"audiophile-grade" iPod-based system

iPod, walkman, headphones, earphones, boomboxes, etc...

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"audiophile-grade" iPod-based system

Postby vintage_dog » Sun Sep 04, 2005 11:52 am

okay guys, i'm a dummy with this gadget.

so, what is the minimum gear and accessories i have to get to be able to assemble an "audiophile-grade" iPod system for the office or home?

what iPod model do i buy?

how do i get wireless on the iPod?
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Re: "audiophile-grade" iPod-based system

Postby bayonic » Sun Sep 04, 2005 12:34 pm

so, what is the minimum gear and accessories i have to get to be able to assemble an "audiophile-grade" iPod system for the office or home?

think of the ipod as just another source . if you already have an "audiophile-grade" system , then all you need is a mini-to-rca cable to connect the ipod to your amp/pre-amp

what iPod model do i buy?

there are three main variants :

Ipod Shuffle - comes in 512MegaBytes ( around 120 songs ) or 1 Gigabytes ( around 240 songs ) ... very small . smaller than a pack of chicklets .

Ipod Mini - comes in 4 Gigabytes ( 1000 songs ) or 6 GB ( 1500 songs ) ... uses a small hard disk to store data.

Ipod - comes in 20 GB ( 5000 songs ) or 60 GB ( 15000 songs ) ... comes with color LCD screen that can display album art and photos .

how do i get wireless on the iPod?

not sure if you can get wireless with the IPOD although there are countless third party IPOD accessories available .
however , Apple sells another product called Airport Express . With this gadget , you can wirelessly stream music ( also data ) from a computer ( not necessarily a Mac ) to your HiFi system.

one thing i don't like about the Ipod is that it highlights the one big disadvantage of vinyl . :) ... with an IPOD you can create playlists which can play unattended for hours ... or you can just browse and play all the songs in your music library from a particular artist without getting up and exchanging LPs ( or CDs for that matter ) .

hope this helps.
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Postby rtsyrtsy » Sun Sep 04, 2005 4:22 pm

Just to add to bayonic's post, the I-Pod shuffle is a solid-state memory device. The other mini and the IPod are hard-drive based devices. Consider how you'll use the gadget...kung madalas maalog (if you use it when exercising) or mabagsak, don't go with a hard drive-based machine.

Also, the IPod shuffer doesn't have an LCD display, so you don't know what you're playing and you'll go through all the songs in your device to scan.

I use mine when on the move and I find the LCD disply rather useful so I chose a Creative Zen. It runs on AAAs so no need to buy / lug around a charger (though the Shuffle charges on your USB port).

Cheers!
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Postby alizaso » Sun Sep 04, 2005 4:33 pm

I have a 20 GB 3rd Gen IPod, I almost filled it up with tracks spanning a lot of genre. I have been doing lot of DIY cable (stereo Mini jack-RCA) to better the connention to my Primaluna P1. Talaga lang mahina ang output signal coming from the dock. The most important thing is quality ng mp3.
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Postby hein » Sun Sep 04, 2005 4:34 pm

Connect an IPOD (via headphone plug to RCA cable) to any good small integrated amp (Creek, MF) and some good bookshelf speaker (Epos, Mission) and you are in business. VD, for your needs 20gig ang minimum req.
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Postby JackD201 » Sun Sep 04, 2005 6:27 pm

Hi VD, I've actually tried this already. iPOD mini-TRS to RCA direct into any power amp. I used to use a cable from Monste Cable but now fld sent me a beautiful sounding silver miniTRS to RCA from Analysis Plus. Master Rene and I are planning to make a dock/headphone amp/pre for 3rd and 4th Gen iPods probably using 6922s but Rene is still figuring out the circuit to use. Since you are a Toob guy anyway direct into your amps would work fine. :)

Which one? Go for the sixty since the price per gig starts to drop dramatically. If you're planning on ripping at .WAV or .AIFF bigger in this case is always better. ;)
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Postby albundy » Wed Sep 07, 2005 11:30 am

Hi JackD201. Could I ask how much you got your mini-TRS to RCA from analysis plus is? I'm in search for a good cable for my ipod mini.

Sir rtsy, I'm not too sure if the ipod mini is hard drive based as it doesn't have the same slight vibration of the hard drive as the ipod when turned on. And it doesn't heat up as well. Plus, I've dropped mine several times and it doesn't skip at all. Its actually quite sturdy, considering what mine's been thru.

