[Aaron5604]

So, is G2 Touch winning the majority vote here because it's regarded as the better all around player?

Or...

Is it winning because it's agreed by the majority here in having superior (better) sound quality -- Less distortion, richer/more accurate (vibrant) frequencies, less background hiss, etc when joined w/ the Shure SE530's?

With the EQ set flat, I might add -- Using NO additional effects, since we all know control variables are necessary when conducting any test for accuracy.

As for the two side-by-side, thus far...

I've taken in consideration that there are definitely WAY more pros than cons when going w/ the Ipod. However, 90% of those pros aren't even rellevent to me, when overall SQ is of the upmost importance, in addition to being in the market for a DAP rather than a PDA. So, as long as every other aspect of the player is kept within reason, (deemed tolerable) I'm fine. I'm also aware that the G2 Touch is capable of multiple playlists all simultaneously, where as the S9 is limited to only one, minus the "genius" feature recently implimented. Which, at this point is probably my most conflicting issue between these two players. Though, the biggest question mark at this point, is selecting a player based soley on the purpose for audio playback, hense my initial post

As for other players, such as the ones from Sony and Sansa, I really want one that handles lossless formats. Plus, It seems as if I would pick up a lot of "hiss" from the Sony DAPS due to also having a high sensativity level?

Thanks!

-Aaron

 

[Cowon_1]

Well I'm waiting for the 32gb S9 and I don't have the 2nd generation touch but I've had the 1st generation touch, and also have the 1st generation nano. I've also had many Cowons and every Cowon I've owned or own sound better then any ipod I've had.
Not only that but a big thing for me is the ability to load the player with music or movies without the use of software. And I have have over 250gb of music. I love tagging and organizing my music the way I want it to be. And I'm also able to browse my music on my cowon the way I organize it on my pc.

I also have the sony nwz-s616 and the sansa clip and my Cowons sound better than them also.

Just wanted to add that with the S9 you will have something "different" and you won't appear as and ipod tool. With the S9 you'll have something you'll be proud of..and a beautiful piece of high quality equipment.

 

[SawaFish]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kg21 /img/forum/go_quote.gif slow/awkward user interface Doesn't support all the formats like the cowon O2(mkv is the big one for me) good battery life

From what I've read since the new firmwares only the cover flow function is slow and laggy, the other menus work just fine. And you can hardly expect the S9 to support MKV when even the O2 can't play it like it should (I've owned one, MKV was laggy and not watchable)
There are mixed opinions on the battery life though, there are quite a few people who say it's not long enough, though also more than enough who like it.

If only the 32gb version would come out....

 

[kg21]

It's not because its neutral that I don't like it, I just think in terms of detail, highs mids bass the whole spectrum it was never bad, but nothing stands out. I think if there was a poll here on head-fi or public the ipod touch will always win, but due to user interface brand and other features, not sound quality. If it was the etymotic er-4 of portables I would love it, but I tend to look at it as the k701 of portables: decent all around but really blah. The last 2 sentences I only mean in terms of sound not overall. That is based upon hearing an itouch and iphone both first gens.

 

[Waveblade]

The coverflow lag is lessened by this skin, which also has some nice buttons

iAudiophile.net Forums - View Single Post - Finished UCI Themes: No Other Posts

 

[shigzeo]

the ipod touch does not skip with lossless files, it skips with one lossless file: alac. not with aiff or wav. that will be addressed

 

[abitdeef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kg21 /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's not because its neutral that I don't like it, I just think in terms of detail, highs mids bass the whole spectrum it was never bad, but nothing stands out. I think if there was a poll here on head-fi or public the ipod touch will always win, but due to user interface brand and other features, not sound quality. If it was the etymotic er-4 of portables I would love it, but I tend to look at it as the k701 of portables: decent all around but really blah. The last 2 sentences I only mean in terms of sound not overall. That is based upon hearing an itouch and iphone both first gens.

2nd gen touch is a different beast- less hiss, more sparkle/dynamics, and better bass response the touch 1st gen. At least with shure e530.

 

[thechungster]

I have an iPod touch 1st gen, and the App Store is amazing. The apps and that are so fun. If you really want SQ and video quality then the S9 will do. For everything else you want on a portable device, then you should get the touch.

 

[insicor]

I bought a 2G a while back and played with it for a couple of weeks, but it got returned. I don't know if I can say for sure whether the SQ was worse than any of my previous players (Zen Micro, Zen Vision:M, Samsung T9, Samsung P2, Sansa Clip), because while it sounded great with some songs, with others it just didn't sound quite as clean (metal tracks), if that makes any sense at all. The sound was also fairly fatiguing to my ears, and I found I couldn't listen for anymore than 20 minutes or so without having to take a break. Also a few little things bugged me, like the large volume graduations when using the physical volume controls and the junk EQ. Purist can lambast EQ usage all they want, but IMO a good EQ is necessary to compensate for different headphone sound signatures (E4cs for me). My computer's age is also closing in on eight years, and iTunes really did not like that.

Bottom line though, I would never not recommend the 2G Touch, since it's a fantastic piece of hardware. If your primary concern is sound quality though, i'd just buy one from Best Buy or something (not Apple Store, since they charge a restocking fee), and see how it is. If you don't like it then just return it.

 

[Covenant]

I just ordered a 16GB S9, I'll post SQ impressions of it when it arrives.

I don't have a Touch for comparison, but I will compare it against my (IMO excellent-sounding) iRiver E10.

 

[Aaron5604]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif the ipod touch does not skip with lossless files, it skips with one lossless file: alac. not with aiff or wav. that will be addressed

Hmmm.....

