Does anyone here own a Sony MP3 Player?

[Vishalca]

Hey everyone,

I am looking for an MP3 player for excersizing and running, and my research of usability and reasonable cost has come down to these two players: the iPod shuffle 1GB ($178 with my edu discount) and the Sony NW-E99 (with a recent price drop, $179 after MIR). Now, I have read numerous reviews about the shuffle, however, its 12 hour and non-user replaceable battery have been drawbacks for me. What intrigued me about the Sony player is its 70 (!) hour battery life. This is obviously amazing; however, I have heard negative reviews about Sony audio quality. So, if anyone owns the NW-E99, or any Sony MP3 player for that matter, could you please give me a short user review to help me with my decision? I am impressed with the Sony player, and now with the price drop, it makes my decision even harder! Thanks to all for their important information.

[Serotta]

I own a mini-disk player that I'm happy with. Don't have any experience with the Sony NW-E99, but the few user reviews I've seen were positive.

[Vishalca]

Serotta, if you don't mind, could you tell me where you found those user reviews? Thanks in advance!

[RMCF]

Bear in mind that the NW99 has not got USB2 (why?).
The audio quality is likely to be equal or higher that the shuffle though. Where have you read about bad quality? Are you talking about 2x5 amp?

[Serotta]

http://www.dealtime.com/xPO-NW_E99_1_GB

http://www.itreviews.co.uk/forum/5508

Hope these help.

I'll plug my MD player too. I have the NH600 and really like it. 1gig per disk, so plenty of room on one disk, but yet it's expandable. Sound quality is great. Very small and portable.

[Vishalca]

Bear in mind that the NW99 has not got USB2 (why?).
The audio quality is likely to be equal or higher that the shuffle though. Where have you read about bad quality? Are you talking about 2x5 amp?

Actually, I don't think it was the audio now. Someone said that the backlight made a hissing sound that was audible only when the volume was between 1 and 5 (I believe it has a range of 32). Serotta, thanks for the links!

[Cyker]

Yeah, I was gonna say! Sony Audio quality is usually very very good!

The hissing thing is possible, but TBH I've noticed this on a lot of other players (The iPod and iRiver range both have audible hiss at low volume levels, esp. when the hard disks are running - It seems to vary depending on the headphones you are using 'tho. With the stock ones it's very hard to hear, but with my Sony 'phones it's a lot more audible, but with the Sonys, the audio is louder at a given volume level than the stock 'phones.)

[mr_gkyc]

Hey everyone,

I am looking for an MP3 player for excersizing and running, and my research of usability and reasonable cost has come down to these two players: the iPod shuffle 1GB ($178 with my edu discount) and the Sony NW-E99 (with a recent price drop, $179 after MIR).


As luck would have it, I was faced with the same decision earlier this week... In my case, I was going for cheap so I was deciding between the 512Mb shuffle and the E95.


Now, I have read numerous reviews about the shuffle, however, its 12 hour and non-user replaceable battery have been drawbacks for me.


Yes, me too. Plus, I went down to the local Sony Store and handled an E95. That unit is a nice package: tiny, metal-body and a nifty display.


What intrigued me about the Sony player is its 70 (!) hour battery life. This is obviously amazing;


Note that this is with ATRAC. MP3 reduces it to 30-40h. Still amazing though.


however, I have heard negative reviews about Sony audio quality. So, if anyone owns the NW-E99, or any Sony MP3 player for that matter, could you please give me a short user review to help me with my decision? I am impressed with the Sony player, and now with the price drop, it makes my decision even harder! Thanks to all for their important information.

I think others have said it already. But for what it's worth, here's some good reviews for the E75/95/99:

http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews83588.html
http://www.everythingusb.com/hardware/index/Sony_NW-E75_Network_Walkman.htm

BTW, I ordered the E95 on Monday.

George

[JackAxe]

I would go with the iShuffle period. Apple does not mislead, nor make it difficult in anyway or form to manage and play your music and this is regardless of the format. Sony is the complete opposite of this in every way. Sony is a major "pain in the arse" when it comes to all digital music handling.

