Cowon J3 Impressions Thread

[Niyologist]

The X9 sure looks awesome!

 

[doublea71]

Got a 32gb J3 off of ebay for <$200, which isn't bad.
 

 

[scarletspider]

A few months back I got my car broken into and they stole my 32GB J3 with my 16GB mini SDHC, my 32GB card was in my Clip+ at home (& they got my College Bowl ring, but left my letterman's ring that was in the same compartment!?). I'm still mad because they stole it in vain, maybe thinking it was a phone, BUT they can't recharge it because of the proprietary cable and I know they won't appreciate my FLAC files and the SQ! I loved that thing and the CUI's. It was fun to tinker with & was my entrance into this expensive hobby. I've always loved music but only started paying attention to lossless audio and what-not over the past 2 years.
 
I was looking and looking for a deal on another J3 but didn't want to pay full price like I had before. To be honest I kind of started to like the sound of my Clip+ over the J3, but felt guilty because I got the Clip+ at Radio Shack during a special when they were $24. 
 
So after months of moping around and searching the local classifieds and craigslists waiting for a 32GB J3 to show up (so I could kick someone's ass!) I've decided to start over again with a Rockbox'd iPod 5.5 240GB based rig. I'll keep tweaking and adding to it until I see a "real" J3 successor, or I feel froggy enough to plop down money for the iBasso DX100.
 
**long time lurker - but thank you all for your information, reviews, comments and opinions. It helps out a lot and I can sit & read this forum for days!
 
-fin

 

[stevenswall]

^Did you find a 240GB HDD that works with the 5.5g iPod? I got a slim 80gb model with a Samsung HDD in it, but the Rockbox firmware would not work with it. Some esoteric error about HDD incompatibility. Maybe sector size. Anyway, what brand of HDD did you use on your iPod that is 240GB and works with Rockbox?

 

[Cecala]

Quote:

I hope Cowon will add these improvements to the J3's successor (at least some of them):
- Better CPU (the interface is customizable, but the necessary power to create smooth interfaces is missing)
- Upgraded Flash version (Flash 8, for example, contains many features for better performance and makes amazing animations possible)
- 10+ band EQ
- jetEffect 5 (used on the Cowon Z2)
- user-replaceable battery
- non-proprietary ports (which is very probable, the Z2 and the A5 both have standard ports)
- more supported codecs (especially video)
- better screen (higher resolution, and PLEASE no pentile like on the Z2)
- (micro)SDXC slot
- better DAC (the Z2 sounds better than the J3 IMO - I hope Cowon will use the same or a better DAC here)

I agree with all your points and would add far better build quality, the J3 feels like crap compared to my X5. Also add two Micro SDXC slots not one. Cowon could bring out a memory-less player and the purchaser would buy the memory they needed. If 4gig was enough great or max it out by having two 64gig cards. This way they could offer a much lower cost player initially and need to make only one or two models(Colour Variation).

 

[sulkoudai]

Quote:

I agree with all your points and would add far better build quality, the J3 feels like crap compared to my X5. Also add two Micro SDXC slots not one. Cowon could bring out a memory-less player and the purchaser would buy the memory they needed. If 4gig was enough great or max it out by having two 64gig cards. This way they could offer a much lower cost player initially and need to make only one or two models(Colour Variation).

material =/= build quality

 

[Unfie]

I have owned my Cowon J3 for about 2 years now. When it comes to sound quality, this is so priceless. It's a shame that so many people blindly resort ipods and don't know about this gem. The reason why I can't recommend this to others is that the standard UI is inherently clunky. My clock still keeps on freezing unless I use the radio. What kind of madness is that? Yes, people can install addons, but that should not be necessary. I wish there were better playlist functionality.
 
I have partnered my Cowon J3 with a variety of IEM's. Today I received the Westone 4 in the mail, and this little sucker can handle it without amplification. I don't think I'll be upgrading pmp's until this one completely dies out.

 

[proedros]

lately , my J3 doesn't 'read' all the albums in the 32gb cards i have and when I try to play them it freezes
 
has anyone else here encountered the same problem ?
 
on a happier note , make sure you get this amazing silicone case - it seems they have stopped production since J3 is now discontinued and there are only 4 colours left for sale atm (thankfully , they still have black which is great and i just ordered one to have as a back-up)

http://www.rearthusa.com/Cowon-J3_p_175.html

 

[Techno Kid]

Ok I'm using my J3 with the e-Q5 now and it sounds really good even more so than my Fuze that I thought made the sound the best.  I've noticed that most of the dynamic driver IEM's I have or had didn't sound that great out of the J3 and that BA's work better for some reason. Does anyone else that has a J3 or another Cowon player think BA's work better with them than dynamics do?

 

[autoexec]

I think their kind of muddy sound signature that kinda lacks openness of the sound will have nice synergy to BAs than on dynamics. I don't have BAs though but I know they're usually more sensitive and easier to drive than dynamics.

 

[scarletspider]

Quote:

^Did you find a 240GB HDD that works with the 5.5g iPod? I got a slim 80gb model with a Samsung HDD in it, but the Rockbox firmware would not work with it. Some esoteric error about HDD incompatibility. Maybe sector size. Anyway, what brand of HDD did you use on your iPod that is 240GB and works with Rockbox?

Yes, I bought a new Toshiba MK2431GAH off eBay for $97. I've had it about 3+ weeks now with absolutely no problems. All I had to do was reformat the drive in a Windows version of iTunes (I have a Mac) and then Rockbox it.

 

[cyberalpha11]

Any sound quality comparison between Cowon J3 and iPod 60G (5th generation with wolfson dac chip)?

 

[doublea71]

In a nutshell, the ipod sounds warmer than the J3. I actually prefer the sound of the ipod (Rockboxed), but the J3 has superior battery life and it still sounds pretty darned good. If the J3 could be rockboxed, I'd do a cartwheel or two in my tighty whiteys.
 

 

[DMinor]

J3 sounds muddy and less detailed than the rockboxed ipod video.

 

[Coq de Combat]

Quote:

Any sound quality comparison between Cowon J3 and iPod 60G (5th generation with wolfson dac chip)?

As opposed to the above contributers, I'd say the J3 sounds better.