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[Ferr986]

Sansa Clip+ with Rockbox is simply the best. Unlimited storage with SD cards, good sound, portable for running, huge equalizer (with RB)...

 

[HiResDes]

You mean that money can buy? Fiio X5 or ibasso DX50

 

[The Dutch Slayer]

Sansa Clip with a MicroSD card should fit the bill.

There just isn't much in the MP3 Player space these days.

First post almost never disappoints and this one is correct as well.
SC+ is fantastic little mp3 player

 

[Prez]

Nokia Lumia 520 or 630 with 64GB memory card. Much better value than any MP3 player for the same money imo. You can use it just fine without a sim card and have access to everything except calling/texting. I'm not sure if there's a decent app for flac support though.

edit: this app does, I might try it out to replace the standard music player.

 

[DonasaurusRex]

This is true.

When my 120GB Zune's battery died t I replaced it with a Sansa Clip+. Cost about £20, plays flacs, and can take any size microSD.
With Rockbox installed it's pretty great.

Edit: If you're looking for something more up-market, the FiiO X5 looks gorgeous:

ooooh i wanna try that.

 

[bakerbakes]

Whatever happened to the MP3 player that Neil Young was pushing? Flop?

 

[DonasaurusRex]

Don't settle for less - Sony Walkman ZX1:

I'd pick one up in a heartbeat if I had the extra cash. Hoping one day they'll integrate the guts from this into a phone though.

Sony does make one of the best mp3 players out there but that one is so expensive...cant justify it cause id want to take my mp3 player to the track or gym, i wouldnt feel comfortable with that one strapped to my arm on in my pocket. I dont even know if sony makes their little 50 -70 dollar ones anymore.

 

[HiResDes]

Don't ignore my post it's the correct one, lol

 

[ChryZ]

I can also only second the Sansa Clip+, Rockbox, Micro SD combo ... light, inexpensive, not picky about formats, good battery life, decent audio quality ... perfect for gym sessions or running

 

[NekoFever]

Yeah... and it's completely locked to Apple devices! Yay!

It's not locked at all. Apple open sourced it in 2011.

In answer to the OP's question, just look at anything with Rockbox support. It gave a new lease on life to my old iRiver iHP-120 by adding support for basically any audio format you're likely to come across.

 

[iuuk]

Sansa Clip + 8go + SD card + mod it with rockbox. It has the sound of a 200$ MP3 player and costs something like 40$.

I would recommend the Sansa Clip+ to anyone, but I don't particularly agree with that. My Cowon J3 (and S9) sounds better than my Clip+ ever did. There's also the battery life and build quality (my audio plug broke rather easily). It's still a great player and for $40 you can't go wrong, but it doesn't have all the advantages of a more expensive player.
I know many people do think the sound quality is on par with more expensive players though, so maybe I'm the one hearing things (pun not intended...).

I have a Cowon J3 and it's pretty swish.

Most people recommend Sansa Clips, but I hear the battery life is kind of awful? I'll know soon enough because I'm getting one for my girlfriend.

It's not that great, and when you're used to a J3 it's shockingly bad. It's almost like a phone in how often you need to charge it. There's not a clear consensus on this though, so maybe it differs from player to player.

Still; get a Clip+ if money is an issue. It is by far the best price/quality wise. Somewhat affordable + quality will get you a Cowon or Fiio, I guess.

 

[helloresolven]

Yeah... and it's completely locked to Apple devices! Yay!

ALAC is open-source though :\. It's not locked at all.

 

[w3bba]

using the Sony NWZ-E574 for almost 2 years and still love the sound. Also noise cancelling is something i never want to miss again in an MP3-player.

 

[20cent]

Don't settle for less - Sony Walkman ZX1:

I'd pick one up in a heartbeat if I had the extra cash. Hoping one day they'll integrate the guts from this into a phone though.

Great player and beautiful object but I wish it was an audio player only and not a full android device (basically an xperia without phone function)

 

[Garou]

My iPod Classic died after 7 years of service. Not died per se but I cannot connect it to any computer without having it crash. I'm looking for something that is around 60GB in size and can play FLAC files natively. Those are my main reqs, does anyone have a good recommendation?

Just in case, did you try to recover the iPod doing this?

1. Toggle the Hold switch on and off. (Slide it to Hold, then turn it off again.)

2. Press and hold the Menu and Center (Select) buttons simultaneously until the Apple logo appears, about 6 to 8 seconds. You may need to repeat this step.

 

[Funky Papa]

I just bought a Clip+. I only need something cheap, tiny and durable for weight training. An iPod is too cumbersome for me (the shuffle is just plain shit; I want actual control over my tracks) and pretty much any other alternative is way expensive.

 

[Poimandres]

ALAC is open-source though :\. It's not locked at all.

