[Publius]

So I'm going on a biz trip in a week and I needed something to store music. My 1G iRivier player would be woefully insufficient, and as it turns out I already have 30GB of MP3s that I own, and I'm sensitive to good resale value, battery live, and value added features like video. So I was compelled - forced, some would say - to buy a black 5G 60GB iPod. I'm using it with my ER-4Ss and no headphone amp.

Pros so far:

1. Basic SQ is fine. I will definitely not be amping.
2. Video support ROCKS! I'm transcoding Stargate, Buffy and Angel eps that I haven't had the time to watch in ages. Ironically enough, it definitely fits my lifestyle more to watch them on the iPod than on TV.
3. Haven't tried Rockbox yet but it sounds like a winner. Once the battery life improves I'll probably move over to it for gapless and for implementing custom effects plugins.
4. EQ support is fine, as long as I don't clip. I'll need to flip the switch on MP3Gain at some point to fix this.
5. I use a small polycarb container from The Container Store to hold my Etys and other assorted accessories. As it turns out, my iPod fits PERFECTLY in this container as well. So now I have a rock-solid case to hold my phones and my iPod in.
6. Battery life is fine.
7. Mass storage support! Woo!

Cons:

1. No gapless support, obviously. I knew this going in, but I didn't realize I would miss my old Karma's gapless so much.
2. Background hiss from the amplifier is barely audible on my Etys. If I take off the 4P->4S conversion cable it is quite audible.
3. Battery life falls off a cliff with video playback. Also a well known issue.
4. Metal scratches. I'm not anal enough to put my ipod in a safety holder so I'll just live with them.
5. iTunes. Bleh.
6. The lack of a balance control - or any general effects handling at all - really, really sucks. I have low-frequency (under 250hz) hearing loss in my right ear and I need around a 3db cut to my left channel for things to sound remotely right. And I'm not crazy enough to preprocess this on the FLAC->MP3 transcode.

 

[Febs]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Publius Cons: No gapless support, obviously. I knew this going in, but I didn't realize I would miss my old Karma's gapless so much. The lack of a balance control - or any general effects handling at all - really, really sucks. I have low-frequency (under 250hz) hearing loss in my right ear and I need around a 3db cut to my left channel for things to sound remotely right. And I'm not crazy enough to preprocess this on the FLAC->MP3 transcode.

If these two issues are important to you, you should try Rockbox. In addition to supporting gapless and having a balance control, it also has a parametric EQ that you might be able to use to compensate for your hearing loss.

 

[Publius]

Yeah, but I'm also tied to the improved battery life of the normal firmware, and the video support. It's a nasty annoyance right now but not enough of one for me to switch. It's really good that I have the option though.