[hahyun92]

I keep looking in the forums and people state that portable mp3s are bad audio sources... But mp3 players are the only kind of source I own or know about other than my laptop. What is a good source? Sorry for newb question but completely new to this scene.

It would be great if emphasis on use with grado sr80is

 

[Dubstep Girl]

for a digital (computer file) source, you should use lossless.
 
mp3 is a lossy format which compromises audio quality in exchange for a small file size.
 
you should cd quality lossless formats like apple lossless, FLAC, or APE.

 

[hahyun92]

I didn't mean the file format, but the portable players themselves.

 

[Dubstep Girl]

umm laptop with lossless music.
 
the laptop will need an external dac (digital-to-analog converter) to sound its best. this would be the source  people typically talk about.
 
 
as for portable players, theres not that much out there thats good, they all kinda stink
 
best you can do is get an ipod and get a line out adaptor and get a portable DAC/headphone amp.

 

[Grado77]

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[hahyun92]

I already do have a Sansa fuze and a clip..so are they no good? They do play flac. But seems like Amps are 3 times more expensive then them.

 

[zazex]

The player is OK.
 
The issue, like Dubstep Girl posted above, is the type of file.
 
MP3 files do not sound very good because they basically are a sample of the music.
They were invented by someone who figured out basically how to trick the ear and brain into 
thinking that they sound like music.
 
But lossless files, such as FLAC files, sound very good indeed.
But they use up far more storage.  A typical album is about 275MB or so.
 
 

 

[zazex]

You can analogize this to a photograph.
 
An MP3 file is roughly the equivalent of a very low resolution photo with very few pixels.
It does "look" like the object photographed; but it's not very good.
 
On the other end of the spectrum, any one of the "lossless" files will be approximately equivalent to a super high resolution photo;
very highly pixillated.
 
A lossless file is what it says it is - a copy of all the information in the original source.
There may be some compression; but the information is the same.
 
I listen only to lossless files; I really can't deal with the sound of MP3s other than for spoken word such as audio books.

 

[Dubstep Girl]

mp3 players like your fuze definitely need an amp to sound good, they just dont have enuf juice to power stuff
 
an amp + lossless files = ideal for portable.

 

[Blue Boat]

Quote:

I listen only to lossless files; I really can't deal with the sound of MP3s other than for spoken word such as audio books.

Huh.
 
I personally don't hear that much of a difference between FLAC and mp3s. 
 
Maybe you should try Foobar's ABX plugin. 

 

[zazex]

 
Quote:

Huh.
 
I personally don't hear that much of a difference between FLAC and mp3s. 
 
Maybe you should try Foobar's ABX plugin. 

I've met many, many people who say they don't.
 
But I definitely do.  
No need for a Foobar ABX Comparator; though I appreciate the suggestion.
 
 
The difference in sound quality between MP3's and FLAC files does have a lot to do with the quality and nature of the original source material, 
the quality of the entire playback system, and other variables.
 
 
 

 

[Blue Boat]

I mean there are audible differences if you really pay attention. But I've never thought of the differences being as obvious as you seem to imply. Then again, I'm using my SR60 + E7 + laptop. I suppose it all boils down to your set-up and how you listen to your music. 

 

[Gwarmi]

Sansa Fuze for the SR80i with Flac is a very reasonable portable setup.
 
I'm more of a serious desk listener than a portable man but I get some decent
mileage out of a simple iShuffle, SR80i's and Apples losses codec.

 

[Grado77]

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[Brooko]

OP - my 2 cents - you seem to be getting bombarded with 'the usual' ......
 
First - you have SR80is - they don't actually need amping - unless you have a really low powered portable.  So don't get talked into one unless you need it.
 
Second - there is nothing wrong with your source - the clip and fuse are pretty clean sources.  Again - you're only driving an SR80i - so enjoy the portability.
 
Third - all this talk of MP3 vs FLAC has been done many times.  If you have a really resolving set-up, you might be able to hear the difference.  The thing is that nowadays both the LAME codec and also AAC are actually pretty good.  Most people in a blind ABX won't be able to easily tell the difference between 256 AAC, 320 MP3 or lossless.  The easiest way to check if you can - is to setup foobar on your PC, get the ABX comparator plugin, and test yourself.  A lot of people will still make the claim that they can 'easily' hear the difference.  Maybe they can.  I'm not an audiophile - I just love my music - and I can say for sure that I cannot easily tell the difference.  I don't have crap gear either - middle of the road yes - but it's resolving enough.  When I had my DT880s (which were quite revealing) I couldn't tell either.
 
I really doubt - unless you have 'golden ears' that with your SR80is you'd be able to easily tell the difference.
 
*Note to Grado77 and others - I'm not suggesting you can't tell the difference - I know a couple of people on the forum who've done the tests and could spot the differences - but I also know they had very revealing gear.  To often we hear the 'night and day' argument - but I would suggest you blind ABX yourself in your own time - it can be enlightening*
 
Back to OP .... my advice:
 
For archiving on your PC, or playback on your PC etc - use FLAC or other lossless.  Reason is simple - if you ever have to transcode to another format - you want to do it from the original (lossless).  Lossy to lossy is a no-no.  Also - as Grado77 said, hard-drive space is cheap - so you may as well have the best format you can get.
 
For use on your DAP - if you don't have a lot of space / want to take a lot of your music with you - there is nothing wrong with 256 aac / 320 mp3 or V0 mp3.  You get good quality and space to boot.
 
Finally - this comment ....
 
 
Quote:

COWON J3 has powerful output..........I always use lossless with mine........It's a great piece of gear, and highly regarded.....much better than any ipod:

 
Only half right.  Yes it has a powerful output and it is a pretty good player.  I'd argue that the latest iPod Touch / iPhone4 is as good.  the debate has been made many times before on head-fi. The new Touch/iPhones have decent internals.  Add the Equ or Equaliser apps and they are very good players.  And yes I have tried the J3 - and I owned an iAudio7 (which was fantastic).  In the end though, after comparison, I went with the Touch - for me it was a better DAP.  Either choice (Cowon, iPod or Sansa) is a good choice depending on what features / price bracket you think you'll need.
 
Hahyun92 - if you decide to climb the audio scale (get new cans) that actually need amping - then come back and get some advice.  In the meantime, as long as your MP3 are a reasonable bitrate, and were ripped and converted correctly using the latest software, just use what you have - and enjoy the music!