Really? Well, most non-Apple MP3 players don't support it. Also most online music stores sell FLAC so not sure why someone would choose ALAC > FLAC... unless they are tied to Apple.

 

[RP912]

I'm just saying.

 

[k2y91]

I have a Cowon J3 and it's pretty swish.

Great sound quality, battery life, format support, 32 gig internal memory and SD card slot and nice screen. Downsides are the price, interface and lack of proper playlist support.

I used to have an IPod Classic (I went through several actually) but I could never go back to Apples restrictive file support and forced use of ITunes. Cowon also has better sound quality.

Most people recommend Sansa Clips, but I hear the battery life is kind of awful? I'll know soon enough because I'm getting one for my girlfriend.

Have this one for 3 years now. It's genuinely amazing (battery life, sound etc)

 

[hwalker84]

Lumia 520 $40-$60 + 32GB/64GB/128GB microsd

Get the ability to use fitness apps plus streaming music if needed. I turn off all the antennas and get around 26 days of standby battery.

 

[HiResDes]

If you're in need of earphones this is a great deal : http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I9E54IM/?tag=neogaf0e-20


Also if you want something cheap this kills the Sansa in both sound and features https://m.kogan.com/au/buy/mini-camera-and-mp4-player/

 

[Fox Mulder]

The sansa clip is nice, but the build quality isnt that great. The clips have always broken off mine, and my current one has a flickering screen.

still great for being cheap and using a micro SD card.

 

[theechrisfox]

I replaced my old ipod with a new Classic last year. 160 GB that I've only managed to fill about 30 of. Its a worthwhile machine.

 

[bennywhatever]

The sansa clip is nice, but the build quality isnt that great. The clips have always broken off mine, and my current one has a flickering screen.

still great for being cheap and using a micro SD card.

The cool thing about the clip is that you can buy 3 of them and still pay less money than any other mp3 player with comparable features.

 

[HiResDes]

The cool thing about the clip is that you can buy 3 of them and still pay less money than any other mp3 player with comparable features.

Check my post above

 

[bennywhatever]

Check my post above

Yeah... those are $250+ mp3 players. The Clip is <$40 and has most of those features.

 

[HiResDes]

Yeah... those are $250+ mp3 players. The Clip is <$40 and has most of those features.

Nope, you're not checking close enough

 

[bennywhatever]

Nope, you're not checking close enough

Yes I am... As an mp3 player they are very comparable. The Clip Zip is $25 at Radioshack, the Fiio is $350 on Amazon, the other one is $250. The ones you posted are just bigger with flashier screens. With RB on the Clipzip, you get all the same file formats and almost every other feature.
Unless you're talking about something else, then stop being cryptic and just say it.

 

[Funky Papa]

Yes I am... As an mp3 player they are very comparable. The Clip Zip is $25 at Radioshack, the Fiio is $350 on Amazon, the other one is $250. The ones you posted are just bigger with flashier screens. With RB on the Clipzip, you get all the same file formats and almost every other feature.
Unless you're talking about something else, then stop being cryptic and just say it.

Ask for a good optometrist.

 

[psylah]

I'm just saying.

I was looking for a minidisc player just the other day.

I'd love an MZ-RH1 but they are still quite valuable, apparently.

 

[lobdale]

I've basically migrated to using Musicbee on my actual PC as the "home base" from which I can stream throughout the house, and then my collection is automatically backed up to Google Music which I use for streaming/local storage on my Nexus 5/7 when I'm out.

 

[Nopren]

I can recommend Sansa Clip as well, but there is a big aber dabei, and that is as soon as you have more than 20 different artists on it it becomes very tiresome to scroll through your library. I only use my Sansa Clip for when I go drinking and I don't wanna risk losing my Cowon J3.
And on that note, if you can find a Cowon J3 it is goddamn fantastic and the best player I've ever had.
It is flash based, so all qualms about the firmware UI can be quashed by downloading some of the fantatsic UI's people have made for it. I am a big fan of a developer named Kizune Volpe who makes fantastic Cowon UI's.

Sennheisers and KOSS, both headphones and in-ear, various versions. I've probably tried other brands from friends since I've had the thing for like 5 years. Everything has the issue of low volume, the worst being the Sennheiser headphones. They sound like they're broken with the S9, the volume is so low.

Like I said, my knowledge of audio tech is pathetic but I do know that my previous two players (iPods) could output high volume just fine and I kept them at like 50% at all times but I keep my S9 at 100% most of the time and really wish I could go higher quite often.

If you have set your region as Europe it will keep your volume locked at 32, even though you turn it up louder, because of some EU regulations.
Go in and change your region to USA or Korea or something, and boom you probably have the highest output of any player on the market.

 

[HiResDes]

Yes I am... As an mp3 player they are very comparable. The Clip Zip is $25 at Radioshack, the Fiio is $350 on Amazon, the other one is $250. The ones you posted are just bigger with flashier screens. With RB on the Clipzip, you get all the same file formats and almost every other feature.
Unless you're talking about something else, then stop being cryptic and just say it.

