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15 out of 16 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Best pure music player on the market"
Pros: Best build quality and lightest 20gig player on the market. Excellent sound quality and
Cons: Weak EQ control and buttons still not as intuitive as the apple scroll wheel
Summary: I've been on the market for a hard drive mp3 player for a while now, seeing how my flash based devise was no longer adequate to store my music collection. I'm a bit of an audiophile, so my number one priority was getting a player that was built sturdy and had the best sound quality.
I compared the hd5, the cowon x5, and the apple 20gig at a shop at hong kong. Since i've done a lot of reconnaisance work, my initial feeling was that i'd be in love w/ the cowon's sleek sexy design and the apple's incredible ease of use. The sony was the number three contender, and the wild card since i didnt know what to expect (and quite frankly wasnt expecting much out of it). Boy was i wrong.
The thing that striked me first was how small the hd5 was compared to the other two. Both the x5 and the ipod were a good 1/2" taller than the sony, which is quite noticeable. On the other hand, i didnt really notice that the hd5 was slightly fatter than the other two because it's general shape actually had a better feel in my hand. And the feel of this tiny player is amazing. It's sturdy metal casing and sleek buttons made the other two seem cheap in comparison. The x5 in particular had such a fragile feel that i was afraid that i'd break it just by squeezing too hard. Also, the tiny control stick on the cowon protrudes out, making it (at least to me anyways) seem much less sturdy than the apple scrollwheel or the hd5 buttons. The third design category that the sony had an edge in is weight. It's noticeably lighter than both the apple and cowon, but an extra ounce didnt really matter all that much for a hard drive device. Aesthetically, the sony is a real beaut in person and it's dark screen w/ white characters gives it a refreshing contrast to the more traditional black on white display. With that said, it'd rank it second to the apple in looks, w/ the cowon (suprisingly for me) in a distant third. The x5's screen looked cheap and the slight curvature in the middle of the body just made the unit seem fragile. And because the apple is so common everywhere nowadays, its look has become bland and almost outdated, making the hd5 all the more attractive.
Having won the design category in a landslide over the other two, all the hd5 had to do was hold up in audio performance. Luckily, i had been traveling that day and had my sennheiser hd590's on hand so i could test out each player w/ worthy headphones. The highs on the apple and sony both seemed equally crisp while the x5 lagged behind. When it got to the mids and lows, however, the hd5 definately had a deeper thump than both the competitors. The only gripe i had w/ the unit was that the majority of the EQ settings work only with the native attrac3 tunes and did not work for mp3's. Nonetheless, even with only miminal control over the EQ, i was able to get the unit to produce the right settings for me. The max volume on all three were all quite close, so that wasn't as much of a factor as i had imagined.
So after winning both the design and performance brackets for my little test, it was obvious which player i would choose. I had little need for an FM player (since i never used the one in my flash player anyways) and didnt have a need for a video player since i have a psp for that. The sony was simply the best pure music player out of the three.
And for people who complain about sonicstage as being horrific and impossible to use, all i have to say is that it's no harder than the software i use with my iriver flash player. If you cant take the 1/2 hr or so to explore the software and learn how to correctly use it, then you're just demanding too much and are probably better off w/ the idiot-proof ipod/itunes combo. But if you have the minimal patience necessary to learn a fairly simple and straightforward program and are on the market for a player that plays music and plays it damn well, then the hd5 is for you.
- 1 reply to this review
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I have the HD-1, and was ALMOST scared away from it because of people whining about Sonic Stage. I am not a "computer whiz"; if I can figure it out, anyone can.
I teach middle school, and most of my students who own mp3's chose the I-pod. For sound quality, size, and durability the Sony line wins hands down! In fact, I am going to upgrade to the HD-5 right now-I've talked myself into it!
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