[wallstreet]

I'm looking for a portable player to use while walking around on campus and traveling. I'm looking for something in either a PCDP/MP3 or MD format that is easy to carry around (not incredibly bulky) and gets decent battery life.

Sound quality is also a consideration, but it’s only going to be driven by my ksc-35s, so line-out isn't necessary--which means I’m going to want a good headphone jack (as good as they make them anymore). As I'll be using this while walking, a good anti-skip is also needed.

Budget is <$100 USD, so I suppose my options are really limited. Any suggestions?

 

[myself, aka me]

Theres nothing new in the MD format for <US$100.. Theres the Sharp MT180 for about $140, and a slimx for $130..

 

[wallstreet]

Thanks for the comment. I've read that the slimx has very poor battery life.

Is the MD worth the extra money? I don't know much about the format, but just that it is regarded by some on the forum as a good portable solution.

Is there anything besides the sharp and the slimx that somwhat meets my requirements and is a little cheaper?

 

[dudlew]

I have never heard it but I think IRiver has a lower model to the 350 for less than $100.

Have you ever considered checking E-Bay for your options. I think There was an auction with a 'buy it now' option for and MD-MS702 I think for $100. For me, of the two md portables I heard, This was the better player and I think it's still is a great player. (sob sob..... mine is dead

).

Also sony has a refurb 825 for $90 on their web site with one cent shipping. What more could you ask for a portable with line out optical out and stylish to boot? I almost bought one but sony doesnt cater for people in my region

Anyway just giving some options

Dudlew

 

[00940]

I considered a time a sony d-cj01, they go on ebay for around 90$, just launch a research here, that's not the best but not the worse too.

 

[wallstreet]

Thanks for the suggestions.

Quote:

I have never heard it but I think IRiver has a lower model to the 350 for less than $100.

After a little searching i found the iRiver ChromeX iMP-150 for $90 on amazon.com w/ a $20 rebate. I'm not sure how good of quality it is compared to the Slimx, but the price is attractive.

I don't really trust stuff from ebay, so thats not really an option. As for the various MD options, I'm clueless. I don't know much about the format itself, and how it compares w/ CD's or mp3s. Would I even be able to tell the difference between CD and MD quality using KSC-50s ? And how does transfering music to MD's work anyway ... and is cheap enough to just buy multiple disks?

 

[00940]

it's hard to tell the difference between cd and well-ripped mp3's, I wouldn't even try with MD and CDs, certainly not with a pair of KSC-50. should sound exactly the same way.

to transfer music on MP3, you need a recorder to copy from cds to MD.

 

[Mystyler]

I believe MD is the way to go, nothing beats it as a portable format. And recorders are cheap, you can buy SR60s still at K-Mart, and the MT180 is very cheap.
No MP3 beats MD soundwise.

 

[wallstreet]

The SR60 is cheaper than the MT180, as its $120 now at Kmart. Thats still a little high for me though ... I'll save $50 by going w/ the iRiver iMP 150, and I'll be able to play regular CDs if I want to.

So unless anyone has any better ideas, or know problems w/ the iMP 150, thats probably what I'll get.

 

[00940]

make a research on expanium, I've just receive a 503 from electroline (nice customer service btw for a low-cost online dealer) for my brother (86$ refurbished with the original phillips packaging) and so far I find it nice. I've still to test the battery life and the mp3 playback (no burned cd with mp3 avalaible right now), i'll post further impressions later.

The size is about the one of panasonic pcdp, 1.5 X the height.
The anti-skip is impressive and it seems better built than the common pcdp.

 

[tbdoah]

Currently, eBay has some iMP 150's that you can buy right now for $69.95.

 

[wallstreet]

00940
Regarding the expanium, I haven't really seen a good review of any of the Philips mp3 players ... everyone says they are overpriced and have problems (mostly regarding mp3 play back).

tbdoah
I don't generally trust stuff from ebay, but I'll look into this ... thanks. This would be a major steal if the $20 rebate could be added ontop of it.

I'm still searching around a little more though. I'm torn wether to splurge on the slimx, as I play on my first entry level audiophile cans too. It's just that the majority of the players are so damn expensive, or ****ty, or both! I don't know about you, but i would be a little uncomfortable walking around campus all the time with something that cost $140.

 

[redshifter]

wallstreet,
md is still the portable king, imho. find a used sony mz r70 md recorder. i got one for $75 from someone at work. makes great analog and digital recordings, has atrac 4.5, runs forever on one aa, and easily one of the BEST sounding headphone outs i've heard on a portable. it's all metal & super durable, and about the size of 4 md's stacked.

 

[wallstreet]

Aren't older MDs a bitch to record stuff on though? And when you say heaphone out, do you mean head phone jack or a line out that you use with an amp?
I'm not very knowledgable about the MD format, so bear with me.

I've almost decided that a pcdp would be better anyway, as i can just listen to regulars cds if i want too, and I will have good portable audio for when i go home on breaks (and not have to use my laptops cheap soundcard).

 

[redshifter]

Quote:

Originally posted by wallstreet Aren't older MDs a bitch to record stuff on though? And when you say heaphone out, do you mean head phone jack or a line out that you use with an amp? I'm not very knowledgable about the MD format, so bear with me. I've almost decided that a pcdp would be better anyway, as i can just listen to regulars cds if i want too, and I will have good portable audio for when i go home on breaks (and not have to use my laptops cheap soundcard).

not really. if you have a cd player with optical out and a toslink cable, you are ready to record. you can also plug an analog line right into the optical input on the md, and record via analog. you can ALSO plug in a microphone to make live recordings, and choose manual or auto rec levels. yes, it is real time recording, but it sounds very good. atrac compression is the best.

i was referring to the headphone jack, not the line out (the r70 does not have a line out).

i can understand if you don't want to record your cd's to md. but i've owned a lot of portables, including first generation walkmans and discmans through todays models, and the r70 is one of the best. md units tend to be better made and have better dacs than pcdp's. but go with whatever works for you.