[Peter]

Hey sebimeyer,
What do you think of the earbuds? When I bought my first iPod I purchased the B&O earbuds. The new earbuds that came with my 15GB are smaller and sound pretty good, but still fall out of my ears. But I like them for the simplicity and the matching white cord. Are you using third party earbuds or the Apple included ones? What do you think of the new way the remote plugs in?
I'm the one who calls you the resident expert. Come on, give a more detailed review /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[nkasuri1]

I think that between the Archos Jukebox and the new Creative Zen thats comming out, the new iPods are a bad buy. The Archos has MUCH more functionality than the iPod. The Zen has twice the storage space. On top of that, they are both substantially cheaper than the top of the line iPod. The only thing the iPod has over its competitors currently is style. In this case I just dont think thats enough. I have an original 5GB iPod and even after two years I don't see how its obsolete. It does pretty much everything that the new iPods do. Granted it doesn't have the funky touch sensitive solid state controls. I'm just dissapointed that Apple hasn't made any functional improvements to this unit in the last couple of years. I was hoping to pair my new 17" Powerbook with a new iPod. I guess I'll now have to settle for an infinitely uglier Archos. By the way, the next generation Archos which will be the same price and size as the current model will feature a full size screen (in the sense that it will cover most of the surface area of the unit). I'll probably wait for this to come out and then get it.

[Peter]

Hi nkasuri1,
What is more functional about the Archos and the Creative Zen, that you need and find lacking in the iPod? Style has a BIG deal to do with this purchase. Only Apple has figured this out in the design, just like they did with your 17" Powerbook. And of course everyone else tries to follow. In your comparing the new iPod to the older they are completely different in form. They feel great in your hands, are small enough to not be bulky or obtrusive. The iPod for my purposes does exactly what I want it to. Play music, and seemlessly work with my Mac and iTunes. I don't want a PDA Palm like device, FM radio, recorder, or anything else to junk it up. I can use it as a Firewire storage when needed and most of all it is as cool as hell.
So feel free to purchase whatever makes you feel good, but why the comparison of those models to the iPod I don't know. I think everyone who will purchase one or the other has made up their own minds which to buy. This is not like a PC vs. Mac debate. Buy what makes you happy. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[nkasuri1]

I absolutely agree. If MP3 play is the only thing that you are going to use your Portable Device for, then the iPod is a reasonable choice. I do however feel that the iPod, in its current form is overpriced. I would feel more comfortable buying it if it was at least $100 cheaper. However, I really like the ability to carry my videos and pictures with me on an ultraportable device. The Archos would let me do this and can also output video directly to a TV. I was only making a comparison to illustrate that Apples competitors were offering more appealing options. My intention is not to put the iPod down as I feel that it is by far the coolest looking MP3 player on the market. I am concerned that Apple will loose their dominant market position, and actually feel bad about having to move to a new device to meet my needs. My experiance with the original iPod was very positive. Soon, very soon, companies will have devices availible that can function as full viewing stations. This will include the ability to transfer and capture video, images, and Music. Considering these options could become availible in the next couple of months, I think that Apple missed a trick with the current line of iPods. This was an opportunity for them to get into this game in a bigger and better way than anyone else. I do still have my hopes that they will make a strong, albeit late, entry into this market. After all the iPod was not the first MP3 player or earth but it was by far the best. Heres hoping for the best. I'll be the first person the scrap whatever I've ended up purchasing when they come out with a unit that includes the type of functionality I have mentioned.

[Peter]

Hi nkasuri1,
I never thought you were putting down the iPod. For the needs you mention I think you should go with another product. But I still think maybe Apple doesn't intend for the iPod to be all those things, nor would it fall behind others if it doesn't offer them. It's obvious Apples focus with the iPod is music. Who knows, we shall wait and see.
As far as your thinking the iPod should be priced $100.00 less have you seen this promotion?.........
PowerMax iPod Promotion
Good luck with your choices!

[Jason Snell]

Absolutely, if you want a photo player, the iPod isn't for you. Personally, I'm not interested in a photo player, which is why I like the iPod. It's not a ten-things-in-one device (yet).

