[TheGomdoRi]

Introduction
I picked up a Cowon E2 4GB today and I haven't seen much exposure given for this little DAP so I thought I would write something about it. I will follow up the initial impressions with a full review later on. As of now, I opened it and gave it a charge/put a few tracks on it, and am listening right now.
 

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[ CNET stock photo, yay! ]​

 
Initial Impressions
First of all, the packaging is a clear triangle and you get the player, the usb charger, and the stock Cowon earphones - really basic and simple. I got an additional clip accessory for it, but it wasn't included in the box. The cost of the player in Korea is like $50~ CDN, I guess it's like the Cowon version of the iPod shuffle. I bought it because I have a soft spot for ultra-small, screenless players, and am a pretty big fan of BBE EQ effects. The pricepoint of this player is pretty affordable as well. The player is made of a matte black plastic and has a metal ring - so you can use it as a key chain (I currently use it like that) and is pretty much the same length as a standard home key. The metal ring is sturdy and the plastic seems hard enough to take a beating.
 
* Gave it a listen for a couple hours on my SE425s and found that the player had difficulty playing a few tracks . .
I updated the firmware and found it was a known bug and now it doesn't bug out on me anymore. It was pretty annoying to have your music pause temporarily every now and then.
 
* Toyed around with the BBE settings and without A/Bing, I am fairly confident it sounds exactly the same as the S9 with it's BBE settings on. Currently using BBE Headphone 1, but ViVa 2 sounds great as well.
 
* The buttons are kind of annoying, because you don't know if you are using the volume rocker or the fast forward/rewind rocker without looking. The button layout is identical for both sides.
 
Pros/Cons Thus Far . .
+ Ultraportable DAP that goes with you everywhere (keychain function)
+ BBE+ sound settings (pretty good so far, but will do comparisons later on)
+ 4GB ample storage for listening on the go (may not be enough for everybody though?)
+ Cheap; $50 CDN/USD
+ Sleek/Aesthetic appeal (2010 Reddot design award)
+ Good build quality, solid product
+ Simple, very easy to use (drop/drag)
 
- Lack of accessories
- Playback estimate is somewhere around 10 hours on a full charge I believe
- No apps/games/whatever (but shouldn't really be expected on a product like this I guess)
- Before the firmware upgrade, there was a playback issue on certain FLAC files
- Identical button layout (cannot control without looking first)
- No hold button
- LED keeps blinking green to indicate it's playing (if you look at it it's pretty annoying, but if it's in your pocket no big deal)

Initial Impression: Conclusion
Very minimalistic, tiny DAP that packs a lot of punch (in sound quality) for a fair price. Highly underrated and overshadowed by bigger and newer DAPs. I hope to shed some light on this DAP, giving it the attention it truly deserves.
 
I will be primarily be referring to the Cowon S9 as I have one on hand right now and it's pretty well regarded in terms of sound quality. I also have a iPod shuffle (product RED one?) to compare it too as well. The review will come later when I get a chance.
 
Cheers

 

[TheGomdoRi]

** Reserved for the up-coming review **

 

[Stinky Fart]

can you do a comparison of the BBEs? Which one is the best BBE setting? Thanks!

 

[DarthEX]

Well deserving review.

 

[TheGomdoRi]

LOL forgot to finish the impressions

- I've had it for a while now and I use it daily as my main portable player

Just to follow up a little bit: (I'll come back to Stinky Fart's question)

- They released another firmware, now you can have different folders and skip by folder huge improvement, it isn't like the shuffle's 1 random tracklist
- I've used the keychain function and took it to the gym, surprisingly the plastic can take a beating and the metal ring is holding up just fine.
- I'm probably going to order one of those silicone cases for it too, for a grippy feel for the gym (I already have the clip)

Best sound quality vs. portability ratio IMHO.

 

[Dreamnine]

Had the E2.. the iPod Shuffle is a better player in a number of ways - not least you know where the buttons are, and aren't fiddling for them on what could be either side of the E2 - both sides look the same and no way to tell them apart.
 
The Shuffle and the E2 sound the same - the BBE subset on the E2 does nothing good at all for the sound.
 
The Shuffle has voicover.. all in all its a much better player. I had 2 E2's at one stage but they were very much 2008/2009 players and no-where near the Shuffle.

 

[TheGomdoRi]

Quote:

Had the E2.. the iPod Shuffle is a better player in a number of ways - not least you know where the buttons are, and aren't fiddling for them on what could be either side of the E2 - both sides look the same and no way to tell them apart.
 
The Shuffle and the E2 sound the same - the BBE subset on the E2 does nothing good at all for the sound.
 
The Shuffle has voicover.. all in all its a much better player. I had 2 E2's at one stage but they were very much 2008/2009 players and no-where near the Shuffle.

Hmm.. I disagree, I still believe the E2 is a superior player than any of the shuffles.

