Comment Re:$299 Car MP$ Player: Aiwa CDC-MP3 (Score 1) 245
I would also like to state my opinions on the empg:
A few quick points:
-empeg is designing an additional AM/FM tuner which, while adding to the price, will give me a better radio than any regular car stereo and the Aiwa I'm willing to bet.
-To those complaining of skipping- the empeg simply doesn't. The HDDs are shock protected and were tested extensively without fail.
-I don't have MP3's on my computer anymore. I bring the empeg inside and hook them up to my line-in or to my stereo system. No more Winamp taking up CPU cycles during games.
-I gladly got rid of all my CD's from my car. My CD collection isn't even within 100 miles from me at school. If I want to listen to a CD, I use the old portable I have connected to the AUX-in cables on the sled connections.
Now, to the person who said it had limited functionality - how? That's absolutely ridiculous. Just from looking at the pics on the Crutchfield and Aiwa sites, it is plain to see that playlist navigation will be limited for the Aiwa player. I imagine it is a bit tough to know exactly what you have on each CD, and will probably take even longer to find the music you want than if you were using a regular CD player! You may say that I don't know that, but you haven't used an empeg, either, so don't judge something you've not done any research on.
The player software is more than I could ask for. I can play "Houses of the Holy" by Led Zeppelin in 5 keypresses, never having to change a CD. I can also put all 2609 tracks that are currently on my 12GB on shuffle and hear songs that I didn't even know I had! If I hear a song while on shuffle and think "gee-I'd like to hear more from that artist", I just press the "2" button on the remote and another song by the same artist is queued right after the current one.
You should also remember that the player software is upgradeable. This is a BIG thing. The current software, IMO, is absolutely fine. However empeg, as we speak, is programming a new version with countless additions suggested on the unofficial BB by the members there. Try getting any of that from Aiwa, who's site is annoying and un-navigatable, not to mention lacking in information. I have also had several one-on-one email correspondences with empeg staff members.
I understand the price of the empeg seems steep. Hell, I spent almost all my summer job money on it. It's worth it for more reasons than I can state here. I suggest that people actually do some investigating rather than saying something uninformed like "you only like it because it runs on Linux". If price is the one concern over all that you must adhere to, don't get the empeg. If you have a choice, get it.
A few quick points:
-empeg is designing an additional AM/FM tuner which, while adding to the price, will give me a better radio than any regular car stereo and the Aiwa I'm willing to bet.
-To those complaining of skipping- the empeg simply doesn't. The HDDs are shock protected and were tested extensively without fail.
-I don't have MP3's on my computer anymore. I bring the empeg inside and hook them up to my line-in or to my stereo system. No more Winamp taking up CPU cycles during games.
-I gladly got rid of all my CD's from my car. My CD collection isn't even within 100 miles from me at school. If I want to listen to a CD, I use the old portable I have connected to the AUX-in cables on the sled connections.
Now, to the person who said it had limited functionality - how? That's absolutely ridiculous. Just from looking at the pics on the Crutchfield and Aiwa sites, it is plain to see that playlist navigation will be limited for the Aiwa player. I imagine it is a bit tough to know exactly what you have on each CD, and will probably take even longer to find the music you want than if you were using a regular CD player! You may say that I don't know that, but you haven't used an empeg, either, so don't judge something you've not done any research on.
The player software is more than I could ask for. I can play "Houses of the Holy" by Led Zeppelin in 5 keypresses, never having to change a CD. I can also put all 2609 tracks that are currently on my 12GB on shuffle and hear songs that I didn't even know I had! If I hear a song while on shuffle and think "gee-I'd like to hear more from that artist", I just press the "2" button on the remote and another song by the same artist is queued right after the current one.
You should also remember that the player software is upgradeable. This is a BIG thing. The current software, IMO, is absolutely fine. However empeg, as we speak, is programming a new version with countless additions suggested on the unofficial BB by the members there. Try getting any of that from Aiwa, who's site is annoying and un-navigatable, not to mention lacking in information. I have also had several one-on-one email correspondences with empeg staff members.
I understand the price of the empeg seems steep. Hell, I spent almost all my summer job money on it. It's worth it for more reasons than I can state here. I suggest that people actually do some investigating rather than saying something uninformed like "you only like it because it runs on Linux". If price is the one concern over all that you must adhere to, don't get the empeg. If you have a choice, get it.
