Updating My Music Library

August 27, 2007

It's been a while since I last updated this blog mainly because I'm a little too busy studying other stuffs..

I started updating my music collection 2 days ago.

Deleted all MP3 files with bitrates below 192kbps and started re-ripping some CD's into FLAC using EAC+FLAC to play on my computer (I use Foobar 2000 as my music player)

and as MP3 files encoded using EAC+LAME 3.97 with 320kbps VBR to play on my iPod

and also downloaded other albums that I don't have and I can't easily find in music bars like classic rock bands of the 80's (they usually cost more because they're like endagered species).

I decided to update my music library because i really feel like those low quality audio files are not making any justice to my PX100 headphones and of course to my very discriminating ears.

Yeah, very discriminating that I can't stand listening music using the stock earbuds that came with my iPod because for me it sounds really horrible.

Right now I'm still downloading the whole discography of RATM, and Nirvana. Ok, I know it's illegal but I really don't have a choice due to some problems (budget-wise and availability-wise).

But really, I'm don't like downloading songs from the internet. I want the original CD's so I can rip and encode them to my favorite audio format, FLAC. The quality of the highest-quality mp3's (320kbps using EAC+LAME) is good but still can't match CD quality audio playback.

Again, if you love your music, buy it.

Album Artwork Thingy

August 8, 2007

I just finished 'fixing' the album art of the songs I have on my Pod.

It took me about 2 days putting these images on about 400+ tracks!

Very cumbersome and time consuming indeed.

 

Now why did I have to put album art to the songs while I won't need to see them while listening to the music?

I don't know..

I just want to have images on it so it wil not look boring while browsing through my music library I guess..

 

Aside from putting artwork, I also fixed the info on the tracks like the artist and the album info.

Well, that should make my audio files organized and easier to sort..

 

Thanks to the typhoon Chedeng, we won't be having classes tommorow!

Yeah!

More time for sleeping, but I think I really need to review for our 2nd quiz on CS102..

 I don't know anything about the topics discussed lately so I must research on my own.

 

I really need to pass that exam, or i'll be dead…

 

I'm hungry now.

Time to get some instant noodles for snack.

From Hater to Podder

August 4, 2007

  

Ok I used to be sort of like an 'iPod hater'. Because I don't like iPods. Why you ask?

Here are some reasons:

*It's relatively expensive considering it lacks features compared to

other PMPs in the same price range like:

          -no FM radio

          -no voice and line in recording

          -no manual equalizer

          -no drag-and-drop support

          -no WMA support (although iTunes will automatically

convert .wma files to mp3 to be used by the iPod)

*It's more of like a status symbol rather than a music player

*Because of it's popularity, other people (the ones who think the

only portable music player that exists is the iPod (I know some))

think of other mp3 players as iPod imitations from China or

wherever. (I wonder what would they call a Cowon D2 if ever they see

one? - "mp4"?

 

I remember someone who asked me "Mp4 ba yan?" (thinking it was an

mp4 player  from China just because I don't wear white earbuds)

Actually, I was wearing my Sennheiser PX100 headphones and using my

2GB Creative Zen Neeon 2. What the?! Just because I'm not wearing

white earbuds some people will think I'm using those cheap

all-in-one media players from wherever!

Heck my headphones are even more expensive than those iPod clones.

And my Zen Neeon2 is one of the top competitors of the iPod Nano!

 

Now why did I switched to an iPod?

 

Actually, I was really thinking of buying a 2nd gen iPod nano before

I purchased my Neeon2.

But since I want good sounding 'phones, I decided to go for the

Neeon2 so that i'll have extra cash for the Sennheiser PX100 (which

is really good and have a great bang for the buck)

I mean c'mon! what good is your iPod when your earphones suck?

 

The Neeon2 was a good music player..

it has 2GB memory,

manual equalizer,

wma support,

drag-and-drop,

Voice and Line-In recording

FM radio

photo viewer

and.. a video playing capability.

 

However, with only a 2GB memory and a 1.5 inch CSTN screen, the

video player seems useless.

