Sony Walkman NWZ-A17

[Mikerman]

Thanks for the recommendations, again!  I'm very tempted by the Bose buds just as to the technology--who knows, one day I could be tempted to try out Bose's 30-day trial!     But a high-fidelity pair of cans, such as those recommended by you, would make more sense for me use-wise, absent my becoming a traveling sales dude.

 

[RockStar2005]

 
Thanks for the recommendations, again!  I'm very tempted by the Bose buds just as to the technology--who knows, one day I could be tempted to try out Bose's 30-day trial!     But a high-fidelity pair of cans, such as those recommended by you, would make more sense for me use-wise, absent my becoming a traveling sales dude.

 
YW, again! lol
 
Well no harm in trying out the Bose I guess? 
 
Yes, unless you take on work requiring "extreme mobility" (and even then they might still work? lol), IMO, it doesn't get better than the K550 MK II. Throw in some Hi-Res tracks, and you're on a different LEVEL at that point! In the last 18 mos I've accumulated a VERY sizable amount of Hi-Res albums. Everything from new albums to old albums I had but got tired of years ago now sounding new and fresh is what I gained from trying it out. If interested, let me know and I'll point you in the right direction. They aren't so cheap, but that is why I took my time and slowly collected songs and albums over a long stretch. They sound better NOT b/c of the higher resolution (that's just marketing BS), but b/c the studios use a BETTER master on them than the mp3s and even CD versions they release offer. 

 

[Mikerman]

Thanks for the education and recommendation!  

 

[RockStar2005]

  Thanks for the education and recommendation!  

 
Sure bud. Take care. 
 
This post will point you in the right direction. It is from earlier in this thread, and includes sound settings suggestions for the A17.
 
Let me know if you have any questions. 

 

[Mikerman]

  Are there any common problems with the A17? I am interested in used or "refurbished for $200-240" if there are no problems. 

I realize that the above post is from a while back, but I just wanted to mention that A17 refurbs and open-box units sometimes can be found at Amazon.com and eBay (keep on checking).  I picked up a refurb at Amazon.com at nice pricing and it seemed to be a brand new or open-box unit, just no original box or paper "quick guide" manual (available online) and the storage memory was wiped clean:  no original Sony files (player mini-guide (a full guide is available online), a handful of wallpapers and sample photos, and a handful of sample tunes, all of which I got from another user (no real need for, but I was curious more than anything else)).

 

[Rixsta]

Interestingly I was not impressed with the sound of this player and got rid of it a few months ago but also the inability to edit tags of the files drove me insane!
 

 

[RockStar2005]

  Interestingly I was not impressed with the sound of this player and got rid of it a few months ago but also the inability to edit tags of the files drove me insane!
 

 
Well at least you gave it a chance! No device will ever win over EVERY PERSON that tries it. 
 
I just do my editing on my PC, so for me that wouldn't really be an issue, nor was it back when I had the A17 either. 
 
So what player or amp/DAC device do you use now? 

 

[Mikerman]

  Interestingly I was not impressed with the sound of this player and got rid of it a few months ago but also the inability to edit tags of the files drove me insane!
 

Interesting--I've found the sound just fine, and no issue in editing tags using MP3Tag (that really doesn't have anything to do with the player, as far as I've seen or am aware).

 

[RockStar2005]

  Interesting--I've found the sound just fine, and no issue in editing tags using MP3Tag (that really doesn't have anything to do with the player, as far as I've seen or am aware).

 
I use mp3tag myself too, and find it to be a GREAT and easy way to edit audio file tracks quickly. 

 

[Rixsta]

Thanks for the replies   the A17 was a great little player and battery life! wow... my girlfriends Samsung S5 sounded more natural to me but to get sound like that out of a tiny thing is great.

Im not using a player at the moment but as we are going to be traveling soon and living wild eg no house, I will be powering a new player via solar, the reason I originaly owned the A17 was because the battery life allowed solar power to work really well, for the amount of charge time I would get from the solar panel the player would last a long time so that was a perfect match, and I reccomend this player to anyone who wants to travel as its ultra light.

Im currently looking to buy another player which can edit ID Tags and not need a PC to do so probably android based with WIFI for steaming.
 

