poopipe Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 rightyI want an mp3 player that has a large hard disk and can sit on top of my amp and play my mp3s through my horribly expensive speakers using proper connectors instead of the nasty noisy jack socket business i have to go through with my phone/laptop etc. I want it to have a USB socket so I can plug a USB harddrive / pendrive into it and copy all my stuff onto the internal disk as well. Do these things actually exist? I've seen things with dvd recorders in that support mp3 playback but they don't seem to have USB input and I don't need the dvd recording bits so I dont want to pay for them.any ideas? I don't mind paying out for decent quality stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 (edited) I know you can do what your describing, just dont think it can be done through USB, as that is a computer based connector and no amp i know of will support it. Let alone have a usb socket, I could be wrong but hay. Why not buy a new soundcard and hook it up that way through "real" leads instead of the usual headphone out put that most would use. A decent one wont be as easy to come across as it sounds (espically if your after seriously high quality play back) but never the less about £100 will get you what your after. Go on overclockers or ebuyer to look at sound cards Sorry if its all wrong.Willy Edited January 25, 2007 by Willy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walleee Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 (edited) I use a 3.5mm to phono to connect my i-pod to my seperates system, it's absoutley fantastic and clarity is as good as when playing CD etc. There is no degradation in quality whatsoever.Not sure about the USB stuff, but couldn't you use a large mp3 player with usb?? it is still essentially the same thing.I think to do what your describing wouldn't give any better quality, but would cost a bomb? Edited January 25, 2007 by jake1516 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-Stop Junkie Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 Seems like there's a gap here somewhere. Most people go for the iPod dock approach with remote. Some manufacturers even include iPod connectivity - Marantz for one. Looking at systems like Sonos and Squeezebox, they're based on either a host PC or a big b*****d server for distributed playback. The Squeezebox system - designed for audiophiles - will set you back £1200 or more but is designed to play uncompressed audio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.E.A.U Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 are these like mini disc player because my mate use to do it liek that if so i have one you can have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 (edited) I'm really after something that just sits there on top of my amp like a separates CD player or whatever. I've got a walkman phone I can plug in but it's effort - i have to put the tunes on the phone, plug the phone in, i've got no remote control etc etc. I'd have the same problem with an Ipod except that it'd cost three times as much. I can't really wire the pc into it cos the PC is upstairs and the stereo lives in my living room - we've got laptops downstairs but they'd have to be running in order to play the tunes which I don't want to have to rely on. the cables would piss on my 'wireless home' setup as well . I did find a thing that did what I want and had dvd recording things in but it was £1100 so I'm not buying it.I found these things on scan http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=383052 I might opt for one of them cos they do pretty much what I want, they cost cack all and will sit on the network - shame they're so facking ugly really Edited January 25, 2007 by poopipe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RicH_87 Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 K, i typed all this and when i hit preview i noticed you had posted again above, so what i've written is pretty much irrevilent to you, but i've posted it anyway because it might be of use to someone else whenever...I think the reason they are pretty much unheard of is because there isn't really any need for them. Unless you are really pedantic and want a free standing stacked system.I know you probably know better than me, but from my experience all you need to do it make sure you buy the best cables money can afford for connecting pc - hi fi and you're good to go.At the moment i have a £35 sound card in my PC with a 3.5 Jack Splitter into which i have a pair of Sr60's in one socket and into the other i have a seriously FAT heavy duty style 3.5 jack to Phone which runs 10 meters into a Sony Amp....which in turn is connected to some very shit hi-fi speakers (soon to be updated in the next couple of weeks).And my sound quality is pretty awesome considering how cheap it is. I think it's actually a benefit having you're PC in the loop because of the amount of equalizer options and so on, available on a PC.From what i can tell, you are only after HDD mp3 player for sound quality? rather than because it's more clean cut to take the PC/Ipod/phone out of the system?Unless you have already tryed buying a really good quality cable and aren't happy with it, then i seriously think it's a better option to hunt down a decent cable rather than a whole new extra piece of (probably overpriced) equipment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.E.A.U Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 wel my minidisc plaer use to plug into my cd player i think and play tunes just get the mp3s onto the disc and let it play i dont know. if you want it let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish-Finger-er Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 cheaper, and bigger capacity, if you wanna drop the capacity more, they get cheaper, think these ones also look slightly less gash sir pooey Theodores first birthday present Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 From what i can tell, you are only after HDD mp3 player for sound quality? rather than because it's more clean cut to take the PC/Ipod/phone out of the system?i want to avoid the hassle of plugging stuff in all the time and/or running the PC just to play tunes. but yeah you know that from my last post anyway .