[cyberhazard]

Well I got my 15GB iPod 5-2-03 and played it all day Friday. By Saturday
I found myself searching for a set of good high quality, 3rd party headphones.
Why?
Because the OEM ear-buds feel like hockey pucks jammed in my ears.
What I found is the Shure E2c earphones. These are very small, in-ear style
headphones and are very comfortable compared to the OEM ear-buds. But
what really sets them apart is that they sound amazing. These flat out rock.
If you want to get the most out of your iPod, loose the Apple ear-buds and
upgrade to something better. When it comes to headphones, there is a 1=10
rule. $10 headphones sound like $100 speakers, $100 headphones sound
like $1000 speakers.

[swsteckly]

I don't want to put down or judge your buying decision, and only you know what sounds best to your ear, but I have found the $280 Etymotic Research ER-4P earphone to be sonically superior to the earphone that you purchased. While the Shure model is great, and a major step up from the iPod earphones, the Etymotic is just as much a step up from the Shure.
One man's opinion, however...

[sebimeyer]

Quite frankly, I have never used anything else on the 20 GB iPod than the ear buds that came with it. The buds of the 5 GB iPod were horrible. It actually hurt to wear them for a prolonged amount of time.
The new ones, however, fit me nicely. A piece of advice about ear buds is that they take a couple of days to take onto your ears. Or your ears to the buds...
After using them for a day or two they fit me very well.
What I find quite amusing is that people complain about the price of even the lowest iPod model ($299), while others compare their headphones and ear buds that they bough for $280. Capitalist world I guess. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[swsteckly]

Haha seb.
Well, some of us will complain that they think it's crazy to have more than 5GB of space, while some of us are packing our 30GB with 320kbps AAC files, for the sake of better quality sound.
Most people don't care about accurate audio production. But, some of us do. I was using my Grado RS-1's and HeadRoom amp, but a $1800 portable setup is just too bulky and expensive to tote around every day. The iPod and a tiny set of earphones are much more like it. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[cyberhazard]

The Etymotic is a very fine setup at that price point. And at three times the
price, I guess they should sound a little better than the Shure E2c's. There
are headphones out there that go for $10,000. At any rate, the point I was
trying make was that found the OEM ear-buds to very uncomfortable to me.
And I had found one option that works very well for me.
Whats your take on the StudioPhonic HEAROS Platinum 25 series in-ear
speakers. They are in the same price range as the Etymotic's. Also how
do the Shure E5c's stack up against others in the $500 range.

[nkasuri1]

I am adressing this question to some of the people who have been using high end Headphones with their iPods. Don't you find that using the iPods internal amplifier becomes a bit of a bottleneck in terms of sound quality, not to mention the inherent deficiencies of compressed sound. One of the basic principles of audio is that you have to couple your speakers with equally capable amplifiers. Case in point, there is no point in powering a pair or Revel Ultima Salons with a Rotel two channel amplifier. I can only assume that the same pricipal applies to headphones. I have been thinking of buying a pair of Sennheiser HD 600's for my Powerbook. I'm not sure, however, that these headphones will be able to explore their true potential using the Powerbooks built in amp. Also, does anyone have any experiance with wireless headphones. Do they give they have the same sound quality as wired headphones. Is the sound transmitted digitally or in analogue.

[swsteckly]

cyberhazard,
As I said, I'm not insulting you or your decision. What sounds good to me could sound like garbage to you. As for the Shure e5c's sound very much like the Etymotic. The same linearity to the sound, but the dynamic range seems slightly compressed, especially in the upper range. I also find the Etymotic to be more comfortable.
I have not been able to audition the HEAROS, as no dealer in my area.
On the topic of amplifiers, a good quality portable amplifier (like the HeadRoom Portable Pro), will greatly increase the quality of sound, from any low-power portable source. The Etymotic ER-4S provide a slightly better sound, but require an amplifier to sound their best. So, an amplifier will improve the quality of sound on almost any portable source, but you may choose a low-impedance headphone like the ER-4P, whose sound without an amp is much better than others.

[Matt_G]

cyberhazard:
Upon your recommendation, I ordered a set of the E2c's. I ordered them from Headroom, who has a 30 day guarantee (if I don't like them I can send them back).
nkasuri1:
Speaking as an HD600 owner, I'd like to say that they're a great pair of headphones, but you will not see their full potential without the use of a headphone amp. The HD600's have a very high impedence and require more power than the Powerbook's little amp can supply.