[pekan]

Which of the following will give the best value for money
 
Thankss!

I use random IEM earphones (apple earpods)

 

[damifly]

I want to know as we'll. thanks!

 

[Stuff Jones]

  Which of the following will give the best value for money
 
Thankss!

 
What are you looking for? 
 
If its sound quality, and I've only had the Cowon J3, but the X3 is much better.
 
Usability, battery life, other features... J3 is better. 

 

[pekan]

What are you looking for? 

If its sound quality, and I've only had the Cowon J3, but the X3 is much better.

Usability, battery life, other features... J3 is better. 

Looking for mostly sound quality

Any opnions on the other players? Someone?

 

[Stuff Jones]

Cowon is better than Zune by reputation so X3 will be better than the Zune.
 
X3 is an entry level audiophile player. Its going to sound better than players aimed at the average consumer.

 

[Berkovajazz]

What phones?

 

[damifly]

I use Denon D600 now.

 

[Berkovajazz]

With D600 it is better to use powerful source, so X3 should be better. Also iHifi760, Ibasso dx50 and other bad boys. As for the Question from 3 models, my vote for Zunes, i like their sound with IEMs.

 

[pekan]

Any more opinions?

Zune hd - 1
Fiio - 1
Cowon - 0

 

[Poimandres]

The iBasso dx50 is a good way to go.

 

[Berkovajazz]

Any more opinions?

Zune hd - 1
Fiio - 1
Cowon - 0

Take a look on Ibasso DX50, he is very good with almost all IEMs and headphones.
Cowons has synthetical sound and cheap plastic cases, bad screens.

 

[pekan]

The iBasso dx50 is a good way to go.

Take a look on Ibasso DX50, he is very good with almost all IEMs and headphones.

Cowons has synthetical sound and cheap plastic cases, bad screens.

Over my budget (my buying source is ebay)

 

[Poimandres]

Buy it directly from ibasso for 239.

 

[batteraziiz]

I'll go +1 Cowon. If it's your first foray into this field, Cowons are a good entry-level place to start.
Pros:
Amazing battery life
Great if you like tinkering with different EQ settings.
Expandable via Micro SD Slot. I have a 64GB card in mine and it takes very little time to load.
Great value for the cost.
Has a decent quality sound recorder built in.. If you like to bootleg shows or anything like that.

Cons:
Keep in mind that it is a large player. I own one and it's almost as long as my hand.
The screen is a capacitive touch screen, which is a lot less responsive than, say, a smartphone or ipod touch. Expect some reistance, but if your main aim is playing music then this is a small price to pay.
No other apps, if you're into that sort of thing.
The UI takes a little getting used to, but once you've played with it for an hour you'll pick it up no problem.

 

[batteraziiz]

Keep in mind that everyone who posts here is going to be biased, based on what they own and use. Not too many people here have these exact 3 models.