Another factor, is that Sony uses a horrid interface app called "Sonic Stage." Compared to iTunes, it's absolutely awful, a hindrance and must have been designed by a monkey. This is where the iShuffle vastly outclasses the Sony. It's the "iTunes+Apple Hardware" integration that has made them the dominate leader. Ease of use is king in Apple's book.

With the iShuffle, you'll also get dedicated support. So your product won't be abandoned in a year like Sony tends to do. Apple will continue to provide software and firmware updates, even after your device's warranty has expired. And if you need tech-support, you can actually "call" someone.

The iShuffle is also a Mass Storage device. I could not find anything regarding the Sony being able to do this. What this means, is that the iShuffle can be used like a thumb-drive and does not require drivers to copy files to it.

USB 1.0 is also very slow when transfering large music files, or albums, 2.0 is better suited for this.

$178 is expensive for an iShuffle. They sell for $149 on Apple's site.
********
Sorry, didn't see you're in Canada. :o

<]=)

[NJL!2016]

For once, I actually agree with JackAxe. SonicStage is awful. It's DRM taken to the extreme. I had a MZNF520D, and sound quality was poor, even with ATRAC3 at the max bit rate (I think 220kbps). There was a very noticeable hiss, even when using premastered MDs. Plus, it didn't even have USB 2!

[mr_gkyc]

I would go with the iShuffle period. Apple does not mislead, nor make it difficult in anyway or form to manage and play your music and this is regardless of the format. Sony is the complete opposite of this in every way. Sony is a major "pain in the arse" when it comes to all digital music handling.

Agreed on this point up to Sony's release of "MP3 Music Manager". I have read that it gives you a drag-and-drop interface for loading music onto the NW-Exx. Given the price, I'm taking a chance there.


Another factor, is that Sony uses a horrid interface app called "Sonic Stage." Compared to iTunes, it's absolutely awful, a hindrance and must have been designed by a monkey.


Agreed too but this is with ATRAC. With MP3, you use the MP3 Music Manager instead of SonicStage.


This is where the iShuffle vastly outclasses the Sony. It's the "iTunes+Apple Hardware" integration that has made them the dominate leader. Ease of use is king in Apple's book.


Yes. But what I judged to be shuffle's shortcoming is the battery. Given Apple's track record with the full-size ipods, the battery's gonna die in a couple of years and you're gonna be faced with a real dilemma: pony up the ~$50-100 for Apple to replace the battery or buy a new one. Buying a new one seems like an environmentally irresponsible thing to do. Plus, the Exx series of player is mighty sexy in the flesh... You gotta handle it. I prefer Sony's metal body to Apple's plastic.


With the iShuffle, you'll also get dedicated support. So your product won't be abandoned in a year like Sony tends to do. Apple will continue to provide software and firmware updates, even after your device's warranty has expired. And if you need tech-support, you can actually "call" someone.


I'm gambling that support will be okay for something that's relatively simple... I bought a CLIE, didn't I? ;-)


The iShuffle is also a Mass Storage device. I could not find anything regarding the Sony being able to do this. What this means, is that the iShuffle can be used like a thumb-drive and does not require drivers to copy files to it.


The Sony is also a Mass Storage device. However, the difference is that it needs a cable wheras the shuffle can plug directly in. But I wonder about the cap...

However, it should be pointed out that the shuffle's strength is that you can drag music onto it as a Mass Storage device. With the Sony, you have to use the MP3 Music Manager.

The most interesting feature of the shuffle is the on-the-fly-transcoding. This is seldom mention but makes the most of the shuffle limited storage. iTunes 4.7.1 supports an on-the-fly-transcoding to 128k AAC for the shuffle. This was the one feature that nearly made me a shuffle owner since I only use iTunes at home with the AirPort Express ripping everything to 320k MP3.


USB 1.0 is also very slow when transfering large music files, or albums, 2.0 is better suited for this.


I've gotten used to this when my CLIE already so I can live with it. Plus, the shuffle isn't fast at even despite it being 2.0 from the reviews I've read.


