need help from iMod owners

[malushi88]

I have read a little bit around here about the iMod, and it sounds like a great upgrade but I have a couple of questions for iMod owners. Would it be worth it to invest in such an upgrade with my current set up (iPod 4G color with variable bit rate mp3's V0-V2, generally 320-192kbps through a PA2V2 to Grado SR60) or would I need to upgrade other components?

Basically I am trying to figure out if the iMod would sound good using my current MP3's, or would it just sound revealing and nasty? If purchasing an iMod means having to re-rip all my music to another format, I might skip on it. Your help is always appreciated.

 

[MrJingles]

Quote:

Originally Posted by malushi88 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have read a little bit around here about the iMod, and it sounds like a great upgrade but I have a couple of questions for iMod owners. Would it be worth it to invest in such an upgrade with my current set up (iPod 4G color with variable bit rate mp3's V0-V2, generally 320-192kbps through a PA2V2 to Grado SR60) or would I need to upgrade other components? Basically I am trying to figure out if the iMod would sound good using my current MP3's, or would it just sound revealing and nasty? If purchasing an iMod means having to re-rip all my music to another format, I might skip on it. Your help is always appreciated.

With your current setup and the amp that's on it's way, your rig would sound great! The only thing you might see is that the iMod will expose bad rips or recorded distortion. I don't get it very often, but it shows me how detailed the iMod is, which of course, is a good thing. Sometimes I go back and forth from the iMod headphone out, which is not affected by the iMod upgrade, and then plug into the amp.....OMG, what a huge difference in sq! The fact that you have the 4g, I believe, is that the headphone out ends up not working at all, unlike the 5g, which I have. No biggie either way. Trust me when I say that the investment is well worth it. I love mine and won't ever give it up. The 6g iPods hold no interest for me mainly because Vinnie cannot upgrade it. Keep reading threads from others who have taken the plunge and you will see the same enthusiasm as I.
Good luck!

 

[malushi88]

thanks MrJingles! I'm glad to hear my files will be adequate enough to last through the upgrade. I really don't care whether or not the headphone out works after getting the mod, but I did just made a line out cable for my ipod that plugs into the dock connector, so i guess it will be pretty useless after an iMod :/ Oh well, it was a fun project anyway

 

[mrarroyo]

I personally think that if you are going to spend the money on the iMod you need to use lossless files. I would also recomend that you upgrade your amp to a Portaphile V2^2 Maxxed or a Ray Samuel Hornet "M". It is a lot of money but ...

 

[chewynuts]

I just purchased a second-hand 4G iMod and went on to re-rip all my CDs to LAME 3.97 v0 using the new VBR algorithm. My previous rips were on 3.96 v0 using the old VBR algorithm. Your old files should suffice. But all I can say is, re-ripping all the CDs is well worth the effort- I could hear alot more micro-details than before.
v0 is the best compromise between quality and file size.

The iMod really is magical, you won't ever regret purchasing one. Should you choose to re-rip all your CDs, do consider purchasing a micro-fibre cloth and a CD cleaner to wipe all of them first And then use EAC with secure ripping configured (you can search this on wikipedia under "EAC").

IMO, this should be the way components are upgraded in head-fi-

1. Earphones (They make the biggest difference)
2. Source (Remember, garbage in, garbage out)
3. Amp
4. Cable

So, if you're happy with the SR60s, get the iMod!

 

[greydragon]

In my case, with high-end IEM all flaws in your music encodes are exposed. When A/B-ing the same song with 320kps mp3 and with FLAC, the 320 mp3 (as with all lossy encodes) tend to override the softer/sharper sounds when there are layers of louder instruments playing at the same time; and the instruments does have the same snap and sparkle, but the low-end bass is the same since mp3 tends to preserve the louder/low-end sounds. Whereas with FLAC, (if your headphones/IEM are up to snuff) all layers and soundstages are preserved and you'd hear and appreciate the impact of it.

So the blessing and curse of the iMod is: high quality sound with less HD storage due to higher encodes (FLAC, ALAC, APE).

 

[malushi88]

Generally speaking, what kind of space does a lossless file (i will probably settle with FLAC) use compared to a 320kbps mp3? Are we talking two, three, or ten times the size? I think my mp3's are generally 1/5 the size of the wav files they come from, and at that size i barely fit all my files on my 20gb ipod. I think I have 2642 songs taking up 17.36gb. I might upgrade to an 80gb 5.5 gen and then get that iModded, but then the question is will that be enough space?