[chicagojammer]

does anyone here have the Cowon s9 and the x1000, I havent really seen any real write ups from owners of both units. I have UM3X and am looking to upgrade, I was waiting for this Cowon J3 but there is no real info out there so I might go ahead with the S9. I have heard all about the Sony and am wondering if the 140 dollars cost extra is justified.

Granted, I am coming from a Palm Pre so my bar is set pretty low right now, the Pre sound is very flat and hissy so anything will prob be a step up. I will also be using this on my runs and I do like that the Cowon is much lighter than the Sony and I like the support/updates/ Community GUI that Cowon seems to have behind it.

So basically is the X that much better? I will only be using for music and the occasional video if im on a plane or something, but dont really care for wifi. I was holding out for this J3 cause i thought it might have a faster processor or better amp.

 

[Szadzik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by midoo1990 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Better or not,Sony are ripoffs

I bought the X1060 for $270 and I still missed some discounts which would have made the price even lower.

I cannot say it was a ripoff.

 

[soozieq]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Szadzik /img/forum/go_quote.gif I bought the X1060 for $270 and I still missed some discounts which would have made the price even lower. I cannot say it was a ripoff.

It's a rip off depending on where you bought it from. The best price was here in the UK. At one point it was selling for £170 ($250) which was a huge bargain for 32GB. Those outside the UK got a bum deal. Same with the Sennheiser IE8, they were about half the price here than in the US.

I got a couple of X's for people in Europe where it was selling for the equivalent of about $450. I can see why they'd feel ripped off if they had to pay so much over what we paid for it. But then, the UK gets ripped off for stuff that the US gets much cheaper. When the Cowon was selling for $269 at Amazon.com - it was selling for the equivalent of $410 here, so we thought that was a rip off

EDIT: The Cowon S9

 

[shigzeo]

Wow, that is a rip off! The Cowon is certainly (other than hiss and gapless: hmmm, not bad) pretty bad: typical bass roll off, nasty size, and 100% plastic.

Just ordered the A845 in brown - should get it at the end of March! I'll have plenty of time to compare it starkly to my current A828 rather than just 'observe'. Please consider all my praise and constructive criticism a labour of love; as I said before, I am a Sony lover. I just happen to wish they did as good a job as the Fuze for driving even balanced armature earphones, and had iPod touch hiss levels - arghghghg.

 

[soozieq]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, that is a rip off! The Cowon is certainly (other than hiss and gapless: hmmm, not bad) pretty bad: typical bass roll off, nasty size, and 100% plastic.

It was very lightweight for sure! And it was just a little too big to sit comfortably in one hand and operate it at the same time.
I have small hands

Quote:

Just ordered the A845 in brown - should get it at the end of March! I'll have plenty of time to compare it starkly to my current A828 rather than just 'observe'.

Ooh, nice! I read FenderP's review and comparison with the X and it was quite positive. Although I read about hiss somewhere, not sure if it was in his review or not. The thing that struck me the most was how skinny it was, thinner than an After Eight!! I'd want a hard case for it to add some bulk. My 808 was thin enough and the 840 is even thinner.

 

[shigzeo]

Yes, well I've heard the 845 already and it hissed as much as the X seems to which is a shame, but oh well. If Sony fixed that one thing, I could get on quite well. As it is, I just need a player for the 1601 and I hate SonicStage and my 828.

 

[Squirsier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Yes, well I've heard the 845 already and it hissed as much as the X seems to which is a shame, but oh well. If Sony fixed that one thing, I could get on quite well. As it is, I just need a player for the 1601 and I hate SonicStage and my 828.

So far, I tried the X with my ES7 almost exclusively, and the hiss is, if I am not having hallucinations, extremely low to almost inaudible when no music is playing.

Need to try it out with my AKG K319 and Monster Turbine ; tho I suppose you did try it with the latter

Excellent SQ tho, got everything turned off and they match the ES7 wonderfully!

Am I beginning to be a Sony Fanboy? Sony eReader, Sony Wake-up Clock with iPod Dock to fall alseep to music, Sony X player... uh oh

My iPod Touch 2g is still useful as an "on the go" internet and gaming device, but from now on I only use the X for music!

I was going for it or the last MD unit Sony released... Went to Sony Store.. and came out with the X..! (yes, I said I'd never get one because of the no-gapless issue... :O )

 

[shigzeo]

If the X hissed with the ES7, it would be bad - very bad. With iems and canal phones, it hisses brutally TBH. There is a certain point at which my brain can sort of turn it off, but never really: there is a haze in the background which never allows me to go very far.

 

[soozieq]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squirsier /img/forum/go_quote.gif Went to Sony Store.. and came out with the X..! (yes, I said I'd never get one because of the no-gapless issue... :O )

Ha ha. I remember you posting that somewhere. Never say never!

If you can tolerate wav on your X, you can have gapless for anything crucial. I think I have about 10 albums on in wav because some albums just cannot - cannot be heard with gaps.

Glad you're liking the X. I like the sound better than any other Sony daps that I've had.

shigz- you said you're particularly sensitive to hiss? Lots of other people aren't so bothered by it, but I know you have a low tolerance to any hiss at all.

 

[soozieq]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squirsier /img/forum/go_quote.gif My iPod Touch 2g is still useful as an "on the go" internet and gaming device, but from now on I only use the X for music!

I use my Touch just for browsing and apps.

It's great for that, nothing else I've had can compete with it in that department. But yeah, X just for music

 

[Squirsier]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shigzeo /img/forum/go_quote.gif If the X hissed with the ES7, it would be bad - very bad. With iems and canal phones, it hisses brutally TBH. There is a certain point at which my brain can sort of turn it off, but never really: there is a haze in the background which never allows me to go very far.

Okay yeah, I plugged the Monster Turbine in and I hear it. My old MD player hisses a lot more to be honest. Guess it's a Sony thing! Sticking to the ES7 then!

 

[shigzeo]

I think I am sensitive to it because I came to portable music straight from MD and CD and the only players I ever heard hiss on were early Class D amps and it was minimal in comparison. Most HFiers probably came to portable music from MP3 players or forgot how black a background should be.

The X is sinister in its hiss, but not as bad as the AMP3 or Rocoo. If that alone was fixed, I could use it with as much confidence as I do my iPod touch 2G with balanced armatures and earphones which are sensitive.

As it is, it is a throwback from the heights (in some ways) from which I enjoyed music previously. I think that careful, intense listeners whose ears still work will agree with me unless of course, they have never experience a good CD or MD portable. Other than that, I don't care much for CD players. And MD were their best in the mid nineties.

 

[Dreamnine]

I certainly wasn't ripped off for my 1060; I waited til the price came down to £185 and it's been worth every penny.

If it does hiss I certainly don't notice it - the S639 did hiss a lot.

With my X and i9 I've hit audio nirvana for me. Nothing has come close to this before.

 

[shigzeo]

That is a very good price: if you find one like that (suzie), sell it to me, but I don't need 64GB, 16 is all I need. I will buy Paypal from you any day and sell the one overall which I reject.

 

[david1978jp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dreamnine /img/forum/go_quote.gif I certainly wasn't ripped off for my 1060; I waited til the price came down to £185 and it's been worth every penny. If it does hiss I certainly don't notice it - the S639 did hiss a lot. With my X and i9 I've hit audio nirvana for me. Nothing has come close to this before.

You have i9, what do you think about it? So far, I found one review at trustedreviews.com, and another person prefers S9 over i9 (but without enough explanations). Can you compare S639, X and i9?