Do you have any idea as to when Apple plans on addressing this issue, concerning ALAC files -- this month, next month.....? And also, (nothing personal) but do you have any links about this claim that I can refer to -- regarding this future correction?

I'm asking specifically, because ALAC would practically be the ONLY format I'd ever consider for the vast majority of my library, if not all. So, (as you can tell) I very much value the likes of being able to play back compressed lossless. Skipping (or, at least the possibility of such) would (obviously) get on my last nerves after having spent this kind of money for a device that specializes in portable audio

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ihatepopupads /img/forum/go_quote.gif 2nd gen touch is a different beast- less hiss, more sparkle/dynamics, and better bass response the touch 1st gen. At least with shure e530.

Are you able to make any comments regarding the "hiss" level of Apple's G2 Touch vs. the level of "hiss" from Cowon's S9, when using Shure's SE530 IEM's?

I'm hearing it's less, actually. Which, is one major reason as to why I've been so drawn towards the G2 Touch to begin with. I think, at this point, I'm just needing more people to confirm that for me.

Thanks!

-Aaron

 

[DJGeorgeT]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif the ipod touch does not skip with lossless files, it skips with one lossless file: alac. not with aiff or wav. that will be addressed

I rest my case that Apple is their own worst enemy. They can't even implement their own proprietary ALAC correctly in their own device. An update was supposedly going to become available November time frame that would fix the ALAC problem. It is January and still no firmware update. In the meantime, a lot of those who have recently purchased a touch have returned, gotten their money back and moved on to other dap. I would too. This is pretty lame, to be spending this kind of money and not being able to play lossless...and yes WAV and AIFF is supported, but who would listen this these formats in a flash device with no expansion slot for additional memory?

 

[ben7337]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aaron5604 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmmm..... Do you have any idea as to when Apple plans on addressing this issue, concerning ALAC files -- this month, next month.....? And also, (nothing personal) but do you have any links about this claim that I can refer to -- regarding this future correction? I'm asking specifically, because ALAC would practically be the ONLY format I'd ever consider for the vast majority of my library, if not all. So, (as you can tell) I very much value the likes of being able to play back compressed lossless. Skipping (or, at least the possibility of such) would (obviously) get on my last nerves after having spent this kind of money for a device that specializes in portable audio Are you able to make any comments regarding the "hiss" level of Apple's G2 Touch vs. the level of "hiss" from Cowon's S9, when using Shure's SE530 IEM's? I'm hearing it's less, actually. Which, is one major reason as to why I've been so drawn towards the G2 Touch to begin with. I think, at this point, I'm just needing more people to confirm that for me. Thanks! -Aaron

I can say that I personally own an iPod touch 2G and have not ever experienced this alac skipping problem, and nearly 90% of my music collection is encoded with alac via dbpoweramp. Heck I am listening now, the screen just shut off completely, no skip at all, nothing. I honestly believe that the skipping issue is probably more harware than firmware related, whether apple admits this or not is another issue, but we all have the same firmware and mine doesn't have this issue.

Also if file compatibility is important on any level as I have said before the iPod touch 2G should have support for all audio formats soon via vlc4iphone.

On the notion of sound quality since you keep saying how this is the MOST important thing to you, I would say try to get a hold of these 2 players and personally test them yourself with flat equality. we all know that iPods are meant to play without any equality, but the cowon players people seem to claim need an eq setting as they have a generally flat cold sound signature that people just seem to find unpleasant. Unless you go to an apple store and try an ipod touch 2g and have a recently purchased s9, that you intend to return if you think it sounds worse than the 2g touch, and compare the two yourself, you will never be able to be sure which is best. However people do seem to think that both are at least acceptable for sound quality.

 

[abitdeef]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aaron5604 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hmmm..... Do you have any idea as to when Apple plans on addressing this issue, concerning ALAC files -- this month, next month.....? And also, (nothing personal) but do you have any links about this claim that I can refer to -- regarding this future correction? I'm asking specifically, because ALAC would practically be the ONLY format I'd ever consider for the vast majority of my library, if not all. So, (as you can tell) I very much value the likes of being able to play back compressed lossless. Skipping (or, at least the possibility of such) would (obviously) get on my last nerves after having spent this kind of money for a device that specializes in portable audio Are you able to make any comments regarding the "hiss" level of Apple's G2 Touch vs. the level of "hiss" from Cowon's S9, when using Shure's SE530 IEM's? I'm hearing it's less, actually. Which, is one major reason as to why I've been so drawn towards the G2 Touch to begin with. I think, at this point, I'm just needing more people to confirm that for me. Thanks! -Aaron

Thats easy, touch 2g has less hiss. S9 has about the same as 2/3 gen nano or d2 which is not much. But if you engage the eq on the s9, more hiss

Touch 2g is most quiet I have listened to with e530, clip /fuze is second, then the zune the the rest are pretty good except older sonys and old meizu. Oh and some old irivers from what I remember. I almost forgot about the kenwoods I had VERY hissy.

Sorry, I tend to go overboard sometimes, but yes touch 2g hisses less then S9

 

[Anacondastan]

I just got my S9 today and it doesn't even come close to the UI (in terms of intuitiveness and response time) of the itouch, but in terms of SQ the gap is as far & wide for the S9 from the Apple. I simply cannot listen to two songs in succession w/o wanting to scream on the touch. I wish Cowon would implement cross feed circuitry into their design in my opinion that would be a coup.

To these ears the touch is a great utilitarian device that plays music too! But it is in no way a discerning or audiophile grade music playback device.