[jfindon]

Nice to hear the HM-601 gets there quick.  Maybe I'll go ahead and get that.

 

[alyanm]

Firmware actually is my own strong point.  Gapless playback would require cache-ing and extra processing power -- which actually depends on the hardware.  They may not have the cache memory and/or CPU cycles to spare for cacheing that far ahead. Most likely the processor is loaded down just keeping up with playing the music reliably.  But that's just a guess from my experience with audio firmware back when I did some work with Mackie Designs a long time ago...
 
Quote:

I'm not absolutely sure, but gapless playback, must be tough to include in the firmware because HD accommodated everyone on all of their complaints except for that one.
 
That area of computer science is not my strong point.

 

[Andrew Jones]

Lack of gapless on the 601 is a pain on some albums, it's the only reason I put rockbox on my Fuze. I've resorted to using foobar2000 to merge the separate flac tracks into a single file for those albums where the songs should run into each other. Actually all the music destined for the 601 has been re-processed to apply replaygain settings (into new files, the originals are intact), so choosing to process some albums differently wasn't a big deal.

 

[alyanm]

Nice to have that confirmed!  I wonder how the j3 compares to my Walkman X?  I haven't seen anybody compare the two yet...

 
Quote:

agreed.. the S: Flo 2 DESTROYS the j3 in SQ.
 
but the S:FLO 2 UI and lack of Gapless is kind of a bummer.

I'm dying here, was there any difference?  I'm still wondering if its worthwhile to upgrade to 602 or not, considering I don't need the DAC, just on the basis of SQ.
 
Quote:

I have never really compared them side by side (just got the 601 3 weeks ago at a Head-Fi Meet).
 
I'll give them both a good ride before the Giant game tomorrow.

That's a cool trick with the foobar2000, I might try that with a couple of my albums.  Actually, I wonder if Mediamonkey has a similar feature...
 
Quote:

Lack of gapless on the 601 is a pain on some albums, it's the only reason I put rockbox on my Fuze. I've resorted to using foobar2000 to merge the separate flac tracks into a single file for those albums where the songs should run into each other. Actually all the music destined for the 601 has been re-processed to apply replaygain settings (into new files, the originals are intact), so choosing to process some albums differently wasn't a big deal.

 

[Meelis]

What's gapless playback?
Is it that if you cut out of the track end (silence)?
Or is it just maybe 0,5 sec smoother overgoing from track 1 to track 2
 
I personally can't live with album joined together and not being able to play track that i want at the moment.

 

[tds101]

Sansa clip+ sporting Rockbox gets my vote for #1, while the Cowon J3 gets second place. 

 

[immtbiker]

Quote:

What's gapless playback?
Is it that if you cut out of the track end (silence)?
Or is it just maybe 0,5 sec smoother overgoing from track 1 to track 2
 
I personally can't live with album joined together and not being able to play track that i want at the moment.

1 - RIAA redbook has an industry standard that includes a 2 second gap between songs (.mp3's) that will create a big space that will interrupt the flow of one track leading into the other when listening to albums that were recorded that way, because when converting to .mp3's ID3 tagging gives each song it's own identity in the table of contents. Gapless support helps maintain the integrity of the original recordings, especially when listening to electronica, classical albums that are a story like Pink Floyd "The Wall", or The Who's "Tommy",opera, and others. Please correct me if I'm mistaken.
In order to have a player reproduce this, it must be software driven, and I assume that it must must a little difficult otherwise all players would have it.
Fang made it very clear that the HM-801 and 602 wouldn't have it. However, things might change.
Personally, it doesn't bother me, but I can definitely see why it would bother others. If you know an album intimately, it could cause heart palpatations, such as getting on an escalator that isn't moving (your subconscious expects it to move and freaks you out every time. It also reminds me of listening to albums in the '70's that had a scratch on it, and then in the '80's you bought the cassette and your trained mind expects the skip, but wierds out when it doesn't happen.
 
Quote:

I consider the 602 quite a bit more than the 601, $450 is a ton for a DAP for me.
 
You can't use any amp through the line out on the 601?

