[Underwhelmed]

Hello, first post here. So I am in the market for a new portable music player since my MiniDisc Player of 4 years has sort of been acting weirdly, and after doing a bit of research of my own, I've pretty much narrowed my choices down to these two players. All I really want is a decent amount of HD space and quality audio. I was leaning towards the iAudio for it's rich set of features (Ogg, FLACs, etc) and lower price, but then I discovered Rockbox could add a lot of those features to the iPod. So now I'm a bit torn between which one to get.

I hear both of them tend to have their batteries start dying after awhile, and while replacing the iPod battery by yourself seems to be fairly easy, it seems like the X5 requires some basic skill and tools in soldering, neither of which I possess. But the X5 does have a one-year warranty that will replace my batteries, free of charge.

Can anybody who has tried both products give a comparison of their audio quality? Or perhaps recommend another alternative (No Zunes)?

Edit: If it helps at all, I plan on using my Koss Sparkplugs with this, which I suspect will be a limiting factor in terms of what quality of sound I can achieve.

 

[3X0]

Through Koss Plugs both will sound indistinguishable..

Through the headphone-out, the X5's sound quality trounces the iPod's, no question.

Through the line-out, the iPod handily bests the X5.

 

[rockin_amigo14]

there's a big brother to the X5 called the X5L, which has 35 hours of battery life, so it'd probably last longer for it's life.

 

[midnite8791]

I love my X5, but the lineout simply sucks, it isnt a true lineout. So if you plan on adding an amp or using it anywhere besides with headphones I wouldnt recommend one.

I would at least wait until the end of January as it is rumored cowon may be unveiling an X5 succesor at CES

 

[gundam91]

Quote:

Originally Posted by midnite8791 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I would at least wait until the end of January as it is rumored cowon may be unveiling an X5 succesor at CES

That's good to know, as I've been having this urge to pull the trigger to buy a 60GB X5 for the past several days.

 

[dwc]

The X5 headphone jack with the vol maxxed (40) and all effects off is a great line out. This is old news.

 

[immtbiker]

My X5L sound quality is vastly superior using the full sized IPOD (IMHO). What people are saying about the line being inferior to the headphone out when using an external amp is absolutely true.
I am hoping that the reason is the cheapness of the subpack. I ordered a used ALO Jenna wired dock that is made specifically for the X5(L), and I will provide feedback whether or not it makes a difference.

BTW-The 30 + hours is valid on the IAudio. I've been using mine for a year without losing any time on the battery. My IPOD is down to 2-3 hours after a years use, and I bought an aftermarket 12 hour battery to replace the IOPD's, but other that attempting to use a chisel and a hammer. I can't get the tabs on the IPOD to open and I hardly use my Apple.

 

[dwc]

Here's a link to back up my post:

http://www.iaudiophile.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3709

The problem is that this issue is so old that many of the linked pages with graphic comparisons are now gone, and the iaudiophile forum also underwent a reorg, killing links to older posts.

Anyway as I read it the consensus is that homemade linouts cables also suffer bass rolloff, so the issue must be in the lineout circuitry inside the player, and not in the subpack.

Again, the saving point is that the headphone out jack performs excellently as a line out, in both freq response and square wave tests. (But I can no longer find links to show you).

-Dan

 

[immtbiker]

If this is the case, then it's a shame that we need the subpack for charging and in-line recording.

1 USB on the side would have been good enough to handle the charging and music transfer. I'm not really sure why the 2nd USB is there in the first place.

 

[Gonz]

I've been going over the pros and cons of (what seems to be) the four major players in this arena...

iAudio X5, Zune, iPod, and the Zen Vision W.

It was not an easy decision to make, each seems to have its strong points, but some have more glaring deficiencies than the one I chose. Pending something amazing coming out of CES, (which doesn't seem like it's happening) I'm gonna have to go with the Zen Vision W.

So I'm curious, is there some reason you've omitted this PMP from your picks?

 

[Gonz]

Just a couple more thoughts...

Quote:

All I really want is a decent amount of HD space and quality audio. I was leaning towards the iAudio for it's rich set of features (Ogg, FLACs, etc) and lower price,

Just my opinion, but LAME encoded MP3 is all I really need. When done properly, they sound quite good. Also, I feel 30Gb is adequate for a player... and I have well over 200Gb of stored music. I just don't see myself needing to take every bit of it with me. 10Gb oughta cover the stuff I listen to most.

Quote:

but then I discovered Rockbox could add a lot of those features to the iPod. So now I'm a bit torn between which one to get.

I not only despise Apple in general, for their overpriced proprietary nature, but I also feel the iPod is lackluster.

RockBox, I have mixed feelings on. I highly suggest you look further into the software and think if it's something you want to use. There are pros and cons, it seems. I love some of the features it offers though.

I hope it will develop much more.

Quote:

I hear both of them tend to have their batteries start dying after awhile, - the X5 does have a one-year warranty that will replace my batteries, free of charge.

You have to expect all rechargeable batteries to eventually wear out. They're usually good for 1000 cycles or so. I find a year to be about right for life expectancy, if you use them daily.

The X5 supposedly trounces the iPod in sound quality. That seems to be a given, as nobody seems real impressed with the iPod's SQ.

Quote:

Edit: If it helps at all, I plan on using my Koss Sparkplugs with this, which I suspect will be a limiting factor in terms of what quality of sound I can achieve.

I hope you catch the Head-Fi "bug" and upgrade the earphones, as well as pick up an amp. You will be surprised.

 

[Schalldampfer]

Don't rely on Rockbox too much currently. As it's still in development, it has some issues, the biggest of which (to me at least) is that it drains the battery much quicker than the Apple stock firmware.

 

[FSF]

I got my X5 for Christmas, and I absolutely love it. I owned an iPod for two years, and the X5 completely blows it out of the water. From first-hand experience I can tell you that the X5 is a much better choice over an iPod. As for the other players, I can't say since I havn't actually used them.

If the competition is simply iPod vs. X5, get an X5.

 

[Altoids]

Try a Zune or a Zen Vision: M. It doesn't look like you have any intention of amping your headphones so the line-out issue is no issue, and the aforementioned players both sound significantly better to my ears. Don't get me wrong, the X5 is great (even greater rockboxed), but is simply inferior tech at this point in its life. Also, pressure to develop homebrew firmware for the Zune will ensure its superiority in the future, even if it doesn't beat Apple in market shares (which it won't).

 

[JES]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Altoids /img/forum/go_quote.gif Try a Zune or a Zen Vision: M. It doesn't look like you have any intention of amping your headphones so the line-out issue is no issue, and the aforementioned players both sound significantly better to my ears. Don't get me wrong, the X5 is great (even greater rockboxed), but is simply inferior tech at this point in its life. Also, pressure to develop homebrew firmware for the Zune will ensure its superiority in the future, even if it doesn't beat Apple in market shares (which it won't).

No offense, but I think I'll bank on a successor to the X5 before I bank on firmware of any significance for the Zune.