[sicaudiophile]

the c3s screen is way to small and i just watched a video on you tube on the ui. it took the guy forever to get to the song he wanted.

 

[stozzer123]

Are you kidding me, that was my video and i wasn't selecting any song, I was flipping through showing how fast the scrolling was and just selected it at random.  It loops back to A after you get to Z so looped through.  Should it not be obvious at this point after 2 weeks of your research you hadnt noticed it has a small screen (one which is excellent and very easy to use btw).  Maybe just go get something with inferior sq and a nice big screen eh?

 

[sicaudiophile]

i knew it had a small screen but if that was you. yes i give you the point it is fast and no, i dont care about a big screen just in your hand it made it look super small and i can almost promise you i have bigger hands and i need the player in hand to see if i like it but im not going to spend 120 bucks to see if i like a player i want to know before i buy it. also i dont like that theres an tf option i want all my music in one play ... like very other player does.

 

[stozzer123]

Im 6'4 my hands are pretty massive lol, but yeh whatever, most likely your not going to get your hands on any of those players anyway without paying out, if you cant make a decision after 2 weeks its just crazy.  Just get something mainstream then, ipod video with rockbox and lod.  There is not much that anyone can add for you at this point that hasn't already been said.

 

[stozzer123]

and no theres not that option, try reading the c3 thread or the hifiman thread or the hisound thread.  Everything is already covered.

 

[sicaudiophile]

i hate ipods i have an 2gen ipod touch and im waiting to see what hisound is doing with the nova thats why i havnt made me choice.... thank you. ok im 6'2 and have guitar hands. (if you know what i mean) you seem to be a colorfly fan boy and i would like to get the c3 but no one sells it in the us yet that i have seen on ebay atleast.

 

[hoichi]

I think you've got a shopper's block by this point. There's never a perfect choice and there's always some new thing to wait for. Personally I find it hard not to try C3 with those prices on ebay, even though I'm planning to upgrade to FiiO later on.

 

[sicaudiophile]

there is a perfect player in my oppion the dx100 but i dont have the means of spending 800+ even thought i wish i could

 

[lee730]

Can't argue with you there. It's getting very close to perfection and I have a feeling by the next update it will be there.
 

 

[stozzer123]

The only thing I consider good are the following 
 
 
Imod + rockbox + lod + headstage arrow  (Wont consider a fatter stack since I have a home rig.)
C3 (hands down best I have heard from any hp out player
clip zip (for gym)
 
all for different uses.
 
Everything else is middling/average overpriced and underperforming in the sq department.  That said I havent tried the 801 or the ibasso.
 
Heres a list of what I have owned (not tested/tried but actually plumped up hard cash for) in the past year:  in no order.
 
Imod (brilliant but needs external amp making less portable)
c3 (brilliant but wont drive my high impedance (150+) cans great, not an issue as usually used with iem)
clip (boring sound sig but noting offensive and fine for the gym, amps well when needed)
s9 (slightly above average, great bbe enhancments)
d2 (same as above)
rocoop (craptastic firmware, hiss, nothing special on the sound)
studio (absolute hissiest player I have ever heard in my life)
studio 3rd anniversary (craptastic firmware, poor sound, shockingly overpriced, I believe to be a con, still hisses.)
ck4 (good sound, bad interface)
phillips go gear (above average sound, can be had very cheap, slightly slow UI)
itouch (average)
iphone (average)
hm-601 (very average sound, craptastic UI, craptastic battery life, looks terrible)
Cube c30 (Excellent sound, powerful class A amp)
S:flo2 (terrible UI poor battery, great sound)
 
DX100 will never get a look in for me as I have a home rig so wont be carrying that thing around.  Could sound good though by all means but I just dont personally see the point in it.

 

[lee730]

My list from best sounding DAP to worst
 
1. ibasso DX100: Amazing sound quality, the UI is nearing perfection. This unit with 1.2.7 firmware competes with my desktop rig now. 8 hours battery life. Takes slightly over 2 hours to fully charge which is exceptional IMO considering the batteries capacity.
 
2. Hisound Studio V 3rd ANV: Superb sound quality 70% reduction in hiss compared to older model and better sound quality. Pairs extremely well with the IE80s (darker IEMs and headphones). UI is rather basic but very workable once you play around with it. Took me a few minutes to get it down. Access to music is very fast. There are some bugs that I'd like fixed but much better and easier to use than the Sflo2 IMO. Also it serves as a portable amp for other sources (I hear it sounds like the RSA Mustang). Plus the 55 hours of battery life on lossless and 85 on lossy. 8+ hours to fully charge. I've gone for an entire month before charging once.
 
