Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with mp3player

Most rugged MP3 player?

Endure You Are Not Alone — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:01:00 -0800

In search of an MP3 player that can take a beating... I'm looking to get an MP3 player for a family member who does a lot of construction / home improvement type activities around the house.

Important things:
1. Can take falls, scratches, etc. (!!!)
2. Fairly simple and not too small buttons
3. We considered the iPod shuffle, but we think it will be too small and get lost / thrown in the wash, so a bit bigger than that. Largish wallet sized is OK

HD size and the interface software aren't a big deal, so it's OK if they are not that great.

Another option is if you know of a great case for say an iPod nano that would make it rather rugged, that would work too. I've used the silicone sleeve type cases before and I don't think they would cut it.

Thanks!

Are there any mom-friendly mp3 players &/or car adapter kits?

lesli212 — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 10:52:58 -0800

My mom has a long commute, so I'm thinking it would be great to get her an mp3 player for the car. I will be setting it up, but it should be easy for her to use. She is more used to VCR buttons than click wheels and cord-squeezing, so iPod-style interfaces are out. Does anyone know of a reliable mp3 player or car adapter kit that will fit the bill? I'd like to go old school here. The easy part: No lower size limit (4 gigs is more than enough). Also, she won't be loading or removing songs from it - trust me - so it doesn't matter if that process is simple or byzantine.

Are there any mp3 players with:
- large controls that are regular pressable buttons
- just a few, clearly labelled buttons: play, pause, volume, skip, back
- a large display that allows for easy song selection (but no video)
- nice loud speakers, and not tinny - she's getting slightly hard of hearing

Something like this or this from Creative, but with more clearly labelled buttons, would be nice.

I haven't seen any car adapter kits that have play/forward/back buttons for controlling an mp3 player - does anything like that exist, as an alternative?

Thanks MeFites!

Champion Sound

murtagh — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 03:57:21 -0800

Why does music on my MP3 player sound better with small earphones than with big headphones? I have a Samsung YP-U5 MP3 player. Music on it sounds great when I listen with the earphones that came with the player, but if I connect my large Philips (SHP2000, if it matters) headphones to the player, music sounds quite poor. Why is that?

(There's nothing wrong with the Philips headphones, just to be clear.)

Mp3 players with good sound quality?

litleozy — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 10:58:51 -0800

mp3playerfilter: what's the mp3 player that gives the best quality sound? My old mp3 player just gave out on me and I'm looking to pay a bit more and get a good quality one this time with sound quality as my top priority (then capacity).

Any ideas?

(checked through Askme and haven't seen a question like this, my apologises if there is one and I've just missed it)

Does anyone know of a cheap(sub $50) MP3 player that has a wall charger.

Mesach — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:16:31 -0800

I need to setup an mp3 player for our phone system to play recordings on hold, but i need it to have a wall charger since it will be on all the time, and there is no USB connection nearby. Does anyone know of a cheap(sub $50) player that has that functionality. It would be really nice if it had a screen and not like an ipod shuffle.

I wanna compare two sooooongs

Bonzai — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:00:14 -0800

Does anyone know of an MP3 player or a plug-in for an MP3 player that will allow me to do A-B comparisons? Basically I want to load two different mp3 files start them both at the same time and then have a switch that lets me switch back and forth between them. Mostly I want to compare the 2009 remastered Beatles songs with the originals.

What is the best old version of Winamp?

SouthCNorthNY — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:10:32 -0800

What is the best old version of Winamp? I like the Music Library feature, but it seems like the new versions run slower. If you know of any other resource-light mp3 players, please post them as well. The software will be used on an 1.33Gz Intel Atom Silverthorne.

File transfer from Creative Zen to Windows Vista?

infinityjinx — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:44:36 -0800

Asking for a co-worker I wish to impress: how to transfer music from a Creative Zen ONTO his new (Vista running) laptop? Hi all-

My coworker's computer crashed so he got a new one. He still has all his music on his approx. 4 year old Creative Zen. Instead of ripping all his CDs to his computer again, how can he transfer the music from the mp3 player to his computer? I have Googled but can't figure it out...is this even possible? Halp??

Thanks so much for any tips, mefis =)

Samsung S3 playlist problem

flibbertigibbet — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:58:20 -0800

I bought a Samsung S3 mp3 player for the specific purpose of studying sets of mp3s that need to be played in a specific order. Problem: it doesn't seem to want me to play those songs in order. I can create and organize playlists on the computer, and have no problem.

But, when I import them to the device, the songs on the playlist get sorted by name, instead of staying in the correct order.

I cannot figure out how to force the songs on the playlist to play in order, sort of manually renaming hundreds of mp3s. Can anyone help? I feel like there's some really simple solution.

