MP3 player suggestions

[Devhux]

I'm currently looking for a new MP3 player, and am leaning towards the iPod Nano (with a slipcase of course to prevent scratching).

I do have a few questions though:

1) How's the sound quality? I know it's not going to be Creative-quality, but is it close? Can the EQ be adjusted manually or anything?

2) Do I have to worry about a seperate power and USB cable? (I preferrably want something that can charge over USB).

3) Am I forced to use iTunes, or is there a 3rd-party program I could use to transfer files?

Basically I'm looking for something in the 2-6GB range (I don't need my entire music collection with me). I really like the Nano's size, and I think I'm finally getting used to the click wheel concept, which is why I'm considering that one (remember that I used to be anti-iPod). That said, if you know of any others I should look at, please let me know -- as long as it isn't Creative (after the bad experiences I had with my Zen Xtra, I don't want a repeat performance).

[Agent Plissken]

Whats the problem you had with the zen? Im thinking of getting a Zen Micro 8 GB Photo for my girlfriend, any issues I need to be aware of?
($187 fyi)

[Devhux]

It basically boiled down to a faulty headphone jack (this was a well-known problem with the Xtras).

Trouble is, I had a horrible time with tech support trying to get the issue resolved (it never did).

I'm sure the newer Zens are OK -- and now that Creative has bumped up warranty service to 1-year (instead of the 90-day "joke" that came with my Xtra), things probably would work out better. My experience with them however has me very reluctant to give them another try.

[Agent Plissken]

Just got back from Best Buy, got the 8 GB Photo version and 2 months free napster for $188+tax.
And the guy wanted to sell me a $30 slip case... ahhh... no.

[LPMiller]

frankly, I think the creative and ipod sound qualities are about the same. Yes, there is an EQ. You can use some third party programs to transfer to the nano, but frankly, itunes works the best as far as I'm concerned.

Also, I agree on creative warranty. pain in the ass to get anywhere with it, where with Apple, you just fill out a form on the website and they send you a box to mail it in. Get it or a new one in a week.

[Raider007]

1) How's the sound quality? I know it's not going to be Creative-quality, but is it close? Can the EQ be adjusted manually or anything?

2) Do I have to worry about a seperate power and USB cable? (I preferrably want something that can charge over USB).

3) Am I forced to use iTunes, or is there a 3rd-party program I could use to transfer files?

in order

1) sound quality is fine, yes it does have an EQ, but you have predfined list, nothing you can customize, but it's got like 30 options anywas...

2) it charges over USB, you can buy a seperate adapter i think for like $30 that plugs into the wall, but it charges from the computer anyways, so it's up to you...

3) no, you don't have to use itunes...you can check out ilounge.com for other software, ephpod is a popular choice, not sure if it's supporting the nano yet, but if not now, it will soon....

honestly, just use itunes, the first couple times you use it you'll probably hate it, but once you actaully start using itunes you'll realize how good it really is and you'll probably end up liking it...

[Devhux]

Well I've pretty much been sold on the Nano (4GB -- black if available when I walk into the store).

I won't be able to get it for a week, but that's OK -- I'm going to get acquainted with a little tag editing program (*sigh* 40GB of MP3 files -- have to sort out what it tagged right or not).

[DaFunkyUnit]

I'm going to get acquainted with a little tag editing program (*sigh* 40GB of MP3 files -- have to sort out what it tagged right or not).

yea, i miss the days before mp3 players were ubiquitous. the times were much simpler then (btw, what tag editor do you use? i use MP3 Tag Tools, with ok results. still tedious work, though. especially with new iPods with their fandangled color screens, which means you have to go and download the album art for each mp3, which also means you have to completely fill out the mp3 tag [artist, title, album])

[Devhux]

I'm trying out this one called MusicBrainz -- which uses acoustic fingerprinting to help identify tracks that other users have submitted into the database. It's great for the common stuff that people have updated, as it will automatically scan a folder and help you create the ID3 tags automatically.

Putting stuff in manually though is a pain, and I'll probably try something else (a friend of mine used a program called Tag & Rename or something to that extent).

[zero2dash]

Winamp has a plugin to transfer to iPods I believe.
iTunes is great...try it a few times, you'll love it. (Worked for me...I hated it at first.)

As for id taggers - I cannot recommend MP3 Tag Tools highly enough. It's freeware and it has a ton of features (and a LOT of mass tagging options).

I looked for awhile on a free album art downloader/inserter but didn't have any luck...and quickly gave up on having album art for all of my mp3s.

[Devhux]

Well I ended up grabbing the 4GB Nano as expected (though sadly there weren't any black ones in stock, so I went with white). Also bought a little case to go along with it (fits the Nano like a glove).

I've been playing around with iTunes over the past week, and it seems to work great -- but I do wish the iTunes store didn't require a credit-card to sign up (I believe there are pre-paid cards you can buy, but you still need a credit card for the initial sign-up).