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Why no love for the Toshiba Gigabeat F series

post #1 of 33
6/19/08 at 10:45am
Thread Starter 
This is a question I meant to ask for quite some time.

Why is the Toshiba Gigabeat F series so seldom mentioned?

When I first started with a portable player I knew to things:
I wanted no part of Apple and I wanted a player capable of running Rockbox.

So I settled on an iriver H1x0. And was disappointed in the sound quality from the line and headphone out.
Yes, you can use it as a digital transport, but that means you always need a second device like the iBasso D1 as DAC and amp...

So I looked around for another player and found the Gigabeat F40.

Right now (June 08) you can still find plenty of them available, refurbished like new or slightly used for a price that you can buy cases for an ipod for (obviously not the ipod itself...).

When I got the Gigabeat I was simply blown away!!

My holiday rig consists of a Gigabeat F100 (yes, a Gigabeat with a 100GB harddisk) and an Audio Technica ATH-950ltd. No further amp necessary or wanted. Every time I switch on one of my desktop amps I find myself longing for the sound of the F100.

Since then I had the chance to finally listen to a 4G ipod, and now I understand the need for an imod...

So, to me at least the Gigabeat does not need an amp, unless you have something really hard to drive - say a K340, for all the ATHs, the Denons and the Grados out there it has more then enough power.

The sound quality, the soundstage and the available power is more then adequate.

As said before you can easily extend the capacity up to by now 120GB, the 100GB version is actually quite affordable, even if you pay more for the disk then for the player housing it...

For something around 400$ you get a full color player with 100GB space that supports almost any format known to man, has place for 15.000 (that is how many I have on mine) mp3s (mostly with 190k or more) or about 200 CDs ripped to lossless (Flac), supports album art up to 240x240 pixels and lasts up to 12 hours without a recharge.

So, can someone please explain why it is almost never mentioned here?

Thanks

Michael
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post #2 of 33
6/19/08 at 11:30am
I've never seen them for sale. Where did you get one?
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post #3 of 33
6/19/08 at 1:02pm
They are very rare and weren't made for very long. Toshiba started making the Zune 30's and stopped making theirs, at least that's what I've heard.
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post #4 of 33
6/19/08 at 1:21pm
Thread Starter 
Well, you can always find them on e**y, that is were I got mine from (and I now own three, to be on the safe side).
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post #5 of 33
6/19/08 at 1:48pm
I have one, it's a great little player, rockbox on it blows my 5.5g ipod away SQ wise. I use it with KSC75's at work, and it's a fabulous combination.
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post #6 of 33
6/19/08 at 4:07pm
Toshiba F series - X series - S series (derivate: Zune 30)
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post #7 of 33
6/19/08 at 4:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mapstec View Post
Well, you can always find them on e**y, that is were I got mine from (and I now own three, to be on the safe side).
I've looked for a Gigabeat F on e**y on and off for a couple of years now, largely because the Rockbox developers seem to be so high on them as a Rockbox platform. I don't recall ever finding one. And there aren't any there today, not that I can find. Cases, yes; DAPs, no.
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post #8 of 33
6/19/08 at 4:26pm
That was good for a laugh. A portable supplying 'more than enough power' for the K340s... sure.

Still, glad you are happy with your portable player. I've still yet to find one that makes me swoon. Maybe I'll give the Gigabeat F series a try.
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post #9 of 33
6/19/08 at 4:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by major_works View Post
I've looked for a Gigabeat F on e**y on and off for a couple of years now, largely because the Rockbox developers seem to be so high on them as a Rockbox platform. I don't recall ever finding one. And there aren't any there today, not that I can find. Cases, yes; DAPs, no.
Flawless Toshiba Gigabeat F20 MP3 Player, MINT COND!!! - eBay (item 220246170433 end time Jun-20-08 15:59:15 PDT)

TOSHIBA GIGABEAT F40 40GB MP3 PLAYER (A) REFURBISHED - eBay (item 280236986747 end time Jun-22-08 19:02:21 PDT)
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post #10 of 33
6/19/08 at 4:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by philodox View Post
That was good for a laugh. A portable supplying 'more than enough power' for the K340s... sure.
You read what he said wrong.
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post #11 of 33
6/19/08 at 5:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HipHopScribe View Post
You read what he said wrong.
Damn, you're right... my bad.

The second part of my post stands though.
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post #12 of 33
6/19/08 at 5:41pm
Well, shut my mouth! Thanks for the links.
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post #13 of 33
6/19/08 at 7:37pm
I loved my Gigabeat(R.I.P.). Best thing I've heard. Rockbox really put it over the top. None of the flash players can match it. The Sony's, Iriver's, Cowon's, etc. fell short on SQ. The Gigabeat T400 was close but lacked the EQ or power to match it. It Just has a bigger soundstage with more air and a nearly totally black background(>95 SNR).

I finally think I did find a player that sounds as good in the SmartQ T5 Gen II. I no longer have the Toshiba to A/B it with though. But I can compare it to my Cowon and it beats it nearly as much as the Toshiba.

I do recommend the F series or the X if you can find one(smaller, bigger screen). I still have a nearly new Zcover silicone case and a spare cradle for an F20 if anyone needs them.
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post #14 of 33
6/19/08 at 7:48pm
Is this one?

Toshiba gigabeat megf10 -10 GB mp3 player - (eBay.ca item 200232642202 end time 24-Jun-08 23:19:35 EDT)

If so, how hard is it to replace the harddrive?

EDIT: And how about this one? Only 5hrs left and in Canada.

Toshiba gigabeat MEG-F20 - Digital player - HDD 20 GB - (eBay.ca item 130231071429 end time 20-Jun-08 00:26:37 EDT)
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post #15 of 33
6/19/08 at 8:11pm
FWIK, it is not very hard to swap the hard drive out. Probably more info on the mygigabeat.com forums. The F10/20 are thinner than the F40/60 so the size/thickness of the HD is key. The F40/60 come with a remote also. Probably best to get an F40 for the most options/choices of replacement drives that can fit. I never did a drive swap myself. Mine took a bad fall and the hard drive still worked fine. It was pretty much the rest of the player that was smashed.
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