| Portable Source Gear Discussion of portable audio source gear, like iPods, other digital audio players (DAPs), MD players, portable CD players. |
09-15-2009, 10:21 PM
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100+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Philadelphia
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Makes sense. I have not done anything like an ABX test. My sense is that the S9, even flat is more detailed and has more "space" than the iPod. Speaking hypothetically, since I am not an engineer by any definition, it may be that while a DAC is important in the design of a DAP and its sound, there is more to it, such as amplifier, layout, software, etc. And while I use the Claw UI, which improves things, I wish that the S9 had a better and swifter UI. The 5.0 ipod is still easier to use - an advantage that Apple gave away with the Classic.
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09-15-2009, 11:39 PM
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1000+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: NJ
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roebeet
I don't have my old Zune 30 anymore, but so far I think it has a similar sound. Still testing some stuff.
It has a similar EQ to the Zune 30 - a few presets, but no custom EQ that I can find.
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Is it as thin sounding as the 30? I agree with the ABI review that the high/low frequencies aren't extended very much.
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09-16-2009, 12:33 AM
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500+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Feb 2008
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I did some quick tests between my D2 and the new ZuneHD - HD 600's and my MiniBox E+. Without any EQ or JetEffects, I don't notice a major difference between the two (which I would think makes sense, if the chipsets used are similar).
However, with the EQ / BBE effects on , the D2 clearly wins out. Granted, the return of the Zune EQ does make a difference and it doesn't sound bad at all, but the Cowon just has too many settings to play with. And my Gigabeat F / Rockbox blows them both away, again due to the amount of tweaking I can do. From what I can recall from the Zune 30, I believe the Zune HD has a similar sound.
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Active DAP's: Cowon S9 32GB, Sansa Clip+ 8GB, Sansa Clip 2GB Rockboxed
Active Cans: , Sennheiser HD 600, Yuin PK1, Sony MDR-V6, Sennheiser PX 100
Amps: Minibox E+, FiiO E3 & E5
OS: Ubuntu Jaunty x64, OSX Snow Leopard, Windows 7 Professional
Head-Fi feedback: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f12/ro...7/#post5796396
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09-16-2009, 04:29 AM
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Headphoneus Supremus
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Ko Re A (South)
Posts: 7,846
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the problem with chip specs though, is that they never perform as they should on paper. plug in a pair of headphones to the jack and find out that not a single of the numbers are in any way realistic. the zune is famous for clean signal with very good stereo separation. the signal may be the best of full production units from any large company.
what the zune does suffer from is rolled off bass, but that is pretty normal in the dap universe.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sochee
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09-16-2009, 10:08 PM
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Headphoneus Supremus
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Posts: 1,789
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Hope someone chimes in soon with an SQ evaluation...that's the only thing that's stopping me from digging further into my paypal account...
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09-16-2009, 10:36 PM
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500+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Pennsylvania, USA
Posts: 523
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DeusEx
Hope someone chimes in soon with an SQ evaluation...that's the only thing that's stopping me from digging further into my paypal account...
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I just boxed mine up, as I'm going to return it. That's my eval. 
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Active DAP's: Cowon S9 32GB, Sansa Clip+ 8GB, Sansa Clip 2GB Rockboxed
Active Cans: , Sennheiser HD 600, Yuin PK1, Sony MDR-V6, Sennheiser PX 100
Amps: Minibox E+, FiiO E3 & E5
OS: Ubuntu Jaunty x64, OSX Snow Leopard, Windows 7 Professional
Head-Fi feedback: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f12/ro...7/#post5796396
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09-16-2009, 10:39 PM
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Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 90
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Hmm. Is it really that bad? Guess I'll be getting an S9 then.
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Portable: 2G iPod Nano -> Denon C710
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09-16-2009, 10:48 PM
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Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Plantation. FL
Posts: 48
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Quote:
Originally Posted by roebeet
I did some quick tests between my D2 and the new ZuneHD - HD 600's and my MiniBox E+. Without any EQ or JetEffects, I don't notice a major difference between the two (which I would think makes sense, if the chipsets used are similar).
However, with the EQ / BBE effects on , the D2 clearly wins out. Granted, the return of the Zune EQ does make a difference and it doesn't sound bad at all, but the Cowon just has too many settings to play with. And my Gigabeat F / Rockbox blows them both away, again due to the amount of tweaking I can do. From what I can recall from the Zune 30, I believe the Zune HD has a similar sound.
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Im not going to comment on your eval compared to the cowon daps.. but ill have to disagree with you on your assessment vs the Zune 30.
There is a difference and the sound is better on th zuneHD than the zune 30. Mind you .. the EQ on he zune 30 appears to be more pronounced. But on a direct 30vsHD using the same files and headphones the HD is a more fuller sounding dap.
I will defer to your opinion vs the cowons and considering they obviously have more user controls to manipulate the sound to your liking they obviously would win out.. but flat output ... I think the SQ is excellent.
