[Starsky5000]

Thank You so much for taking the time to write up one seriously review of the Cowon I7. You weren't kidding around when you said you would.

I'm still considering the i7. I haven't made a purchase yet.

But i read something here from trustedreviews that drove me crazy & gave me alot of sleepless nights lately when i really wanted the i7. Here's the quote & link:

Quote:

Sound quality, though good, isn't quite up there with the best in class either and the hissy bundled headphones aren't much cop. With a better set of cans the talents of the iAudio 7 shine through more clearly. It's much more detailed and clear than, say, Samsung's YP-T9 but doesn't have quite as much presence as the Sony NW-E015 or the balance and clarity of iRiver's Clix 2 or T60 players.

Here is the link to their whole review:

Cowon iAudio 7 (4GB) Review - MP3 Reviews - TrustedReviews

They gave the i7 a 7/10 for sound quality.

 

[nsx_23]

I remember I was at the crossroads between iA7 and D2 last year.

Ended up going for the D2 because of its plethora of features, but the iA7 was seriously tempting because it was so small and sounded beautiful - reminds me a bit of my H320, that same "richness" to the sound.

And Damn Jetmall for not shipping overseas

 

[ka-boom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starsky5000 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank You so much for taking the time to write up one seriously review of the Cowon I7. You weren't kidding around when you said you would.

Thanks man, it's just my little way of giving back to the community.
If I had a nickel for every gear review I've read over the years I'd be rich.
So this is just my little way of returning the favor and trying to help.

There are also links to other reviews in my signature if you enjoy my writing style and pictures. I'll be doing my next write up on the Audio Technica ATH-ES7.

 

[ka-boom]

Quote:

With a better set of cans the talents of the iAudio 7 shine through more clearly.

Well that pretty much goes without saying, stock earphones usually sound like crap. They're ear buds, to be specific, and I've never been able to get a good fit with ANY ear buds I've owned.

Quote:

It's much more detailed and clear than, say, Samsung's YP-T9 but doesn't have quite as much presence as the Sony NW-E015 or the balance and clarity of iRiver's Clix 2 or T60 players

I can't really comment on the other players, never heard them, and I'm not going to say "I've read a lot of people's comments on them and they say...blah blah blah". I can only guess that if there IS a difference it has to be very marginal and insignificant because this i7 sounds pretty friggin good. But there will always be those who split hairs and whip out graphs to prove you wrong and that one unit sounds better than the other because a silly line graph says so.

 

[BillyB]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ka-boom /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks! I should have included what I listen with. I would say it breaks down as follows: 40% of my listening with my Audio Technica ES7 30% of my listening with my Custom 3's 30% of my listening with my d-Jays I just don't notice the hiss many people have reported. When there is hiss, it's only because of old recordings or poor quality (128 vs. 192+) I have downloads from usenet and newsgroup days - that's probably older than some of the readers here. Don't get me wrong, tracks/albums that hiss will hiss on any IEM or headphone I play them on. Most of my Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane, and Zeppelin all hiss no matter what I play them on. While newer stuff from Buble, Jack Johnson, and David Gilmour produce none. Oh, I should also mention I ordered the Fiio E5 last week, so god only knows when it will show up.

I also experienced this "hiss" on my i7, but I think it's just a matter of EQing. Some EQ settings simply produce too much high frequencies when using high-end ear phones. So, this is actually a good thing

 

[CHRIS7509]

Hey I have read some reviews that say this player doesn’t have playlist support, I got used to on my Zen Touch to drop all my song in there then create three playlist from it ; slows, rock/fast songs and latest random so I’d like to know if this is true.

Also some one said on random play it will only play the first 250 songs and it won't touch the other ones, I don't think this would be true.

I should be making my purchase soon. Thanks

 

[Wallach]

This sounds like something that might be right up my alley.

Right now, I'm in the market for a new flash-based player. I've a 16GB Touch 2G, but quite frankly, it bugs the hell out of me. I feel like I'm babying it all the time (I guess carrying around $300 worth of gadget that has a glass touch-screen will do that); I really want something that I can grab, toss in my pocket and not think about without sacrificing capacity or SQ.

How well do you think this device would drive a set of Turbine IEMs without an amp? Would the HP out be superior to the Touch 2G's HP out?

 

[hypnosx]

Thanks for the review. My first mp3 was also an iAudio, but it's a U3. A few months ago I switched to a bigger capacity Sony walkman (NWZ-720 series), but listening back to my u3 makes me realize why everyone is raving about cowon's sound. Should've gotten the i7 instead (damn black friday!)

A couple questions:
-Does the i7 have dynamic playlist like the u2 and u3??? I miss this feature dearly.

