Zune HD vs Zune 80/120 and iPod Touch 4th gen vs iPod Classic (Audio Quality)

I found the Zune 120 to sound MUCH better than iPods in general. The Touch (3rd Gen) did sound a little better than the Classics (6th/7th Gen), but the Zune still wins big time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by OBAMANIZER 

I currently own both the 4th generation iPod Touch and the 6th generation iPod Classic; in my opinion, the iPod Touch has better audio output than the iPod Classic. To me, the Touch has a brighter and clearer sound than the sometimes dull sounding Classic. My question for Zune owners is this - is there a similar parallel with the Zune HD and hard drive based Zune 80 and 120? And on a larger scale, how do these four audio players compare when playing the same 320kbps MP3 or AAC song?

I found the Zune HD sounded bass-light in comparison to my Touch 4G. with all EQ's disabled. Still a very clear, nice sound, but really needed some sort of bass boost.

Here is my observation on Zune 120 vs iPod Classic vs iPod Touch 8Gb (2G):

- Classic is just plainly bad. I sold it, discounting it and losing $200. It sounded very muffed and too much lows. There was no high and no mids either. Vocals sounded like singers had towels over their mouths.

- iPod Touch 8Gb 2G is the best iPod I had my hands on (most of “the Internet” agrees it is the best iPod among recent models). It sounds almost great. Powerful to drive my Sony MDR-V6 (especially upwards 65% volume - there is a noticeable "gear shift" at a certain point in volume adjusting). With that power also came clarity (to a limited degree) throughout the entire range. The lows were still dominant I would say, as well as clear highs. A worthy competitor to other MP3 players.

- Zune 120 is my most recent acquisition (picked it up used though) is the best mass MP3 player I have. It is very clear, with a little too prominent mids. The lows are also distinct but never pop out at you, unless the track is overengineered in studio mixing towards lows. In fact I miss a little power in the Zune 120, and there is none at until I hit 13/20 on the volume "knob" to drive the V6s.

I own(ed) the following portable MP3 gear:

- iPod 3G (2003)

- iPod Classic 6G (2007)

- iPod Touch 2G (2008)

- Zune 120

- SanDisk Clip+

- iRiver iFP-700 series

- Rio PMP300 :-P