Kogan mp4 sounds better, has a better battery life, has a camera, and features a much better screen all for thirty bucks

 

[Funky Papa]

Kogan mp4 sounds better, has a better battery life, has a camera, and features a much better screen all for thirty bucks

It looks like hot garbage, though. Like, really fragile.

 

[bennywhatever]

Kogan mp4 sounds better, has a better battery life, has a camera, and features a much better screen all for thirty bucks

Oh, I was referring to the Fiios and the Ibassa you posted.

 

[HiResDes]

It looks like hot garbage, though. Like, really fragile.

The build quality of the Sansa is garbage too I've gone through two of them.

 

[Schattenjäger]

Sansa Clip + 8go + SD card + mod it with rockbox. It has the sound of a 200$ MP3 player and costs something like 40$.

I think this is the best combo too but

The battery life sucks on this! Have to charge every two days&#128078;

 

[bennywhatever]

I think this is the best combo too but

The battery life sucks on this! Have to charge every two days&#128078;

With Rockbox you get like 20+ hours on it. That's really good for an mp3 player....

 

[akileese]

Nokia Lumia 520 or 630 with 64GB memory card. Much better value than any MP3 player for the same money imo. You can use it just fine without a sim card and have access to everything except calling/texting. I'm not sure if there's a decent app for flac support though.

edit: this app does, I might try it out to replace the standard music player.

Hmmm this is an interesting idea. I was looking for something to replace my 2nd gen 64gb ipod touch as it's getting on in years. At this point I don't use it for anything but straight up MP3 storage and spotify over wifi occasionally.

 

[jesu]

You get what you pay for with a Sansa Clip.

 

[Remark]

Really? Well, most non-Apple MP3 players don't support it. Also most online music stores sell FLAC so not sure why someone would choose ALAC > FLAC... unless they are tied to Apple.

You can convert to ALAC so easy though. Drop your FLAC's in iTunes bam it's ALAC now. People be crazy mane.

Me, Myself and I doe I just use my iPhone to listen to music but thats just me.

 

[thoseAREmySHOES]

Lumia 520 $40-$60 + 32GB/64GB/128GB microsd

Get the ability to use fitness apps plus streaming music if needed. I turn off all the antennas and get around 26 days of standby battery.

This seems like a pretty solid option...

 

[HiResDes]

You can convert to ALAC so easy though. Drop your FLAC's in iTunes bam it's ALAC now. People be crazy mane.

Me, Myself and I doe I just use my iPhone to listen to music but thats just me.

Does iTunes auto convert now? It definitely didn't always. In fact I thought it was a Mac feature

 

[cHaotix8]

I use my Galaxy S5 with a 64GB SD card and Poweramp player, though I wish Microsoft still made Zunes, or at least still continued the software.

 

[daemonic]

Sansa Clip + 8go + SD card + mod it with rockbox. It has the sound of a 200$ MP3 player and costs something like 40$.

The only correct answer. I have an 8GB clip zip + 32 gb sd card running rockbox and the options/customizations are endless. Not to mention it plays FLAC. Doesn't get better than that.

 

[ConsumerSquare]

Kogan mp4 sounds better, has a better battery life, has a camera, and features a much better screen all for thirty bucks

But they don't ship to the US according to their website.

 

[See You Next Wednesday]

I have a Cowon J3 and it's pretty swish.

Great sound quality, battery life, format support, 32 gig internal memory and SD card slot and nice screen. Downsides are the price, interface and lack of proper playlist support.

I used to have an IPod Classic (I went through several actually) but I could never go back to Apples restrictive file support and forced use of ITunes. Cowon also has better sound quality.

Most people recommend Sansa Clips, but I hear the battery life is kind of awful? I'll know soon enough because I'm getting one for my girlfriend.

For that price, you might as well buy a tablet.
Assuming people want something that plays only music & don't care about the extra crap & games that it can play.

 

[Christoff Yurievich]

Are you sure its not iTunes bombing out? Right now after the last update I feel iTunes on windows is worse then ever.

Yeah, iTunes lately has been pretty bad. My entire music collection had the album art deleted. I ran the "download art" and it worked but now randomly I find the art is missing from albums but not all of the tracks. wtf.

 

[X05]

4th Gen iPod classic with the Wolfson DAC

Mine's like ~10 years old now and still working good(I swapped the HDD for a CF, as well I had to replace the battery once in those ~10 years).

Oh, that's interesting, would like to change it in mine. Any links or pointers?

 

[jimi_dini]

Sansa Clip + 8go + SD card + mod it with rockbox. It has the sound of a 200$ MP3 player and costs something like 40$.

Was first post and is absolutely correct. I own 3 of those. Love them to death.