Hi all, New user here so just like to say a big hello to everyone. I am thinking of getting either one of the BnO mp3 players but im not too sure which one to buy. As an audiophile, im looking more into the quality of the sound which could be delivered by these devices rather than their aesthetic appearances. Hope you guys could help me out! thanks :)

Probably the BeoSound 2, but still, id rather go for an iPod

hmmm? How come? :)

Well the BS6 is a baby samsung with A8s, and the BS2 has no LCD and just 2Gigs.

Fine the sound quality might be better than the ipod, how much better i dont know, but ipods are cheaper and do more! Maybe its just worth getting the A8s from B&O?

Yep, thats what i heard. The BS6 is a replica of the Samsung. But i dont really care about whether there is a LCD screen or not. Im just more into the quality of the sound. thanks for ur reply though :)

Hi,

I do have a Beosound 2 still in his original envelope and box, never used as... well... I do have another one and I won this secondo one an some past Prize Draw here at Beoworld. :)

If intereseted (I'm in Italy, but the manuals and power chord are for UK being Beoworld an UK based site) I can send you as much photo you want and any details. We can then make a deal.

I can say that I'd prefers Beosound 2 for quality, owning even an iPhone that sometime I do use to listen music.

Let me know even leaving a personal message or mail.

I recently swapped from an 80Gb iPod Classic to a BS2 with a 2Gb SD card. The sound quality is very good from the BS2, but I do miss the option of the equalizer settings present on the iPod. With the BS2 you don't have any of these options. I don't miss the display, as I find it easy enough to skip through albums, and found having my entire record collection on one iPod tiresome anyway. Data transfer to the BS2 is a little slow using the old USB connection, but again this is something you get used to. Build quality and looks for the BS2 are, in my opinion at least, far superior to the iPod. I wouldn't swap back!

Hi guys,

As an owner of both the iPod and the BS2, I'd still recommend the BS2 over the iPod. My reasons are:

1) The sound quality of the BS2 is much higher

2) The quality of the device in th BS2 is higher than the iPod. I have never had my BS2 "hang" as my iPod does at times, which annoys me immensely. The whole reason for having a portable music machine is to listen to music, not to fight with the device.

3) Updating the BS2 is as easy as updating the iPod.

I cannot speak for the BS6 since I don't own one, but having a Serenata I cannot say I use it that much for its music.

 

I have a beosound 6 very nice made but whoud buy now a Ipod just because you can store more

If the choice is truly between the two, I would say the BeoSound 2. Very intuitive and enjoyable. The only reason I use my iPhone more is that I listen to a lot of audiobooks and the BeoSound 2 has no ability to go back to the last track listened to in a play list. With some books taking up hundreds of tracks, this is not a possibility. 

For music, though, I've never enjoyed an iPod quite as much. It's quite magical.

Daykota01:

Hi all, New user here so just like to say a big hello to everyone. I am thinking of getting either one of the BnO mp3 players but im not too sure which one to buy. As an audiophile, im looking more into the quality of the sound which could be delivered by these devices rather than their aesthetic appearances. Hope you guys could help me out! thanks :)

Welcome!

When you're an audiophile and realy like to hear your music in high quality when you're traveling forget the Beosound 6 and the iPod.

The Beosound 2 is only well manufactured but poor designed in electrical terms: When you switch it on you hear a "plop" noise through the headphones - an absolute NO GO for a MP3 player in this class! My Beosound 2 is sitting lonely on my desk since I got the Sony.

I can recommend the following combo:

- Sony NWZ-S638 or 639 (8GB / 16GB) with Bang & Olufsen A8 headphones
- Sony NWX-X1050 / 1060 (16GB / 32GB) with Bang  & Olufsen A8 headphones
- Cowon S9 with Bang & Olufsen A8 headphones.

Then you have a realy high quality portable audio player. Great sound and well build (Sony).

Beosound 6 is just a rebadged Samsung... nothing more.
You don't need any EQ etc. on the Sony. They sound wonderful with enough pressure for the A8 headphones.

On long flights you could use Sonys own headphones supplied with the X-Series as this Walkman has digital noise canceling integrated!

 

The Sony is good I agree but I have my iPod classic 160Gb model. Lots of space (though it is full) so I can have high bit rate recordings. I record using AAC these days and the sound quality at 320kbps is fine - I use Sennheisser HD600s for more serious listening. The BS2 is just not good enough now and has a built in loudness circuit that you cannot disable. The BS6 was a joke.

TWG:

The Beosound 2 is only well manufactured but poor designed in electrical terms: When you switch it on you hear a "plop" noise through the headphones - an absolute NO GO for a MP3 player in this class! My Beosound 2 is sitting lonely on my desk since I got the Sony.

I think it should be pointed out that TWG's experience with this anomalous noise is an isolated incident. Regrettable, but isolated. 

TripEnglish:

TWG:

The Beosound 2 is only well manufactured but poor designed in electrical terms: When you switch it on you hear a "plop" noise through the headphones - an absolute NO GO for a MP3 player in this class! My Beosound 2 is sitting lonely on my desk since I got the Sony.

I think it should be pointed out that TWG's experience with this anomalous noise is an isolated incident. Regrettable, but isolated. 

Trip, according to your comment it is NOT the way the Beosound 2 is intended to operate? This is an error/malfunction?
That would be good to hear/know.

But as an actual choice I can not recommend it anymore. It's only ok when you have - let's say - 2-3 CDs as MP3 on it; if more navigation is simply a pain :-)

So my personal choice and reference is the Sony S63x and the new X-Series in combination with the A8 headphones from B&O.

