Cheap, decent mp3 player?

dcsarge · 3 Mar 2009 at 20:04

Hi, can anyone recommend a decent mp3 player with a clear UI but doesn't cost much? Around £30 give or take a bit would be great.

I want one to play through a Pyramat Gamebag that I got for my son as an affordable resonance beanbag (which it does very nicely with the volume down and the bass up). I have been using my wife's 8Gb Zen but I would like something that could be kept with it all the time and would be cheaper to replace if damaged.

Cheers

Dave

aproctor · 3 Mar 2009 at 20:28

Creative do good ones.

cookie64 · 3 Mar 2009 at 22:11

i have a sansa clip at the moment 8gb (has everything you have menchened) got it for £40 but i think they do a 4gb one for the price range you are looking for

Kona* · 3 Mar 2009 at 22:27

Another vote for the Sansa Clip

I have had two so far and they are great, the bundled headphones are a bit pants so I'd budget in another £20 or so for some Sennheiser CX300's which should do just nicely!

cookie64 · 3 Mar 2009 at 22:53

yea good point though i have yet to see any bundled headphones that have been any good

dcsarge · 4 Mar 2009 at 08:20

Thanks for the replies.

The bundled headphones aren't important as it will be outputting through the game bag.

I love the creative players but they are a bit expensive for what I want. The Sansa looks good and I will have a shop around and see how much I can get one for.

Cheers guys

Uriel · 4 Mar 2009 at 08:37

Just a quick one - do you need gapless playback?

At the moment the Sansa Clip and Fuze don't have gapless playback so they aren't much good for dance mixes and it might spoil your enjoyment of live recordings. If we're lucky a firmware update might sort this out eventually.

dcsarge · 4 Mar 2009 at 20:31

I must admit that it something I have never considered. I didn't even realise it could be an issue with mp3 players but I can't imagine it would be an issue.

I had a look around locally and online and it looks like the Sansa is typically around £30 for either the 2Gb or 4Gb versions depending on the retailer (online giving the better deal as usual).

I didn't see any thing better for that price in any high street retailer so I will order one online unless I spot a better one on offer.

Uriel · 4 Mar 2009 at 21:30

Well in that case, a sansa clip should be ideal. I'm quite tempted myself. They have a reputation of giving excellent sound quality.

Vegetarian · 4 Mar 2009 at 22:22

Sony do some for £30 ish - I always like Sony Sound quality.

gurusan · 6 Mar 2009 at 11:42

I've just bought a Sansa Fuze 12gb...upgrading from a Sansa Express. The Fuze looks awesome and I'm stoked to hear how it sounds.

Tripnologist · 6 Mar 2009 at 12:32

I picked up a 4GB refurb Zune for £30 as I refuse to use an ipod. Turns out that it's actually a very decent MP3 player.

marc2003 · 6 Mar 2009 at 12:36

another vote for the clip. 8gb for 40 quid can't be beat and it sounds great too. (not with the stock earphones obviously

)

dcsarge · 6 Mar 2009 at 16:22

gurusan said:
I've just bought a Sansa Fuze 12gb...upgrading from a Sansa Express. The Fuze looks awesome and I'm stoked to hear how it sounds.

After looking around online I found that for £49.99 so I am very tempted to spend the extra and get one instead of the Clip. The colour screen looks good.

Have you had a chance to play around with it yet and if so what do you think of the interface?

Edit: Ignore that as I thought 'sod it' and ordered it anyway along with a USB mains charger so I don't have to be near a PC to charge it (or several other gadgets for that matter)

I'll post a short review on it when it arrives next week (free 1st Class delivery and i've probably missed today's post too).

Thanks for pointing me in the direction of the Sansa range.

gurusan · 6 Mar 2009 at 20:24

I just ordered it today, it's been in the "packing" stage for the last 10 hours

Expecting it next week sometime.

dcsarge · 6 Mar 2009 at 22:22

My order is sat on 'packing' too, they must have headed home for the weekend. :rolleyes:

I really should make my decisions earlier in the day.

dcsarge · 7 Mar 2009 at 15:34

Had a confirmation email that it has been posted this morning. I'm not sure how far through the mail system it will get on a Saturday but there is a chance I might get it on Monday

gurusan · 7 Mar 2009 at 17:31

Yup me too...it says posting takes 3-5 days.

I hope it's here Monday or Tues...

dcsarge · 13 Mar 2009 at 14:05

It arrived!

My Fuze arrived a couple of days ago but due to some sytem problems that I have only just resolved, I didn't get a chance to play with it properly until today.

Out of the packet (one of those annoying to open blister pack things) the player immediately gave a sense of high quality. The glossy casing is well put together and has solid weight to it's compact size. On turning it on I was again impressed by the screen, which is bright and clear. The dial control feels positive and well made and and gives makes switching through the menu icons easy. A single press of the centre button selects the highlighted option. I will have to delve into the settings at some point.

I have only ripped one album (Pink - Funhouse using MP3 @320kbps) to try so far and for the life of me I cannot find how to add Album Art in WMP12. I first tried playing the album using my desktop speakers (mid-range Logitech 2.1 set, can't remember model number) and 'So What' kicked off with a nice strong bass level and good clarity. It is now thumping out a great amount of bass through my son's Pyramat Gamebag and easily equals my wife's Zen in quality.

For those of you who commented on the supplied earbuds you were spot on, they are very poor compared to the actual player. I tried them and they had weak bass and mid-range tone and also suffered distortion at fairly low volume.

All in all I am very impressed with the Fuze, great quality and storage (8gb onboard + 4Gb MicroSDHC card) for £50, just make sure you have a decent set of headphones/earbuds.