$178 is expensive for an iShuffle. They sell for $149 on Apple's site.
********
Sorry, didn't see you're in Canada. :o

<]=)

Also in Canada, the shuffle is still not available. And with Sony's rebate right now, the 512Mb player is pretty cheap. I'm paying CAD141 for the E95 after rebate. The 512Mb shuffle is CAD149+tax=CAD170. I figure the difference will pay for a couple of sets of earphones for the gym. ;-)

George

[JackAxe]

That's good to know that it's a mass storage device. I was looking, but couldn't find anything. I wish my Clié was mass storage.*grumbles*

No doubt, Sony has great design. I really like my Clié's magnesium case and look. I just wish they would apply that same amount of care and thought to their software and overall quality now days. ;) They seem to be riding their name right now. I've come this conclusion along with most of my friends. We've all bought Sony, they just seem to break faster now. :)

I hope my battery doesn't die. My iPod is just under 2 years now. So if I get another 1 or 2 I'll be happy, since that is the average life. The same is true for my Clié. (If not for Sony's poor support, it's just easier to get to during a replacement.) A defect would cause it to die sooner, but so far it's been good. And replacing a battery about once every 3 years, is certainly better then replacing a standard battery once or twice a month. :)

I hope the iShuffle can be opened, but I have instructions on how to do so for my iPod. So at that time, I can put in a longer lasting 2100mAh battery for $40, or a 850mAh for $26.

Sony says they understand what they've been doing wrong in this arena and plans on changing, but until that's in place, they're on my no list for digital music. I've arelady had enough with the poo that is Sonic Stage and Sony's dislike of MP3.

Can't you pop down to the US and buy a 1Gig iShuffle for $149 and then sneak it back in? It's really small. :)

<]=)

[Vishalca]

Well, JackAxe, I would LOVE to pop down into the States to pick one up! But....sadly, school interferes, and well, I am patient enough to wait for it to come here! :D But I really do want to see how small it is!

As for the iShuffle battery, my only concern was how long it would last, and how you would charge it. If I travel, I wouldn't have access to a USB port. Also, I don't keep my comp on overnight, unless I charged it while doing work. And I plan on having it last for a while; I have heard positive comments on the quality of the Sony MP3 Player, and the shuffle, but the battery might only last 3 years on the shuffle. But, alas, all my music is in iTunes, and I love Autofill! :rolleyes: Decisions, Decisions.....

[JackAxe]

I don't know this for a fact, but it should come with this power adapter;
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?productLearnMore=M9837LL/A

Joel would know. :) The iPod comes with one, so I don't see why not.


And there's this option;
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?productLearnMore=M9759G/A

It uses AAA batteries. I would only buy something like that if, I were out camping or something. :)

3 years down the line to replace one battery will probably cost about the same as all the AAA batteries combined. ;) Of course if you don't buy it through Apple. :D

Avoid the torment of Sonic Stage. :eek: It negates all the pluses of the Sony. If iTunes were even remotely as bad, the iPod would've failed.

<]=)

[SamuraiCatJB]

when I travel I have spare chargers for phone, PDA, ipod packed. Ipods have a firewire to AC adapter. When I camp, I have a DC batery (12volt), dc chargers, and solar recharger for the 12volt battery. :)

[intellidryad]

I think it's a matter of taste.
I like both Sonic Stage and iTunes.

Sonic Stage is "album oriented", so if you like to listen to music the old way, in the order of the album CD, you would like Sonic Stage.
iTunes, on the other hand, is good for organizing single songs. If you want to access albums fast, you'd get your "source window" full of play lists.
iTunes is my main player, but I'd ocasionally use Sonic Stage when I'd like to listen to whole albums or when I'd like some sony eye candy^^

As for the NWxx v.s. iPod shuffle, I like the Sony's screen, period. I can't stand a player without a screen. But then again, I'd still use my clie for my main music player. Biggest screen you can get, and you wouldn't need to bring another gadget. 2(clie+phone) is enough for me. :D

[Serotta]

i have an NH600 MD player that I bought after getting my daughter the NF610. SonicStage 2 is much better than 1.5, and I really like using it. It records and transfers very quickly in ATRAC3, and the sound quality is much better than a walkman CD player IMO.

