Hi all... long time no see. Hope you are all good. Hi Jan V!
Why did I post a query about MP3 in the old school of solid state/tubes? Well, this question is really aimed at anyone who might have an interest in the high end, but who might also want the convenience of portable sound in it's tiniest form... Yep! The MP3 player.
So my question to you guys is: Is there such a thing as a reasonable-sounding MP3 player on the market and if so: which brands/models would you go for (considering your sonic tastes)?
I don't expect it carry the detail and sonic excellence of my home systems - but a friend recently tried to sell me his. My most pertinent comment was that I'd think about sticking with (Walkman) tapes, if this is the best an MP3 player can put into two earplugs! "Yuk!"
I want the convenience mainly for cycling - which is why I won't consider a decent portable CD player (too much 'jog factor' and weight). Plus, I love the idea of a personal juke-box which can store a nice range of musical choices as well as being able to easily make my own compilations.
I think the main reason for my question has to be the fact that I've been told all MP3ers carry a generic sound chip with a small pre-amp and that what you get higher up the price range is not so much quality - but features, bigger capacity and nicer feel to the buttons...
I guess, a long-winded way of saying: Are they all crap, or can you buy good ones?
Apple have this pretty much sown up in the iPod and iPod nano. The Nano is 4GB in size and solid state so it's fine for jogging with and it sounds reasonably good too. If you need more than 4GB (that's a LONG jog), then there are the hard disc based iPods. I use a 3rd Generation iPod and it sounds great. I use the Apple specific AAC compression algorithm which works very well and sounds great at 128 or 192kbit/sec. It's miles better than MP3. I even use it as background music on the main system occasionally.
mp3 is really one of the worst formats available right now. there are lots of other ones, the main question is whether or not the player supports those other formats. I know apple limits the range of formats that are compatible with their ipods. i would try looking at cnet.com and take a look at their reviews. hope that helps.
Interestingly, I have noticed that the same MP3 track played through Windows Media Center (or whatever it's called) sounds a whole HEAP better than it does played through iTunes! Perhaps the Apple product is better on AAC?
Regards, Frank.
nout
Unregistered guest
Posted on
I find it hard to recommend a particular format. When I compress music myself, with iTunes, I choose plain MP3 160 kb and it doesn't different than the higher rates (192, 256, even AIFF)
I did a comparison with different types (MP3, AAC, Ogg, WMA) and rates, ranging from 128 tot 320, with and without VBR (Variable bit rating) and I couldn't hear a difference, well 128Kb sounded a tiny bit worse, but I can easily live with that minimal loss.
Downloading music from the web is a different story: I don't have a clue what makes a MP3, WMA, WAV sound good or bad, I have 128KB MP3's and Real rams which sound a lot better than 256KB VBR. I don't know what happens to the data when it is uploaded and downloaded numerous times...???
