God my mp3 player sounds horrible through my hi fi!

[admin_exported]

I didn't think it was possible with a NAD C352 amp and BR2 speakers but having just hooked up my go gear mp3 player to it, my god i can't quite get over how terrible it sounds. There is virtually no volume, it's boomy, the sound is very thin, it's been stripped of any openness, soundstage? forget it, it sounds so boxed in.

Do they all sound this horrible? lol

 

[Anonymous]

hi fi newbie:
Do they all sound this horrible? lol

Yep, and welcome to the world of hi-fi...it's a long and bumpy road, but the views over the cliff at the end are sublime...

 

[Anonymous]

Fortunately I have a very good cd player but I am still shocked as to how poor it sounds.

 

[Messiah]

hi fi newbie:
Do they all sound this horrible? lol

No. I have my Ipod connected to my gear through an Onkyo dock and I think it sounds great.

How is your player connected the the amp?? What quality are the files being played??

(Is the MP3 player actually any good??)

 

[Anonymous]

well i know it's only a go gear phillips mpe player but it's connected to an input on the hi fi with 3.5mm rca phono cable

Could it be that the cable is too long? i choose a very long cable don't know howmuch bearing that would have

 

[Messiah]

Apologies if you thought I was abusing the MP3 player! I was only trying to suggest it may sound good at what it does through headphones but may not when it outputs to a HiFi.

What quality are the files stored at??

 

[Anonymous]

Lol that's okay, well i just heard some of the songs which have been encoded at 320 kbs, and i am less than impressed. This really makes me appreciate what a superb sound I get from the cd player. Mind you I have wasted a couple of quid which would have gone to better use in a collection box.

 

[Messiah]

Hmmmm, maybe it is the player??

Perhaps you could borrow an Ipod just to compare the difference??

Hey, at least you have a better appreciation of your CD player!! Kinda helps justify the expense.

 

[SHAXOS]

Yup i have had the same experience with my i pod. No volume and pants sound. However i can recommend an airport express thing it sounds much much better. It did push my patience to breaking point initially as i struggled to get it working. Turns out it was an i tunes problem and once i reverted to an older i tunes its been working a treat. On some of the high bit rates songs i have trouble distinguishing between cd ( i have a very good cd player). So yeah, give it a go!
Regards!

 

[Dan Turner]

I have to say AIFF lossless files on my ipod played back via a Russ Andrews GQ-24 interconnect sounds amazing, almost as good as my Arcam CD37 (and a lot better than my old CD93).

 

[Anonymous]

Dan Turner:I have to say AIFF lossless files on my ipod played back via a Russ Andrews GQ-24 interconnect sounds amazing, almost as good as my Arcam CD37 (and a lot better than my old CD93).

See I've always wondered whethera very high quality interconnect via the headphone output is better than a quality output (maybe the Arcam dock) via the output on the bottom...obviously I have my answer!

 

[Dan Turner]

Afraid you have the opposite answer to that which you thought you had - the RA wire hooks up to the ipod socket on the base!

 

[chebby]

Dan Turner:I have to say AIFF lossless files on my ipod played back via a Russ Andrews GQ-24 interconnect sounds amazing, almost as good as my Arcam CD37 (and a lot better than my old CD93).

Yes I was eyeing up that GQ-24. It connects to the iPod interface rather than the earphone socket so bypasses the volume control completely. Cheap too. (Cheap for RA at least.)

I will review 'ways and means' when I actually get an iPod! (Still umm'ing and aah'ing over that decision.)

iTunes from the computer through a DAC (with mostly lossless files) is fine right now. However I would like to 'dump' the whole of my iTunes onto a 160GB Apple TV one day (cheaper than buying a dedicated computer and it can be on when my computer is not). At that point it might make sense to get an iPod Touch to use as a remote. I think I may wait until the capacity of the Apple TV and the iPod Touch has improved before jumping into either.

 

[Messiah]

I would also like the Apple TV. I saw it in the Apple store and it looks brilliant but could really do with more storage.