[mr_gkyc]

That's good to know that it's a mass storage device. I was looking, but couldn't find anything. I wish my Clié was mass storage.*grumbles*


Actually, there's a USD15 solution to this:

http://www.softick.com/cardexport2/


No doubt, Sony has great design. I really like my Clié's magnesium case and look. I just wish they would apply that same amount of care and thought to their software and overall quality now days. ;) They seem to be riding their name right now. I've come this conclusion along with most of my friends. We've all bought Sony, they just seem to break faster now. :)


Actually, looking back my family's past 20 years of Sony history, I can't say Sony have been above average. They have been cutting edge and innovative but not well particularly well-built.


I hope my battery doesn't die. My iPod is just under 2 years now. So if I get another 1 or 2 I'll be happy, since that is the average life. The same is true for my Clié. (If not for Sony's poor support, it's just easier to get to during a replacement.) A defect would cause it to die sooner, but so far it's been good. And replacing a battery about once every 3 years, is certainly better then replacing a standard battery once or twice a month. :)


I'm planning to use rechargeable AAA on my NW-E95.


I hope the iShuffle can be opened, but I have instructions on how to do so for my iPod. So at that time, I can put in a longer lasting 2100mAh battery for $40, or a 850mAh for $26.


One thing I learned after my Palm Vx is to never buy anything that is not user-replaceable. Yes it can be opened but with much anguish/skill/luck.

The CLIE barely passed the test with their user-accessible-but-not-quite-replaceable battery. (Anyone know where to get the three-pronged screwdriver for the TH-55?)


Sony says they understand what they've been doing wrong in this arena and plans on changing, but until that's in place, they're on my no list for digital music. I've arelady had enough with the poo that is Sonic Stage and Sony's dislike of MP3.


Then you probably have seen Sony's statement about their support for MP3:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/09/23/sony_supports_mp3/

The MP3 Music Manager for the NW-Exx series is a step in that direction. They're also releasing/upgrading hard-drive-based players with native MP3 support:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/11/30/sony_nw-hd3_mp3_player/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/12/01/sony_vaio_pocket_mp3/

I do agree that they've got their work cut out for them with iTunes' command of the market though. Oh, if Sony had partnered up with Apple when Steve Jobs approached them a couple years back...


Can't you pop down to the US and buy a 1Gig iShuffle for $149 and then sneak it back in? It's really small. :)

<]=)

I've been busted before by customs so don't wanna do it again... ;-)

George

[SamuraiCatJB]

The CLIE barely passed the test with their user-accessible-but-not-quite-replaceable battery. (Anyone know where to get the three-pronged screwdriver for the TH-55?)



http://www.cliebattery.com/csk-003install.html

some places give them as part of the battery purchase... that was just from a google on th55 and screwdriver.

[JackAxe]

I wonder if Sony will update my old NR to take advantage of there new MP3 friendly attitude. :) Unless they pull an ATI, then that's not going to happen. Right now it's a good remote for me though, but that's pretty much it.

I remember that someone gave me an MP3 playlist maker that Sony shipped with it's earlier Cliés, but it was still pretty limited. But now that I've tasted the iPod, everything else tastes bland.

I have a few guitar picks and my iPod only cost me a couple hours of work, so I'm more then willing to open it up when the time comes. I've tackled much worse. I took apart my old Nintencdo GBA and soldered a backlight into it along with brightness adjust wheel.

If Sony keeps their promise, then I'll have nothing against their MP3 players. Just don't buy there low to mid range headphones. Boy do they suck. :)

<]=)

[mr_gkyc]

I wonder if Sony will update my old NR to take advantage of there new MP3 friendly attitude. :) Unless they pull an ATI, then that's not going to happen. Right now it's a good remote for me though, but that's pretty much it.


I'm not familiar with the NR but are you suggesting that the NR does not play anything other than ATRAC? I was pretty sure that pre-NX AudioPlayer also plays MP3.

What else were you thinking that Sony can do to demonstrate their "MP3 friendly attitude"?


I remember that someone gave me an MP3 playlist maker that Sony shipped with it's earlier Cliés, but it was still pretty limited. But now that I've tasted the iPod, everything else tastes bland.


I think that pretty sums it up for all PDA-based MP3 players--their (non-existent) playlist management sucks.


