[antonyfirst]

I'd like a new DAP with a very powerful and flexible equalizer. My idea would be to import an EQ preset from my computer (whatever program is needed to do so), and have the player recognize it. Does Rockbox do this? If so, what plugin would I need and what's the rockboxed non imod player with the best output?

In alternative, I'd like to buy a player with a 10 or more band equalizer that doesn't distort noticeably when equalized.

What chances do I have?

Tony

 

[Chinkydelight]

u already have a cowon d2 right?

 

[Kuyt]

Meizu M6 has by far the most expansive EQ.

 

[bangraman]

I suppose it depends on what you mean by 'powerful'.


Rockbox, Vibez, Karma et al have a heavily-featured EQ, but what makes me laugh certainly about the Rio-derived products, and perhaps at those who proclaim these as the portable EQ to end them all is that what they did to the sound wasn't actually much good. Rockbox is not a bad implementation as such if the Karma placebo turned you on, but the level to which you have to fiddle seem to me to be counterintuitive, especially as there's no way as far as I know to import the presets. And as for the effect on the sound, it depends on the player and the level to which the EQ is being worked.


Cowon and Creative have what could be called the start (Creative) and the end (Cowon) of the middle of the road in terms of decent control of the effects, but EQing definitely has a negative effect on the SQ - more so on the Creative than the Cowon IMO.


Sony players have a simpler, but more intuitive EQ which doesn't go overboard for a portable device, and IMO they retain their musicality / quality better than the above players even when pushed fairly hard. If you intend to run your player with FX / EQ switched on all the time, I'd be inclined to recommend the Sony S-series. They are not the last word in quality, but are definitely good enough to run at high-bitrate MP3/AAC with the effects switched on, and still remain very listenably musical. If you just want something featureful but decent quality with a touch (or a serious daubing really

) of nerd, then the D2 still seems like a very good bet.


As for 10-band EQ's etc, I'm obviously speaking in a den of nerds, but even in that case I think you're way overnerding this stuff.

 

[Sotiris]

cowon a3 has a 10 band equlizer!

 

[RubenNYC]

The EQ on the vibez is identical to the one on the Karma.

As an added bonus, your custom EQ settings are stored as plain text files. So, if you craft a utility that exports EQ settings from your PC in the same format, then it's simple file copy in MSC mode to get it to show up on the vibez.

Hope this helps.

 

[jant71]

I have had Rockbox, Meizu, Cowon, Sony and all those. My favorite is my SmartQ T5-II. So maybe consider their new TAO player which is a PMP style vs. the T5-II which is game controller style player. They are the same device essentially though.

It has a five band EQ with a sixth slider for pre-amp control. You can combine this with one of the best Bass and Treble controls I've heard. It actually makes the frequency response seem wider without distortion. There is a custom digital sound engine also that can combine with the Bass and Treble. It is essentially a five band set of effects for acoustical shaping. There are presets and a balance DSE and fade in and out. What also helps is that is has clean 20mw/per(32ohm) power and can drive headphones better than Cowon or Meizu's can. It does have the WM8987 as the Meizu SL does but the Meizu has less detail and power and more hiss and soundstage. The main chip is an ADI Blackfin 547 running at 533 or 600 MHz depending on how they overclocked it. I know the T5-II runs at 600 and runs quite warm but the Tao is said to have fixed heat issues. The Tao also should have enough battery life to use effects all the time(2200 or 2300mah).

It should be powerful enough to get the sound you want though granted when combining things it is not as easy as a 10-band would be; more trial and error. And there is no savable settings but SmartDevices listens to firmware requests. I might just get one of the distributers to pass on the suggestion of a 10-band and savable setting profiles.

My SF 5 is just amazing sounding with the DSE set at VOLV 22, ALTA 10, ECCO 6, RECO 15, SEPA 32 plus BASS 1 and TREBLE 4.

Just for straight up I use the TREBLE preset plus the same BASS and TREBLE settings. These make it sound like a Triple.fi with better mids.

I am not a staunch audiophile but I am picky in my own way. I think the UM2 lacks clarity and transparency versus the SF5 and I run that with bi-flange tips and 75ohm impedance. My CD2000 with 75ohm impedance added has more detail and resolution than an ER4S. Both phones have good transparency and the effects hold up better than the other brands. Cowon and Sony and other players flaws are revealed to be inferior other than BBE at 1 which works until you get to 2 and I hear the distortion and I won't have any of it.

After the SmartQ, I thought Meizu was actually a smidge better EQ-wise than Rockbox. Though the Rockboxed Toshiba F series was clearly a better sounding device than the Meizu. I put the SmartQ and Toshiba on the top tier of what I've heard then Iriver, Sony, Cowon, Meizu etc. a rung below. For usable effects it is SmartQ then Meizu then Rockbox firmware.




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