 
2 - The 601 came out to appease people who couldn't afford the 801 and 602, the circuit which allows you to use a mini-USB input to bypass the DAC in a cheaper player or a computer, which offers you to use the headphone out or the line out (by adding an external amp) if you wanted something other than the HD DAC and amp. The beauty is, when wanting to travel light, you could just use the HO. By removing this circuitry, it enables HD to cut the cost and offer a more affordable player ($250 instead of $450).With the 801 or 602, you can make yourself a really nice home desktop besides using in portably. As they say in Tommy, "There's something for everybody!

 

[Meelis]

When will Philips GoGear Connect be available?
Does it have more scratch-proof screen than Muse?

 

[singh]

Quote:

 
2 - The 601 came out to appease people who couldn't afford the 801 and 602, the circuit which allows you to use a mini-USB input to bypass the DAC in a cheaper player or a computer, which offers you to use the headphone out or the line out (by adding an external amp) if you wanted something other than the HD DAC and amp. The beauty is, when wanting to travel light, you could just use the HO. By removing this circuitry, it enables HD to cut the cost and offer a more affordable player ($250 instead of $450).With the 801 or 602, you can make yourself a really nice home desktop besides using in portably. As they say in Tommy, "There's something for everybody!
 

Exactly !!  ever since i got my hands on the HM602 , i am using them as with my desktop DAC ( rather than the inbuilt DAC of mavareick D1 )  Moreover the HM602 has made me realise how mediocre the D1 really are  
( will soon be replacing them ! )
 
i simply love the sound off my HM602 !

 

[alyanm]

Between those two I'd vote Sony -- but I'm biased!
 
Quote:

Cowon s9 or Sony NWZ-X1060 !!!

 

[kingblind]

I totally agree with Inks statement on page 1
 
Hifiman801>602>601>Sflo2 (In this order) because they are specialized in sound quality, the rest are far behind unamped. These of course have their issues in UI and size, but for sound there's no comparison.
 
I have owned Sony's, Sansa's, Zune's and many, many iPods..  Everyone model Hifiman and S:Flo 2 destroy them.. There only real problem is a poor UI and no gapless playback. I guess if I had two pick one.. It would be the HM-601 It's the best balance of SQ and price. Nationite's can be picky with OS's and there UI is the worst.

 

[Ripvanlink]

In regards to UI, my main concern is how it would handle classical and symphonic music. Too many daps pander to the pop music fans, where the title and artist come first and the composer is  practically ignored. In classical music, the composer comes 1st, then the composition (and the composition being called a song is an imposition, which is what happens with just about every dap player I've heard about). But that's alright as long as the player's UI allows me to arrange the listing as I want without changing it back to artist 1st, as my Fuze does very often and as my e250R did b4 that. I do use folders myself and MediaMonkey as file manager. By the way, anybody have experience buying  MediaMonkeyGold instead of staying with the free version in terms of respect for classical filing?
What has been your experiences with daps and classical nomenclature?

 

[Somnambulist]

 
If you used the S:Flo2, for example, you'd create a folder for the composer then whatever sub-folder structure suited you best and then use 'Browse by Directory' to navigate (you kind of have to use this browsing method anyway because using 'Artist' or 'Album' screws the alphabetical ordering up).

 

[Ripvanlink]

Thanx. Sounds like the way I do it anyway. From what I've read, I don't think I wanna get the s:flo2 because of the long wait from China, questionable quality control and service. I'm pretty sure I'm getting the Cowon J3. It's very well liked by the Head-fiers, there are many updates, the UI is better liked, an amoled touch screen, SQ is well thought of, etc. If someone would like to talk me out that choice and into an S:flo2, I welcome your input.

 

[Somnambulist]

Between all the wait times and stuff I'd just get the J3 tbh. I LIKE my S:Flo2 but even though it sounds awesome I can't bring myself to love it, purely because ultimately the SQ is just one part of the whole package. I was lucky enough to get mine off eBay via someone with a Head-Fi account selling there, so didn't have to wait or deal with customs and all that, but given how many stories you read on here of silly wait times and customer service, I'd just stay on the safe side and get the Cowon.