I have a few guitar picks and my iPod only cost me a couple hours of work, so I'm more then willing to open it up when the time comes. I've tackled much worse. I took apart my old Nintencdo GBA and soldered a backlight into it along with brightness adjust wheel.


What can you do hardware-wise to enable MP3 playback?


If Sony keeps their promise, then I'll have nothing against their MP3 players. Just don't buy there low to mid range headphones. Boy do they suck. :)

<]=)

Is it really that bad? I'm planning to pick up a pair of the 818 as a disposable earphone for the gym.

George

[RMCF]

I am currently deciding between Shuffle and E99. I am leaning towards the E99 though for this reasons:

-Better build quality and better looks
-More open, as it will work with any computer since the mp3 manager resides on the player itself, while you need itunes and then some jiggery pokery to copy music to the Shuffle from another computer.
-Good battery life
-Even though I don't really use it, the SonicStage/Atrac has one big advantage over the rest: Gapless playback (ie many albums are made to sound without spaces between tracks etc).

Bear in mind that I do not have USB2 and even though I use iTunes to organize my music, it is really bad when used with Music Magic Mixer (which I use to create playlists).

[RMCF]

I think it's a matter of taste.
I like both Sonic Stage and iTunes.

Sonic Stage is "album oriented", so if you like to listen to music the old way, in the order of the album CD, you would like Sonic Stage.
iTunes, on the other hand, is good for organizing single songs. If you want to access albums fast, you'd get your "source window" full of play lists.
iTunes is my main player, but I'd ocasionally use Sonic Stage when I'd like to listen to whole albums or when I'd like some sony eye candy^^


If you want some REAL eye candy, have a look at Vaio Zone. Absolutely unusable offcourse (would not be Sony app otherwise :), but beatifull is an understatement. Plus it uses your existing SonicStage library.

[JackAxe]

I'm not familiar with the NR but are you suggesting that the NR does not play anything other than ATRAC? I was pretty sure that pre-NX AudioPlayer also plays MP3.

It does, but Sony was at it's "Say-no-to-MP3" prime, so moving MP3s to the Clié was a pain. I could only do it through AudioPlay or their MS importing software. There was no playlist support included at all. That was only available to ATRAC with a MagicGate Stick. If I renamed a song from the Memory Stick, the Clié audio player app would no longer recognize it and bring up an error. If I wanted to do something like change the order for my music, the only way, was to delete all the MP3s from the MS and then copy them back over again renamed in the order I wanted. This was quite slow with USB. Those things above along with excluding all older device from larger formats and Sonic Stage really irritated me.

All the Cliés before the NR shipped with that "MP3Mgr," which helped ease my annoyance when someone was nice enough to share it with me, but it was still cumbersome to use and very limited. I have a few other MP3 apps, but compared to the iPod when it comes to ease of use and sound quality, the Clié was no longer worth the trouble caused by Sony.

After paying $1200 for 2 NR70s, which did not include tax, I found out quickly that Sony had completely mislead me about MP3 support. It's been really easy to write them off for all future purchases now, because of that. I have Sony everything in my living room, but that's going to change. I'm more interested in a quality product then their name now. :)


What else were you thinking that Sony can do to demonstrate their "MP3 friendly attitude"?


Offer real tech-support and more importantly, continue to suport their products, especially ones that require software longer then 6 months.

Considering that my Clié lost all support form Sony not even 6 months later, they could take the ATI route and actually create a universal upgrade path for their devices. ATI's drivers like NVidias support not only their latest and greates cards, but some of their earliest products. Now that's support. It took them a while to do this, but it did happen. I'm using apps that I grabbed from a NX and besides a few OS5 specific things, most of their updates were still OS4 friendly. But Sony would never do that, why should they build good relations with their customers. And now that they've abandoned the US market, I really don't expect them to do anything.


I think that pretty sums it up for all PDA-based MP3 players--their (non-existent) playlist management sucks.


Sony just took it a step further with Sonic Stage. :)



What can you do hardware-wise to enable MP3 playback?


Do you mean for the iPod or the Clié? They both support it, the iPod just treats my MP3 files as nicely as my AAC and Apple Lossless files.