3. Hisound Studio V: (second edition) Excellent sound quality. Hiss is quite bad on it but the sound was so good I stuck it out while I owned it. Same features as the newer model.
 
4. Hisound Rocoo BA: Excellent sound quality barely any hiss on my IE80 which is very sensitive, Hisound hopefully will get to a point where there is no hiss at all on their players. At least from what I am hearing on the BA it is very possible. The hiss is so minor it doesn't interfere during music playback. 13 hours playback time. About 2 to 3 hours to fully charge.
 
5. Hifiman 601: Great natural and organic sound. Treble is rolled off, bass is very well textured. Mids are upfront and pleasing. A non-fatiguing, analog sound. A very slight hiss as well but not audible during music playback. UI is very basic and does the job but it's extremely slow and due to this very irritating for me. I like to access my music fast and the Hifiman is a snail in this regard. About 8 hours playback time but took 5 to 6 hours to fully charge.
 
6. Teclast Sflo2: Very digital sound. Also very nice but sounds unnatural to my ears. You can hear digital artifacts in the conversion between analog to digital. UI is deplorable and the worst I've seen yet. Also quality control is a joke. I received 2 defective units in a row with no solution. Wasted time and money. 8 hours battery life and took 6 hours to fully charge.
 
7. Sansa Fuze = iphone 4: Decent sound quality for mainstream players. Still not comparable to the upper tier DAPs at all.
 

 

[sicaudiophile]

z2 is better then the s9 isnt bc the z2 has a digital out and the newest of software and the hifiman 601 looks good to me and the battery is bad they need to fix that asap. the imod is a waste bc the dx100, c4, or 801/901 is the same thing thinner and all around better in my opinion but i dont have the money for that. never head of the cube and i dont want another ipod i understand why people like it but i dont care lol and i would get a fuze before the clip and i have the touch for the "gym: aka my garage. the ck4 seems cool but idk there said to be a lot of fakes.

 

[H20Fidelity]

Well this threads sure staying interesting!

i need the player in hand to see if i like it but im not going to spend 120 bucks to see if i like a player i want to know before i buy it.

Unfortunately you cannot have it in your hand, part of this hobby is taking risks, there'll be a point (which I believe you have passed) where you read so much information every little word and sentence regarding a player / IEM (or what ever the item) will start to look like mountains instead of words, you've read so much you're totally confused. Little problems start to appear like big problems. One sentence turns into several answers conflicting against your already pre-made opinion. The truth is in the testing......If you cannot decide on which player to choice now, then maybe not at all would be better for you. Everyone has excelled their opinions for you and some more.

Most of us here go for sound quality, Coloufly C3 offers that in spades, as all players there are disadvantages, remembering we're are here to obtain great sound. Not to find a fairy tale player that truly doesn't exist for under $800 if at all.

In short buy something, try it, if you're not happy move it on like the rest of us do.......

 

[stozzer123]

Quote:

My list from best sounding DAP to worst
 
 

We are just so far apart on the studios its crazy,   I guess my ears must be tuned to the RMAA's  

 

[lee730]

Quote:

We are just so far apart on the studios its crazy,   I guess my ears must be tuned to the RMAA's  

Must be. Because even the Hifiman doesn't measure well but it sounds vastly superior to my ears over the ipod or Sansa Fuze. Completely different sound signatures though. But the ibasso measures well and sounds the best to my ears still . I tried messing around with the RMAA testing and it's quite irritating. Gonna take me a while to get everything working properly. Did the test on my X-FI card and the results came out average. Pretty pathetic considering it is suppose to be a high end card from creative. But I can hear hiss on it anyways so I never use it other than for my Z5500 speakers.
 
Also you may have never used an IEM or headphone that has great synergy with their products. This is key. Lets say if I only had my FX700 and the Studio V I'd have definitely been upset and gotten rid of it immediately. They sound horrible together. Way too much detail. Or maybe you don't like their "house sound". Everyone has their own preferences. But at least looking at the many reviews on the Rocoo P model it seems a lot of people have been quite impressed with the overall sound.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/products/hisoundaudio-rocoo-p/reviews