-How easy is it to operate this "blind" in the pocket?

 

[brainiak]

talking about playlists - does i7 support multiple playlists?

also is channel separation strong?

 

[droob]

for anyone considering iAudio 7, just be sure you will never need updated firmware if your format of choice is ever updated... I have an iAudio 6 which was great in every way until flac version 1.1.4 came along, now it won't play over half of my music library and there is no firmware update forthcoming from Cowon.

 

[ka-boom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CHRIS7509 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey I have read some reviews that say this player doesn’t have playlist support, I got used to on my Zen Touch to drop all my song in there then create three playlist from it ; slows, rock/fast songs and latest random so I’d like to know if this is true. Also some one said on random play it will only play the first 250 songs and it won't touch the other ones, I don't think this would be true. I should be making my purchase soon. Thanks

Well I dont know too much about playlisting, since I never use it. 99& of my music on the i7 are complete albums (folders), while the remaining tracks are in a folder called "workout songs". I have a couple hundred singles in that folder I listen to while working out, always on shuffle mode, so I dont know if there is a way of having the tracks play in a specialized order or not. I've just never used this feature/function.

 

[ka-boom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wallach /img/forum/go_quote.gif This sounds like something that might be right up my alley. Right now, I'm in the market for a new flash-based player. I've a 16GB Touch 2G, but quite frankly, it bugs the hell out of me. I feel like I'm babying it all the time (I guess carrying around $300 worth of gadget that has a glass touch-screen will do that); I really want something that I can grab, toss in my pocket and not think about without sacrificing capacity or SQ. How well do you think this device would drive a set of Turbine IEMs without an amp? Would the HP out be superior to the Touch 2G's HP out?

I wanted a simple "throw in my pocket" type of player, which is why I returned the D2. The i7 is the player for that. Even with the little extra thickness of the plastic case, it's still very portable and I regularly keep my i7 in the same pocket with my car keys, spare change, and cell phone and do not think twice about it.

I dont have Turbines, so I cannot atest to how the i7 would handle them. The i7 handled my V-Moda Vibes really well without an amp, which I think are on the same level as the Turbines (?). I've done a/b/a/b comparisons with my wife's 120GB ipod classic and my i7 using my ES7's and my Custom 3's and the Cowon always shines. The Cowon just sounds more "meatier" and robust compared to the ipod - I cant think of a better way to describe it. Fuller?

Hope this helps.

 

[ka-boom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hypnosx /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the review. My first mp3 was also an iAudio, but it's a U3. A few months ago I switched to a bigger capacity Sony walkman (NWZ-720 series), but listening back to my u3 makes me realize why everyone is raving about cowon's sound. Should've gotten the i7 instead (damn black friday!) A couple questions: -Does the i7 have dynamic playlist like the u2 and u3??? I miss this feature dearly. -How easy is it to operate this "blind" in the pocket?

I hear ya, I went from the Cowon U2 to a Creative Zen. I re-discovered my U2 in the bottom of my sock drawer one day, charged it, and.... well.... sold my Zen a week later and bought the i7. Night and day difference.

I mentioned before, I dont know anything about the dynamic playlists because Ive never had a reason to use it. Hopefully someone with more experience can chime in. You can operate it from your pocket easily enough. The "swing touch" interface is easy to feel, and on the lowest sensitivity setting the buttons almost become "pressable". Even with the player on hold mode, you can change tracks or volume using the top tactile +/- buttons, depending on which you tell it to use.

---> On a side note, I wanted to mention something about the incredible battery life. Last weekend my wife and I went up to Niagara falls for our anniversary. We listened to the i7 through my car's stereo for most of the 6 hour drive up there, when we checked into our hotel I handed the keys over to the valet and forgot to take my i7 out of the car and accidentally left it running (this was on friday morning at 10am). I didn't want to go through the hassle of telling the valet to go get my car just so I could shut it off, so I let it go.

When we checked out of our hotel Sunday at noon the i7 was still playing, with 1 bar of battery left. It had been playing for more than 2 full days, so we listened to it for the entire way home without it going dead. I turned it on again about 30 minutes ago and I'm still listening to it right now this very second, on that same charge. Unbelievable. Try that with your ipod. [size=small]Eat your heart out, Apple.[/size]

 

[GreatDane]

^ Great Story...hope you had a great time! Sweet little DAP it is.

 

[sputnik00]

thank you so much for this review.

my first mp3 player was the iAudio U3 and it's my best friend ever. but his battery is not holding a charge too well and i'm extremely reluctant to get something other than a Cowon and was considering the i7 or D2.

if i could though, i'd buy a U3 again in a heartbeat.