Unfortunately, it appears lossless streaming from Apple Music is almost certainly not going to happen, at least initially. Very surprised and disappointed by that. Ah, well. With that as it is, we can expect that Apple's attempts to cultivate an ecosystem around it's new service will not include pitching the highest quality music to listeners, so I think a new iPod will support the same resolutions as previous generations... Doesn't make sense to court audiophiles with DSD playback (although that was always a long shot) when your streaming service is lower resolution than Spotify. In other words, if you'd been dreaming of an all-in-one hi-rez DAP with streaming, don't cancel that Geek Wave order, ha ha.
I'll probably still pick up the new iPod eventually, and use it as I have been using the 5g- coupled with an external DAC/amp to stream Tidal. The idea of more storage space is enough to get me on board. Grudgingly.
That is unless something more interesting pops up...
The new IPod is a watch in a way. These hold 2 GB of files ending up being 500 songs. Even with not having a phone on hand the watch will Bluetooth you the songs to a Bluetooth headset.
Next watches will cost more and have bigger hard drives.
It really does look like the new iPods will be the same. They have very few ideas around to make them HD.
Probably, but I doubt they'd let him use it anyway. I have the 16GB 5g, the version with no camera, which I bought for the same reason. They still didn't want me using it... I can only imagine that because some iPods have cameras, all iPods must be banned, ha ha...
Besides optical drives and USB storage (SSDs, HDDs, flash drives) devices, we could even plug USB DAC/amp into APS-WF02J as long as it's confirmed to work with CCK
Just wondering if there were any Head-Fi members who already picked one up in Japan? Both Mac and Windows clients are free, their bilingual iOS app is only available from the Japanese app store. In-app purchase costs 1,200 yen to unlock Hi-Res playback.
Purely on spec I dropped by the local Apple Store Thursday afternoon and spoke to a couple of the staff about the new iPod Touch. They didn’t think they would have any until next week. We talked long enough that the daily shipment came in. The Generation 6 iPods had arrived and I purchased the 128 GB model on the spot. The specifications and overall package met my needs as my music files total just over 80 GB. I wanted a unit to complement my current portables consisting of Sony gear: a ZX1, A17, PHA-2, and PHA-3.
Setup and loading of my files went smoothly and without issue using my Mac Pro desktop. Audio out to my Woo WA6 provided very satisfying results with my Sony Z7 headphones. Digital out through the PHA-2 and PHA-3 proved to be similar to that of the ZX1 and A17 less the ability to play my small collection of DSD and FLAC files. I have only used iTunes with Apple Lossless files either purchased from Apple or ripped from CD. The unit has also accumulated a few hours of in car use and some time driving blue tooth speakers and Sony Z5 IEMs.
Thus far I prefer the iPod Touch to the ZX1 and A17 for overall performance, ease of use, and perceived value. There was a small learning curve for the new version of iTunes but it was easily mastered. Setting up and syncing files through iTunes is generally simpler and more efficient than the Sony drag and drop variations. My only criticism, when compared to my other gear is the lack of external controls to pause the unit or change tracks. Having to look at the screen rather than feel for and activate buttons is an impediment when driving, having the player in a pocket, bag, etc. Thankfully, the volume controls are easy to feel for and use.
I won’t attempt a proper review as I have only used the unit for three days and my exposure to quality equipment is limited. Beyond my portable gear my source gear consists of a Mac Pro and MacBook computer. One of the computers will feed one of the Sony amps, used as a DAC, with line out to the WA6. I have concluded, had the Generation 6 iPod been available last summer, it would have met my needs and I would not have purchased the ZX1 or A17 which will now be on the sidelines for the most part.
The most telling thing about the new iPod may be that my wife has never been hooked by the many Sony players I have owned over decades… She is not one to wait in a lineup to make a purchase and yesterday she waited, for almost an hour, to buy a 64 GB iPod Touch. She took it home, had me load with her favourite tunes, and won’t put it down. Solid audio performance and versatile.
iPods don’t see a lot of love here but this one is worth a try even you are even remotely considering it. Generous return policy if it doesn’t work out...
Hope my musings are of some use.
Purely on spec I dropped by the local Apple Store Thursday afternoon and spoke to a couple of the staff about the new iPod Touch. They didn’t think they would have any until next week. We talked long enough that the daily shipment came in. The Generation 6 iPods had arrived and I purchased the 128 GB model on the spot. The specifications and overall package met my needs as my music files total just over 80 GB. I wanted a unit to complement my current portables consisting of Sony gear: a ZX1, A17, PHA-2, and PHA-3.
Setup and loading of my files went smoothly and without issue using my Mac Pro desktop. Audio out to my Woo WA6 provided very satisfying results with my Sony Z7 headphones. Digital out through the PHA-2 and PHA-3 proved to be similar to that of the ZX1 and A17 less the ability to play my small collection of DSD and FLAC files. I have only used iTunes with Apple Lossless files either purchased from Apple or ripped from CD. The unit has also accumulated a few hours of in car use and some time driving blue tooth speakers and Sony Z5 IEMs.
Thus far I prefer the iPod Touch to the ZX1 and A17 for overall performance, ease of use, and perceived value. There was a small learning curve for the new version of iTunes but it was easily mastered. Setting up and syncing files through iTunes is generally simpler and more efficient than the Sony drag and drop variations. My only criticism, when compared to my other gear is the lack of external controls to pause the unit or change tracks. Having to look at the screen rather than feel for and activate buttons is an impediment when driving, having the player in a pocket, bag, etc. Thankfully, the volume controls are easy to feel for and use.
I won’t attempt a proper review as I have only used the unit for three days and my exposure to quality equipment is limited. Beyond my portable gear my source gear consists of a Mac Pro and MacBook computer. One of the computers will feed one of the Sony amps, used as a DAC, with line out to the WA6. I have concluded, had the Generation 6 iPod been available last summer, it would have met my needs and I would not have purchased the ZX1 or A17 which will now be on the sidelines for the most part.
The most telling thing about the new iPod may be that my wife has never been hooked by the many Sony players I have owned over decades… She is not one to wait in a lineup to make a purchase and yesterday she waited, for almost an hour, to buy a 64 GB iPod Touch. She took it home, had me load with her favourite tunes, and won’t put it down. Solid audio performance and versatile.
iPods don’t see a lot of love here but this one is worth a try even you are even remotely considering it. Generous return policy if it doesn’t work out...
Very nice. I'm definitely interested in this device myself... Not that I need it. My only concern is the ecosystem... Most of my music is flac, some Dsd (AK samples), and other stuff.
If I drag and drop from my AK240 into iTunes, the flac won't play or convert to aflac automatically correct?
Very nice. I'm definitely interested in this device myself... Not that I need it. My only concern is the ecosystem... Most of my music is flac, some Dsd (AK samples), and other stuff.
If I drag and drop from my AK240 into iTunes, the flac won't play or convert to aflac automatically correct?
No but there are any number of FLAC apps like Onkyo in the App Store that you can drag and drop almost any format (ALAC, WAV, FLAC...) into from your computer.
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