the cheapest of the table, best snr ratio, and spend the rest of your money on a decent headphone. But navigation on a creative is well....very questionable. I love easy GUIs so I got an iRiver.

 

As for headphone, I think you'll like shure's E2c. If you have more money, go for Etymotics ER-4s. With a portable amp of cse.

 

My 2cents worth.

 

Best rgds,

Edited March 6, 2005 by idkfa

[idkfa 0]

btw, jasonhanjk has offers for cheap creatives. check this thread>> http://www.sgheadphones.net/index.php?showtopic=3224

[fkchan 0]

Thanx veri much.. will consider and read further.

[RonTheMan 0]

I would tend to agree with idkfa. Chuck the stock headphone and get a better one. For MP3 player, it has been noted that the Iriver and Creative line of players sound better with the Ipod. The other advantage that these players have over the Ipod is customizable equalizer.

 

IMHO, the Etymotic series would probably suit your kind of music more.

[jasonhanjk 0]

I agree with idkfa too. He really done his homework. Creative I got a bit lost on the user ability but Ipod is the best for easy use. But hey, even Microsoft Bill Gates uses Zen Micro.

Which one is really the best?

[idkfa 0]

Well, not to be anti-climax but the real question should be "which one is really the best...FOR ME?"

It's really the same like phones or amps. Not everyone likes a beyer or grado. Some will still tell you koss is better...

 

But if you ask me, I'll say iRiver. Convenience and Functionability wins all.

 

As for bill gates using a zen micro, well, isn't there always a hidden agenda behind every bill gates action? Last you will ever see is he using an ipod.

[Absolute0 0]

If you want to know about DAPs(digital audio player)'s build quality or sound quality, it helps to know that creative mp3 players are still the top at the signal to noise ratio chart at 98db. iPod is very stealth about their snr, but tested results shows ard 93~95db. iRiver is at 90db.

 

I would recommend a player that perhaps has a eq table to suit your taste. apple or creative is good. They all have adjustable equalisers. Creative have a 5 band and apple, not so sure. But apple has a clean neutral sound. iRiver has 2 band and loads of fancy sound modes. SRS, WOW and so on which I never use.

 

I woud strongly suggest you get a creative player which is the cheapest of the table, best snr ratio, and spend the rest of your money on a decent headphone. But navigation on a creative is well....very questionable. I love easy GUIs so I got an iRiver.

Many who have done their own tests have reported that Creative's claimed snr is higher than the actual. Anyway snr, like other specs, is not the only determinant of sound quality, so I would rather not take that as a benchmark.

 

iPod's equalizer is known to cause distortion, so most avoid using it. It's strange that Apple has not fixed this after so many generations. iRiver's EQ has more than 2 bands IIRC, my iFP-190/380 both had 5. SRS WOW is good for live recordings, and some say classical. Can't comment as I am currently using an iPod. Its flat response is good, but sometimes I still miss EQing (w/o distortion, that is).

 

Of course, iPod's GUI is the most intuitive (idiot-proof), but iRiver's isn't that bad once you get used to it. It's the same with all DAPs I guess. Though many iPod users tend to complain that Creative & iRiver's GUIs are difficult to grasp, which I don't understand as it doesn't take that much time to read the manual...

 

And yes, I doubt Bill Gates will ever be seen using an iPod.

Edited March 6, 2005 by Absolute0

[idkfa 0]

Well, I own an iRiver H340 so I shall add a little feedback here.

The H3XX series, unlike the H1XX series/Flash series, unfortunately only supports 2 band eq at present. I am not sure about the H10 new model though. There's lotsa EQ settings, but unfortunately they distort the sound so badly I don't even want to go near them. Makes me feel like my Shure E5 is crap. SRS Labs mission to bring back the "real" sound lost in digital formats, missed by miles. I went to read up on their mission statement which was quite impressive but after getting an idea what they wanted to acheive and what actually ended up happening, it made me feel like this is the biggest scam in the history of digital sound enhancement since BBE. Can't they just stick to the real deal and stop "fooling" the poor folks of what is real live music?

Anyway, I believe by using the supplied earbuds, they do make a difference. Only by sounding weird with some kinda special effect sound and perhaps this might mean something cool to the unknowing folks?

SRS & WOW & UBASS and so on... Avoid at all costs. Only the classic or jazz preset modes are fairly useable.

 

As for the GUI, isn't the "filetree" or "root directory" the simplest of navigations? I am not sure about how others view this but I grew up messing with Dos 3.1 King's Quest 1, so this filetree system is a godsent. Couldn't be simplier.

 

Funny thing is I never even touched the manual from the start.

 

As compared to the ipod, perhaps I am unconsciencely bias or I am weak from the force, I can't seem to get a hold of ipod's navigation nor creative's nor iaudio's. Weird. Maybe it's me.

 

Some many things can be discussed or thrashed...ONLY IF YOU GUYS COME FOR THE MINI-DAP-PORTABLES MEET IN MARCH!!

 

Cheers!

[RonTheMan 0]

Have one of the Iriver flash player, the 390 and the sound coming out of this baby is excellent. Better than the Creative Muvo2 1.5g. Both have on board equalizers, and definitely at least 4 bands each, if I recall correctly.

[idkfa 0]

iRiver flash players are SOLID. I used to have the iFP 350. That got me all rockin' into the irivers. (Oh iRiver! Please give me more eq band controls!!!)

 

Also to you Rontheman, come for the mini meet!!

[fkchan 0]

really thanx alot guys !! u r really r experts in this field

[idkfa 0]

We all had to start somewhere don't we? Speaking of "experts", definitely not me. All I ever knew about digital music and audio fidelity is somewhat less than 1 yr old. Take it easy. Just like PSLE!

[RonTheMan 0]

idkfa,

I might just drop down for the meet. But cannot confirm at this time. Only able to tell if I am free somewhere closer to the date. Will add my name to the list if I am available. Very interested to go.

[idkfa 0]

No problem but I hope you can make it! Appreciate your time to do this thing. Sang9.