Is it really that bad? I'm planning to pick up a pair of the 818 as a disposable earphone for the gym.


For disposable I guess they would be Ok. That peticular style of earbuds from any manufacture makes my ears bleed and cause me migraines. :)

With my Clié, I thought that my $50 earbuds(MDR somthings??) sounded good, but once I tried them on my computer and more importantly my iPod with higher quality audio, they sounded awful. They lacked range and would crap out easily. The Sennheiser PX100s I picked up after being recommended from VicAjax sound vastly better. For the price(About $40) there is nothing better on the market when it comes to sound quality. They are absolutely amazing headphones. Even my larger Sony's that cost me twice as much really sounded bad in comparison. My friend picked up some of the Sennheiser street syles for his work outs. He had some Sony's before that, but quickly returned them after hearing mine. His new headphones sound great, just not as good as the PX100s.

<]=)

[mr_gkyc]

It does, but Sony was at it's "Say-no-to-MP3" prime, so moving MP3s to the Clié was a pain. I could only do it through AudioPlay or their MS importing software. There was no playlist support included at all. That was only available to ATRAC with a MagicGate Stick.


Ah, I see. I was very hesistant about MP3 playback from any PDA back then because of storage and control issues. I remember seeing the NR and being quite impressed by the form-factor and idea. I was even more surprised by how quickly it was superseded by the NX.


If I renamed a song from the Memory Stick, the Clié audio player app would no longer recognize it and bring up an error.


Sadly, this still occurs with the latest AudioPlayer on my TH55.


If I wanted to do something like change the order for my music, the only way, was to delete all the MP3s from the MS and then copy them back over again renamed in the order I wanted. This was quite slow with USB. Those things above along with excluding all older device from larger formats and Sonic Stage really irritated me.

Now I understand your position. I came to Sony's AudioPlayer at the point of the NX70 and it was serviceable, if spartan.


All the Cliés before the NR shipped with that "MP3Mgr," which helped ease my annoyance when someone was nice enough to share it with me, but it was still cumbersome to use and very limited. I have a few other MP3 apps, but compared to the iPod when it comes to ease of use and sound quality, the Clié was no longer worth the trouble caused by Sony.


Actually, I don't see any other PDA maker doing a better job. My brother's got a Tungsten E and a co-worker has the brand-spanking new Pocket Loox 720. They're both fatally flawed with no hold button and no remote either. If you have the PDA in your pocket, it is very difficult to manage your playback.

I see MP3 playback from a PDA as a very academic feature that is unsuited for anything but sedantary use. This seems to be the flaw with the PDA though--people build the hardware (and apps) to be a jack of all trade but master of none.


After paying $1200 for 2 NR70s, which did not include tax, I found out quickly that Sony had completely mislead me about MP3 support.


I skipped the NR and NX initially because of the price too. I only re-considered when my Palm Vx started falling apart and the NX's price drop preciptiously (usual Sony phenomeon).


It's been really easy to write them off for all future purchases now, because of that. I have Sony everything in my living room, but that's going to change. I'm more interested in a quality product then their name now. :)


True, but damn Sony has some good industrial designer. The E95 is a case in point. Of all the MP3 player I saw and handled, the E95 feels the nicest. I'm gonna take a gamble on it.


Offer real tech-support and more importantly, continue to suport their products, especially ones that require software longer then 6 months.

Considering that my Clié lost all support form Sony not even 6 months later, they could take the ATI route and actually create a universal upgrade path for their devices. ATI's drivers like NVidias support not only their latest and greates cards, but some of their earliest products. Now that's support. It took them a while to do this, but it did happen. I'm using apps that I grabbed from a NX and besides a few OS5 specific things, most of their updates were still OS4 friendly. But Sony would never do that, why should they build good relations with their customers. And now that they've abandoned the US market, I really don't expect them to do anything.


I was quite pleased to have found cliesource/1src to support my NX. But I agree with you about Sony's support issue. The TH55 is the final evolution of Sony's OS5 devices and I can't say I could ask for more.


Sony just took it a step further with Sonic Stage. :)


<sigh>


Do you mean for the iPod or the Clié? They both support it, the iPod just treats my MP3 files as nicely as my AAC and Apple Lossless files.

