MP3 Players

Ocean Pacific · 07-06-2004, 10:29

Is there any difference is sound quality between a cheap £30 MP3 player and a more expensive one?

paulbrock · 07-06-2004, 11:26

think a lot of the cost is dependent on the memory size. don't know about the quality. 30 quid?
Cheapest on amazon is around 50 quid for 128MB (4 albums' worth?).

Ocean Pacific · 07-06-2004, 11:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by paulbrock

think a lot of the cost is dependent on the memory size. don't know about the quality. 30 quid?
Cheapest on amazon is around 50 quid for 128MB (4 albums' worth?).

Dixons have one for £30

paulbrock · 07-06-2004, 11:57

Ah yes, got it:
SYNN SYNN 64Mb MP3 PLAYER

Not an 'obvious' make, the main reason it's cheap is that it's 64 MB = 20 songs = 2 albums? What real advantage does this give you over e.g. CD player?

Been discussed before here I think, I'm not a fan of the "spend 300 quid so you can carry ALL your albums with you" concept, I think 4-12 albums' worth is about right, for cost v size. I use a 128 MB which is OK for me at lower sampling rates.

Found a newgroup posting of someone that bought the Synn 64MB and he's happy.
Can't find a "Synn" website though, so would be suspect.

A relatively cheap, low memory option would be mobiles that have built in MP3 players. You can expand the memory fairly easily too. SX1 is recommended, but Nokia also have several.

Ocean Pacific · 07-06-2004, 12:49

Yes. I thought about the mobile option. I got a new Nokia 6600 over a nicer Samsung as it had an mp3 player. What they don't tell you is that you need a bluetooth connection to download, new headphones as standard ones won't fit, and it's in mono.

paulbrock · 07-06-2004, 12:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ocean Pacific

Yes. I thought about the mobile option. I got a new Nokia 6600 over a nicer Samsung as it had an mp3 player. What they don't tell you is that you need a bluetooth connection to download, new headphones as standard ones won't fit, and it's in mono.

Hence the recommended, rare but beautiful SX1. Comes with data cable to download, stereo headphones included, and MP3 is in stereo.

monkeysoup · 07-06-2004, 21:21

As far as audio quality though, consider the bitrate - it might be worth doing a few trials to see what's acceptable. Personally, I find I need 192kbps minimum for mp3s, which works out at about 80MB an hour. Best to think in terms of the total duration, not a fairly meaningless count of the number of songs...

nevada · 09-06-2004, 00:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ocean Pacific

Is there any difference is sound quality between a cheap £30 MP3 player and a more expensive one?

It is generally written in hi-fi mags that the likes of the mini-mp3players can't compete with the larger ones for capacity OR sound quality. However I haven't had the chance to test this myself.

07-06-2004, 10:29	#1
Ocean Pacific Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: London Posts: 498	MP3 Players Is there any difference is sound quality between a cheap £30 MP3 player and a more expensive one?

07-06-2004, 11:26	#2
paulbrock Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Wapping, London Posts: 16,222	think a lot of the cost is dependent on the memory size. don't know about the quality. 30 quid? Cheapest on amazon is around 50 quid for 128MB (4 albums' worth?).

07-06-2004, 11:42	#3
Ocean Pacific Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: London Posts: 498	Quote: Originally Posted by paulbrock think a lot of the cost is dependent on the memory size. don't know about the quality. 30 quid? Cheapest on amazon is around 50 quid for 128MB (4 albums' worth?). Dixons have one for £30

07-06-2004, 11:57	#4
paulbrock Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Wapping, London Posts: 16,222	Ah yes, got it: SYNN SYNN 64Mb MP3 PLAYER Not an 'obvious' make, the main reason it's cheap is that it's 64 MB = 20 songs = 2 albums? What real advantage does this give you over e.g. CD player? Been discussed before here I think, I'm not a fan of the "spend 300 quid so you can carry ALL your albums with you" concept, I think 4-12 albums' worth is about right, for cost v size. I use a 128 MB which is OK for me at lower sampling rates. Found a newgroup posting of someone that bought the Synn 64MB and he's happy. Can't find a "Synn" website though, so would be suspect. A relatively cheap, low memory option would be mobiles that have built in MP3 players. You can expand the memory fairly easily too. SX1 is recommended, but Nokia also have several.

07-06-2004, 12:49	#5
Ocean Pacific Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: London Posts: 498	Yes. I thought about the mobile option. I got a new Nokia 6600 over a nicer Samsung as it had an mp3 player. What they don't tell you is that you need a bluetooth connection to download, new headphones as standard ones won't fit, and it's in mono.

07-06-2004, 12:58	#6
paulbrock Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Wapping, London Posts: 16,222	Quote: Originally Posted by Ocean Pacific Yes. I thought about the mobile option. I got a new Nokia 6600 over a nicer Samsung as it had an mp3 player. What they don't tell you is that you need a bluetooth connection to download, new headphones as standard ones won't fit, and it's in mono. Hence the recommended, rare but beautiful SX1. Comes with data cable to download, stereo headphones included, and MP3 is in stereo.

07-06-2004, 21:21	#7
monkeysoup Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Posts: 550	As far as audio quality though, consider the bitrate - it might be worth doing a few trials to see what's acceptable. Personally, I find I need 192kbps minimum for mp3s, which works out at about 80MB an hour. Best to think in terms of the total duration, not a fairly meaningless count of the number of songs...

09-06-2004, 00:03	#8
nevada Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 1,936	Quote: Originally Posted by Ocean Pacific Is there any difference is sound quality between a cheap £30 MP3 player and a more expensive one? It is generally written in hi-fi mags that the likes of the mini-mp3players can't compete with the larger ones for capacity OR sound quality. However I haven't had the chance to test this myself.

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