Cheapest Player with Best Sound Quality

[Sonny]

Hey everyone,

I've been looking for an MP3 player that suits my pocket and offers me what I'm looking for, which is, great sound quality.

I found Cowon iAudio7 4GB as the player within my budget, anything beyond it is what I cannot afford.

However, the small screen of iAudio7 is making me think twice before purchasing it. Besides SQ I also look for an all round feature packed player.

Please suggest which one would be the cheapest but absolutely brilliant sounding player.

Thnx
Sonny

 

[blackbird]

Most people would recommend the Sansa Clip.

 

[Sonny]

Does Sansa Clip sound better than iAudio7?

 

[dazzer1975]

yer its a no brainer, the clip is the one to beat, and tbh at quite a lot of price ranges not just the clips price range

 

[Akash]

GOTO:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SONY-NWZ-A729-16GB-WALKMAN-VIDEO-MP3-PLAYER-NEW-DOTW_W0QQitemZ330337366971QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_MP 3_Players?hash=item4ce9a433bb&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14 &_trkparms=65%3A10%7C66%3A4%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318% 7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A200

Sound quality is absolutely amazing with wide sound stage and clear, crisp sound!
I bought the sony nwz a729 a week ago and its the best mp3 player I've had upto now!

 

[blackbird]

I forgot to say, no matter what MP3 player you get, you will not get the "best" audio quality unless you max it at a 320kbps bitrate.

 

[Zentactics]

Woot : One Day, One Deal (SM) has refurbs today (6.17.09) for $15 + $5 shipping.

 

[roebeet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zentactics /img/forum/go_quote.gif Woot : One Day, One Deal (SM) has refurbs today (6.17.09) for $15 + $5 shipping.

x2 on the Clip. I bought two refurbs from woot.com when they offered these last time around, and have had no issues (so far).

 

[Numeryk]

Prepare to spend much more than a Clip for a set of headphones if you want soudn quality

 

[a_tumiwa]

Sansa Clip

 

[andyalfa]

What of the Sansa Fuze? I understand that it has a good name for SQ plus a line out for connection to a pre-amp as well as expandibility through Micro SD cards. Do the Clip or the Fuze support lossless formats? Are they Rockbox-able?

 

[nkk]

They will be rockboxed sometime soon, and wit the firmware update, they support FLAC (although even the sansa site does not admit that).

 

[Sonny]

I was doing some research about Sandisk Sansa Clip on internet and came through this review by CNET.

"
Although most SanDisk devices sound passable, we've never been blown away by the sound quality of Sansa players. The Clip is actually a bit of an exception: This player sounds great. It's not quite as stellar as the Sony NWZ-A810, but it can certainly compete with the Zen Stone Plus. In our tests (using the Shure SE530s), music sounded rich and clear, with a present bass brought out more by tinkering with the custom EQ. Fiona Apple's soft pop track "The First Taste" was encompassing, with buttery mids, sparkly highs, and subtle bass. Mellow electronic music (e.g. Hot Chip's "The Warning") was similarly pleasing, but even the Deftones' "Bored"--a heavy and riffy rock track--offered impressive clarity. All in all, we could find very little to complain about in the audio quality department--unless, of course, you decide to use the included headphones, which are not so hot.
"

iAudio7's Review
"
Cowon consistently produces some of the best-sounding MP3 players on the market. No other manufacturer offers so many useful and customizable sound enhancement features. Does it sound better than an iPod? No question. Listening to Timbaland and Magoo's "It's Your Night" with a dash of Mach3Bass enhancement made the kick-drum thick and snappy--not just louder. A live recording like Gillian Welch's "I Want to Sing That Rock & Roll" presents a great stereo soundstage right out of the box, but with the MP Enhance setting switched on and the 3D Surround setting turned up halfway, the live sound becomes much more vivid.
"

I'm torn in between them. I need an all rounder at a good affordable price.

 

[estreeter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sonny /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm torn in between them. I need an all rounder at a good affordable price.

Both are good players, but the Cowon is another tier up from the Clip. Reviewers hold Cowon to a different yardstick than Sandisk, and the Clip simply took them by surprise. You will have a lot more options with the Cowon, particularly in terms of finetuning your EQ. Many here will tell you not to use EQ, but I'd be very surprised if you arent tempted to experiment.

 

[Earwax]

I trust the opinions of ordinary people here over any reviewers at CNET.

I have never heard a Cowon, but I am so pleased with my Sansa Clip. I can't imagine I'm missing out on anything. I've heard lots of portabe devices over the years and I'd put the Clip up against anything I've heard (Some old CD players had stronger amps, but for pure sound the they didn't out-class the clip)

The Clip has awesome sound quality, tiny size and easy to carry yet still easy to use ergonomics, sturdy build quality. Rockbox already runs on the version 1 Clips although there are still hangups in music playback, I'm sure they'll be able to smooth it out eventually. (Rockbox is also running on version 1 Fuzes, nothing wrong with the Fuze either, but it's more expensive and this thread asked about cheap)