1. E2 suffers from having the same sided buttons which I had previous mentioned but I manage just fine. The shuffle has no physical controls (except the previous gen).
2. Voice over means you must use their crappy earphones or buy an adapter of some sort
3. The controls even with the voice over is pretty hard
4. iTunes = bloatware, E2 drop and drag plays FLAC
 
And honestly this is the biggest point: E2 sounds hands down better than the shuffle. I really can't understand how you've found the two players to sound the same lol. I rarely ever say this, but it is actually a huge difference in performance. Try both players again and come back to share please.
 

 

[Achmedisdead]

Quote:

Quote:

Hmm.. I disagree, I still believe the E2 is a superior player than any of the shuffles.

1. E2 suffers from having the same sided buttons which I had previous mentioned but I manage just fine. The shuffle has no physical controls (except the previous gen).
2. Voice over means you must use their crappy earphones or buy an adapter of some sort
3. The controls even with the voice over is pretty hard
4. iTunes = bloatware, E2 drop and drag plays FLAC
 
And honestly this is the biggest point: E2 sounds hands down better than the shuffle. I really can't understand how you've found the two players to sound the same lol. I rarely ever say this, but it is actually a huge difference in performance. Try both players again and come back to share please.
 

The  newest Shuffle has physical controls again....they are the easiest blind use controls ever. Also, you don't need to use iTunes with it....I use Mediamonkey Gold with mine. And FLAC is pretty darned silly on a 4GB player.....lol. My high-bitrate LAME mp3's on the Shuffle put out quite high quality sound.
 
 

 

[TheGomdoRi]

That's awesome how they brought back the physical controls. I have the one with physical controls before the whole voice over one. I tried my friend's shuffle with the no physical controls and it was just really terrible.
 
I don't think FLAC on a 4GB player is too silly . . .

 
- My collection is in FLAC, don't need to convert with redundant copies of the same track for the sake of portability
- I don't commute much living downtown I walk around everywhere that are less than <45 minutes
- On an ultraportable player I don't really expect to carry my whole collection nor even 5% of it I just pop in the songs I like and listen for a while and switch it up
- ~135 songs in my player is more than enough, it's 9 hours of music, average listening session on the go would be like 15-30 minutes
 
Just wondering, seeing your collection of portables how do you like your iAudio9's sound quality with BBE settings vs. your shuffle? Do you find no difference between the tw?

To reiterate my previous opinion, I think the E2 is the best size to sound quality ratio hands down.
 
 

 

[Achmedisdead]

Quote:

That's awesome how they brought back the physical controls. I have the one with physical controls before the whole voice over one. I tried my friend's shuffle with the no physical controls and it was just really terrible.
 
I don't think FLAC on a 4GB player is too silly . . .

 
- My collection is in FLAC, don't need to convert with redundant copies of the same track for the sake of portability
- I don't commute much living downtown I walk around everywhere that are less than <45 minutes
- On an ultraportable player I don't really expect to carry my whole collection nor even 5% of it I just pop in the songs I like and listen for a while and switch it up
- ~135 songs in my player is more than enough, it's 9 hours of music, average listening session on the go would be like 15-30 minutes
 
Just wondering, seeing your collection of portables how do you like your iAudio9's sound quality with BBE settings vs. your shuffle? Do you find no difference between the tw?

To reiterate my previous opinion, I think the E2 is the best size to sound quality ratio hands down.
 
 

Well, I don't have the i9 anymore....traded both it and my D2 away. Using it without any of the BBE settings, it probably would sound very close to the Shuffle....but it's been long enough that I wouldn't trust memory to serve accurately. Thing is, the E2 only has some of the BBE preset settings, none of the tweakable ones....and I didn't like the presets on the i9, as most all of them had an unnatural sound to them. Using the customizable settings that the E2 lacks but the i9 has, that is where real gains can be made.
 
I'd rather have a Rockboxed Clip+ or Rockboxed Clip Zip than an E2 any day (in fact, I do have them).....expandability, a real customizable EQ and not just presets, and yes, they'll play FLAC if you're so inclined. Maybe they're slightly bigger than an E2, but hey, they also have screens.

 

 

[TheGomdoRi]

I have tried the iRiver N15 (gave it away) as well as a Rockboxed Clip (have it), didn't get a chance to use the zip yet but they were both very good, but my only gripe was the battery life, from my experience both were quite short. The screens on both players were quite good and no frills just straight to point - something rare these days... But yeah, I really don't like the newer generation of DAPs where they try to do much out and lose the focus of the product (playing music)

I tried out a ton of small DAPs up to the Samsung TicToc, lost interest in the bigger ones and just found the E2 to be one of the best out there, but it didn't get too much spotlight - just thought it deserved a review. It beats out my shuffle anyday IMHO. Clip+ is harder to call, but I still prefer the E2.