PONO Feedback? Anyone have one yet?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Ephi82, Nov 6, 2014.

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  1. Ephi82

    Ephi82 Still have two ears working Thread Starter

    Location:
    S FL
    I'd really like to hear some first impressions.

    I visited the Web site and see that their Kickstarter supporters are steadily getting their orders filled.

    I read some of the blogs there and it appears any new orders going in now are going to be late Q1/early Q2 deliveries. Probably due to production ramp up and a little "rarity" marketing tactic.

    There seems to be a rumor or reality that the only files for download right now are 44.1/16 and they are not available to consumers without a player. The exception is that the deluxe signature addition players do come with at least one hi res file.

    Anyone know the answer to the 44.16 question?

    Last, if you register, you can search the file database, but there is no info of file format, or who did mastering and when, and no DR value. Anyone think this important as a potential consumer? (essential for me)
     
  2. tim185

    tim185 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Australia
    16/44.1 issue important. DR figures are rubbish and don't matter , you got ears for that.
     
    Grant likes this.
  3. Artery1

    Artery1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coventry UK
    Well, I don't have a Pono yet, but I am following the official Pono community forum. The Signature Edition devices have started to be delivered. They all have Neil Young's song "Harvest" preloaded plus the two albums chosen by the signature artist. Neil's are, I guess, predictably perverse: the albums Harvest and A Letter Home; so Harvest, fine, but duplicates the song everyone gets... And A Letter Home Is is recorded on Jack White's antique recording booth in awful quality. Conversely, the CSNY SE has Deja Vu in apparently astounding quality plus the 3 CD "1974" recent release; that's 39 tracks of CSNY. Early adopters seem more than happy with SQ though a few minor niggles are reported.
     
  4. KeithH

    KeithH Success With Honor...then and now

    Location:
    Beaver Stadium
    DR doesn't tell the entire story, but in my opinion, low DR (e.g., 6-7) never sounds good. Higher DR (e.g., 10 and above) has the potential to sound good.
     
  5. F1nut

    F1nut Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Mars Hotel
    My understanding is that only 1 to 2% of the material will be hi-rez, the rest is CD quality. Not that I was going to get one anyway.
     
  6. pdenny

    pdenny 22-Year SHTV Participation Trophy Recipient

    Location:
    Hawthorne CA
    Postponing purchase until TOAST is released.
     
    warewolf95 and Bill like this.
  7. cwsiggy

    cwsiggy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vero Beach, FL
    Mine shipped. May have it tomorrow. Will post impressions when I can. Too lazy and tired to download the JRiver software tonight...
     
    HAmmer likes this.
  8. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    Would be interested to hear a comparison between it and the Fiio X3. Or even an ipod 5.5 generation model.
     
  9. moops

    moops Senior Member

    Location:
    Geebung, Australia
    You mean postponoing ? :D
     
  10. Peter K

    Peter K Forum Resident

    I have to say I am surprised that there is very little online about the sound quality of the Pono Player. It must be so good that people can't tear themselves away to post some thoughts or its so terrible people don't want to be associated with a poor quality player. I am assuming that Ayre would not risk their reputation by associating themselves with a device that has perceived poor sound quality. I have ordered a Tom petty Limited Edition but haven't received a shipping notice. When I do get it and nobody has bothered to post a serious review I will on you tube. What an opportunity to comment on such a controversial player with tons of media coverage when the kickstarter campaign was in full flight.
     
  11. Charles Buxton

    Charles Buxton Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Antonio, Texas
    More the "... so good that people can't tear themselves away to post some thoughts ... " I work, have a loving family, and in what time remains, truly haven't been able to tear myself away from the thing. On the other "has anyone gotten ther ..." thread I did post my thoughts on CD-rip playback. Basically, my feeling is that the PonoPlayer lives up to the claims as far as sound quality. Me, that's all I wanted, period, end-of-story.
     
    wavethatflag and Ephi82 like this.
  12. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    I have no plans (money) to buy a Pono player, although it would be nice to have that silver signature player, and for me to be able to shove one in my pocket for the amusement of seeing onlookers' reactions. :)

    My interest is in the music store, which is shaping up to have a one-up on iTunes. You do not have to sign up to look around and hear samples. I am happy that the U.S. will finally have an equivalent to Qobuz. From the looks of it, we will also be able to buy individual tracks from most albums. There will be no use for iTunes or 7-Digital for me ever again!

    The store is expected to open in January. I'm trying to hold off buying any CDs because I will get them on Pono. When I see artwork duplicates on Pono, I assume there will be a hi-rez version of that album. I also read that at least one label has transferred all of its catalog to hi-rez.

