[jdimitri]

Cool off folks.. unless someone has both an imod and a top PCDP currently in hand any arguing would result in nothing..

Quote:

Originally Posted by terriblepaulz /img/forum/go_quote.gif Is the comparison being made here between the iMod and the headphone out of the PCDP? Or is it between the iMod and a PCDP with a digital out to a DAC?

imod line out and pcdp line out

 

[itsborken]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shunyata /img/forum/go_quote.gif Maybe because it seems the only thing people understand around here is hype? I've heard many say they want the best sound quality ever, are willing to carry gigantic amps and dacs- why is it wrong to suggest a pcdp? Because everyone wants 1000 songs in their pocket? A couple cd's carried is a small burden for someone who can get the best sound for real cheap without resorting to modifications of mediocre gear.

Dude, you are p***ing on my leg. Excuse me if I call you on it.

I see the majority of people *not* dissing PCDPs or the flash players. If somebody says an iPod/iMod/whatever works for them, that does not imply the other stuff is garbage. You have some kind of inferiority complex or iMod envy? Yeah, you owned one before, mediocre blah blah, ZZZzzzzzzz.

I don't care what people use. Everyone should prioritize their prereqs and buy what is best for them. I wish you could learn to give the others the benefit of the doubt that they can arrive at *their* own conclusions.

 

[Shunyata]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Filburt /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey Shunyata, are you at all into DIY stuff? Looking at the WM8971, which is likely very similar to the WM8975 (if not identical) in terms of pin outs, it seems like one way you could do this is pull from the aux out, or pull the hp out before the coupling cap. The 5G's lineout seems to basically just be HP out at full scale, so maybe the line out pulls from the aux (unless volume control is being done post-codec, but it seems like the WM chip has control on-chip, which might help explain why have another codec in the radio remote). I doubt any new connections are being made since pulling from the BGA grid isn't particularly practical, and you can get the functional equivalent just pulling from the line out path; I doubt the difference means much compared to what you'd pick up with a mod like this, anyhow. It's a pretty straightforward operation, overall. I don't have a 5G iPod at my disposal, otherwise I might try it for the heck of it. Maybe someone else can do it *shrug*.

Does 4 non working cmoys count? Because that's as far as my diy efforts go. Gave up pretty quickly. Ill stick to purchasing reasonably priced and well researched gear from manufacturers who know wth they are doing thank you. And the rest of your post... tldr. haha sorry.

 

[Shunyata]

Quote:

Originally Posted by itsborken /img/forum/go_quote.gif Dude, you are p***ing on my leg. Excuse me if I call you on it. I see the majority of people *not* dissing PCDPs or the flash players. If somebody says an iPod/iMod/whatever works for them, that does not imply the other stuff is garbage. You have some kind of inferiority complex or iMod envy? .

Nah call out all you want. I'm masochistic. I like it when being called out, because it at least means people are courteous enough to reply to me.

Maybe I needed a good interconnect with my 4g imod. I used the little black thing that the headroom bitheads come with because it looked like the same cable that my er4's used so I thought how bad could 6 inches of it be. I doubt it was my amp (portaphile maxed with blackgate 1500's and lt1210 as virtual ground) that held the imod back.

I still don't see how any cable could have improved it that much. Maybe it's just me.

 

[Jon118]

So wait, you didn't use line-out? Or did you use a line-out female connector? I thought the headphone out was deactivated on the 4G iMod. Either way, a better cable through line-out would make a huge difference in your impressions, I can guarantee that.

 

[Pappucho]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon118 /img/forum/go_quote.gif So wait, you didn't use line-out? Or did you use a line-out female connector? I thought the headphone out was deactivated on the 4G iMod. Either way, a better cable through line-out would make a huge difference in your impressions, I can guarantee that.

The headphone out becomes a dedicated line-out on the 4G Imod.

 

[Shunyata]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pappucho /img/forum/go_quote.gif The headphone out becomes a dedicated line-out on the 4G Imod.

SHOHIN!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon118 /img/forum/go_quote.gif So wait, you didn't use line-out? Or did you use a line-out female connector? I thought the headphone out was deactivated on the 4G iMod. Either way, a better cable through line-out would make a huge difference in your impressions, I can guarantee that.

I used the mini-mini from the line out (headphone jack). I know very well what cables can do. But I also know they wouldn't make a "huge" difference.

 

[Pappucho]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shunyata /img/forum/go_quote.gif SHOHIN!

