The Forums Are Now Closed!

The content will remain as a historical reference, thank you.

Recommend an MP3 player

By on December 9, 2009 11:42:46 PM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

Should be simple enough. I imagine the stardock community has had plenty of experience with personal music players, and I'd like to know some of your favorites. Please give specific reasons or even better personal experience, as I'm hoping to purchase one this holiday season.

 

Thank you in advance.

+302 Karma | 22 Replies
December 9, 2009 11:58:42 PM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

I can't leave home without my Ipod Touch, great mp3 player but oh so much more than that.

 

Then you have the app store, need I say more?

December 10, 2009 4:08:32 AM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

I just a bought a new and quite cheap one. The Sansa clip. It's very popular and has a nice clear screen. It's much better than the Ipod shuffle and nano. It has great sound quality (far better than any Ipod, especially if you buy a good headphone/earphone set) and the battery life is also fine. The best thing is that you don't need Itunes to synchronise your music. Give it a try I would say. It's also so cheap that you don't have to worry about losing or damaging it.

December 10, 2009 4:34:38 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

For sound quality the iPod almost never wins comparisons to either the  Creative Labs or Zune. But through those tiny ear buds that may not matter to a lot fo people. Creative Labs Zen now supports FLAC codec which is great since it is a lossless codec and provides great reproduction, though at the cost of storage space.

When I bought mine about 18 months ago I did about a month of research adn the Creative Labs Zen was consistently the player reviewed with the best audio reproduction. To me quality of the music was of supreme inportance.

The Zune also has great sound reproduction and the new one has massive storage as well.

And the Sansa line is remarkably high quality for the price.

December 10, 2009 4:35:04 AM from Stardock Forums Stardock Forums

If you must own something with the Apple logo on it, get the player for your budget.

If you are open to other brands, check out the Sansa players and the Zune HD.

Price is an important factor, so if you give us a budget range we can be of more use to you.

December 10, 2009 7:33:06 AM from GalCiv II Forums GalCiv II Forums

I prefer the sandisk clip and the Zune for playing music. The sound from the player is good. If

anything, you might need to get better ear buds.

December 10, 2009 8:02:54 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

my son has an iPod....I'm not overly impressed....and I found out yesterday you have to pay for OS upgrades.......I have an old 8GB creative zen microphoto I've owned several years which is nice and small that I use when I need something I can stick in my pocket.

I also have a 30GB Zune which I prefer. It has great sound, plays videos and podcasts. I like the Zune software/setup a lot more than the iTunes setup. I'd recommend one of the new Zune HD's (built-in HD radio)........oh, and I've never had to pay for anything but music on my Zune.

December 10, 2009 9:56:51 AM from Elemental Forums Elemental Forums

Zune here or Creative Zen, both are pretty good. I have also an iPod, but it's the one I like the less of the three.

December 10, 2009 11:15:12 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

I own the Creative Zen (me) and the Stone (wife) and also two sansa clips (kids).  I liek the menu system for the sansa a bit more but like the screen on the Zen more.  The stone is middle of the pack.  Sound quality is mroe dependant on teh headphones than the player.

The question is what features do YOU want?

  • Size of player?
  • Amount of space available?
  • Menu system?
  • Sound quality?
  • Other (non-mp3) features?
December 10, 2009 5:58:52 PM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

Quoting Zubaz,
I own the Creative Zen (me) and the Stone (wife) and also two sansa clips (kids).  I liek the menu system for the sansa a bit more but like the screen on the Zen more.  The stone is middle of the pack.  Sound quality is mroe dependant on teh headphones than the player.

The question is what features do YOU want?


Size of player?
Amount of space available?
Menu system?
Sound quality?
Other (non-mp3) features?

 

Size isn't a huge factor, but obviously the smaller the better. I'd like at least 8 GB of memory, more is obviously better, but I don't want it to factor into price too much ($120 at most). I'm comming from a Creative Zen V Plus, but I don't think the menu system matters to much. I'll need the player to play MP3s, WMAs, and WAVs, either by default or with software upgrades. And I don't really need video or any other non music features, so that's not really a factor.

 

Thanks for the replies.

December 10, 2009 7:47:36 PM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

Zune is the only way to go

December 10, 2009 8:25:10 PM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

Me, i have a creative zen. I really like it. Sounds great with my skullcandy earbuds.

December 11, 2009 2:32:54 AM from Stardock Forums Stardock Forums

I have an itouch which I do like very much (I never liked the ipod - old style with the wheel). Great to travel with if you fly alot.

 

Have a  Creative Lab Zen which is great because it is the only m3 player that I know of that  can create more than one specific bookmark (helpful if you listen to class lectures, Bible Studies, and so on). Wish that the itouch could do this.

 

My wife has a Zune which I think works well but she just got an itouch (wedding anniversary) and she loves it. It is a lot easier for her to use.

December 11, 2009 2:53:00 AM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

I have a Sansa clip which has very good sound quality and a nice screen for the size/price.  I'm not sure if it comes with more than 4GB of memory though.  My Dad got a Sansa Fuse which is a little more expensive and a little bigger but has a nicer screen and a micro sd expansion slot if you ever need more memory.  I would highly recommend either.