I thought you said you were planning to do some hardware mods to your CLIE... Never mind.



For disposable I guess they would be Ok. That peticular style of earbuds from any manufacture makes my ears bleed and cause me migraines. :)


I've had great luck with the earbud style. I have a pair of 888 which sounds really great but I don't want to trash them at the gym.


With my Clié, I thought that my $50 earbuds(MDR somthings??) sounded good, but once I tried them on my computer and more importantly my iPod with higher quality audio, they sounded awful. They lacked range and would crap out easily. The Sennheiser PX100s I picked up after being recommended from VicAjax sound vastly better. For the price(About $40) there is nothing better on the market when it comes to sound quality. They are absolutely amazing headphones. Even my larger Sony's that cost me twice as much really sounded bad in comparison. My friend picked up some of the Sennheiser street syles for his work outs. He had some Sony's before that, but quickly returned them after hearing mine. His new headphones sound great, just not as good as the PX100s.

<]=)

I've seen recommendations for the PX-100 too. The Koss Porta-Pro is an oft-recommended unit. The over-the-head style is too cumbersome for my intended use though.

George

[JackAxe]

Yeah, the NX was a definate upgrade from the NR. I had a really good 3rd party MP3 player, but it never got finalized, but at least it supported the remote which I've always really liked. That and the keyboard sold me on getting one. The other was for the weef.

Those 888's would also cause severe pain in me ears. :) The MDR fit nicely, but just sound awful and for the price I figured they would be at least sounded descent. If I ever get another pair of earbuds it would be the Etymotic ER-4P, or whatever they have now. They look very comfortable and have got excellent reviews for sound quality.

I wasn't impressed with my Dell POS Axim either for MP3 playback or management. I tried a few different apps, but nothing really appealed to me. That's exactly it with the jack of all trade thing. Most of these devices are usually just a compilation of mediocrity and why an iPod is a horrible PDA. I do respect Sony for producing some of the best PDAs though. It was the audio area I was really interested and that was definately its weakest point.


Sony's does have great design, I'm a sucker for that. But I've learned that all of their lower end product are no longer made by them, just designed. So who's actually making some of their products is a mystery to me. :)

<]=)

[RMCF]

Are you reffering to the non-Japan made products?
The Powerbooks/iPods are not made by Apple either... Very, very few companies make their own stuff.

[JackAxe]

Not the same. I know that most companies will engineer/design their product using various components from other manufactures; That's a given. Sony's low-end products are all name. They have other manufactures like Aiwa, just as an example, actually engineer the whole thing.

<]=)

[RMCF]

Asus makes the Powerbooks, Fujitsu makes some Vaio's. Aiwa was bought by Sony and now share the same units. I am not too sure about what you mean regarding "all name". How do low-end Sony differ from high-end Sony. Do you think "Made in Japan" means that the products are made by Sony?

[JackAxe]

What exactly are you implying about this "Made in Japan" comment? :rolleyes:

Designing a unit in house and then having another manufacture produce it is one thing, relying on a completely different company to engineer the the product and then slapping on the name of the parent company is another. All I'm saying is that when you buy Sony low-end, you're not buying Sony "quality."

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[RMCF]

Some Sony's are made in Japan (usually the higher end), while other are not. I thought that is what you were talking about. So what Sony products were designed and made by different companies?

[JackAxe]

Pretty much all their cheap boomboxes and mini stereo systems, pretty much all low-end audio devices that I've heard. I think it's safe to say Aiwa is making them, which scares me since Aiwa products generally break prematurely.

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[IsLNdbOi]

Vishalca, take a look at Samsung's new flash players. I would personally get one of those over the Shuffle.

[RMCF]

Pretty much all their cheap boomboxes and mini stereo systems, pretty much all low-end audio devices that I've heard. I think it's safe to say Aiwa is making them, which scares me since Aiwa products generally break prematurely.

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Do you have any links which state that Aiwa makes them and not the other way around?

[JackAxe]

I'll look, but as of now I'm only going by what I've heard and my friends haven't steered me in the wrong direction.

But until you see a link, you'll only keep on questioning.

