How is the sound versus an S9?

[roebeet]

This thing is pricey, but I'm considering it as it would effectively replace two devices I own (the S9 and also an Archos 32) - I could sell those and it would (mostly) pay for this D3.

That being said, my main concerns are battery life and sound quality. It seems that the former is not in the range of the S9, although 20 hours audio is not out of the question, if Wifi / BT is off? But the latter is of primary importance - is it REALLY significantly better than the S9?

I have a MiniBox E+, HDR-600's and Yuin PK1's. Anyone have an opinion on SQ?

Thanks in advance.

[CrowdAds]

[dfkt]

I doubt there's *any* difference in sound quality at all. I haven't heard the D3 yet, but all Cowon players I heard sound basically the same (they mostly use the same hardware as well) - they are all transparent and rather linear. In volume matched, flat AB and ABX tests I couldn't make out any difference between a Cowon, a Sansa Clip+, or my professional Echo sound card.

[roebeet]

Do you happen to know what the audio chipset is, in the device? I know it uses a Telechips CPU, but I haven't found any info on the audio. I'm assuming it's a Wolfson chip.

I'm also wondering if the board is just some generic ChiPad and they SQ is all software based. If so, you're really only paying for the software and not so much the hardware. Granted, it is an AMOLED screen and capacitive, but a non-Cowon device with similar hardware would probably be about $75 less. That's my guess.

[-M-]

In regards to sound quality, read this: http://iaudiophile.net/forums/showthread.php?t=38492