 

[Anonymous]

Dan Turner:Afraid you have the opposite answer to that which you thought you had - the RA wire hooks up to the ipod socket on the base!

Oh right! Well I've got my other answer!

Sounds quite a good deal, but do you have the "ultra plate" version or just the "nickel phono"? Also, did you get 1m worth, because I think 20cm or even 50cm is too short for my needs...

Oh and by the way, the only one ipod I have heard that sounds good is the ipod touch, and that was playing heavily compressed music, so I'd like to hear what it sounds like with AIFF!

 

[John Duncan]

Messiah:
I would also like the Apple TV. I saw it in the Apple store and it looks brilliant but could really do with more storage.

When it runs out, it streams from your iTunes library I think...

 

[daveh75]

Could you not add a usb hdd?

 

[JoelSim]

Messiah:hi fi newbie:
Do they all sound this horrible? lol

No. I have my Ipod connected to my gear through an Onkyo dock and I think it sounds great.

How is your player connected the the amp?? What quality are the files being played??

(Is the MP3 player actually any good??)

Eh? My iPod sounds appalling through my hifi. Squared and multiplied by 10.

He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy!

ÿ

ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

JoelSim:Messiah:hi fi newbie:
Do they all sound this horrible? lol

No. I have my Ipod connected to my gear through an Onkyo dock and I think it sounds great.

How is your player connected the the amp?? What quality are the files being played??

(Is the MP3 player actually any good??)

Eh? My iPod sounds appalling through my hifi. Squared and multiplied by 10.

He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy!

LOL!

Anyway, this is how all ipods should look:

Devise a cable for that, Mr. Andrews...

 

[Anonymous]

Have a Apple i pod classic and have dubbed onto it Via the PC many of my CD's 'lossless', then transferred the music to a PS3 that I am currently sat listening to.

AND it sounds wonderful. Pavarotti at the moment.

So I think it is down to the quality of the player, how the music has been laid down onto it, followed by how it is hooked up and the quality of the equipment it is played on.

Welcome to the world of listening pleasure, and how elusive it is to find.

 

[Anonymous]

trevor79:then transferred the music to a PS3 that I am currently sat listening to.

AND it sounds wonderful.

Bring in the lighter fluid!!!

 

[Dan Turner]

Hughes123:

Dan Turner:Afraid you have the opposite answer to that which you thought you had - the RA wire hooks up to the ipod socket on the base!

Oh right! Well I've got my other answer!

Sounds quite a good deal, but do you have the "ultra plate" version or just the "nickel phono"? Also, did you get 1m worth, because I think 20cm or even 50cm is too short for my needs...

Oh and by the way, the only one ipod I have heard that sounds good is the ipod touch, and that was playing heavily compressed music, so I'd like to hear what it sounds like with AIFF!

I just got the Nickel phonos version and I did get 1m - they do seem to come up quite short (not that I've actually measured it) and I think that is the minimum most people could get away with given that you're going to need to regularly pick up what's on one end of it.

 

[Messiah]

JoelSim:Messiah:hi fi newbie:
Do they all sound this horrible? lol

No. I have my Ipod connected to my gear through an Onkyo dock and I think it sounds great.

How is your player connected the the amp?? What quality are the files being played??

(Is the MP3 player actually any good??)

Eh? My iPod sounds appalling through my hifi. Squared and multiplied by 10.

He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy!

Maybe it's your Ipod, connector, quality of the files or those dodgy Arcam electronics..

I use an 8gb Ipod Nano with Apple lossless files and it really does sound good. Each to their own I guess.......just shows, trust your own ears!!!

 

[Messiah]

JohnDuncan:Messiah:
I would also like the Apple TV. I saw it in the Apple store and it looks brilliant but could really do with more storage.

When it runs out, it streams from your iTunes library I think...

Yeah but ideally wanted a solution that did not mean having to have the computer on.

 

[JoelSim]

It was a mini through an iDock with a Monster cable, just MP3 or whatever they call it but it was goddamn awful. Really awful. I did an A/B test with Rumours and I just laughed out loud. I may as well have walked into a different room and listened with a glass at the door