Want to buy an Walkman . wait, what do they call them nowadays?

Phog Allen said:

At the risk of being a typical forum poster; Plus a whole bunch. I bought two of these for my girls years ago. On sale at Christmas for next to nothing. Probably the best value in a music player around. Ours were a bit older and were not the + models but the function was very similar. I like the rocker dial on this one better. It would be my choice.

Edit: When you get to Amazon's web site you will find a listing directly below this one in small photo link. It says something about a new model. Just skip it. I looked at the new model and it is a good bit less money but they got rid of the AMOLED screen, it is now LARGER than the older one, it is colour which is completely unnecessary on a player like this, and it lacks the superb simplicity of the older model.

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I didn't see there were new ones until you mentioned this. There appear to be a couple new ones and I saw the one you were talking about with the color screen (you're right it, isn't needed and just drains battery). That one appears to be the Clip Sport with LCD screen. But there's another one called the SanDisk Clip Jam for about $41 and it just has a black & white OLED screen. It appears to be a more modern looking version of the Clip+ with a little bit better battery life.

To the OP, I think either the Clip+ or the Clip Jam will work the best for you. I can't comment on the newer Clip Jam but my Clip+ has been rock solid this whole time.

Doc4 said:

What's a good one to get?

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Get a Sony. Their digital compression software is much better than anyone else's. The sound from a good Sony NWZ Walkman is noticeably better than anything Apple has.

Go West Young Man said:

So, let's break it down....

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- What format is your music in?
CD

- Where is it stored?
On a shelf. A few I have downloaded onto my computer, but mostly just on shiny silver discs in plastic cases.

- Do you have any similar devices you could use (even old flip phones often had media players on them, if you're not a smartphone guy)
Nope ... nada.

- How much music do you want to have available? Are you willing to sync some music over every day, or do you want the entire collection available at all times?
I suspect "not that much" compared to what some can do. I'm not looking to have a portable "all the music I ever wanted" collection ... I'd like easy access to a few "workout mix tapes" about an hour long each. That sort of thing.

- How snooty are you about audio quality?
Fairly snooty. I'm not one of those "I listen to vinyl because it's warmer" guys with $800 cables on my stereo at home, but I'd like something at the high end of normal.

- How big or small a player do you want? aka, how will you carry it - in a bag, or do you need pocket size or smaller?
Small is good.

- Budget?
Cheap is good. I don't want a "major purchase" that I have to put in the queue and get clearance from SWMBO, or something so expensive I have to wait for sales &c. I'll adjust my thinking if necessary ... if I find out that I want steak but have a hotdog budget.

- use cases - does it need to stand up to long runs or gym workouts? Or just walking around with?
Let's say gym workouts, that sort of thing. Nothing overly strenuous, but I'm looking for "easily portable" and "not getting in the way".

Those Sansa's are pretty good, I had one back in the day and it still works when I need a super small player to toss into a shirt pocket. Nearly indestructable.

So my reading is that you'll need to rip all your CDs to digital format and store them on a computer, right? If so, look into Google Play Music - it'll let you upload all your songs to a private online library so that your music is available any time you have an internet connection. Totally free of charge, and doesn't require any further buy-in to the Google ecosystem. Bonus, they'll automatically upgrade the file to a higher quality one if Google detects they have a better one.

Personally, I'd just buy a generic MP3 player and then spend a lot more time worrying about what bitrate and format to rip, and what earbuds to use - that's where you're time and money will pay off.

ouch said:

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[emoji1]

ouch said:

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Sony does still make a Walkman...

Well, here's Sony's newest Walkman, the ZX2. It's a $1,200 "hi-res" audio player. Yeah whatever, I'm not buying it (pun intended). A complete waste of money, right along with Neil Young's PonoPlayer. I don't know who falls for this stuff, honestly.

If I was going to spend a few hundred or more on a portable music player, it would be from Cowon, a Korean maker of high quality digital music players.

Like the poster said a few entries back, having a high bitrate and/or a good file format of your music paired with good headphones will give you the biggest impact, even on an inexpensive player like the Sansa.

You're just going to have to invest the time ripping (copying) your CDs to your computer and then transfering them to the player you choose.

For your requirements, I don't even think you want to upload your files to the cloud (online access), justuse Windows Media Player that's built in to Windows and use that, store them all locally, then drag and drop files to the player when you want them. You don't have to store your entire CD collection but 8GB still holds A LOT of songs and if you use the MicroSD card for up to 32GB more you will have a lot more space than you realize.

Get an iPod. As a musician I have several devices and nothing beats an iPod.

Solid battery life, easy to configure and seem less integration with iTunes.

Which model of iPod ? That totally depends on your requirements. We might be able to suggest one if you give some more details.

socialjunk95 said:

Which model of iPod ? That totally depends on your requirements. We might be able to suggest one if you give some more details.

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I'm certainly no expert on Apple gear, but for the OP's needs, I think a Nano 16gb would be the bare minimum.

But yet, for just a little more money and not much more space/weight, he could get an iPod Touch. More than likely, the gym is wired for WiFi. Even though he states he doesn't want anything more than music storage, there are all those cool apps that can monitor his workout and track metrics and so forth.

