[SoliloCey]

Was wondering which one I should get the Archos looks smexy, D2 looks clunky and cheap, I don't know is the Archos bad?

Fight!

 

[SoliloCey]

any input guys??

which has
better OS?
ease of use?
better sound EQ?
lighter?
build quality?
customer support?

thanks

 

[Geruvah]

Archos 5 vs Cowon iAudio D2

Archos 5 is said to have decent sound quality, but not enough if you want it to be your main portable player. And its customer service sucks.

I've tried the Archos 5, and honestly, it's gotta be the SQ that made me back out. 250GB made it real hard to leave, too.

 

[budman90]

I currently own the archos 605 wifi. I can tell you that if you're looking for a quality video player with a decent touch interface, get the archos. But, the sound quality on the archos, imo, is not up to par with most players. When you listen to songs you can clearly hear the hiss of the harddrive in the background and the sound is somewhat muddy.

I would not recommend it if you are looking for a high quality music player (music being the key word, it plays videos quite nicely).

 

[SoliloCey]

yeah as long as the EQ is good, and better then the ipod mini 1st gen then yeah cool, i want something to play videos too hence the PMP.

can i transfer my music using Foobarr 2000?

 

[swanlee]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geruvah /img/forum/go_quote.gif Archos 5 vs Cowon iAudio D2 Archos 5 is said to have decent sound quality, but not enough if you want it to be your main portable player. And its customer service sucks. I've tried the Archos 5, and honestly, it's gotta be the SQ that made me back out. 250GB made it real hard to leave, too.

So how bad is the SQ? what is lacking about it? I have an XM5 portable amp does it have an LOD?

 

[Miklos]

I would say that the Archos 5 SQ is quite good.

If you add the excellent video quality, and the ability to play pretty much any audio / video codec, then it is an excellent unit.

I had a Cowon D2, but sold it as I really did not like the cold sound of it. It was nice and clear, but not "fun". The Archos is fun.

Now I own a Sony S639 and the Archos. I use both the sony and the Archos, and when they are amped, there is no big difference in SQ.

The Sony sounds better, but I also truly enjoy listening to the Archos.

To conclude: I prefer the Archos 5 any time over the Cowon.

If you need a small unit: do not get the Archos. If you want large storage and great video: do not get the Cowon. If you want the games, web browsing etc: get the Archos. If you like cold, analytical sound: get the Cowon. If you like fun, great sound: get the Archos.

To answer a few more questions:

- The cowon is much smaller than the Archos (I always got a headache watching videos on the cowon - the Archos is a pleasure for movies)
- Archos customer service sucks - but since I had no problems with the unit, I do not really care
- The Archos can be used for a range of applications for which the Cowon does not work or is limited (helmet cam; DVR, GPS, wifi, email, web browser, games etc.)
- Build quality is great on both
- I prefer the UI on the Archos

PS: Previous Archos units had worse sound quality, so some people say that ALL Archos units sound bad. Not true. The Archos 5 sounds much better than older Archos units.

 

[Geruvah]

I tried a demo one over at the J&R store here in Manhattan. Using the super.fi 5 pros, I found punch lacking a bit (for me, personally). It's definitely something I wanted, especially since my favorite songs have that feel when the snare is hit.

If I stuck with the super.fi 5 pros, I might have decided that it was ok to live with, but knowing that I'm moving to the UE-11 within the month, I knew I didn't want a bottleneck.

But let me tell you, that screen was gorgeous. All I ask of Archos is to heighten the SQ on their pmp and I'm sold.

I can't comment much on the D2. Just seeing it in pictures made me know it was way to small for me (a la my rant: http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f15/wh...4/#post5471302). I tried the o2 and I couldn't stand it for more than 5 minutes after holding the Archos and I crave big storage as much as SQ (sucks when you like listening to your whole library).

I'd say get the Archos if you find storage a big thing. The SQ is a little shy, but you won't mind unless you really laid some money down on your headphones, in which case it'll be a bottleneck. But know that Archos prioritized and beefed up that PMP for video, not so much audio. I'm not much for videos but that thing had no weaknesses (for me) when it came down to video. That big screen and good UI as the video is playing is great. Because of that I'm going to wait a little longer to see what else 2009 will give me.

 

[Caribou679]

Quote:

Originally Posted by swanlee /img/forum/go_quote.gif So how bad is the SQ? what is lacking about it? I have an XM5 portable amp does it have an LOD?

Imo the SQ on Archos 5 is not BAD!!! I like to EQ my music and for the little while I listened to the Archos 5 it was OK for me. 5 bands EQ going, not a tremendous effect, but enough. I did not test the custom EQ settings of classic, rock etc.Sometimes some noise in between tracks.

No line out, only HP.

Using the D2 I also EQ so I do not mind EQing on the Archos.

Big difference in price between them!

My wife bought the Touch 32g to watch movies while commuting by bus and she sold it when she found out about the Archos 5. It has a bigger screen, 250 gb space. She recharges it at night and the battery last 4-6 hours on video.

It plays Flac and ogg, WAV also.

The OS is soso.It resumes where you shut off, either music or video.It does internet and emails through wifi.But one nice feature is the picture viewing/browsing. Pictures can be zoomed in and scrolled. Nice feature.Nice screen.

If I had $500-600 I would get one for myself but for now I will continue with what I have, I do not need video...

As regards customer service we decided to buiy an extended warranty of 3 years from Future Shop, to bypass the bad reviews I had read concerning customer service.

Since 3 month my wife is using it daily and the OS crashed/froze only once. She did a hard reset.


SAme add-ons are needed to play games, listen to aac and play mp4 video.

 

[insicor]

What's your primary usage? If mostly video then get the Archos. If you want music with some video than the Cowon.

 

[SoliloCey]

oh wow i didnt know the cowon was that small. Damn I guess its the Archos after all..

 

[KromaXamorK]

If you want a Cowon like an Archos 5 to watching video, it is the Cowon O2 or the Q5 not the D2.

 

[swanlee]

My only use for either would be Lossless audio, I'm not much of a portable video person. sounds like the cowon is the best option.

Does anyone know what type of hard drive the cowon uses and if it can be up graded to larger hard drives?

 

[Nausicaa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KromaXamorK /img/forum/go_quote.gif If you want a Cowon like an Archos 5 to watching video, it is the Cowon O2 or the Q5 not the D2.

Wouldn't the A3 be better? You don't really need to convert videos on it, you can play most videos out of box.

 

[yuerakuten]

Cowon O2 have more video codecs support (including h264 on the .mp4 and .mkv), 720p support, more storage (32gb + 32gb sdhc), better SQ, but have a low resolution (480x272, the A2/3 resolution is 800x480).