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| Rio Volt MP3 CD Player |
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Its a decent player
Mmm. Until recently my opinion of my new Rio Volt has fluctuated daily.
I bought this CD/MP3/WMA player because I have all of my own CDs stored on my PC in WMA format so I dont always have to change CDs all the time etc. I was extremely annoyed when I found out that you cant play Copyrighted WMAs on the player, and as all WMAs are recorded from copyrighted CDs, that means basically that it cant play WMAs.
This is stupid. Rio seemed to push the WMA capability so much, and yet it cant play 99% of WMA files. Its outrageous, stupefying, maddening, crazy and shockingly disgraceful. Needless to say, I wasnt happy.
However, I soon discovered that the Real Jukebox software that comes with the player is excellent at ripping CD Audio into MP3s (although it wont rip WAV to MP3), so, after having a cool shower, I calmed down and converted all my CDs to MP3 format.
I recorded at 96kbps and managed to squish 18 albums (250 MP3s) onto one CD-RW, which I was very impressed with. I can carry all my music around on two CD-RWs, great.
I was also hesitant to buy the player because of some of the reviews on this site, complaining about poor sound output levels etc. This really is a load of rubbish because the sound can be turned up to louder than youd ever need without going deaf and subsequently begging for scraps of mouldy bread on the streets of London the rest of your life.
Anyway. On to the real bad points. The wired remote is a pile of garbage. Pick it up and you feel as though youre going to break the thing, as if its a delicate little piece of doggy turd, precariously positioned underneath an elephant herd suspended over it using a piece of fishing wire and a roll of sticky tape.
The central button is very hard to operate due to the one button having 4 operations, and its hard not to press it in the wrong direction, especially if you arent looking at the thing. If its not in view, who knows which way is which?. Its a bit suspect if you ask me.
The carry case is also a pile of garbage. Throw it away as soon as you get the damn thing out the box because it is so poorly designed that the only holes in the case are for the player to fit in, and one for headphones and Lineout jacks. No space for the LCD and control buttons to poke through or anything like that. Its just ridiculous. Sony, Rio aint.But in general, the sound is very good quality, bass is excellent, the headphones are surprisingly good for "Supplied with goods" standards, the OSD is extremely simple to operate, firmware upgrades are easy to perform. Magic.
Buy it from Amazon because youre likely to surrender a significant amount more money on the high street.
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What do I do with my old CDs?
I bought the Rio Volt MP3 CD player a month ago. Initially I found the output volume a bit low compared with my portable CD player. However, you soon start to realise the advantages of being able to carry your entire music collection around with you in a few 4-CD carry cases, and just plugging the unit into the nearest HI-FI unit, computer speakers, Car stereo etc. A decent pair of headphones is a must for portable use. The ones supplied are OK, unless you want a lot of bass. I tried the remote control but found it just too fiddly and not really necessary. Buy a good carry-case for the unit and use the main controls instead. I like the LCD scrolling screen and on-board software, but wish they hadnt put on the grooving elves - bigger function displays would be more use to us over-40s! The firmware upgrade is easy. Overall - well worth the money
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The Discman is dead, long live the RioVolt!
This is better than any Discman you could want. For a start, it has a 15 hour battery life. Really! Because it plays MP3s, which are much smaller in size than CD tracks, it can load about 3 minutes of music into memory and stop spinning the CD. So it saves vast amounts of battery power, and runs for hours on end on the same batteries. I use it at least twice every day on my journeys to and from work, and one set of batteries last more than two weeks. I have my whole CD collection on MP3 now, and each of my MP3 CDs has about 200 tracks on each, with up to 20 hours of music. It reads both CD-Rs and CD-RWs for maximum flexibility. The Remote Control is limited compared to the snazzy ones you see on other players, but who cares? Its functional, and with the latest firmware upgrade, the Equalizer button can be configured to perform any of the tasks that the fascia buttons do. The shock mechanism isnt great on 10 second ESP, and a brisk walk with it in my pocket causes it to skip occasionally. But with the 40 second ESP, youd have to be in a John Woo action sequence to get it to skip. Sound quality? Superb. The preset equalizer settings allow you to listen in whatever mood you desire, and if you dont like any of them, you can set your own (with the upgrade). I have my MP3 files recorded in VBR, and unless youre a hardcore audiophile, you wont be able to tell the difference between this and CD quality. I have to stress that you need to get the latest firmware upgrade though. Not only did it iron out any niggles that I had when I first got it, but it allows support for Winamp playlists, which is invaluable. If there are any criticisms, I would have to say dont buy this if you want to use it as a recording source, as if you connect the Line Out to an amplifier the sound is very low in volume and you have to turn up the amp. But for personal listening, it can go loud enough to annoy the hell out of your fellow commuters. Trust me. I know. For personal use, it is an amazing little gadget and I would be lost without it. It is a superb piece of kit and I would readily recommend it. Bottom line: Got a CD writer? Like music? Get a RioVolt.
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Sony D-EJ751 Silver CD Walkman
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Just bought one of these in Singapore, the walkman is pretty musical reproducing female vocals well. Joni Mitchell sounds natural and not shrill-sounding, as does Mary Black. Strings are nice and clear with energy and warmth adequately reproduced-listen to Martin Taylors album Artistry and youll see..
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Sony D-E351 Silver CD Walkman
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I bought this a few months ago and its really good, I can play all W/RW CDs, never had any probs with any, You can use other headphones/speakers with it, sound quality is very good and is pretty loud, with original headphones.
It also remembers where you last stoped, even if its in middle of a s..
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Philips EXP 401 MP3 CD Player
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Had this a couple of weeks now. Love the size of it and the mp3 decoder it better quality than my full size Sony DJ501. Not got the ID3 tag / filename display but no matter if its in my pocket. Ive experienced 2 problems, which I have reported to Philips tech support but I have had no response fr..
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Rio SP50 MP3/CD Player
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- the only other one I have seen at this price is a Goodmans model - but that doesnt play cdrw and has less features. Obviously the more you pay the better model you get. Pros: Cheap
plays mp3 and cd
plays cdrw - no hassle at all
on a cd you can get around ten albums - mp3 only players..
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Sony D-EJ755 Silver CD Walkman
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This is my first CD Walkman and I feel I made a very good purchase. It’s got an attractive appearance and is very easy to use. The remote control buttons are the same as on the actual player, so no confusion as to what you’re pressing. Since I’ve had it, it’s taken a few extr..
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