Cowon iAUDIO 9 8 GB MP3 Player (Black)

Things to consider good:

1. Sound quality is amazing. I have some Skull Candy buds that are about $15 or so and they do the trick.

2. Plays almost any format. This will handle FLAC, APE, OGG and the lossless stuff.

3. It is a touch player. I was used to having buttons so it took a bit for me to get used to the touch screen. There's the ability to adjust the sensitivity, but i left it on 3 because well, i'm clutzy.

4. There's a nice little screen for showing album art. I am obsessive about the tagging of my music and so I was thrilled to see the pretty pictures.

5. It's a bit strange how to use the interface because there's no buttons. The 'quick setup' manual won't really explain to you about putting things on shuffle, repeat, setting of equalizer, etc. The little CD that comes with it has a PDF manual which explains all this stuff. I would suggest that you read it at least a little bit before you start fiddling around...Read more

Cowon audio quality is far beyond any other players I've owned. Features for the price point are great, The iAudio 9 is highly customizeable compared to other brands in the $100-$150 range. I highly reccomend the Cowon iAudio 9.

After researching for the best "bang-for-the-buck" audio player, I may have found it in the Cowon iaudio9. Video, radio, recording etc. were not a high priority - just good audio and the Cowon delivers with a WOW factor. The software is a little hinky and there is a learning curve; however, can be synced with Windows Media Player. The equalizer is over the top and you can tweak to about any sound you want. I agree with most of the reviews and upgrade the earphones. A huge bonus factor is using the unit as the auxiliary input for late model car radios and surround sound receivers - go to Radio Shack and get wired up. Be sure and not leave the player in a hot car as it may fry the unit. Simply `killer' audio for the money.