I'm also helping a friend setup a system for his ipod. Its gonna be mostly ipod sourced unless he decides to invest in a good cd player or TT. We already got him a good deal on a pair of used Usher V9803 bookshelves. Could you guys suggest an amp for him? His music is a bit eclectic, crossing from rock, jazz, electronica, to the standards. Can he just use a power amp? Or will he need a preamp section to control the volume?

Thanks for your help :)
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Postby JackD201 » Wed Sep 07, 2005 11:47 am

Hi Al it's app. $100. Pricey but worth it. It blows the $36 Monster Cable out of the water. Audience makes a good one too. I heard Keith aka Nephilim's about P3800 yata.

As for your friend, my portable set-up consists of B&W DM302s or LM-1s driven by Musical Fidelity XA-50 monoblocks driven directly by the iPOD so yes he can go direct into a power amp . A tube buffer like an X-10D would be a good addition. If it's a permanent installation, I'd suggest a good integrated like the NAD Bee's for the ushers. Or he can just add apreamp later on when he gets a CD player and a turntable.

:)
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Postby albundy » Wed Sep 07, 2005 11:59 am

It is a bit pricey at $100 :lol: I'll check it out though. Thanks :)

I was thinking of suggesting the NAD too. But I'll tell him to consider going the power amp way as well. I wanted to know if I covered all my bases though, just so that my friend gets a good picture of what's available to him.

Thanks again!
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Postby onedown » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:01 pm

albundy, yes, the ipod mini is a hard drive player. i don't own an ipod, but i'm guessing that the absence of vibration could be due to an improved design. as for skipping, the min probably has a bigger memory buffer.
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Postby hein » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:06 pm

albundy wrote:Sir rtsy, I'm not too sure if the ipod mini is hard drive based as it doesn't have the same slight vibration of the hard drive as the ipod when turned on. And it doesn't heat up as well.


Yup, may micro hard-drive ang IPOD MINI, amazing but true. Although Steve Jobs of Apple recently signed a deal with Samsung to make pakyaw their flash memory chips. The next 3rd gen MINI will have flash memory with no moving parts.
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Postby JackD201 » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:12 pm

Mahal talaga kasi when silver is used. :( It really helps in tightening up the rather loose sound of compressed music though. AND as Keith would say....SEEELVER! :lol:

Saw on Bloomberg Apple is planning on making an iPOD CELLPHONE! Yehey! Full Integration w/ iLIFE,iCAL,iSYNC!!! Yahoo!
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Postby albundy » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:17 pm

Then I am very impressed with the mini. :D For a hard drive based system, its outstanding. Never skipped on me once. I use it for jogging. Dropped it from table high several times and it keeps playing without skipping a beat. And I don't even have one of those rubber condom covers on it.
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Postby JackD201 » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:21 pm

Al, unless you plan on marrying your iPod, I suggest you put on a rubber! :lol: :lol: :lol:

Sorry Pare, I couldn't resist that one! :)
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Postby albundy » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:22 pm

Au natural my friend! :lol:
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Postby hein » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:23 pm

Two new IPOD wannabees....Can they make a dent on APPLE's 70% market share?

Image
SONY's new HD based 20g player

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VIRGIN group's (Yep, the same guys who make softdrinks) new HD player
Last edited by hein on Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby onedown » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:25 pm

JackD201 wrote:snip
Saw on Bloomberg Apple is planning on making an iPOD CELLPHONE! Yehey! Full Integration w/ iLIFE,iCAL,iSYNC!!! Yahoo!


i'm not sure if it's already out in the market, but the nokia n91 [not sure about the model] has a 4gb hard disk, and if i remember correctly, can play aac encoded files.
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Postby hein » Wed Sep 07, 2005 12:48 pm

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SAMSUNG too wants to get into the fray. Their answer to the IPOD photo......
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Postby hein » Wed Sep 07, 2005 4:34 pm

Image

YIKES... PHILIPS too!!!
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Postby tatalope » Wed Sep 07, 2005 5:01 pm

dami choices ngayon ala naman pambili hehe.. ka-mahal naman kasi ng mga yan kaya tyaga muna sa cd mp3 player ko :)
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