Looking for an MP3 Player Suitable for Travelling

GraemePaul

GraemePaul

GraemePaul

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12 Jan 2006
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96
Hi there.

I am going backpacking in the summer to India Thailand etc and I am looking for an MP3 player that is up to the job.

I want a built in radio, Lithium Ion Battery, Large Storage capacity as I intend to copy to it my entire CD collection (up to 20gig). as it is going to be a 20 gig MP3 player I will need it to be a HDD player. It must be durable and be able to last a year on the road without dying on me.

I used to own a Rio Karma but that died when I accidently dropped it. As a result my entire music collection is stored as FLAC files as I am a bit of an Audiophile and the FLAC support was the reason I brought the Karma.

I am willing to convert this to either MP3, Ogg Vorbis or WMA so FLAC is not a requirement. Good sound quality for a portable is though. I intend to charge the MP3 player off the mains supply in the countries I am visiting and will be getting a multi region power adapter for the purpose but this means I will not be able to use any docking cradles, the player needs to be charged directly from the mains. In fact are there any players out there that take the same type of Lithium Ion Batteries as many cameras do these days as I could use the same charger.

I am not concerned about colour screens or the ability to view photo's on the MP3 player and would like it to be a pure music device.

Thanks for your help

Graeme
 
iaudio 5XL would be a good choice imo, about the longest batt life you will get out of a hdd dap, will do FLAC, excellent SQ also. However, I have seen a few raise questions about build quality and the 'L' version is deffo on the bulky side.

An 5g iPod with rockbox firmware on will also do FLAC and ogg etc (it now works with 5g video but still work in progress so maybe not an option).

Personally I just bought a samsung yh-j70 and I think it is excellent, millions of features, great SQ with 9 band EQ, does most formats, bar FLAC unfortunately.

I'm sure there is an iriver that will suit you, but there not my cup of tea so I will let someone else recommend one.

I will say as a final point if you really are a true audiophile and want the best SQ bar none, then you will want the new kenwood HD20GA7. However it is very hard to get hold of as it is not released in this country (try ebay I know there are sellers in germany). It's basically the first portable dap with a built-in digital amp and has built up quite a cult following in Japan etc for its simply amazing SQ!
 
Ive been doing some thinking. If I find my broken Rio and replace the HDD it may work again. Ive been looking on the Rio fansite www.Riovolution.com and they have some really helpful guides and advice on how to do this. Even if fixing my old Rio Karma does not work I could get a second hand one from Ebay and do the same mod.

The more I have thought about it the more I realise I was spoilt with my Original DAP as now everything else I look at seems inferior.

The Iaudio X5L is not good enough because of the lack of ID3 tag support and TBH I want a dedicated MP3 player. I have no need to look at photo's or watch video on it.

The kenwood HD20GA7 looks ok but it is not readily avalible in the UK and again does not support the music formats I want as well as not having a very large HDD (20GB).

The Ipod with RockBox looks promising but I really do not want to purchase an I Pod. I like my individuality.

While I am on the subject. Is there a 1.8" HDD that is 7mm thick with a single 40GB platter and has a IDE connection?
 
Have you thought about an Iriver? The H10 sounds like it would be a good choice for you. The battery is internal but charges from the mains. As for a new HDD, I know where you can get them, but I can't post as it's a competitor (I think). But it will be around £80
 
Captain Kirk said:
Have you thought about an Iriver? The H10 sounds like it would be a good choice for you. The battery is internal but charges from the mains. As for a new HDD, I know where you can get them, but I can't post as it's a competitor (I think). But it will be around £80
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The battery isnt internal on the H10 mate :) it clips off of the back.. and you can get spare ones... idea for traveling tbh.. just make sure you keep them chraged and ya can keep going :)
 
its small light and compact.. ive only got the 5gb one.. but it does the job well (with current firmware) and sound quality is spot on :) i use sony earphones tho.. as the ones that came with it didnt feel right and broke :/
 
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