Audio Suggest some modifications to the portable setup I am thinking of

Vasishta.Sushant

Vasishta.Sushant

Skilled
I was thinking of getting the SFlo2 but due to some bad reviews about the UI and later about the shipping hassles, I am trying to look out for another option. (One of the TE friends, ordered SFlo2 bundle through me. We used the EMS and the thing was shipped on 3rd I guess. it took 2 days to reach India and its still stuck with the customs. I didnt expect all that even after paying close to a grand for the shipping).

Anyway, I am looking at Sansa Fuze 8GB now:
Amazon.com: SanDisk Sansa Fuze 8 GB Video MP3 Player (Black): Electronics
coupled with some silicon covers here:
Amazon.com: 3-PK Sansa Fuze 8GB/4GB/2GB Silicone Skin Cases + Free Armband: CrazyOnDigital

Getting the above two through a friend and it will cost me less than 4K.

Want to pair this thing with HifiMan RE ZERO (would have preferred to save 20 dollars by going with RE0 but I presume that Fuze will be able to drive RE Zero better. Correct me if I am wrong)

Another 5.4K for these.

I have good 10-15 days before I can place the order at Amazon.

Can I better this thing somehow ? I can extend the budget by another few grands. Do not want to go for any amps etc since they are more of a hassle to me. Again the setup will be used before I go to sleep daily so comfort and less clutter is the priority.
PS: Can someone confirm if Sansa gives International warranty on Fuze ( Few listings by Pristine Note on ebay india say so)
 
1) Fuze is perfect if you don't want the Sflo 2 . It does not come with International warranty. Pristine Note gives 1 year warranty from his side .

2)Fuze will drive RE-Zero better .RE-0 will need an amp to shine. Also RE-Zero and RE-0 don't sound the same exactly.Zero seems to have more bass and better midrange but not the same transparency and extremely detailed treble extension as RE-0.

If you prefer very neutral sound , Fuze + RE-zero is perfect. :)
 
Actually when people address "neutral" I get confused. I want some bass as well. Was even thinking of Panasonic HJE9000 (Amazon.com: Panasonic RP-HJE900-K Hi End Zirconia Earbud Headphones: OneCall), just for the bass. But on one of the reviews on HeadFi, I realized that the overall sound loses in front of the RE0s (and RE Zeros), except for the bass.

I am just not being able to decide on the earphones. I want the true representation of the REs but want the capability to pump up the bass sometimes as well.

This selection thing is terribly tough. Becomes even tougher when you don't have deep pockets.
 
Vasishta.Sushant said:
I want the true representation of the REs but want the capability to pump up the bass sometimes as well.
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That sounds something in the leagues of UE TF10 ,RE-252 etc. Will be almost double the budget of RE-Zero. Only other option I can think of in your budget is Brainwavz M2 .Its not flat/ neutral like RE-0 but SQ is pretty close .Bass and midrange is better than RE-0 . Treble detailing isn't , anyways hardly any 100$ IEM comes close to RE-0s treble detailing :p.
 
I would tell you to get Sansa fuze 4gb from here for 4K(Apply coupon to decrease cost further like to 3.5k). Add a Memory Card and you are set with indian warranty.
Also did u enquire with Mp4nation about the availability of M2?Expected date to be back in stock?
( I wasnt able to register hence i am not able to raise a ticket for this. If you are registered can you please raise a ticket on the same lines?)

Bty If you are getting it from US why not give Sony AW series a shot?

bty Sushant what seems to be the hangup with S:Flo2 ?

sorry for too many queries :ashamed:
 
apextwin146 said:
I would tell you to get Sansa fuze 4gb from here for 4K(Apply coupon to decrease cost further like to 3.5k). Add a Memory Card and you are set with indian warranty.
Also did u enquire with Mp4nation about the availability of M2?Expected date to be back in stock?
( I wasnt able to register hence i am not able to raise a ticket for this. If you are registered can you please raise a ticket on the same lines?)

Bty If you are getting it from US why not give Sony AW series a shot?

bty Sushant what seems to be the hangup with S:Flo2 ?

sorry for too many queries :ashamed:
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Man I am getting 8Gb for lesser price. Including the Silicon Covers.

M2 is ready for preorder on MP4Nation. The delivery will start sometime in the end of Sept / Start of Oct.

