dap buying decision

First, the Cowon D2+ also supports FLAC. Might be something for you to look at.

Second, no it's not a good idea for you to buy a 4-5 year old ipod.  Li-I batteries slowly die whether they're being used or not.  Even a factory sealed ipod from 4 years ago won't give you a whole lot of battery life.  It's even worse if it's a hard drive model.  Who knows how many times its been dropped.  It may seem ok when you first get it and then die in a month.  Second hand hard drives are almost always a bad idea.  If you weren't "tech challenged" then it wouldn't be too hard to replace the battery and hard drive in an older one.  You could probably find someone to do it for you but the total expense would likely by more than a brand now one.

After much wailing and gnashing of teeth I finally decided on a D2+ for myself.  Its not perfect, but I like it.

I can't find much of a problem with the SQ.  It has a slight bass roll off with low impedance 'phones like most IEMs but any cheap amp will fix that if it ends up bothering you.  Some people online say the UI is confusing, but it makes me question how they managed to operate the computer they used to post said opinion.  Look up some video reviews on youtube and see what you think.  Its flash based so there are no moving parts to break.  I uses a Li-I battery which will slowly die and isn't easily replaceable, but unfortunately every player on the market has this problem.  Battery life goes from amazing to pretty good depending on how crazy you go with the EQ and other effects.  Storage is 16gb plus as many SD cards as you feel like carrying around.  It takes a minute or two for it to rebuild its tag database after you switch cards though so its not practical unless you remember what's on each card.

If you have any questions about the D2+ feel free to ask.

vote for Cowon D2+ too

If you want a larger screen and tactile buttons, check out the newish Cowon J3. The perfect compromise between the D2+ and S9 in my eyes.

I had J3 in my hands few days ago;if not my temporarly tight pocket - it would suffer damage for sure;go for it!

I can not go to street's corner - I am too ugly...

Cowon J3 - great screen, good size, 64hrs audio+11hrs video playback, microSD expandable to 64gb (32+32), best EQ and sound enhancements on ANY DAP, does FLAC & a whole bunch more codecs, and just all around smexy!!!!

If you do get an iPod 5.5G know its still a great RockBoxed player, as the EQ & sound enhancements make it equal to the Cowon lineup - but the battery life will be considerably shorter. New batteries are being made for it currently, so it's a viable option still.

Now, don't overlook the Sansa lineup, as they do FLAC and are excellent when RockBoxed. The SQ on a RB'd Sansa is on par w/a Cowon - NO CONTEST!!!

Also, since I've loved them since I've tried them, the Samsung lineup also has: great SQ, good battery life, nice codec support, excellent EQ and sound enhancements, and solid build quality. Take a look at a few of their players as well, to keep the options wide open.

Happy shopping,...

tds01

The newer Cowon players are a poorer value if you don't plan to watch videos.  They're more expensive because of the nicer screens, better video compatibility, and what not.  That's why I got a D2+ instead of waiting for the new models.  The 32gb J3 will give you 16 extra gb over the D2+, but at quite a premium.  All the Cowon players are known for good SQ though, so you probably couldn't go wrong with any of them unless you're as picky as I am.  I still long for the days of monochrome lcd screens that you could read with out a backlight sucking the life out of the battery.