[MarkBra]

Hello again folks!
 
So after I got good help from this forum with improving my main music source (pc) I can't decide how to improve my portable gear.
 
I enjoy listening to music mainly from my pc (foobar+flac and getting soon Grado's 80i+Fiio E10), but I do like listening to music on my way to work (using a bus)
 
Till now I was using my Nokia 5800 (yes, it's 2014 and I don't have a smartphone) with old Sony mdr e818.
 
So three quesion:
 
1. Can the 5800 handle FLAC? Should I even use it or switch to the Sansa Clip+ or Fuze?
 
2. Earbuds: call me silly but I don't use in ear headphones because I actually believe that they cause wax blockage, and I find them uncomfortable after long wearing, so between these three, which you think is the best? (wish I could use the Grado, but that I'll annoy the bus passengers)
 
a. my Sony mdr e818
b. Marshall Minor
c. Sennheiser MX880 
 
3. Do any of these will really benefit from an AMP, like the FiiO E6?
 
Thanks again!
 
Mark.

 

[lin0003]

Not really sure about the earbuds, but I really recommend the Sansa Clips, I have the + and zip and both are great. You really con't go wrong with them. 

 

[cel4145]

Not really sure about the earbuds, but I really recommend the Sansa Clips, I have the + and zip and both are great. You really con't go wrong with them. 

+1

Typically, the Clip+ and Clip Zip have better SQ than most phones. Great choice for a portable player, and it will drive most low impedance headphones very well. I suggest start with one of those, and if you are not satisfied with the volume you are getting, then think about an amp.

I understand the new Fuze+ is not as good as the old Fuze. Better to go with a Clip.

Flac seems kind of a waste of space for the equipment you are using/looking at using. Difference between 320K mp3 and FLAC is often very minute or even undistinguishable. A lot of us head-fiers with more expensive headphones don't even bother with it for portable use.

 

[MarkBra]

 I understand the new Fuze+ is not as good as the old Fuze

I meant the old Fuze indeed.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
I enjoy listening to music mainly from my pc (foobar+flac and getting soon Grado's 80i+Fiio E10), but I do like listening to music on my way to work (using a bus)
 
Till now I was using my Nokia 5800 (yes, it's 2014 and I don't have a smartphone) with old Sony mdr e818.
 
So three quesion:
 
1. Can the 5800 handle FLAC? Should I even use it or switch to the Sansa Clip+ or Fuze?
 
3. Will any of these really benefit from an AMP, like the FiiO E6?

 
1. DAP/DAC-HPamp vs E6+E10. Taking into consideration that:
a. you prefer/need FLAC playback capability
b. the 5800 doesn't have a real lineout anyway
 
...A Fiio X3 will make more sense than the E6 being used with a phone that doesn't have a lineout then a USB-powered E10 at home. The X3 has a better-designed DAC-output stage-amplifier stage design than the E6, while having more output power (and aside from better performance potential, more flexibility should you decide to get other headphones in the future) without much more (if not less) distortion at that output level. It can be a portable player on the go, while it functions as a USB DAC-HPamp at home to access more content stored on or will be accessed online by the PC.
 
2. Headphone choices. I am not sure those headphones will scale that much better on the X3, or even on the E6 (except getting much louder), but if you will think on a more long-term basis, the X3 will allow for a lot of other headphone options in the future that can be better driven by it than either the X10 or E6. The only real reason to use that or any phone over the X3 on the go is if you anticipate calls coming in at any time, particularly work-related. Otherwise, one more box (two if you're getting a powerbank, but if you get a smartphone later on, you can use it with that) isn't that much of a problem if you're carrying some kind of bag with you anyway.
 
3. Touchscreens and Crime. In some places commuting and a touchscreen device are never a good idea. Some people here get their iPod Touch snatched out of their hands, and recently a Sony DAP, which we all suspect was because the thief thought it was a smartphone due to its touchscreen and thus easy to sell for a lot of cash (if he only knew how much more expensive it actually was, and how many less people would actually buy a dedicated player). For commuters the relatively ancient interface on the X3 can be a plus depending on where you live. If this is partly a reason why you are not using a smartphone, then at least being seen pushing buttons on a portable player will make it look like you just soldered on a new battery for an old player. In a similar way, we use new Olympus PEN and Fuji cameras for street photography, and we don't check our photos (or only check them on the electronic viewfinder if so equipped), and tell children on the street (who are sometimes pawns of syndicates) that they can't see any photos because we're using film cameras. It also helps that some leather cases actually have one removable piece that covers the LCD screen (and unfortunately many of the buttons necessary for navigating settings) on the back.

 

[MarkBra]

I live in one of the most hot spots on earth 

, but the reason I don't use a smartphone is because I simply don't feel like I need one.
As for the X3 - I heard many good things about it , but it is way above my budget. . . . .
 
Good tip about converting FLAC to 320 Mp3 for portable use. I'll take it into accout.
 
I think I'll stick to the Sansa clip+ or try to find an old fuze, so now I need help with the earbuds.
I'm not a bass head. I listem mainly to Surf Rock (where there are lots of mids and highs)
I read review here about the MX880  and the Minors tagging them in "decent" category, but how much will they exceed my old Sony mdr e818 ?

 

[MarkBra]

Re-reading the post about the X3 as a DAC and  DAP raised a question to which I don't really want to make a new topic: 
 
Sansa clip+ vs pc and FiiO E10. which provide a better sound quality?
I think I read somewhere here about a chap who used a more expensive usb dac and still got better SQ with the Sansa.
 
Any thoughts on the matter?  

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
I think I read somewhere here about a chap who used a more expensive usb dac and still got better SQ with the Sansa.

 
That's because

1. The Fuze has a flat frequency response, and provided you don't give a load that is too much for it (nor expect it to shatter eardrums on all IEMs), then the response will remain Hi-Fi and will not sound like it needs more power.
 
2. Sometimes ther is a disconnect between "audiophile" and "high fidelity," or take each to extremes. Some people will demand that "audiophile" gear sound "pleasing, warm," etc beyond how the recording actually is, ergo that "classic tube sound," tube-rolling, or op-amp/HDAM-rolling where instead of having a product that just has the Earth HDAM you end up with people ordering the Moon HDAM or even the Sun HDAM. The stereotypical audiophile likes Moon because it's warm and pleasing, the really insane Hi-Fi sort will probably like Sun and will listen to recordings from London studios and see if they can hear the sound of the subway passing by the tube near the studio to gauge how satisfied they should be with their system because the megabuck system tested by some magazine actually brought out that noise in some recordings, and realized later that it was the subway rumbling past, despite the fact that t isn't a part of the music anyway ("life has surface noise," as they say about vinyl; except personally the surface noise isn't Snap, Crackle, and Pop from a needle hitting bumps on a worn out record). I can't guess where those people who preferred theClip over whatever amp stand, but basically the idea is that what we all want from our systems falls into...well...Sun, Earth, and Moon....and for a company to sell products, giving people an option is better than presenting just one.

 

[MarkBra]

Interesting explanation, I'll remember that. So many good things I learn from this forum.
 
Well , I guess the problem in comparing music gear is that music is subjective and people are searching for different listening experiences.