anyone know an MP3 that works properly?

Row_Bot · 3 Aug 2010 at 22:50

Hi,

I have owned 3 different Creative MP3 players over the last 2 years, all had pretty bad issues:
- Zen stone: completely locked up & wouldn't respond at all
- Zen V: stopped connecting to my PC, then locked up
- Zen Mosaic: various issues, then it locked up. Creative suggested RMA but had no proof of purchase

I've always liked Creative as their players sound good & I like them but after 3 dead players I decided to switch to another make. I recently bought a Phillips SA1OPS08K & it's a complete joke. It's 3 weeks old & so far has had the following problems:
- lockups playing music and videos
- volume buttons stop responding
- 'unknown file format' message even though it's played the same file before
- most annoyingly sometimes the music skips & also there's a horrible scratching noise. It sounds just like an old record player with the needle jumping around. Pretty poor for a £100 MP3 player

Does anyone know of a good, reliable make of MP3 player that has good sound quality? (NOT Ipods - I can't stand them!)

Cheers,

Row_bot

Fubsy · 3 Aug 2010 at 23:19

Cowon D2 ( I think it's been discontinued now though), Cowon S9, pretty much any sony player, Sansa Fuze and Clip+. That list should get you started.

EDIT: Good sound also depends heavily on the files you'll be playing and the earphones/headphones.

Row_Bot · 3 Aug 2010 at 23:47

thanks for the suggestions - i nearly went for Sony but ended up with the useless Phillips. I remember seeing a decent looking Sansa Fuze somewhere but can't remember where - will keep my eye out.

I use Sennhesier in-ear headphones & MP3's @ 320kbps

AMG · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:10

it depends what else you want to use your mp3/pmp for?

and no you don't want a S9 you want a J3

Retorted · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:17

Sansa Fuze for me. Works like a charm. And plays FLAC if you're that way inclined.

AtticusFinch · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:19

Just out of interest why do you hate iPods?

Pug · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:35

AtticusFinch said:
Just out of interest why do you hate iPods?

probably because they work well - far too simple!

clv101 · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:37

I have the SanDisk Sansa View, seems perfect.

AtticusFinch · 4 Aug 2010 at 21:39

I'm always intrigued

Pug said:
probably because they wrok well - far too simple!

Why people don't like them other than the general dislike of Apple/Steve Jobs and references too the reality distortion field.

So just wondering if there's anything substantive on functionality that causes OP's dislike of them?

mattyfez · 5 Aug 2010 at 09:01

AtticusFinch said:
Why people don't like them other than the general dislike of Apple/Steve Jobs and references too the reality distortion field.

So just wondering if there's anything substantive on functionality that causes OP's dislike of them?

Price, audio quality, file support and itunes, are 4 reasons right off the bat. Oh and the fact the headphones are louder on the outside than the inside... makes me want to throttle people on the train.

Allattar · 5 Aug 2010 at 12:21

I have a creative mosaic too, and I notice an issue with locking up, but always was able to recover it by pressing the reset button.

Its fairly consistent on how you lock it up as well. Basically turn it on, and if it turns on playing a song try to go back to the beginning of the song. Does it every time.

As for Apple I have to admit I am in the camp of never letting an apple product near my pc., Quicktime just about gets on there becuase its useful.

However it annoys me that it continually tries to trick me into installing itunes and safari every time it wants to update. (NO I never want them stop trying to push them on me like a crackdealer).

The other dislikes of Apple, is the cool factor. I am anti cool, therefore no apple

The Apple is good microsoft is evil campaigners, when Apple are much more anticompetitve than MS ever have been, and so much better at it than MS could ever dream of. Locking MP3 players to music you buy from them as the only store, securing software on phones such that you have to go through them to buy it, so that they earn $ from each app bought, and can vet all apps, to the point where they can close off programming tools in an area that would compete with them.

Then you get to all the lawsuits as well, its ok for Apple to infringe on copyright, patents, and IP. See Apple vs Apple. Apple where allowed to use the Apple logo by Apple music as long as Apple computers never went near the music industry. But the instant anyone goes anywhere near something Apple make... bam instant lawsuit.

It just smacks of the old MS approach to everything, call the lawyers first.

It may be hypocritical of me to dislike Apple as a company and not worry about MS. My opinion though is MS standardised the computing world and as bad as they are at times, helped move computing forwards, Apple however remain more expensive, and want to be bigger than MS.

