Better than iPod?
Written: Jan 19 '02 (Updated Jan 26 '02)
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Pros: 6GB, expandable HDD, upgradeable firmware, pocket-sized, open-source firmware project, battery life, phone support, USB, PC/Mac/Linux
Cons: Horrible worthless earphones, terrible online support, no Solaris support?
The Bottom Line: Not as small and sexy as the iPod, but with expandability and at half the price it’s a great, rugged player. After ironing out some problems I’ve fallen in love.
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| skintigh's Full Review: Archos Jukebox Studio (20 GB) MP3 Player |
I mulled for a long time between the Archos Jukebox Recorder and the iPod, but settled on the AJR. I really liked the style of the iPod, but the AJR was simply more practical at half the price.
At first I wasn’t that happy with the AJR – the earphones it came with were tinny garbage but when I used my Koss Plugs I could hear noise and whining from the HDD. Later I learned this was because I was using 16 ohm earphones instead of 32 ohm, once I switched the noise went away.
The USB drivers were also being a pain, and my PC kept freezing for a half minute. I upgraded the drivers to the new ones on the Archos web site but that didn’t help all that much. Then I figured out that processor-intensive programs running in the background were what was causing my problems, so turn off Seti@Home before transferring files. FYI newer drivers are available elsewhere and after I test them I’ll provide a link. [Update] In-systems has even newer updates of the dirvers.
In-systems: http://www.in-systems.com
Archos Support page: http://www.archos.com/us/tech_support.html
The AJR comes with MusicMatch software to rip, encode, and organize MP3s, and it worked well. However, I wanted to make quality MP3s of whole CDs and then play those tracks in order – a 6-step process in MusicMatch. After much experimenting with different encoders, bit rates and software packages I have settled on what I think is the best match: I use CDex with LAME (using the –r3mix setting for VBR encodings) and rip all the tracks into %1\%2\%7 %4 – artist\album\## track.mp3. Now I have compact, flawless MP3s organized and named logically so that they can be played in their original order without the need for playlists. I also use EAC for heavily scratched CDs. [Update] Actually, after discovering pops and clicks on many of my rips, I use EAC for all of my MP3 creations now.
CDex: http://www.cdex.n3.net/
LAME: http://home.pi.be/~mk442837/
EAC: http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/
All you need to know about MP3s even if you’re an audio engineer: http://www.r3mix.net/
MP3 FAQ: http://webhome.idirect.com/~nuzhathl/mp3-faq.html
In the process of solving all my problems and answering my questions I discovered quite a community around the AJR, including mailing lists with 2000+ people, forums and hacker sites.
Open source firmware project: http://bjorn.haxx.se/rockbox/
Forum: http://forums.funmp3players.com/forum/
Mailing list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/archosjukebox6000/
Now I know Apple products have a big following, but do they have open-source projects for the iPod? And I know you can’t upgrade the HDD in the iPod…
The AJR can be upgraded with any 2.5 inch, 9.5cm HDD. I have heard of people upgrading to 40GB – that’s A LOT of music.
Upgrade your AJR: http://www2.funmp3players.com/reviews/modify/
The interface is not as snappy and sexy as that of the Ipod, but it gets the job done. The newer units have nicer, more rugged buttons than before and come with newer firmware. Firmware 1.24+ supports resume and faster scrolling through large menus, for those of you who don’t organize like I do. It also does not suffer from stupid menus and volume controls like older versions.
It’s still a pain to make playlists on the AJR and you can’t move files around, but that can all be done easily in Windows Explorer while it’s connected to the PC. It acts like any other drive.
The playtime is supposed to be 10 hours, and while I haven’t timed it that seems right. I put songs I my unit at home and listen to it all day at work. Another advantage of the Archos is replacement DC adapters can be bought at Radio Shack for $15 – the iPod’s proprietary adapters cost a whopping $50. Add that to the Ipods $400 price, $40 for PC software and $60 for a Firewire card and that’s a serious chunk of change. My AJR was a sweet $250 after rebate.
The AJR is pocket sized and even fits in a shirt pocket, but it’s a good bit bigger than the iPod, but not nearly as big as the Creative devices. It also does not suffer from obnoxious copy protection issues like the Ipod and Creative devices. The Ipod only lets you sync with one computer and the Creative players make you re-upload everything when you want to make a change, which takes a long time with 6GB.
The AJR doesn’t seem as mature as the competition, but it’s getting there. Phone support was very helpful, but my emails were never answered and the web page need updating badly. After some problems my only regret is not getting the AJR20GB with USB2.0, but that wasn’t available at the time. I still miss the sexiness of the iPod, but the iPod will turn from white to green when it sees me upgrade the AJR to a 40GB HDD…
There, I tried to condense a month of research into one small review. I probably left some obvious things out, please leave a comment about any other info you’d like – I always update my reviews.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 250
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Epinions.com ID:
skintigh
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Member: Seth Kintigh
Reviews written: 33
Trusted by: 6 members
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