 

facing the same decision few weeks ago. My choices were: Sony, Ipod, Beosound  6 and 2.

 

However guess what i have at home now : a NIB  Beosound 2 bought from my dealer.  I had one before (bought on Ebay) and sold it after few months and I regretted that.

 

Beosound 2 is a classic and  the quality of the materials, sound  and his beauty put him apart from any MP3 on the market..

 

regards

 

 

 

If sound quality is your priority, I would go for BeoSound 2; however, BeoSound 6 in comparison is a real bargain, since it offers, twice the storage capacity (4 Gb instead of 2), can playback MP3 and WMA files at higher bitrates, has more than twice the playback time (40 hours), comes with a display with cover art, and has all connections via a single USB cable..and the sound was quite good too, I think. The data transfer speed is unfortunately as slow as on BS2.

 

I am afraid that I don't agree. If sound quality is the real issue, the Sony is the way to go. Shame that the ATRAC system is no more as this really was good. having said that, I wouldn't really describe any 'MP3' player as audiophile. Very useful when walking the dog though! BS2 has the advantage of being able to be operated without taking your hands out of your pockets!

TWG:

Trip, according to your comment it is NOT the way the Beosound 2 is intended to operate? This is an error/malfunction?
That would be good to hear/know.

TWG, I have two at home and a few laying around the shop. I know that my personal units don't do it and I checked our main display unit and it also didn't do it. Sounds like you have a gremlin. I'd bring it back to the shop and see what they can do for you. 

I would also recommend any current Sony product if your main concern is sound quality.  I usually stay right away from anything proprietary from Sony but ATRAC was just amazing and I kind of wish it went mainstream.  Also, if you were serious about sound the A8's shouldn't even be mentioned. 

B&O make some high end headphone gear please!!!

@Trip:
Thanks for testing. I'm gonna have a visit to my dealer :-)


@PentaIII:
The actual Sony Walkman series for the european and US market does NOT support ATRAC anymore. They are all multiple format (MP3, AAC etc.) Audio and Videoplayers that work like a charm on Mac and PC via Drag&Drop (Music, Videos, Photos) with absolutely great sound quality!

My personal opinion: The Bang & Olufsen A8 do sound as good as the Shure E3 in the <200 Euro headphone class.

Sorry Trip... I am with TWG as my BS2 behaved exactly the same. It would be interesting to know when you bought yours TWG as I purchased mine as soon as they were released, so if you did too, then perhaps the earlier original models suffered with this problem? I bought mine in Greece. I am sure by now they have identified and ironed out any glitches, as they have with the top part of the BS3 for example.

With regards to the original poster's question, well up until owning a Serenata I would definitly have backed the BS2 as the sound quality is superb. However, the sound reproduction on the Serenata is very impressive. I am still going to sell mine on as the phone part of it is useless to me - texting and general dialing etc is fiddly - I only bought it as a temporary measure while my Serene was being repaired. Don't discount it though and do make sure you have a proper listen to it with lossless or high bit rate music playing.

All the best,
Simon.

TWG:

My personal opinion: The Bang & Olufsen A8 do sound as good as the Shure E3 in the <200 Euro headphone class.

How can you compare an isolating earphone with an A8, and say "sound as good".

Shure FTW!

 

The_Beonic_Man:

Sorry Trip... I am with TWG as my BS2 behaved exactly the same. It would be interesting to know when you bought yours TWG as I purchased mine as soon as they were released, so if you did too, then perhaps the earlier original models suffered with this problem? I bought mine in Greece. I am sure by now they have identified and ironed out any glitches, as they have with the top part of the BS3 for example.

With regards to the original poster's question, well up until owning a Serenata I would definitly have backed the BS2 as the sound quality is superb. However, the sound reproduction on the Serenata is very impressive. I am still going to sell mine on as the phone part of it is useless to me - texting and general dialing etc is fiddly - I only bought it as a temporary measure while my Serene was being repaired. Don't discount it though and do make sure you have a proper listen to it with lossless or high bit rate music playing.

All the best,
Simon.

Hey Simon, yes, my Beosound 2 is one of the first ones... perhaps they changed the electrical circuit in later units!?
Would you sell your Serenata? Then I'm interested as you had a good deal ;-) More via PN.


@DoubleU:

Comparison was easy: Same track, same volume, same audio device and then I compared the Shure E3 to my A8 headphones.
I tried several of the supplied Shure in-ear-adapters but it was a pain to wear for me. The A8 was much more comfortable and for my ears the A8 sounded as good as the Shure E3. Perhaps the highs had a little more "pressure" due to the Shures construction... but I can't wear them comfortable; so I switched back to the A8 and I'm very happy with it!

 

To continue on the off-topic sub-thread:  I also prefer the A8s to the Sure E3s.  I own and use both.  I use the E3s on flights and the A8s pretty much everywhere else...  The E3s have better bass, but don't "sparkle" to my ears like the A8s.

Oh yeah, I also vote for the BS2 (it's everything I need and nothing that I don't and ruggedly constructed).  No "plop" on mine.  There is a small bit a white noise that I hear when between songs.

Stan

TWG:

I tried several of the supplied Shure in-ear-adapters but it was a pain to wear for me. The A8 was much more comfortable and for my ears the A8 sounded as good as the Shure E3. Perhaps the highs had a little more "pressure" due to the Shures construction... but I can't wear them comfortable; so I switched back to the A8 and I'm very happy with it!

Fair enough, TWG. I can understand not everyone is comfortable with in-ears. But the A8 leaks too much bass for me, as I like to listen to electronic music where bass is important. I probarly would have bought the BS6, if the A8 was optional.