[noseallinit]

what is inside or not inside the 1st G Shuffle that makes it sound so much better than other iPods released?

which earphones or in ear monitors to head-fi members prefer the most with the Shuffle?

is the 2nd G Shuffle that much worse than the 1st G?

are the control features any better on the 2nd G when it comes to searching and playing compliations, books, podcast?

 

[roastpuff]

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Originally Posted by noseallinit /img/forum/go_quote.gif what is inside or not inside the 1st G Shuffle that makes it sound so much better than other iPods released?

The amp is of a push-pull nature, which is better than what the other iPods had (single-ended, I think), and a dual-transistor output stage rather than a single capacitor-coupled output, which gives it better bass response. Also, a single SigmaTel chip handled both the audio and the decoding, which reduced the number of parts that the signal had to go through. Simplicity = better, in this particular case.

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which earphones or in ear monitors to head-fi members prefer the most with the Shuffle?

This varies greatly. Probably IEM's, due to the small size and portable nature, though I have run Beyerdynamics off the headphone out.

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is the 2nd G Shuffle that much worse than the 1st G?

No, there's just a slight problem with many units hissing - and it varies between units to units too.

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are the control features any better on the 2nd G when it comes to searching and playing compliations, books, podcast?

Both have the exact same controls, excepting the "Shuffle/Repeat" and power button, but I think finding compilations, books and podcasts might be a bit hard without a screen to find the audio files on.