Cheers
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Present Equipment
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UE SF5 Pro, Shure E3c, Vmoda Vibes (Gen 1), Zune Premiums (Gen 1)
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09-16-2009, 11:04 PM
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500+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Pennsylvania, USA
Posts: 523
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Maxis
Im not going to comment on your eval compared to the cowon daps.. but ill have to disagree with you on your assessment vs the Zune 30.
There is a difference and the sound is better on th zuneHD than the zune 30. Mind you .. the EQ on he zune 30 appears to be more pronounced. But on a direct 30vsHD using the same files and headphones the HD is a more fuller sounding dap.
I will defer to your opinion vs the cowons and considering they obviously have more user controls to manipulate the sound to your liking they obviously would win out.. but flat output ... I think the SQ is excellent.
Cheers
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I had to go on memory with my Zune 30, as I had sold it a few months back. So, I would defer to your comparisons, on that.
As for the Zune HD, I agree that the sound is very good and certainly holds its own with my Cowon if the JetEffects are off - I had actually dropped quite a few albums on it and had listened to it for several hours. But, subjectively, I enjoy a nice full sound with deep bass, and I didn't get that with the unit. It's mainly because the EQ presets, although a welcome addition, does not give the control I need to tweak the sound to what I like best. I guess I am so spoiled now with the D2 JetEffects and Rockbox that it really is hard to go back. Btw, source files are always important with testing - I used a few Pop/Rock, some acoustic guitar music as well as classical. I thought the Zune HD did a better job on the guitar / classical tracks than the Pop/Rock.
The main reason I actually decided to return the unit was the announcement that MS is not offering an SDK for the App Store. What this basically means is that they are crippling that offering which, imo, makes the Wifi practically useless (I don't care for web browsing on a tiny screen. But enabling possible Wifi applications like last.fm or pandora would have been very nice). HD Radio, while a nice feature, isn't really enough for me to keep it. I am also looking at an S9 since I believe its EQ will probably be more in line to what I'm used to.
If I get an S9 before I return the Zune HD, I'll do a quick SQ comparison between them, as well.
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Active DAP's: Cowon S9 32GB, Sansa Clip+ 8GB, Sansa Clip 2GB Rockboxed
Active Cans: , Sennheiser HD 600, Yuin PK1, Sony MDR-V6, Sennheiser PX 100
Amps: Minibox E+, FiiO E3 & E5
OS: Ubuntu Jaunty x64, OSX Snow Leopard, Windows 7 Professional
Head-Fi feedback: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f12/ro...7/#post5796396
Last edited by roebeet; 09-16-2009 at 11:08 PM.
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09-16-2009, 11:23 PM
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Headphoneus Supremus
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Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 2,122
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So anyone know if this little bugger has gapless playback? That's the only thing making me stay with the iPods
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Originally Posted by Mazz
As the oldies say "Youth is wasted on the young", but the complementary observation is "Savings are wasted on the old"
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09-16-2009, 11:43 PM
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500+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Bay Area, CA
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I don't know why you guys would buy this in the first place. It's such a limited functionality device. I listened to it at my local best buy and it sounds just like a regular Zune, which is good, but not worth the 200 bucks for something that does even less than an iPod Touch, which at least lets you listen to far more internet radio, check email, add apps, etc despite being a similar waste of money.
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09-16-2009, 11:59 PM
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Headphoneus Supremus
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Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Bellevue, WA
Posts: 1,963
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Quote:
Originally Posted by neoufo51
I don't know why you guys would buy this in the first place. It's such a limited functionality device. I listened to it at my local best buy and it sounds just like a regular Zune, which is good, but not worth the 200 bucks for something that does even less than an iPod Touch, which at least lets you listen to far more internet radio, check email, add apps, etc despite being a similar waste of money.
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The Zune HD does all of those things...
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09-17-2009, 02:10 AM
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Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: CA
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Does anyone know how the sound quality compares to the Sony Walkman NWZ-a729s/829s? Clear bass was a big feature on why I picked it up even though Sony's interface is complete balls. The moment I saw the Zune HDs design and interface, I completely fell in love! They really upped this aspect tenfold and It's almost tempting enough to outweigh the SQ.
Granted my Sonys still work fine, but a nice reference for when the Zunes drop in price.
Last edited by wolfboy; 09-17-2009 at 02:13 AM.
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09-17-2009, 02:29 AM
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Headphoneus Supremus
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Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Peaceful village in Ohio.
Posts: 5,795
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These bashing comments, only after using for a couple of days, make me laugh.
I ordered both the Touch G3 and Zune HD but personally, I put more hope on the HD than on the Touch which I'm so fed up with.
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09-17-2009, 02:45 AM
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100+ Head-Fi'er
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Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Saint Charles, IL
Posts: 254
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ZephyrSapphire
So anyone know if this little bugger has gapless playback? That's the only thing making me stay with the iPods
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Yes it does. And mine sounds great by the way. A good bit better than my Fuze, plus the UI is simply amazing (as well as the device itself). The presets sound pretty good, but I would have preferred a custom EQ. Though seriously, if you need to EQ your headphones, then you should not care about sound quality.
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