December 11, 2009 3:12:44 AM from Elemental Forums Elemental Forums

I'm very happy with my Ipod Classic + Teufel docking station. I'm working 4 days at home and the Ipod has so many docking stations to choose from. So i actually first buyed the docking station and after that the ipod

My wife has a Creative Zen and is very happy with it. The sound is nice and very affordable.

December 11, 2009 3:25:25 AM from Demigod Forums Demigod Forums

Quoting Hawkeye666,
For sound quality the iPod almost never wins comparisons to either the  Creative Labs or Zune. But through those tiny ear buds that may not matter to a lot fo people. Creative Labs Zen now supports FLAC codec which is great since it is a lossless codec and provides great reproduction, though at the cost of storage space.

When I bought mine about 18 months ago I did about a month of research adn the Creative Labs Zen was consistently the player reviewed with the best audio reproduction. To me quality of the music was of supreme inportance.

The Zune also has great sound reproduction and the new one has massive storage as well.

And the Sansa line is remarkably high quality for the price.

 

Are you kidding me? Seriously? "Sound quality"?

So when I was listening to songs on my iPod with my Beyerdynamic DT 880s or Senheisser HD 280 Pros via a CMOY amp, the Sound quality was worse than say, a Zune, or a Creative Zen, or a Sansa, or my Turtle Beach 5.1 surround sound card?

BS.

That is all.

 

iPods are fine, I've had all of mine die on me after the warrany ran out, switched to a tiny Sansa, works great. It really comes down what features you want/how you like individual models. Every mp3 player that you can find in a mainstream store (Best Buy, Target, Walmart) is most likely perfectly fine and amazing in its own way.

December 11, 2009 4:20:42 AM from Stardock Forums Stardock Forums

Quoting wallstop,

Every mp3 player that you can find in a mainstream store (Best Buy, Target, Walmart) is most likely perfectly fine and amazing in its own way.

There are some terrible mp3 players out there. Stay away from the no-name devices and such.

December 12, 2009 7:49:41 PM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

Quoting GoaFan77,

Size isn't a huge factor, but obviously the smaller the better. I'd like at least 8 GB of memory, more is obviously better, but I don't want it to factor into price too much ($120 at most). I'm comming from a Creative Zen V Plus, but I don't think the menu system matters to much. I'll need the player to play MP3s, WMAs, and WAVs, either by default or with software upgrades. And I don't really need video or any other non music features, so that's not really a factor.

I recommend the Sansa Fuze, you can get the 8 GB player for $82 or 4 GB for $58 on Amazon...or at Best Buy (8 GB=$80, 4 GB=$60). I have the 8 GB Fuze, and it's great! Sound quality is excellent, UI is easy to use, and a big bonus...it has a microSD slot so you can add more storage, which is then integrated with the player's memory. It supports MP3, WMA, WAV, and AA. Sansa has its own software for transferring video & audio files, but I use WMP. The Fuze is small but rugged, and take a beating. There is a detailed review (by an audiophile)  HERE.

December 14, 2009 6:24:00 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

iPod Touch, or the Zune HD. 

December 14, 2009 6:54:17 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

oh mine was a samsung multimedia YH-J70 til it had a nervous breakdown, am gonna get a replacement soon coz i like samsung  

December 14, 2009 10:25:33 AM from Sins of a Solar Empire Forums Sins of a Solar Empire Forums

What kind of software do you use to synch your music player? Any good suggestions? I was using Songbird but that didn't really work so smoothly with my Sansa clip 8GB.

December 14, 2009 11:35:12 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

I swear by my 30gb Zune; my wife and daughter also use them, and I'm on my third (one handed down, one dropped). Good headphones are essential, and my everyday favorites are a set by Sony that wrap around my ear (MDR-AS20J). But my best set are the Bose In-Ear headphones--expensive, but Bose quality sound creates the ultimate listening experience.

The 30gb Zune is being discontinued, so I would recommend eBay or Craigslist to get the best deals. I hope to save up for the Zune HD...And the Zune software is a snap to use. Some would say that the player is clunky or too large (especially with a case or cover, which I highly recommend), but it's no bigger than your iPhone or iPod touch.

December 15, 2009 2:12:08 AM from WinCustomize Forums WinCustomize Forums

Which Zen though? There are several different models. Zen Mosaic, Zen X-Fi/X-Fi2, Zen MX...etc.

I have a 5GB Zen Micro, love the thing...except the headphone jack is really touchy now, gotta get the nerve to let the bf take it apart and fix it, but also been looking around at alternatives just in case. Sad thing is I have my Zen Micro TravelDock that I use everyday at work, finding another one for a new player will be a total pain.

Stardock Forums v1.0.0.0    #108435  walnut2   Server Load Time: 00:00:00.0000375   Page Render Time:

Stardock Magazine | Register | Online Privacy Policy | Terms of Use

Copyright ?? 2012 Stardock Entertainment and Gas Powered Games. Demigod is a trademark of Gas Powered Games. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and copyrights are the properties of their respective owners. Windows, the Windows Vista Start button and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies, and 'Games for Windows' and the Windows Vista Start button logo are used under license from Microsoft. ?? 2012 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. All rights reserved. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.