Under-100$ replacement of my old Zen V-Plus

Hi guys,

sorry if this topic isn't new at all, but I've read a bunch of threads and I couldn't help myself convince on my own on this issue.

Recently my beloved shure E2C broke and, after a bit of research, I've brought a pair of shure SE315 (still on delivery, I hope I won't disappointed of my choice). Unfortunately also my DAP is dying (the battery isn't replaceable  and it dies after two-three hours of listening), so I'm searching for candidates to replace it.

I don't care at all about pics/video playback nor fancy UI, I just care about these features:

• SQ (which at least justifies my headphones investment)
• battery life
• form factor (It should fit comfortable in my pockets) and button-operated

A storage of 8GB should be enough for my needs.

From this list of features, it seems that sansa clip+ could be a good choice, but I was somehow settled down by some users stating that this DAP is hugely overrated and by its lack at local stores.

My alternatives are:

• just use the iPod nano 4GB, which is a leftover of my sister (it's free, so I should somehow cope with its limited space)
• buy a Sony E454B 8GB (it costs 100 euros)

My library is almost entirely composed of tracks encoded with lame at a bitrate of 192/224+ kbps, up to 320 kbps.

So, in my situation, what do you suggest? Should I buy sansa clip+ online at a cost of 50€, go instead to the Sony E454B, go to ebay searching some cheap cowon player or just stick to my sister's ipod, because it is good enough?

Any suggestion will be appreciated!

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikop 

How many products on head-fi does not have some ppl claiming it is completely overrated?

 

It has plenty of love in the various appreciation thread and even if you look at the portable gear picture thread, how many ppl are using the clip+...   more recently, there is just that one user claiming listening to sansa is like listening to music through a keyhole...  I don't know, not like his previous play is anything worth mentioning nor is his headphone...  is that what is stopping you? Don't you find it a little over exaggerated or are everyone else using a clip+ just deaf?

 

Clip+ is what it is... it is not a hifiman801...  but you should look at the big picture and recognize what is an exemption to the norm.  Why be unsettled by a few users when there are more that like their clip+?

First of all, thank you for your answer!

I'm new to this forum, so I don't know very well what's the "general consensus" about this product.

I've just read some posts in the "clip+ appreciation thread", which I don't expect to be truly fair (heck, it's an "appreciation thread"!), so I've decided to see if maybe someone could have posted here some maybe-more-balanced views about this product, especially considering the quality of my library (maybe the differences between a good and bad DAP becomes evident listening FLAC-encoded tracks through a pair of headphones better than mines, so maybe I don't need to worry too much, I just don't know).

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClieOS 

I'll also suggest you take a look at Cube C30 or Nationite N2 (same thing) as well, beside Clip+. Here is my impression of C30. I should receive a Clip+ soon (hopefully), and will do a comparison with other DAP I have.

Thank you so much, it looks interesting and I'm looking forward to read your comparison.

PS: it's a pity I can't find them for sale on any italian reseller!