Sony AW series seem to be too costly. I have budget constraints dude. Still if you have some model in your mind, do let me know. I'll try to find a deal for that.

About the SFlo2, I am worried about the UI glitches and more because of the warranty/reliability issues.

(I guess I answered all the questions. Additionally I couldn't meet that fellow to have an audition of SFlo2 since he was little busy this weekend)
 
From what i have read you cant trust the Mp4Nation Preorders. They have poor track record for fullfilling pre orders atleast in teh S:Flo2 case.
I knw you are getting 8gb+silicon covers for less but isnt local warranty worth it over the extra 4gb?Isnt warranty one of your Issues regarding the S:Flo2 too?
Most of the UI glitches have been fixes as pointed out by benny in the other thread. Its still painfull to use the UI but a lot better. I am in a fix cuz i knw it has compatibility problems with Windws 7. Not sure but i think u cant update the firmware on Windows 7.
Didnt knw your budget hence mentioned the Sony. Models are upward $300 upwards only so i will suggest incase that is your budget :p( I knw its too costly hence even i dont consider them/)
 
I am sure that will sound better. Faheem has lot's of praise for uDac and HPA on head-fi suggest uDac-2 is better than uDac in almost every respect. amp used to be the weak link in uDac, uDac-2 doest that part better. Should sound really good.
If you do not mind even bigger dac/amp and spending a bit more, you could opt for an ac powered desktop amp. Nothing better than that. :)
 
A uDAC \uDAC II + RE-0 setup will sound lot-lot better than a Fuze and most probably even Sflo 2 . Also it will give you future upgrade options for better cans etc. You need to decide what you want first.Portable or desktop ?

@ haraakiri . I guess they call the uDAC amp a weak link because it isn't neutral sounding and has a warm sound otherwise for a 99$ product the amp is way powerful than other options .It can easily drive a mid-fi cans like AD700,M50,SRH-840,D2000 etc.
 
Increasing the budget is not something I'd prefer. Also Desktop AMP means I'll have to stay connected to my PC. Something much more constrained. I just want to lie down, put the IEMs in my ears, surrender myslef to the music and just slip into my dreams. With the udac2 it is little strange but possible. With a desktop amp, it wont be that doable.

Also a decent desktop amp itself will cost like 250 USD. I ain't a rich man dude. I'll have to skip one meal daily for 3 years, to offset that cost :p

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FaH33m said:
A uDAC \uDAC II + RE-0 setup will sound lot-lot better than a Fuze and most probably even Sflo 2 . Also it will give you future upgrade options for better cans etc. You need to decide what you want first.Portable or desktop ?
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Well this one seems like a better buy.

Also as mentioned, desktop thing will kind of too constrained for a relaxed listening. My major usage of this thing will be before going to sleep. I can somehow manage the netbook + udac + re0 on my bed, a dektop thing will make it look even more ugly.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

PS: Can someone help me with some very good review links for UDAC-2 ?
 
sushant.....this offer is the greatest...even i am getting it (well am 90% certain)

HM-602+re262@$369 preorder

though there will be even more glitches in the UI than S:flo but the SQ will be very good ...moreover you will be getting a great pair of IEMs ( ...well i trust Hifiman to diliver)
 
Vasishta.Sushant said:
Increasing the budget is not something I'd prefer. Also Desktop AMP means I'll have to stay connected to my PC. Something much more constrained. I just want to lie down, put the IEMs in my ears, surrender myslef to the music and just slip into my dreams. With the udac2 it is little strange but possible. With a desktop amp, it wont be that doable.

Also a decent desktop amp itself will cost like 250 USD. I ain't a rich man dude. I'll have to skip one meal daily for 3 years, to offset that cost :p

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---



Well this one seems like a better buy.

Also as mentioned, desktop thing will kind of too constrained for a relaxed listening. My major usage of this thing will be before going to sleep. I can somehow manage the netbook + udac + re0 on my bed, a dektop thing will make it look even more ugly.

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

PS: Can someone help me with some very good review links for UDAC-2 ?
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Not many reviews of uDAC II are out yet ..I wont make any judgments unless I read atleast a dozen user feedback.Anyways going by the first impressions in this thread , uDAC II stands somewhere between the older uDAC and the HDP (full fledged desktop amp). FIRST IMPRESSIONS: NEW Nuforce uDAC-2 with 24/96 - USB DAC AMP with line out and S/PDIF out - Head-Fi.org Community

Also you will be able to fully utilize the potential of uDAC II if you have 24bit audio files.