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[Vishalca]

Vishalca, take a look at Samsung's new flash players. I would personally get one of those over the Shuffle.

Thanks for the advice, IsLNdbOi. However, I don't think Samsung's new players have been released yet in Canada (at least not in my local retail shops). But they do look cool!

[RMCF]

I'll look, but as of now I'm only going by what I've heard and my friends haven't steered me in the wrong direction.

But until you see a link, you'll only keep on questioning.

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Correct :)

[JackAxe]

I'm looking now. ¬¬

*It might be a while, but I won't give up. :P :)*

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[zackepceo]

Asus makes the Powerbooks
Incorrect. They're made by Quanta almost exclusively. It's the iBooks and iPod shuffles that are made by Asustek.

[cornwallmike]

Sorry to bump this thread, just a quick question really: does anyone know if sonic stage works on a mac. Despite all the above discussion I think I'd like a sony MP3 player as battery life is very important to me (my ipod is down to three hours now, which isn't going to last long when I fly from UK to New Zealand in a month!). However I use a mac ibook, running itunes obviously. I want a small 1GB player for sports and travel use. The NWE407 player looks good to me. But can I get it to work with mac?

[zackepceo]

Sonic Stage is not for mac. You wouldn't even want to use it on a PC. Consider an iPod Mini. The small hard drives are surprisingly durable, and the battery life is reported to be up to 23 hours.

[JackAxe]

You might be able to recover some battery life on your iPod. Just by wiping it and moving all your music back over can decrease the load times and increase the battery life. It is a little HD, so it gets fragmented over time. Zac figured this out. :)

Sonic Stage is PC only. WHen it comes to Macs, Sony treats our comps as an afterthought and relies on 3rd party software peeps to fill in the gap.

I would just go with a Shuffle, then you're guaranteed Mac compatibility and the battery life is good.

Another option would be to purchase a battery extender for your iPod. These use 4 AA, so you'll always have access to power;
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Merchant_Id=&Section_Id=201526&pcount=&Product_Id=148969

http://www.sfplanet.com/index.cfm/fa/items.main/parentcat/4166/subcatid/24922/id/111230

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[cornwallmike]

I had no idea Sony didn't do a version of sonic stage for mac - just as well I checked before ordering a player! I agree, sounds like I need an ipod shuffle. Will look into extra batteries for my 3rd gen ipod too. Thanks for the suggestions.

[Gizmo]

I agree with the Shuffle recommendation. I consistently get up to 15 hours of playback time between charges. (1 hour at a time, five days a week, three weeks between charges). And the sound can't be beat, bar none!

[cornwallmike]

Going back to the ipod mini, does anyone know if the battery life differs between the 4 and 6 GB versions?

[JackAxe]

Not sure, but I'll look aorund. I think Zac knows?

I have a 3rd G iPod also and I won a 6GB Mini form the Apple store, which I gave to my weef. She's only updated the firmware and charged it, so I'm not sure how long the battery lasts.

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[zackepceo]

The battery is the same for the two. The battery life will, of course, vary because of different bitrates. The flash RAM that is used as a buffer is only around 16 megabytes, so the larger the music files, the less battery life you will have.

[ricmatos]

i bought the Apple shuffle. I'm Apple fan but Sony NW-E series are lovely (screen, etc).

i have 30 days to replace my Shuffle at the store.

if i had a tool to tranfer mp3s, with my mac to the Sony player, i will replace it.

So…30 days…help me…countdown starts now…30 days to find the software.

thanks

[peterjb31]

I wouldn't trust apple. ANything with an internal hard drive is a disaster waiting to hapen. The 1 gig will become a lot less after three years so periodically replacements will be required. I recomend a mini disc system such as sony. There is free simple explorer drag + drop interface on the net.

[ricmatos]

There is free simple explorer drag + drop interface on the net.

what you mean with this?
Thanks

[tatiana]

Just don't buy the Sony MP3 player with the noise cancellation. It obviously blocks out any background noise, but I didn't like it. Also, the software for it is a pain to use. It took forever to transfer music to my mp3 player and i heard it's crashed many people's computers. Maybe you should stick with the ipod, that's what i have now and it works great.