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Looking for a bit of advice so I can tell my wife I actually have an idea for what she can buy me for Christmas. I'm thinking it might be time to upgrade my PMP. For the last 7 or 8 years I've used a Cowon J3. The last few years it has been paired with HiFiMan RE-600S (the non-balanced version of the RE-600). Source files are almost exclusively FLACs ripped from my CD collection. I see that since the J3 was out there has been a whole raft of "hi-def" music players, including ones from HiFiMan. I like the J3 - it sounds good, has a strong battery life and a nice small form factor. I can imagine the sound being improved upon, however, and bigger storage wouldn't go amiss (although equal storage wouldn't be a dealbreaker in a new PMP if everything else were right). I note that the new players all have very high maximum sample rates (either 192 or 384 kHz), which is of course higher than the 44 kHz of my FLAC files. But I assume that improved DAC circuitry and inbuilt headphone amps would still offer an improvement over the J3. Am I right that it is worth looking to upgrade the J3, given my source files, and can anyone point me in the right direction/provide a few recommendations to kick off my research, please? Would be looking at mid to high end, probably, in the region of £500-£1,000. Will initially pair with the RE-600S, and then look to ultimately get a new pair of IEMs too, particularly if the new players supports balanced 'phones.
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Nov 14, 2017 12:21
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| # ¿ May 8, 2024 23:03 |
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A few years ago my wife bought me a Cowon J3. It's been a good player and I like it a fair bit, albeit the battery is not what it was and it is getting a touch battered. Since buying it I've paired it with Panasonic HJE900, Ortofon EQ7 and most recently, and my favourite of the bunch, HiFiMan RE600s (non-balanced version), which are my favourites so far. But it's nearly my birthday and Christmas and as usual I don't know what to ask my wife for, and as usual audio equipment springs to mind, so I've been thinking about upgrading my portable set up. Since I got the Cowon there has been a rise of "hi-res" DAPs, made by iBasso, Astell and Kern, The Bit etc. I was looking a bit at the latter's Opus#2 last year. My thoughts were to maybe upgrade my Cowon to one of these, if worth it, and my headphones to the Noble Kaiser Encores, the reviews of which make them sound right up my alley. But I want to make a "sensible" decision. Can I ask therefore: 1. Do the hi-res players offer a sonic advantage over the Cowon J3 for CD-quality files (I mostly use FLAC rips of my CD collection), or is their advantage only in the hi-res arena? 2. Assuming yes and it was worthwhile upgrading the Cowon, would it make sense to upgrade that first and use it with the HiFiMan RE600s for a bit, or should I upgrade the HiFiMans to the Noble Kaiser Encore and upgrade the Cowon later? Assuming the answer to 1 is no, maybe I will just consider the earphone upgrade. Looking forward to any thoughts. OneSizeFitsAll fucked around with this message at 10:28 on Oct 11, 2018 |
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Oct 11, 2018 10:25
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KozmoNaut posted:Neither. It's snake oil. Thanks for the response. It makes sense that the headphones matter most, likewise speakers in a home setup. On your "neither" comment, can I just ask: 1. I know the Cowon J3 only plays 16-bit stuff. Are you saying therefore that on a newer player that can decode higher res files, there is no discernible difference between those and 16-bit FLACs? 2. If there is no difference between the J3 and the newer players when playing 16-bit FLACs would you also say that a decent high end smartphone would also sound as good? Doesn't the quality of the DAC make a difference? I.e. the J3 has a better DAC than the smartphones and therefore couldn't newer players have superior DACs to the J3? I love good audio reproduction but I agree there's so much snake oil going round that it's hard to navigate the bullshit, especially when you are not particularly technically minded.
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Oct 11, 2018 11:41
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Thanks for your comments - much appreciated.
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Oct 11, 2018 12:45
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I lost my Cowon J3 after about 15 years of enjoyment with it. I'm looking for a replacement now but I'm a bit out of the loop - there are lot of new manufacturers and models, with things like balanced headphone ports, which I have no idea if they are worth it (with a suitable pair of phones) or not. I don't mind spending money for quality, though obviously without overpaying for audiophile snake oil features. Would pair with HiFiMan IEMs and play mostly FLAC files, though I may get some new phones in the near future too; would consider balanced if that whole thing is worth it and I had the player to match. What would be some good choices for me please, guys?
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Jul 8, 2022 13:13
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| # ¿ May 8, 2024 23:03 |
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My wife bought me an iBasso DX320 for my birthday. I'm not sure why - I had told her I was considering carrying on with my stalwart Cowon J3, as it still works and sounds great, but that I had picked out a potential replacement, the Dethonray Prelude DTR1+, as it focuses on sound and I don't need or want any streaming functionality. The reviews make the Dethonray seem like a great sounding player. I know the iBasso has a music-only OS mode, and has similar battery life to the Dethonray, as well as highly rated sound (based on the reviews I've read), but I can't do a comparison test, and I CBA with switching amp modules and the like as I know you can do with the iBasso - I don't like having loads of configuration options and worrying about which is best. I haven't removed it from the box, but it seems a bit physically big, too. I normally slip my DAP into my inside or side jacket pocket, or shorts side pocket when it's warm, to listen to while on a dog walk or the like. The dimensions of the Dethonray are smaller, depth aside. Am I crazy thinking about returning the iBasso and getting the Dethonray, or replacing it with something else entirely and just keeping on with the J3 for now? Is the iBasso on paper the better player (sonically) than the Dethonray? I'm going to assume considering the J3's age and relative cost that both sound better than it. edit: source files are largely FLACs. OneSizeFitsAll fucked around with this message at 15:15 on Dec 4, 2023 |
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Dec 4, 2023 15:12
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