Sony's Walkman Makes Comeback

For any WSJ article, google the title of the article and click on it.....For some reason I can read every article via google

 

Apple is all about making devices user friendly. They could give a crap about "flexibility" though. "Flexibility" is why Android is hopelessly fragmented and Microsoft hasn't been a player in the mobile space since the iPhone came out. 95% of consumers don't want "flexibility" - they want things to work.

And Sony has never been about flexibility. For the past two decades they've been all about proprietary formats and DRM straitjackets. Although there's evidence that consumer-hostile attitude has begun to shift. We shall see...

 

There was a period of many years where I would've paid a premium for a high-capacity (I.e. bigger than the 160GB of the ipod classic) mp3 player that didn't suck (i.e. could run Rockbox or some other more flexible firmware). But...streaming has kind of rendered this unnecessary. And only 128GB? For that you could buy a 128GB iPhone if apple ever decided to make one. I am confused by this product.

 

You should check out the Fiio lineup. I picked up the X3 a few months back and have been extremely happy with it. Sounds great connected to my Sony receiver. I picked it up on Amazon for about $215 and that included a 64GB SD card and the digital coax cable that hooks to my receiver. The X5 looks really nice too but for about half the price the X3 is just what I wanted.

 

IMO user friendly is having a battery that a user can replace which would be simple to do. I think users can replace their phone batteries, I have done it no prob on every other phone. Especially on an ipod that a user may want to keep longer than the typical battery life before being forced to "upgrade" or pay to have a new battery installed. It's not the only case where apple limits its devices in a (let's call it) consumer-unfriendly manner to squeeze more nickels out.

 

and to be honest, the galaxy and even the lumia (windows) are just as "user-friendly" as IOS in terms of ease of use. And I can download and actually use files of all types on my android tablet. Much more user friendly than the content consumption only ipad.

 

The headphone amp and DAC in the iPod Classic is not up to the task of doing justice for high res. A high res capable iPod would be a waste and would be an anchor dragging down the rest of the industry trying to do proper high res portables. It's looking like the high res portable market may happen without Apple being a part of it. Unless they've got an "and one more thing" in the works and ready to go, and assuming that "one more thing" is worthy of playing high res.

$700 for the Sony is steep and not a price point for the masses. It's even too much for me to consider. I have no plans to have a $700 portable player. But there certainly is a small market for portables priced in that range. Assuming its sound quality and performance deliver and deserve that price range.

 

I doubt one user in a dozen is gonna lug around an extra battery, ever, even on trips. And when you add a "feature" like that, you're adding extra complexity, extra bulk, extra cost and giving the device one more thing that can - and will - break.

The reason why Apple has become the thousand pound gorilla of the electronics industry is because they understand that with every "feature" comes a problem, or a whole host of problems. The Japanese were never particularly good at understanding that - Sony was probably the best, back in the day - which is one of the reasons why they've pretty much been displaced from the entire smartphone market.

 

Agreed. Its baloney that I should buy a $400 device that will start dying in three years because of the battery and I can't bring it simply back to life without shelling out fifty or sixty bucks for a $4 battery. Or even more annoyingly, be expected to trade in my player for another. I'm still using an iPod video, which gives you some idea how long I expect my equipment to keep going.

As far as these "walkmen," these hi-rez players aren't going anywhere. I don't know why Sony bothered even putting one out, except to prove they are still a technology king. Just go over to Headfi and see the number of Astell and Kern players up for grabs used in the sale forums and you'll get some idea of the real longevity of these players in the real world. Portable and Hi-rez are not a good match in my book, at least not for the premium they expect you to pay. The number of them for sale tells me people just say to themselves "this isn't really worth the bread I spent."

 

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There are plenty of people out there listening to 2496 on less that SOTA headphone amps, headphones, and speakers. Having owned 2 classics I do believe that I could hear the same performances on an Ipod classic and chose the one that is 2496 if they did nothing but change the DAC set. You don't have to be a golden ear to differentiate between 256K and 2496. I can choose between a good recording and a poor one on either of my Sony Discmans with just my 7506's. . Hirez will remain only for the 1%ers if it is not accessible and very affordable.

Sony understood it when they came out with affordable SACD players, but forgot to support the format and make all their discs hybrids, but that was a sorry marketing choice. Created in 1999 and then by 2007 "research" proved it sounded no better than CDs. Don't you love research?

Now the market scrambles to do DSD downloads which I won't do because of my sorry AT&T internet service which varies from 12-20 mbps depending upon the time and day. That is the most they can offer. Because of that the most I will do is 2496. Cable doesn't even go to 30mbps here, so I am guessing there is no fiber in our neighborhood. The irony is that it was deemed crap in 2007 and now the "bomb". Amazing.

What will drive better tracking and mastering for artists? That will be when more music releases are hirez where everyone can hear the flaws. Until then to hear it, it will be $30+ lps, SACDs, and downloads tethered to your pc for listening. Now Astell and Kern just need your credit card number and for a grand or more they can hook you up.

 

I'll agree with the other Fiio X5 advocates - affordable (especially compared to this Sony!) and a viable hi-res-on-the-go device. Worth looking into for sure...

 

Looks good, but for $900, it'll go nowhere.