If lying on bed and listening to music is what you prefer ,I would suggest you go portable. The HM-602+re262 @$369 Pre-order is an amazing deal as mentioned by Strategy but it comes with own major strengths as well as major weakness (like every pure audiophile player) which I had mentioned to him in a PM .If I can find it will post it here or re-write it tomorrow morning .

EDIT :

Incase you or anyone's considering the HM-602 or a HM-801 player .Here's my opinion about them , which I sent as PM to Strategy when he asked me about my opinion and if I was gonna buy it :).

Hmmm the players like HM-602 , HM-801 etc are a truly audiophile class portable players. Infact I wouldnt really call all of them portable for their size and weight . Only someone who wants the last 10-20% of detailing out of his gear or someone who owns a very demanding IEM /cans would buy such players IMO .The only good thing these player do is play music with best possible detailing since there is no compromise on hardware but problem is none of these have even half decent user interface to browse files /tracks etc. Most of these players are little slow and sluggish .Ive tried an Amp3 Pro which belongs to a similar category of audiophiles PMP and trust me it actually tests your patience at times,when you use it. It can be a real pain at times if you frequently change songs or play around with your player. I just dont find any of these players practical enough for daily outdoor usage. So that said you might have got the hint that I am not looking forward to buy any of them . But yes ,if you are one of those who will play a complete album / play list and just leave the player in your backpack or pocket this might be the one for you. Make sure you have some real high end gear to take full benefit of the hardware under the hood . I doubt if even RE-262 would make use of its full potential .. ofcourse it will sound best with it but then it will sound good with most other PMPs as well . The question is do you really want to spend so much for the last 10-20% of diminishing returns ? I would rather spend on a better IEM/ headphone than such an expensive player but that's just me.Only Sflo 2 interests me to some extent because its a mixed bag of audiophile quality sound and decent UI, touchscreen etc.
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These are just personal opinions .I am not against audiophile grade players but since I keep tinkering around with the player while traveling ,I don't find them to fit my usage. Otherwise they are "the best" sounding PMPs one can get if they can live with some major/minor flaws. A price you have to pay to get the finest detailing I guess ;).
 
Vasishta.Sushant said:
^^^

Can you post the link for everyone's benefit dude ?
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i first saw it on HeadFI we will have to order it before 31st to avail

its not mentioned on the HeadDirect page but i mailde them and in the reply they said the offer is valid

i.e. HiFiMAN $HM-602+RE-262@369 and $30 for shipping
 
Stay away from Headdirect/chinese uber expensive audiophool pmps. Head over to anythingbutipod.com for more coverage on why you should NOT buy them.

Also, the Fuze+ brings pretty much nothing new to the table minus the capacitive touch screen (which might not be a great choice given the size). Pointless waiting for it.
 
^ Hahaha .. I know what you are talking about . I was shocked when I went through the thread on head-fi and anythingbutipod. Hifiman HM-801 RMAA Tests - General MP3 Player / PMP Discussion - abi>>forums

I dunno about DKFT but atleast to my ears an Amp3 did sound noticeable better than Clip+ ,Fuze. But I do agree with him to an extent , all these audiophile players are hyped like anything .I bet most of these Chinese products manufacturing cost isn't even half of what its retailed for.800$ for a PMP , just not my cup of tea. Sflo + Pico Slim would also be cheaper than that :rofl:.
 
FaH33m said:
^ Hahaha .. I know what you are talking about . I was shocked when I went through the thread on head-fi and anythingbutipod. Hifiman HM-801 RMAA Tests - General MP3 Player / PMP Discussion - abi>>forums

I dunno about DKFT but atleast to my ears an Amp3 did sound noticeable better than Clip+ ,Fuze. But I do agree with him to an extent , all these audiophile players are hyped like anything .I bet most of these Chinese products manufacturing cost isn't even half of what its retailed for.800$ for a PMP , just not my cup of tea. Sflo + Pico Slim would also be cheaper than that :rofl:.
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800/2??? are you kidding me? More like 150-175 MAX on components.

and its not as if they have any expenses on software given the ultra shit stuff that comes on them.

highendversion.jpg


Atleast ^^ looks frigging awesome.
 
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