In their desire to beat MS, Apple have lost their soul. They have become the new MS.

Those are just my thoughts. I hope the world belongs to a more open form of computing and applications.

Rant over

clv101 · 5 Aug 2010 at 12:24

Allattar said:
The other dislikes of Apple, is the cool factor. I am anti cool, therefore no apple

It's pretty cool these days to dislike Apple...

Allattar · 5 Aug 2010 at 12:27

clv101 said:
It's pretty cool these days to dislike Apple...

NNNnooooooooooooo

I was there first..

Does this mean I need to buy an Ipod.

mattjd · 5 Aug 2010 at 14:43

Allattar said:
NNNnooooooooooooo

I was there first..

Does this mean I need to buy an Ipod.

Yes

I think iPod's/iPhone's are the only exceptions of buying Apple products for me. I will never touch a Mac

I recommend an iPod Classic for large amounts of music or just a Nano for portability. But it might be worth it to wait until September when the new iPod range comes out

clv101 · 5 Aug 2010 at 15:05

I'm the other way round, my MacBook is great - wouldn't consider an iPod though.

Fubsy · 5 Aug 2010 at 16:01

When Apple release a player that's sub £50, is drag and drop, doesn't need iTunes, has sound quality comparable to the best in the market, has an expansion slot and doesn't look like a 50 year old metal coin after a fair amount of usage... I'll buy one.

In the meantime I really do believe there are much better products out there worth my cash.

AMG · 5 Aug 2010 at 16:04

I like apple things althrough some things are over priced and flawed..

I don't class the ipod as a Mp3 through or a Pmp even its so much more and that is the great thing about it. it does everything well rather than a few things superb...can you surf the internet on a cowon J3? nope what about games? only flash onces ;p

apple are not the best for sound quailty never will be a decent pair of headphones makes all the difference, the Ipod really isnt that expesnive if you look at the like of a ipod touch 8Gb...and whats wrong with itunes I know the windows version is well a bit fat and installs stuff you don't want like bonjour whatever that is...AAC is a good format through

Allattar · 5 Aug 2010 at 17:04

I just dont want to buy stuff from itunes. I would prefer lossless formatted music but thats not really too possible unless your burning things yourself so you have to accept that stores will sell with compression. Not hugely up on the different formats, but I have music across several different formats. Therefore I need a player that recognises them.

Its Apples insistence that I MUST install safari and itunes at every possible opportunity that annoys me.
Reminds me of that other media player that always insisted you wanted to install it.

If something keeps flashing popups with installs, to install them alongside something else I generally dislike it and do my best not to install it. Yahoo toolbar anyone?
Stealth installs (although these are hardly stealthy more distraction installs) really get to me.

I suppose if I had a Mac or an apple product they wouldnt keep trying to force me to install their stuff, becuase it would already be installed....

But its a battle of wills now... Will they catch me out one day, when I am half asleep, or drunk with a cheeky little... oh Hai I seez you needz a new quicktimez. I has installed it and Safari and itunes, and signed your soul to Apple at the same time kthxbye.

Pug · 5 Aug 2010 at 18:28

sounds like your expending a lot of energy for a pretty senseless reason tbh, but to each their own

Redman · 5 Aug 2010 at 18:48

Allattar said:
I just dont want to buy stuff from itunes. I would prefer lossless formatted music but thats not really too possible unless your burning things yourself so you have to accept that stores will sell with compression. Not hugely up on the different formats, but I have music across several different formats. Therefore I need a player that recognises them.

Its Apples insistence that I MUST install safari and itunes at every possible opportunity that annoys me.
Reminds me of that other media player that always insisted you wanted to install it.

If something keeps flashing popups with installs, to install them alongside something else I generally dislike it and do my best not to install it. Yahoo toolbar anyone?
Stealth installs (although these are hardly stealthy more distraction installs) really get to me.

I suppose if I had a Mac or an apple product they wouldnt keep trying to force me to install their stuff, becuase it would already be installed....

But its a battle of wills now... Will they catch me out one day, when I am half asleep, or drunk with a cheeky little... oh Hai I seez you needz a new quicktimez. I has installed it and Safari and itunes, and signed your soul to Apple at the same time kthxbye.

Or you could untick the box