Aside from the price, there is literally no excuse for any digital music player of any type not to have a MicroSD slot. Not to include one is simply a design flaw IMO.

 

http://www.soundandvision.com/content/sony-announces-walkman-hi-res-music-player

Sony Announces Walkman Hi-Res Music Player
By SV Staff • Posted: Sep 3, 2014

Walkman NWZ-A17 Hailed as “World’s Smallest and Lightest” Hi-Res Audio Player
The iconic Walkman name will appear on what Sony is calling the “world’s smallest and lightest” high-resolution digital music player, the Walkman NWZ-A17, slated to hit store shelves in November with a suggested retail price of $300.

Housed in a brushed aluminum chassis measuring 1.7 x 4.3 x 0.3 inches, the A17 has a 2.2-inch display, supports Bluetooth/aptX/SBC wireless streaming with simplified NFC connectivity, and includes 64 GB of internal memory plus a microSD slot that’s compatible with 64-GB microSDXC memory cards. The player supports resolutions up to 24-bit/192 kHz and plays MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, AIFF, WAV, and ALAC files.

Features intended to support high-resolution playback include a purpose-built S-Master HX digital amplifier featuring a high-grade capacitor, DSEE HX technology for upscaling compressed digital files to better-than-CD quality, and a rigid die-cast aluminum chassis to minimize electronic noise.

The A17’s built-in lithium ion battery is said to provide up to 50 hours of MP3 audio playback or up to 30 hours of hi-res audio playback when fully charged (both with Bluetooth turned off).
Sony also announced the MDR-1A Hi-Res headphones, which will be available in stores at the end of September for $300. The closed-cup headphones include a carrying pouch and feature 1.5-inch drivers and an in-line microphone and smartphone controls.

 

I have 2 portable Sony CD players and I wish they would make one with the SACD chip set in it. Certainly under $200 should do it.

 

Where does Sony get these models numbers? How about HRP-1 ?

 

a Pono Killer?

 

Hard to know not having heard either.

 

Nice price.

 

64GB still strikes me as totally inadequate for high-res audio. I'd be looking for 128GB, at least.

Also, I find the lack of DSD support kinda nutty.

 

And here are versions of the same story you can read without paying The Wall Street Journal money:

http://money.msn.com/technology-investment/post--would-you-pay-dollar700-for-sonys-new-walkman
http://betabeat.com/2014/07/sony-is-selling-a-700-walkman-for-whatever-reason/
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2461186,00.asp

I suspect this is basically the Pono player without the triangular shape and without Neil Young. Though I kind of balk at the $700 price tag. I suspect if Sony really wanted to, they could get this thing out the door for $499.

On the long list of consumer electronics ideas I've had over the years, a "perfected audiophile iPod" was high on that list. But it'd hinge on the wide availability of 256GB CF cards or SD cards, and those are not cheap -- like $300 or so. I'm convinced that solid-state memory prices are being kept artificially high, just as oil prices are heavily manipulated by the people who control that market. (It's the Illuminati, I tells ya!)

Apple generally has taste and style, plus good common sense on the GUI, all of which make a huge difference. Steve Jobs once was interviewed by (I think) 60 Minutes, and he was asked what was the biggest difference between the way Microsoft designed products and the way Apple designed products. He thought for a minute and said, "their biggest problem is that Bill Gates has no taste." Jobs later apologized to Gates (a longtime frenemy), but also said it was still true.

Sony is in a very similar boat. I think they go about 75% of the way there in making good products, and then they fumble the ball and do something really stupid. You could write a very good MBA paper on all the business mistakes Sony has made in the last 20 years.

 

I find desire for DSD support in a $300 portable to be kinda nutty. I own two albums in DSD files, along with a bunch of demo DSD files. I own more DSD files than most people. I have no qualms about converting those two albums to PCM to put on a portable.

The Sony does have a microSD slot. You can add a microSD card to get up to 128GB or possibly more.

So it's a lot like the Pono player. And will be hitting the market at about the same time. But the Pono player can do balanced output for headphones wired for balanced, and will likely have a more powerful headphone amp than the Sony.

 

Sony has been utterly rudderless since old man Morita stepped down in '94. He was already leading them into some dangerous distractions - movies, a record label - that never really panned out, but since he departed the company has floundered. If it weren't for the surprise hit they had with the first Playstation they'd be in even worse shape than they are already. In consumer electronics, Samsung ate their lunch.

 

It's an audiophile player and Sony's audiophile format. Failing to support it is completely idiotic (and totally modern Sony).

 

SACD is Sony's audiophile format. DSD files are a bit different. I don't know if Sony would be wanting to promote the playback of SACD files on a portable since you aren't supposed to be able to rip a SACD to DSD files.

I do agree though that promoting DSD files would help to promote SACD as being better.

 

Another example of what a wise person once said about the likes of a Sony. Instead of letting one of his brilliant marketers and designers, develop/ create/ launch / promote something they believe in -that works -that people will want and at a competitive price ....................it is always a case of a committee decision. Where - the majority - -then, are just besotted -out of blind corporate loyalty and thinking they are saving their employment 'a...e' with the idea that there is still fans out there, to chorus away......"AH, ITS A SONY!"
Times have changed...Sony!