    I read somewhere that Pono is running the files through some kind of checker to ensure that overly compressed files do not get through. I don't believe this because there are a lot of albums in the inventory with the same compression as the CD counterparts have. So, again, it's on the record labels. However, I do notice some albums I know to have questionable mastering or flawed content to be missing.

    I have been using Pono to grab quality 600 x 600 artwork for things I can't find on AlbumArtExchange.
     
    Last edited: Nov 12, 2014
    ElvisCaprice, Atmospheric and c-eling like this.
  13. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Yeah Grant if that were the case a few of Killing Joke's titles would not be present, regardless it will be nice to have another lossless option :cheers:
     
    Grant likes this.
  14. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    Oh, where's the outrage? I guess he has to make a deal with U2 for there to be a backlash.
     
  15. PeterDoubt

    PeterDoubt Active Member

    My CSN Pono comes tomorrow (The CSNY was sold out, unfortunately). I bought the new Jackson Browne today for $21.99. I don't understand the pricing tiers. Why should 192kh cost more tha 96kh, etc. Is there any more labor? I think the prices are going to have to come down for them to be accepted.
     
    Efus and erniebert like this.
  16. deniall

    deniall Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Australia
    Can anyone confirm that the Pono guys won't be remastering anything and all they're offering are higher res versions of albums already available on CD? I was pumped about it until I read that a while ago. I have no interest in re-buying albums that offer nothing except larger file sizes unless there actually is a difference you can see/hear.
     
  17. Greenears

    Greenears Active Member

    I don't think anybody can confirm anything yet unless they work for Pono or Salesforce and have inside information. But all I can say is I saw Neil Young in an interview last week and he seemed to be saying they were getting access to master tapes for some of the music. He didn't give any numbers. He claims it is a big audible difference.
     
    Om likes this.
  18. Gabe Walters

    Gabe Walters Forum Resident

    Those of us who don't have players on the way can't see the prices on the music store. Could you please provide a more detailed explanation of the price structure? What does an album cost at 24/192, at 24/96, and at 16/44.1? Is the bit depth and sample rate readily visible, and do there tend to be options to select from? How much high-res content appears to be available? Any info is much appreciated.
     
  19. Peter Harrar

    Peter Harrar Senior Member

    Location:
    Connecticut
    While bit depth and sample rates are shown, you can't search by those criteria, so you have to hunt around for hirez recordings. Sometimes, you see multiple copies of a given release in a result search, one of which is hirez (for example, John Lennon's Imagine). Hopefully they'll fix that at some point. Here are some sample prices:

    Neil Young

    Storytone Deluxe (192/24) $32.29
    Harvest (192/24) $21.79
    After the Gold Rush (44.1/16) $15.49
    Comes A Time (44.1/16) $14.29
    On The Beach (44.1/16) $11.29
    Everybody's Rockin' (44.1/16) $7.79
    Cinnamon Girl Live At Fillmore East (bonus track) (44.1/16) $1.99

    John Lennon

    Double Fantasy Stripped (96/24) $30.99
    Imagine (96/24) $18.29
     
    Gabe Walters likes this.
  20. Greenears

    Greenears Active Member

    Ah so there is no simple way to answer the question "how many 24 bit tracks are in the library right now". Well I guess it will be grist for this board on years to come whether the remastered pono versions of 44/16 tracks "sound better" than the umpteen other versions and formats people alreadyhave.
     
  21. Gabe Walters

    Gabe Walters Forum Resident

    Thanks very much for this. If it's not too obnoxious of me, would you mind checking the price, bit depth and sample rate for Miles Davis' Complete On the Corner Sessions? I check that listing once a day in the hopes that I'll be able to access that info.
     
    jeffsab likes this.
  22. Vocalpoint

    Vocalpoint Forum Resident

    Well - it matters to me and my wallet. My ears and I only care when the DR is 9 or beyond (10,11,12 etc).

    Thanks to this forum - should not be difficult at all to find out what's good and what's not.

    VP
     
    Dino likes this.
  23. Charles Buxton

    Charles Buxton Forum Resident

    Location:
    San Antonio, Texas
    I was eager to reply to this, as I was eyeing that particular title before I had access to the store. 16/44, $52.99, 31 tracks. Isn't that cheaper that what it used to retail?
     
  24. Gabe Walters

    Gabe Walters Forum Resident

    Thanks very much. It is cheaper than the retail price of the box set when it was in print, by quite a lot, if memory serves. And it's about one quarter of the price of the cheapest second-hand set I've seen lately. Fantastic!
     
    Peter Harrar likes this.
  25. Peter Harrar

    Peter Harrar Senior Member

    Location:
    Connecticut
    It does seem poised to be at least a handy 44.1/16 store off the bat.
     
    JeffMo likes this.
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