Shuffle is not on. The actual list of songs on the mp3 player is arranged by mp3 file name, not in the correct order.

Firsthand recommendation for personal asf player

metaBugs — Sat, 09 May 2009 14:43:27 -0800

Please suggest a small mp3 player that you know plays .asf and .wma files? My girlfriend is trying to find a small mp3 player that plays .asf and .wma files so she can listen to downloaded radio shows. Lots of players list .asf in their supported formats, but the ones she's tried recently actually don't, despite the claim on the box. We know that the downloaded files themselves are OK because they play on her old Samsung device that she wants to replace.

Can you suggest a small personal music player that you know firsthand will play non-encrypted .asf and .wma files? Thanks!

How to listen to music on a bike tour

PercussivePaul — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:58:48 -0800

What are my best options for listening to music on a long bike tour? We're planning a two-month bike trip down the Pacific Coast (Washington, Oregon, California). I'm curious how people listen to music on such rides. Personal mp3 players seem to be the easiest - maybe listening with only one earbud in so you can hear cars ok.

I would be fine buying a cheapo mp3 player but it would probably not have enough space. I have a 16Gb usb flash drive and it would be great if I could buy a player that could read from that (the stereo in my car does this and it's very convenient). Does this exist? I can't seem to find it. Or will it be easy to find internet cafes on the road in which I could switch the music from the usb stick onto the player? I'm not planning on bringing a computer with me.

What about batteries? Should I get something that uses AAA batteries so I can do quick replacements on the road? Am I going to burn through a shitload of batteries this way? Are rechargeable batteries practical? I have a 4Gb ipod I could use but it seems like keeping it charged on the road will be a pain.

Also thought about portable radios but I doubt there is much to listen to on the coast, it's mostly small towns so not many radio stations (is this true?)

Any other ideas?

Does anyone know of an mp3 player that records to .mp3 format (not .wav)?

D Wiz — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 18:08:52 -0800

I am looking for an mp3 player/recorder that records to .mp3 format. Most of the players out there that I can find record to .wav format. Other high priority features- Needs to have a rechargeable battery that lasts at least 12 hours. I also am not interested in a video player. I prefer it function well at being an mp3 player and look like an mp3 player rather than being one of those landscape PMP-type players.

Medium priority features- Line in recording, bookmarks, being able to record at as many quality levels as possible.

I could care less if it is an old model but I don't want refurbished. Price should be less then $120. I don't care for any fancy features. How big it is physically or memory-wise is not important. 1gb is enough for me.

Thanks in advance for your help!

How do I change the sort order on an iPod Shuffle?

Merzbau — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 13:17:01 -0800

How do I change the default sort options on an iPod Touch? In iTunes, I always use the "albums by artist" sort order, so DJ mixes will appear together as an album by whoever compiled them (in the Album Artist field) and compilations show up as "Various Artists". I've noticed that this is the default for the iPod Touch's CoverFlow view, but the list view (which I would prefer to use, since it's less prone to crashing during rapid scrolling) only offers albums in alphabetical order by title and a list of EVERY artist on the ipod, not just ones that appear in Album Artist fields, making the "by arist" option totally useless.

Another sorting issue I'm having: CoverFlow puts everything in the correct order, except for the compilations I have tagged as Various Artists, which are in semi-random order. For example, right now the first five are Shock City Shockers, Dirty Diamonds II, Dirty Diamonds, Dirty Edits vol. 1, and The Warriors soundtrack. This is a minor issue, but it's really annoying and I'd like to figure out a solution if possible.

4Gb creative Mozaic in Toronto?

Zetetics — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:36:22 -0800

Where in Toronto can I get a 4Gb (or 8Gb) Creative Mozaic mp3 player, preferably not pink. Also, ideally, someplace downtown or TTC accessible.
I've done a fair bit of searching but only found the 2Gb models.
Thanks!

How to manage music and spin the dial on the Sansa Connect?

ibmcginty — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 11:42:45 -0800

Sansa Connect two-fer: (1) the little dial sometimes become immobile; (2) which program to use now that Yahoo Jukebox has bitten the dust? My Sansa Connect is under a year old. The little dial formerly became un-spinnable only on airplanes; now it stops working more frequently, for no reason I have been able to discern. Any suggestions?

Also, is anyone using Rhapsody to manage music on the Connect? Or other programs? Yahoo Jukebox was never that great, and now I can't even seem to save playlists in there anymore.