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F-Stop Junkie Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 I use a 3.5mm to phono to connect my i-pod to my seperates system, it's absoutley fantastic and clarity is as good as when playing CD etc. There is no degradation in quality whatsoever.There are, however, problems with this approach. 1) The volume changes, so you have to remember to turn it up full before connecting it. You then forget to turn it down, and deafen yourself. This is assuming that full volume is line level.2) Headphone sockets are often tuned so they compensate for the deffiencies of the earphones being connected. As a result, they are often quite bassy compared to a clean line out. They can also hiss and all sorts, which you wouldn't hear with normal earphones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 cheaper, and bigger capacity, if you wanna drop the capacity more, they get cheaper, think these ones also look slightly less gash sir pooey Theodores first birthday presentThe downside to that one is the lack of an ethernet hole meaning I have to cart the bloody thing upstairs to fill it up - the card reader's a nice touch though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomm Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 I think you can get an iPod dock with an optical out, if your amp can accept that. And then you can get a remote control with that. The other thing is to knock up a cheap VIA epia (or whatever they are) system with a big hard drive and a decent sound card. Stick it in a box the same size as a separates box and you're laughing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 I think you can get an iPod dock with an optical out, if your amp can accept that. And then you can get a remote control with that. The other thing is to knock up a cheap VIA epia (or whatever they are) system with a big hard drive and a decent sound card. Stick it in a box the same size as a separates box and you're laughing.the pc thing is an interesting idea - could be an entertaining project, i am quite lazy though. there's another problem too...when i got home the missus reminded me about her blown head gasket (in her car obviously) which has thrown a rather large spanner in the works as far as purchasing consumer electronics goes.buggerit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomm Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 the pc thing is an interesting idea - could be an entertaining project, i am quite lazy though. there's another problem too...Yeah, I thought about making one a few summers ago, but couldn't be arsed in the end, came to the conclusion that it was easier and cheaper to buy a hard drive MP3 player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomturd Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 What about a decent dvd player that plays mp3 dvds? Not an ideal solution really.. but worth a thought. Or one of those wireless streaming seperates doodahs... still requires your PC to be on though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTM Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I cba reading whats above cos its late. But you can get standard amp sized jukeboxes which are wirelessly linked to your pc. Basically a harddrive, soundcard and wireless router in one box. Gives you full wireless access to your pcs music. to be honest, if your using it for mp3s, the sound loss you get for a 3.5mm jack is nothing to worry about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paolo Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I think you want something like this, this here, basicly connects in your wifi network, finds the files on your computer and plays them...Oh yeah, that price is in canadian bucks, foud this uk link. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark145 Posted January 27, 2007 Report Share Posted January 27, 2007 Have you thought about one of those Archos portable players, then you could use it other times aswell. The only problem is you would have to connect to a PC to put the files on and you can also get a dock for them making it just perfect. http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/s...rchTerms=archos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadManMike Posted January 28, 2007 Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 Connecting iPods through leads is a short term answer, anyone that truely likes sound quality will hate the hiss from the headphone socket, then there's the problem of forgetting it's on and pulling it out - "FOOOOM". Then again, I guess true audiophiles don't listen to digital stuff anyway...I can supply you a T+A Valve Amplifier and Turntable for just under ten thousand?http://www.taelektroakustik.de - I'm a supplier for them.12" plastic is where it's at my friend. Walking to work I love the iPod but at home it's gotta be my Dj gear or some vinyl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 12" plastic is where it's at my friend. Walking to work I love the iPod but at home it's gotta be my Dj gear or some vinyl.i'd love to dig the vinyl out again but i'm already enough trouble for filling the house up with bikes so setting up the decks in the living room would get me divorced.it appears there's no such thing as what i want. portables are out, needing the pc turned on is out and writing mp3 cds etc is out (im too lazy to burn the disks)I find this very silly indeed but sod it, as soon as the car's fixed ill buy a network hard disk media player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mat hudson Posted January 28, 2007 Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 you'l be wanting one of these then i would have thought?http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Creative-Labs-Nomad-...1QQcmdZViewItem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted January 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 you'l be wanting one of these then i would have thought?http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Creative-Labs-Nomad-...1QQcmdZViewItem the thingy i posted up before has 3 times the disk space and can be put on my network but yeah - looks like the route ill be going down in the end Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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