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new rio karma.... deal or no deal?

post #1 of 21
1/21/07 at 1:03am
Thread Starter 
Still deliberating over what to get myself, it's been weeks of endless research now.
I've settled on an xtra x1 as an amp as power for money is essential.
There is a seller offering new rio karma's (bob knows where he got them from) for £130, which must be about $250. I've heard so much praise for this unit but is it worth that price considering how old it is? I've been assured that the units themselves are brand new but it's a case of old technology more than anything.

Whats the word....?
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post #2 of 21
1/21/07 at 3:12am
I wouldn't suggest these brand new stock ...

The battery has loose some of it's capacity sitting on a shelf for a year and the Karma is known for hard-drive related problems.

If you really want a Karma, I would suggest to look at this seller Ebay auction :

http://cgi.ebay.com/Rio-Karma-20GB-P...QQcmdZViewItem

He replaced the old HD with a newer Hitachi model and a brand new lcd screen.
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post #3 of 21
1/21/07 at 9:03am
Thread Starter 
http://cgi.ebay.com/MINT-SEALED-RIO-...QQcmdZViewItem

this one?
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post #4 of 21
1/21/07 at 10:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by benriddell View Post
no that's a refurbed one from the factory. there's an ebay seller who sells karmas with new hd's.

I would not pay $250 for a brand new sealed karma. I don't know how important a scratchless pristine looking unit is to you, but the karmas are very ugly anyway. It's all about their sound quality and UI that makes them desireable.
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post #5 of 21
1/21/07 at 12:06pm
This Karma seller seems to have positive feedback around the web using new hard drives and upgraded batteries.

http://www.karmalimbo.com/index.htm
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post #6 of 21
1/21/07 at 2:19pm
actually the karma HDD problem was an early firmware problem mostly. it was fixed a LONG time ago. Batteries need conditioning after a long layoff like this , but shouldn't have lost any of the potential charge if theyre cghareged right the first few times. I still get 12 hours out of mine playing mp3's after 2 1/2 years
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post #7 of 21
1/21/07 at 2:24pm
I don't see what all the fuss is about this player, what makes it so good?
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post #8 of 21
1/21/07 at 2:49pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by craiglester View Post
Batteries need conditioning after a long layoff like this , but shouldn't have lost any of the potential charge if theyre cghareged right the first few times.
What's the trick to this, please?
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post #9 of 21
1/21/07 at 4:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wafflesomd View Post
I don't see what all the fuss is about this player, what makes it so good?
You're a Rockbox user right? The Karma has a lot of features out-the-box that are 'missing' from a lot of new players (which we rectify by using Rockbox ). FLAC support, parametric EQ, stuff which should be made standard !
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post #10 of 21
1/22/07 at 12:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob ♫ View Post
What's the trick to this, please?
http://www.ebatts.com/?Section=4#7a


follow those rules and your batteries will last much longer.

also the charge to full - complete discharge usually helps reset any batter monitor the DAP has, which can also help prolong the play time.
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post #11 of 21
1/22/07 at 1:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by wafflesomd View Post
I don't see what all the fuss is about this player, what makes it so good?
It was a player that was ahead of its time and died a horrible death due to digital networks going south. It's sound quality, strong amp, superior EQ, excellent codec support and intelligent music playing options put it on the elite scale of players to buy when it first came out........unfortunately for the build quality of the unit, it had issues with the hitachi hard drive and buttons were of iffy quality. Still, in saying that, mine is still working fine after a few years, battery is still around the 90% mark, still would put it up against any current player for sound quality and if my player took a dive, I'd seriously consider tracking down another one because if there is one word I'd use to describe the Karma is that it has character and should have had a chance to succeed because digital networks could have evolved it into something really special, but we'll never know will we.
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post #12 of 21
1/22/07 at 1:23am
Quote:
Originally Posted by callanish View Post
It was a player that was ahead of its time and died a horrible death due to digital networks going south. It's sound quality, strong amp, superior EQ, excellent codec support and intelligent music playing options put it on the elite scale of players to buy when it first came out........unfortunately for the build quality of the unit, it had issues with the hitachi hard drive and buttons were of iffy quality. Still, in saying that, mine is still working fine after a few years, battery is still around the 90% mark, still would put it up against any current player for sound quality and if my player took a dive, I'd seriously consider tracking down another one because if there is one word I'd use to describe the Karma is that it has character and should have had a chance to succeed because digital networks could have evolved it into something really special, but we'll never know will we.
Well, it's a trend that's far to common.
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post #13 of 21
1/22/07 at 2:19am
Thread Starter 
is it possible to get a cable from the karma dock connection to minijack or other line out source ie. the same function as the dock only in cable form?
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post #14 of 21
1/22/07 at 4:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by callanish View Post
This Karma seller seems to have positive feedback around the web using new hard drives and upgraded batteries.

http://www.karmalimbo.com/index.htm
This guy (karmalimbo not callanish) hasn't replied to any of my emails. Not too promising...
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post #15 of 21
1/22/07 at 8:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by evilking View Post
This guy (karmalimbo not callanish) hasn't replied to any of my emails. Not too promising...
OH, OH. I guess I spoked too soon. There could be a good reason for why he hasn't e-mailed you yet ( I'm trying to put a positive spin on it), but if you never receive a reply at some point, then I guess its a reason to put a red flag up and be weary. I really hope he is legitimate, because I was going to use him as a source if my karma ever required service or parts.

So much for the positive feedback I read!
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