It's coming sometime in the future. I'm taking a slightly different direction than previously planned, but it will be worth the wait. Sorry for the delay.

I've got both a 4G Imod and a few PCDP's. I like the fact that I can carry around a good portion of my library on the Imod and it does sound good although I probably still prefer the lineout on some of my PCDP's for ultimate sound quality. I need to do some serious comparisons one day and jot down what the main differences are.

 

[itsborken]

I would like to get my hands on some of these old good PCDPs just to give them a listen. I had a couple of the lesser ones and they were certainly nicer than cassette at the time.

The problem is they are pretty much in landfills or lost in closets now. People say the new PCDPs are not as good when compared to the old so I take it they aren't worth the effort. Are there any good sources to find the 'greats' to give them a try?

 

[Filburt]

Hey borken do you have AIM, ICQ, or MSN? (or are on Yahoo messenger at the moment)?

 

[Jon118]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pappucho /img/forum/go_quote.gif The headphone out becomes a dedicated line-out on the 4G Imod.

I knew that. I'm just not sure where my mind went last night.

 

[melomaniac]

I'd also like to be in TEAM dumb CRACKHEAD! if they let me join, those dumb crackheads. But they can't hear me, blissed out as they are on their sardine-can gear. Darn sad.

And FWIW: yes, a really nice turntable, with a really nice tube amp and some serious speakers in a civilized room, will indeed sound nicer than my iMod set-up. Not on intercontinental travel though. But now my Headroom bag holds all I need to trounce my 5.5G stock iPod, and for that, I thank head-fi.

I raise a glass of Malbec to you, head-fi.

 

[immtbiker]

To say that a pcdp headphone out sounds as good as a iMod with an amp, is to say that the tiny DAC and amp built into the pcdp is as good as the imod with all of the trace circuits taken out of the loop, going into a decent ipod dac, then into a dedicated external amp.
If that's the case, we are all going to he-ll in a handbasket. This also means that any external portable amp is not going to make an improvement.

From my experience and testing, the only combo that I find, rivals the 4 or 5.5G imod, would be my iRiver with uncompressed .flac files, optically out into a Microdac, into a good portable amp (Hornet/SR-71/Portaphile v2^2). The latter combo causes more bulk for portability due to the need for the DAC and the extra optical cable. No PCDP that I've had or heard comes remotely close using just the headphone out.
Now a PDCP with a dedicated line out, or an optical out like my iRiver 550 and an amp, has potential, but limits a user to 1 CD at a time rather than 80 or 90 albums uncompressed in one component.

 

[jpelg]

An alternative view...

First, DAP's cost considerably more than a decent PCDP. An iPod + iMod runs into serious money. And since they are based on hard drives with moving parts, and normally used in harsher outside environs, they are prone...no, doomed to failure sooner or later, and will therefore require replacement (read: even more money).

Secondly, something no one seems to talk about when discussing DAPs is the cost of maintaining your digital library. How much time do you spend ripping, storing, backing-up, & restoring your music (I consider my time valuable)! How much did you have have to spend on extra hard drive storage space? On a DVD burner & DVD-R's to archive it? What about charging your player? How many charging devices to you all have?

I'd rather spend my money on music, and my time listening to it. That's why I've gone back to my trusty old PCDP. I have one workhorse of a player with a very clean lineout for amping that I'd put up against the iMod, and a decent headphone-out when I want to go ultra portable sans amp (try that with an iMod). I have another player with an optical-out than can be used with a portable DAC+amp if I want. Can't get better sound than that.

I'm an album listening type guy. I usually listen to one CD on the train ride to work, and another on the way home, perhaps repeating. It's no hardship to carry two CD's. And if I buy a CD, or pick up a few at the library, on my lunch hour, I can listen to it immediately (also try that with an iMod). Batteries? A set of AA rechargables for normal use, and there's always somewhere I can pick up an emergency set if I forget to recharge the batteries (people sell them on the subways now).

Not saying one is better than the other. Just saying that not everyone has to use an expensive DAP, like the fine iMod, to get good sound. Often, good sound can be had for far less $$ if you are willing to look a little 'old school'.

Cheers.

 

[trose49]

Well...................a little birdy told me that an iMOD with the new ALO V-Dock is equal to or better than a $3,000- CDP so Im pretty sure this combo will melt the $1.50 plastic case of any pcdp!!

I will let you know first hand very very soon!!