hawkspy

Am using Bose Quiet Comfort 2 headphones at home or SHURE E7c when out and about - I think you'll find they both represent good headphones. Tweak or no tweak - I believe the latest 5G ipod has better sound quality than the a3000....but the iaudio is by far and away the best available (in terms of sound quality).

Never said ipod had good sound quality. But if you havent tried the iaudio you havent heard good sound quality. The a3000 sounds tinny. Check it out before you comment.

I found this thread which would seem to suggest that the unit does infact convert music to ATRAC on the fly during playback...are you sure it plays back MP3s natively? http://www.lordpercy.com/sony_nwa3000_review.htm Thanks

Yes - but I think this limiter is enacted only on euro units...mine was already set to "Off"... I am comparing it to sound Q of X5 which is great

Have to comment here...Have an iaudio X5 30Gb, ipod 60Gb for the car and now the NW-A3000. Bluster aside - here's the facts: AudioQuality: 1) iaudio X5. Utterly superb sound. Configurable. Adjustable EQ. BBE sound enhancement means MP3s sound like CDs. By far and away the best quality. Great punchy bass...MP3s sound awesome. And LOUD! God - if you think Sony's offerings are loud - this thing will deafen you - without distortion. 2) (and a long way back) iPOD. I know that this will attract criticism but really have gradually improved the sound quality in my experience - with a good amp it sounds great - like through the car amp or in a BOSE sound dock. 3) NW-A300 (and really, disappointingly - a long way back again). Ok with good headphones. Poor shitty bass. config EQ but doesnt seem to make a lot of difference...not the one if sound quality is a premium. Tinny sound Looks/Build quality 1) Sony - speactaular - now - but plastic shell is going to definitely cop abuse. 2) (Close) - iaudio X5 - steel case, black hardened plastic shell. Feels beautifully professionally made. 3) ipod - adequate - depends on your luck. UI (on board): 1) Sony - superb. I bought it for the artist link, smart suffle, fave shuffle etc - small things but they add up to a lot. I think easier to use in some ways than ipod 2) ipod - very slick - despite the yawn factor - they got it right first time and it shows - the fact that everyone else has had had to change UIs for every subsequent model player just to scramble back into the game says it all. 3) iaudioX5 - the guy who designed the interface was definitely drug affected. Adequate basic functions but harder than it needs to be. (But great sound). Needs a desparate upgrade in UI. Software: 1) itunes - it just works. Simply, beautifully. 2) iaudio X5 - none needed - just drag and drop (there is a really amusingly bad software available - but why bother) 3) Connect. Really not as bad as they say - works to synch tracks ok. Connect online not available in Australia yet...but definitely not any use for managing your music collection - look to itunes for this. And therein lies the problem - if your software is going to be so lame...well why force us to use it? Really annoying. I mean - it works - but you just sort of think - well why is it exactly that I am forced to use a particular software to transfer tracks? Not a deal breaker - its ok - just use itunes to manage your library. Also - in spite of statements on this site that no on-the-fly- MP3 to ATRAC is occuring - the length of time it takes to transfer tracks on a Dual Core Pentium 3-0 GHz with 2Gb ram - strongly and suspiciously suggests otherwise - I cant be sure but I wouldnt bet that it isnt occuring in the background. Can anyone confirm this? So there it is - the Sony does have a great look and is a good UI....but if you are an audiofile get the X5 from iaudio - which is a cut above any player I have evr heard. My 2c