An MP3 Player for my Cold Dead Robot Hands

Greg Nog — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 18:40:51 -0800

I'd like to buy a nice MP3 player that doesn't involve capacitive sensing. So: controls that only have moving mechanical parts like buttons or wheels, and aren't dependent on me having to generate a bioelectrical field conducted through my fingers. I'd also like it to have a large memory, and video playback if possible. Essentially, a wholly-mechanically-controlled version of the 160 GB iPod would be ideal. Does such an MP3 player exist for those of us who have trouble with our conductive capabilities?

Strongbad, do you have 400,000 viruses?

WidgetAlley — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:47:25 -0800

My MP3 files are scrambled... but now only on my MP3 player! Is my MP3 player somehow defunct? Are my .mp3 files corrupted? Please help! First and foremost, this is a follow-up to this question, so if you'd like the back story it's all there. I have checked the date modified, run virus scans and so on, and nothing has shown up.

Since then, however, several things have happened. I loaded up my MP3 player with Audible files and set off on a weekend trip. An Audible file that worked flawlessly at the beginning of the trip was, by the return journey two days later, also scrambled and in French and backwards. Somehow, it managed to develop this during a period of being totally undisturbed.

Secondly, I downloaded VLC Media Player and tried playing the MP3s on my computer in that. They work perfectly-- no scramble, no skips or cracks. "Aha!" I said. "It's a software problem!" I uninstalled JetAudio and RealPlayer and Winamp and every other media player and rebooted the computer.

I suspected that maybe somehow, the software problem had been transferred to my MP3 player. I deleted everything on my Creative Zen Muvo Tx FM and reformatted it, thinking this would erase any remaining traces of data I might have missed in my sweep. I uploaded some MP3s. Lo and behold, they sounded scrambled. Yet, when I played them with VLC Media Player off my hard drive two seconds ago, they were fine.

What could have possibly caused this mess? I work outside and do use my MP3 player in upwards of 96 degree temperatures for four or five hours sometimes, so if it were solely my MP3 player I would suspect some kind of hardware failure. The fact that it's also my computer, though, leads me to believe software. I consider myself pretty computer-savvy, but I am so confused and lost it's not even funny.

One last note: the scrambled MP3s remind me somewhat of an Audible file played without the software "key" that allows you to unlock them. Is it possible AudibleManager is the cause of my troubles?

Running without headphone cord SMACKSMACKSMACK

chesty_a_arthur — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:29:07 -0800

Help me solve my ipod earphone problem (specifically, the cord smacksmacksmack while running.) I run with an ipod. I have a couple different sets of relatively inexpensive headphones, which are fine; I am a total Philistine when it comes to sound quality. But I am a delicate flower, and the smacksmacksmack of the headphone cord on my arm or neck drives me so crazy that I sometimes wind up stopping just to mess around with it. I know about wireless Bluetooth headphones, which I would like, but cannot justify the expense right now. Has anyone come up with an awesome solution to this problem?

I know there are various cord-winding solutions available that seem like they'd make sense for a device in a coat pocket, but my device is in its foam-rubber arm sleeve (which incidentally has an elastic loop that is maybe to secure headphones but damned if I can figure out how) on my arm, and I'm running. I don't want to hold anything in my hands.

Why doesn't my computer recognize my MP3 player, and other travails.

Sublimity — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:03:51 -0800

Help me smooth out the glitches with my Samsung YP-T9 MP3 player. I have a Samsung YP-T9, which I love. However I seem to have some technical difficulties and I'm not sure how to resolve them. I'm not sure if they're related in any way. I've tried googling for info and have combed the Samsung site and haven't found anything helpful, so any and all help from the MeFites will be appreciated.

Problem 1: When the device is hooked up to my computers (via a cable from the USB port on my PC), it is...somewhat but not completely recognized.

On my desktop PC, which is too outdated to run/load/use/whatever the driver for the MP3 player, the computer knows the player is there and looks for a driver til I tell it to knock off the search. The MP3 player charges through the USB connection, so sometimes I just stick it on this computer to recharge.

On my laptop, which *is* current enough to run the driver and which has the Samsung Music Player software--so this is the machine I use to load new music, etc, on the player--the MP3 player seems to be recognized not as a portable device, but as an auxiliary piece of hardware. By which I mean: it shows up in the "My computer" file, but it doesn't show up as something I can disconnect/dismiss through the little green disconnect arrow on the bottom toolbar. As a result, I just always just disconnect when I need to take the MP3 player off, and it always has a little panicked "USB disconnected!" icon for a sec. I think this ain't the way it wants to be, but I don't know how to resolve it.

Problem 2: when the MP3 player is connected to the laptop, the Samsung Media Studio program recognizes it, but not completely. As in, I can transfer music to the MP3 player, I can see what files are on it, etc, but not all of the options for portable media players are live on the Media Studio menu when my MP3 player is plugged in. For instance, there are menu options for updating firmware and for removing the portable media player safely--neither of these is lit up when my MP3 player is plugged in. The latter makes me wonder if this problem is related to problem 1.

