[Lilac_Wine]

It seems like there are now a lot of options in the way of hard drive MP3 players, so I am looking for some advice.

Which player has the best sound? It seems like it may be the Zen, but how do the iRiver and Karma stack up compared to the Zen? Are the differences in sound between these players large?

Other features that interest me are
recording - for transferring vinyl
replaceable battery
the player appears as a hard drive when plugged into the computer

But sound is of primary importance.

So how would you rank the players in terms of sound?

 

[Murasame]

i would know one thing about sound quality related with your post Lilac:

does the quality sound of the unit is important if i use it with an amp?

does the amp make all the job and cancel the possible difference between units?

 

[ProFingerSk8er]

http://www4.head-fi.org/forums/showt...threadid=46092

Quote:

Originally posted by the_Omniscient Ow and btw: the iRiver's sound is pretty chilling indeed. Now, if you prefer "clean" sound as found on iPod, iRiver's sound may seem a bit bombastic, but when judged on a "equalizered" players bases, the iHP-100 is king of its' hill.

 

[blessingx]

Has anyone here heard the Karma yet? Anyone heard the other three side-by-side?
You may be asking a difficult question at this point. Plus they support different compression (MP3, AAC, WMA, FLAC, etc.) and non-compression (does the Karma support WAV/AIFF? I realize FLAC could be tested against WAV.) types so it may always be difficult.

 

[Lilac_Wine]

Yeah - I know it is a tough question. As far as format goes - I care most about MP3s recorder using lame -alt preset standard. I can save my best listening for when I am at home and have the original cds / records.

 

[MacDEF]

I haven't heard the Karma yet (has anyone?), but out of the others, I prefer the iPod's sound quality -- slightly -- with the Zen a close second. Other people prefer the Zen to the iPod. They each have a different "signature" sound, so it's more of a personal preference. But in reality, they're both excellent and you probably wouldn't even pick one over the other unless you heard them playing the same track side by side.

 

[D-EJ915]

doesn't ian have a beta version??

 

[mmortal03]

The Karma uses the same headphone amp as the iPod does, so we believe that they should sound fairly equal. This is what ian has said, fyi. There is a big thread that discusses the Karma on this board that talks about all of this.

 

[Rukes]

I think the Line Outs on the NJB3 are still considered the "best", right?