Non-portable mp3 player

[SenjStevo]

Hi there,

I'm trying to build a bed side/home use rig. I've looked at cd players, and portable mp3 players but neither truly fit the bill (i don't want to buy a second portable mp3 player with a line-out, and i'd prefer not to fiddle around with cds) is there a player which fits my needs? Something i can plug in to my computer once in a while to grab new music but ultimately stays in my room. I have in my mind to get a USB DAC/AMP such as the pico in the future so a good line-out would be great and a decent headphone amp would be a bonus, something that can drive 595s. I'm extra bonus would be the ability to play FLAC, and ogg but it's not necessary. Price range i guess would be £150-£250.

Thanks in advance

SenjStevo

 

[MASantos]

I've seen some "media center" external hard drives. They allow music and movies playback without being connected to a computer as far as I've seen. How much capacity do you need? Couldn't you get an 160GB ipod for that value?

 

[SenjStevo]

Capacity is'nt a big deal, i'll need 20-40gigs max. I don't really want to get a second portable, i figured that i could get better reliablity, and quality if i go for a "media center" and i really don't want a ipod to be honest. I'd probably get a cd player over a portable mp3 player if they were the only options.

 

[SenjStevo]

Ok so i did some searching and the only option i can see is to purchase a external hard disk with a digital output and then run that into a DAC with a decent headphone amp probably a Beresford TC-7510. Three questions:

1. Does anyone have any idea about good hard disk transporters?
2. Will this setup sound better then using a portable mp3(T9 for example running my HD595s)?
3. Is the Beresford a good choice for a DAC/Amp?

Thanks

 

[jsmithepa]

How 'bout one of those boxes that grap MP3 from your main PC via LAN?

 

[SenjStevo]

Thats another option i thought about, but i'd like to keep the computer off whenever possible, seems like a bit of a waste energy wise.