Problem 3: Sometimes, but not always, my MP3 player won't turn off. As in, I turn it off, but it will immediately restart itself. If left undisturbed, it will turn itself off from lack of activity...then restart immediately again. Rebooting by pressing the A/B and menu keys simultaneously doesn't stop this cycle. If left unchecked it'll go on til the battery runs out. I believe this is also related to something about how it's abruptly removed from the USB port, because the only thing that will stop it is by attaching/removing the MP3 player from the computer again.

I've tried troubleshooting along the lines of turning things on and off and restarting my laptop, but not more than that, because I don't know which direction to go. Reinstall the device driver on my laptop? Reformat the MP3 player? Reinstall the Media Studio software? Update the firmware (if I can figure out how, getting around the Media Studio software somehow?)

Thanks for any and all suggestions. In its intended use, it's a kickass little MP3 player...I just wish things were smoother when I interface it with the rest of the computer universe.

mp3 player, incommunicado!

nicolas léonard sadi carnot — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:26:57 -0800

I just reinstalled XP, and on first plugging in my little mp3 player / USB stick (a Samsung YP-U3), I declined to go through any of the "install new hardware" process, figuring it would just show up as an external HD and I could manage my files like that. Well, it doesn't - the display on the stick reads "connecting", then it connects, then straightaway the display assures me that the USB is safely disconnected. As far as my computer's concerned, it's invisible. Running the bundled software does no good either - the stick's just as invisible through the Samsung media manager program as through Explorer. On any other computer than mine, it works perfectly, and I can see it no trouble. So - is there any way to render my poor stick visible?

USB MP3 Player Mangement Software

panoptican — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 13:50:39 -0800

Looking for software to load onto my USB MP3 player that will facilitate easy management of music and podcasts on said USB MP3 player. Any ideas? Specifically, if there is anything out there like Floola, but for USB MP3 players that would be great. (I especially like the Last.FM integration). The closest thing I could find after many minutes of Google searches is MyPodder, which only helps on the podcast front. Perhaps that is all I can hope for. If it makes a difference, I have on of these (and it's alright!):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16855507008

mp3 player with user-replaceable battery?

zippy — Sun, 04 May 2008 15:15:02 -0800

Is there an mp3 player with a user-replaceable battery? I'm tired of throwing mp3 players away simply because the battery wears out. My original ipod shuffle died after ~18 months. I'm looking for a replacement that lacks designed obsolescence. Specifically, I want a portable player where I can replace the battery.

Is there a player no larger than the original iPod that that fits the bill? The battery should cost less than $50 and be a DIY job. The player should cost less than $200, not require a Windows PC to fill with music, and hold 2GB+.

DIY here means:

- device designed to be opened
- battery is easily accessible and replaceable

What are my choices, if any?

Need a player to listen to audiobooks

reenum — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 12:42:17 -0800

Looking for the best portable players for DRM audiobooks and other large MP3 files I've tried to play DRM'd audiobooks from NetLibrary and OverDrive on my current MP3 player (Lexar JumpGear), and have not been successful. The files are so big that the player hangs up while trying to load them.

Ideally, I'm looking for a player that can handle the following:
1. Files of 100 MB or more.
2. Has bookmarking capabilities so I can save my place in the file.
3. Upgradable firmware.
4. Is sturdy enough to use at the gym.

I have no allegiance to any specific brand. I'm just looking for the best player for my needs.

I've looked into iPods, but they aren't able to play the WMA files used by NetLibrary from what I can tell.

What do you all use to listen to such files?

Handily sync generic mp3 player on mac?

kickingtheground — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 11:42:32 -0800

Are there any handy utilities or iTunes plugins to help sync my mp3 player (which appears as simply a mass-storage drive) from my macbook? [Something like a mac version of badapple.]

Trouble shoot a Sansa Clip for me

lassie — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 18:35:58 -0800

My girlfriend's Sansa Clip has suddenly developed a problem I can't fix. She uses it exclusively to download and listen to audiobooks from the Brooklyn Public Library website. Today, when she tried to download a book that she needs to listen to by tomorrow, she got an error message when she tried to transfer the file to her Sansa Clip. It says ""[Insert3] returned 0xC00D2779," and it occurs not when she downloads the book from the website to her computer, but when she then tries to transfer the book from her computer to her device using the Overdrive Media Console. I see that 0xC00D2779 seems to mean "The file could not be transferred because the device clock is not set," but this does not get me any closer to fixing the damn thing. Thoughts? Thanks.