 

[Mikerman]

Ah, got it--now that would be interesting:  being able to edit tags on the player itself.  I haven't heard of that before--does any player have that?

 

[RockStar2005]

  Thanks for the replies   the A17 was a great little player and battery life! wow... my girlfriends Samsung S5 sounded more natural to me but to get sound like that out of a tiny thing is great.

Im not using a player at the moment but as we are going to be traveling soon and living wild eg no house, I will be powering a new player via solar, the reason I originaly owned the A17 was because the battery life allowed solar power to work really well, for the amount of charge time I would get from the solar panel the player would last a long time so that was a perfect match, and I reccomend this player to anyone who wants to travel as its ultra light.

Im currently looking to buy another player which can edit ID Tags and not need a PC to do so probably android based with WIFI for steaming.
 

 
YW Rixsta!
 
The S5 sounded MORE natural? That's a joke right? lol My Sony Xperia Z3 sounded really good on its own but not great. Vs the A17, the A17 was definitely the champion of the two. The DACs used on the S5 and Z3 are about the same, though I've heard ppl say the Z3's is a lil better. It's possible you maybe didn't have the BEST settings enabled on the A17 too (see just top part of that link. The rest is optional but recommended.) 
 
That's interesting about the solar power living in the wild. Yeah, the A17 does have OUTSTANDING battery life, though some say it doesn't get "loud enough" due to less power being consumed (I don't really agree there, at least I'd maybe only agree 1% of the time at best). For those ppl, I'd recommend a good but inexpensive amp like the FiiO A3 (formerly the E11K). I used to own it as well, and it is a great amp with a fantastic design, look, and sound quality, as well as features. Also it's pretty portable & light too.
 
Not sure on players than can do that, but hopefully you find one soon!

 

[Rixsta]

good question, I presume the android players you can download a app to edit tags ? if so that would be perfect!

 

[Rixsta]

   
YW Rixsta!
 
The S5 sounded MORE natural? That's a joke right? lol My Sony Xperia Z3 sounded really good on its own but not great. Vs the A17, the A17 was definitely the champion of the two. The DACs used on the S5 and Z3 are about the same, though I've heard ppl say the Z3's is a lil better. It's possible you maybe didn't have the BEST settings enabled on the A17 too (see just top part of that link. The rest is optional but recommended.) 
 
That's interesting about the solar power living in the wild. Yeah, the A17 does have OUTSTANDING battery life, though some say it doesn't get "loud enough" due to less power being consumed (I don't really agree there, at least I'd maybe only agree 1% of the time at best). For those ppl, I'd recommend a good but inexpensive amp like the FiiO A3 (formerly the E11K). I used to own it as well, and it is a great amp with a fantastic design, look, and sound quality, as well as features. Also it's pretty portable & light too.
 
Not sure on players than can do that, but hopefully you find one soon!

 
Yes the S5 sounded a lot more natural, there was not much difference.. the DAC what about the Amplifier chip ? 
I know its a crazy thought the idea that a player this expensive would sound no better, I wouldnt say it sounded much worse either.
With something like amplifiers eg "Class-A" over the usualy "Class-B" ive noticed massive diference but know theres only one or two DAP's on the market that have a Class-A output stage and they are out of my price range.  Also usualy there is a big diference in MP3 vs Lossless. on the A17 I did not notice that so much only a little yet on the Samsung Galaxy S5 it was much more in your face. 
 
Yes I used the A17 with nothing enabled, as plain as you can get it but still no change.
My headphones were Musical Fidelity EB33,  maybe that was the issue ? doubt it though

 

[RockStar2005]

  good question, I presume the android players you can download a app to edit tags ? if so that would be perfect!

 
Well, if you're using Android, the ONLY one I'd really recommend b/c of it's ridiculously awesome sound quality and ease of use would be Poweramp. I've been using that one for YEARS......... tried out other highly-rated ones too, but in terms of top-notch sound quality AND ease of use, nothin' IMO beats Poweramp! It even lets you save your settings to a file so when you get a new phone you can just apply that file to the Poweramp on new phone instantly vs. having to re-set every setting again. 
 
I just checked mine on my phone, and guess what! It DOES allow you to edit tags! Poweramp forever! lol