Personally, I don't like to be disconnected from the Internet for very long. Even if I'm in the middle of doing something else, I like to keep up with breaking news, keep tabs on the weather, Facebook, get my eMails in real-time, and be able to jot down notes. But that's just me.

esswun said:

Well, here's Sony's newest Walkman, the ZX2. It's a $1,200 "hi-res" audio player. Yeah whatever, I'm not buying it (pun intended). A complete waste of money, right along with Neil Young's PonoPlayer. I don't know who falls for this stuff, honestly.

If I was going to spend a few hundred or more on a portable music player, it would be from Cowon, a Korean maker of high quality digital music players.

Like the poster said a few entries back, having a high bitrate and/or a good file format of your music paired with good headphones will give you the biggest impact, even on an inexpensive player like the Sansa.

You're just going to have to invest the time ripping (copying) your CDs to your computer and then transfering them to the player you choose.

For your requirements, I don't even think you want to upload your files to the cloud (online access), justuse Windows Media Player that's built in to Windows and use that, store them all locally, then drag and drop files to the player when you want them. You don't have to store your entire CD collection but 8GB still holds A LOT of songs and if you use the MicroSD card for up to 32GB more you will have a lot more space than you realize.

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Well, that's Sony for you. And I guarantee you there are at least ten fools out there who have one of these tucked away in their repertoire of electronics just for bragging rights. But those are geek bragging rights and even we enablers on B&B raise an eyebrow or two at such shenanigans. Sony fanatics are worse that Apple fanboys at times. For every home run Sony hits there are five of these esoteric foul balls that become internet legend after awhile. This from the guy who has a TV tuner attachment for the old Turbo-Graphics 16 handheld unit. But I'm not judging, oh no, I'm really not.

So, let's break it down....

- What format is your music in?
- Where is it stored?
- Do you have any similar devices you could use (even old flip phones often had media players on them, if you're not a smartphone guy)
- How much music do you want to have available? Are you willing to sync some music over every day, or do you want the entire collection available at all times?
- How snooty are you about audio quality?
- How big or small a player do you want? aka, how will you carry it - in a bag, or do you need pocket size or smaller?
- Budget?
- use cases - does it need to stand up to long runs or gym workouts? Or just walking around with?

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Great list of questions. Maybe add, "Windows Explorer or iTunes".

Santa clip or Sansa clip+

Wife and I have 4 of them between us. They are small,work great, cheap and nearly indestructible. Very easy to transfer your music to. Much easier than using a smart phone, not bulky at all. Much cheaper than an iPod.

esswun said:

Well, here's Sony's newest Walkman, the ZX2. It's a $1,200 "hi-res" audio player. Yeah whatever, I'm not buying it (pun intended). A complete waste of money, right along with Neil Young's PonoPlayer. I don't know who falls for this stuff, honestly.

If I was going to spend a few hundred or more on a portable music player, it would be from Cowon, a Korean maker of high quality digital music players.

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The Sony you mentioned is just one of the many models they carry. It is meant to compete with other high end brands that cost lots more than the Sony. As I said you can get a good Sony NZW new or better yet get a used one on Ebay. Their digital sound compression software is lots better than Apple. I have had a number of Apple products and none can beat my Sony NZW in the way it sounds.

I'd check your local Craigslist for an old Zune or Ipod. It might have some teeth marks and a patina... but that's just added character. Make sure it works on pickup, and that it charges (IMPORTANT). I can promise you that you won't beat the price, outside of buying from a personal friend.

I'll second what Columbus said. I'd personally go with one of these, for the nostalgia.



Yes, this thing is nostalgia for my generation

Columbus said:

I'd check your local Craigslist for an old Zune or Ipod. It might have some teeth marks and a patina... but that's just added character. Make sure it works on pickup, and that it charges (IMPORTANT). I can promise you that you won't beat the price, outside of buying from a personal friend.

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I had a Zune. In fact, I had two of them. They work great when they're brand new, and the $15/mo. subscription to the Zune Library opens up millions of tracks of audio content.

The sound quality is above average, but not as good as it could be. The Operating System is easy and intuitive to operate. They were a bit bulky and heavy, but that also meant they could withstand some abuse.

My big issue with Zune is reliability. My first one was purchased used and it still had someone else's music on it. It took me a long time to figure out how to delete their profile and zero everything out. Then the battery died and I had to get a new one. Easy fix, but even with the new battery, it wouldn't turn on.

My second Zune was purchased new. It worked great for a little over a year, but then it locked up and wouldn't reboot. I tried all the standard fixes. But it was dead in the water. It was out of warranty so I couldn't get any help from Microsoft without paying through the wazoo for repairs. In fact, they don't even have a repair program, just send in your old one (along with about 50% of the original purchase price) and get back a factory refurb with a 30-day warranty.

Conclusion: Don't buy a Zune.

Off-topic, but topic adjacent: does anyone have, or know where I can find a minidisc player for cheap? I have minidisc recording of a solo competition I did in high school (given to me by a former teacher), and I'd really like to hear what I sounded like on tuba back then. I've checked eBay, but the cheapest I've seen is $40, which is more than I want to pay, especially for something I'm only going to use to transfer this disc to my computer.