[nickyboyo]

Looking for a bit of advice from anyone who has listened to both the Sansa express and the clip.

My Meizu E3 has finally died on me, it was a superb player and if i could obtain a new one i would in a heartbeat, but that is easier said than done.

I am very interested in the Sansa clip and the express as a new mini player for my ultra transportable rig- either linked up to a Fiio amp or more likely a supermicro.

Has anyone listened to the express? If so what is the SQ like and how does it compare to the clip? (which i have been told is a very good sounding simple unit)

 

[lewislink]

Go with the Clip. It's much easier to navigate and is more powerful than the Express. With the latest firmware, it will play OGG/Vorbis files better than any player I've ever used. It will play them so smoothly and competently you'd think the player was designed around OGG.

The only thing the Express has going for beyond its decent music playing capacity is an expansion slot for increasing the memory.

 

[nickyboyo]

Thanks for the advice lewislink.

So the express has a decent sound quality on playback?

I do like what i have read about the clip, even though i would say 98% of my music is encoded in the mp3 format the ogg playback isn't much of a bonus.

My basic problem is that the clip is quite hard and more expensive to get hold of in Australia compared to America, but i can pick up an express on ebay for Au $35 including postage. I would obviously prefer to go for the better SQ, but convenience and price may be the deciding factor.

 

[lewislink]

I suppose the sound quality is livable with the Express but I didn't exactly feel enthused when i was listening to the one I have. It's rather difficult to navigate, as well. Clunky is an appropriate word to describe it. Although it is better than a Zen Stone, which is too underpowered to provide proper navigation, the Express is similar.

If you can get a 2GB Express for around $35 or less, go for it. In fact, I'll sell you mine for $30 plus shipping. Mine has the acrylic case on it and has been in the case almost from the beginning.

 

[sonq]

Hi Lewislink,

How ould you rank sound quality of your source for vocals?
iriver - Clix 1 & 2, LPlayer w/OGG
Meizu - miniPlayer w/OGG (amazing sound quality)
Cowon iAudio - 7, U2, 4 w/OGG
Sansa - Clip 4GB w/OGG

 

[HulkSmashNow]

The Express also only has a 1000-song limit, I believe. If I'm correct, there are workarounds, but it's more trouble than it's worth. Get the Clip. I did.

 

[4saken]

Order the clip from Shopsansa. There are two coupon codes going around IIRC (one gives you a free 256MB Shaker MP3 Player - no good, but fun to play with I guess, and the other gives you a 10% discount).

 

[RASeymour]

The clip is an amazing player, soundwise. Match it up with a pair of Yuin PK2 for a totally portable experience. I play mp3 files. Compares v. favorably with my iRiver Clix2 at a quarter of the price (at least as far as sound quality).

 

[Envoy of Light]

I Recently purchased the Sansa Clip. It was a very good player, but beware of theft. It is SMALL. Smaller than you imagine, and it weights nothing. You can't really feel if the player is stolen.. that's what happened to me, unfortunately.

So have fun, and take care of your stuff.

 

[lewislink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sonq /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Lewislink, How ould you rank sound quality of your source for vocals? iriver - Clix 1 & 2, LPlayer w/OGG Meizu - miniPlayer w/OGG (amazing sound quality) Cowon iAudio - 7, U2, 4 w/OGG Sansa - Clip 4GB w/OGG

Since these players are actually at the top for sound quality, I'd have to say, on a scale of 1 to 10:

Meizu = 10
irivers = 9
Sansa = 9
Cowons = 8

I always resort to my Meizu when I just want to hear outstandingly good sounds from a new set of phones.

 

[kramer5150]

I am really happy with my 4G Clip. Its not the last word in SQ, but heck for $55 (Costco coupon) I have happily replaced my vintage PCDPs with it on the go. I would say its a balanced sound with some good image depth and instrument separation. Maybe a tad on the warmer side sonically, but not over-done at all. The bass-clarity is very good (compared to my vintage PCDPs), often times on most rock/metal recordings the bass player gets lost in the mix. Only some of the better portable sources can distinctly resolve the recorded materials.

I have no first hand experience with the express... so take this with a grain of salt.

 

[Earwax]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nickyboyo /img/forum/go_quote.gif Looking for a bit of advice from anyone who has listened to both the Sansa express and the clip. My Meizu E3 has finally died on me, it was a superb player and if i could obtain a new one i would in a heartbeat, but that is easier said than done. I am very interested in the Sansa clip and the express as a new mini player for my ultra transportable rig- either linked up to a Fiio amp or more likely a supermicro. Has anyone listened to the express? If so what is the SQ like and how does it compare to the clip? (which i have been told is a very good sounding simple unit)

It's no contest, the Clip is far better than the Express. If the Clip (and Fuze) are their best, the Express is their worst. The other Sansas I have, the E200, C200, and M200 series, all fall somewhere between those extremes.

Just call me sansa-addict

[12/28 edit - see my update post below]

 

[Drpepper]

Between the Clip and the Express, I would probably go with the Clip. They sound very similar with the Clip more towards an open, clear sound with the Express sounding darker. The Clip is a wonderful player (I own 2), with frequent firmware updates. The Express has its great form factor (I love the USB thumbdrive types - very convenient) and a microSDHC slot. I've got a 1GB with a 4GB card and it works perfectly. The Clip will also play FLAC and OGG, whereas the Express is just MP3 and WMA. All of the recent Sansas (Express, Clip, Fuze) sound waaaaaaaay better than any of the older ones (E200, C200, Connect, View,etc.)
Ultimately, personal preference between the two for what meets your needs, but I would go with a Clip.

 

[Earwax]

Dr Pepper, what earphones are you using with the express?

On some other thread I saw positive comments about the Express as well, so I gave it another listen. What I've found is that it's quite a bit nicer when amped. I tired both mini3 and cmoy and both amps improve it greatly. It still sounds harsh to me unamped.

That's all with KSC-75, protone M250 and the stock earbuds.

 

[Drpepper]

For most listening, I have been using my Philips HP460s. I just got a JVC HA-RX700, and have been using them with both the Clip and Express. Under normal listening, both will drive the JVCs ok. When you reach the upper volumes, they will definitely start clipping. I have tried the Clip with an amp, but not the Express. The Clip amplifies well, but to my ears, does not change dramatically.