I tried putting a movie on it, the movie was Behind Enemy Lines

695MB in .avi format. The player supports the .avi file. However,

the movie have to be converted using the included video converter in

order to fit into the Neeon2's tiny screen.

So I converted the video, and boom! It became a whopping 1.4GB!

About double the size of the original. That would mean I would only

have about 500MB+ of storage for photos and songs. (the capacity

reported by manufacturers is always less than the actual storage it

has).

 

I don't watch movies on tiny screens anyway so that would be okay

for me 'coz I really use it solely for music.

 

The only thing that I did not like about the Neeon2 is that the

playlist option does not appear on the menu! In order to access it,

I must browse through the music library to get to the end of the

list and then press the back button to see the playlists.

Well think about that! Imagine you have about 500+ songs and the

song playing is in the middle of the music library!

 

I don't know if it's just my Neeon2 or other owners experience this

or maybe because of the firmware I have. But I checked the firmware

and it seemed like it is the latest.

Some Creative players however, like the cheaper Zen V has a better

menu interface and it's even customizable.

It really is a problem if you can't acess your playlist easily,

because you don't want to be listening to songs you don't want to

hear because it doesn't fit your mood right?

 

So that's it! I think I've had enough of my Neeon2. Time to look for

a better music player that would satisfy my needs.

 

Then i saw that sexy black 2nd gen iPod Nano while surfing the net.

It was love at first sight really!

 

Now why did I decided to switch to an iPod while there are other

brands there that provide better features?

Simple: I don't need an FM tuner, a voice recorder, line-in

recording capability, although I will miss the manual equalizer.

However, the 2nd gen Nano offers a new feature-search function which

I think is really useful especially when you carry your whole music

collection on ur Pod. And this should compensate for the lack of a

manual equalizer.

 

So I posted an ad on TipidPC.com at the break of dawn, about 4am.

About 8am I already received an SMS from a buyer and he's going to

buy it after lunch! If he only knew my experience about it… So I

agreed to his deal and I sold the Neeon2 in no time!

 

Now, time to look for a good seller of a 2nd gen black 2GB iPod

Nano. But then, i found out that the black color is only available

on the 8GB model and it is priced the same as a 2nd gen 30GB iPod

Video! (about Php13,000)

 

So I had second thoughts of buying it. I was in a dilemma because I

don't know what to choose between the 30GB and the 8GB Nano.

 

After careful thinking and analyzing, I decided to choose the 8GB

Nano over the 30GB iPod. Why?

 

Here are some reasons:

*The 30GB version has only about 3.5hours of video playback time.. I

could only watch about 2 movies at most then no more time for sound

trippin'

                   *The 80GB version has 20hrs of music playback and

about 6.5hrs of vide playback which makes it a          more ideal

portable video player. However, It is way beyond my budget. Maybe

I'll get one after a few months.

 

*The music playback time is only about 14hrs (due to it's hard

drive) compared to the Nano's 24hr batt life (using flash memory)

 

*I don't feel comfortable watching movies/videos on small screens. I

really don't need a portable video player anyway

 

*The 30GB uses hard disk for it's memory which makes it delicate if

ever the Pod had even a minor drop while the Nano uses flash memory

which is not that sensitve to bumps.

 

 

Then I saw this ad on TipidPC.com selling a used 8GB iPod Nano for

Php10,000 and still negotiable. So I asked the seller if I can get

it for only Php8,000 and he agreed! Then I asked for actual pictures

of the iPod and the accessories that I'll be getting. I was amazed

'coz the unit really still looks like brand new! The last thing I

did before closing the deal is to check the the seller's ratings

from the feedbacks of other tpc members. And boy, he sure is a

highly recommended seller based on the 600+ positive feedbacks he

got.

 

So I confirmed my purchase of the item and agreed to meet up with

him in SM North yesterday.

 

The ipod was really in very good condition and looks like new! Like

I bought a brand new 8GB Nano for a price even less than a brand new

4GB Nano which costs about Php9,000.

The Nano still has 8months remaining warranty from Apple.

The earbuds included were from 1st gen Nanos but that's not a

problem since I don't use stock earphones for listening music, I use

my Senns for that purpose.

 

  

 

I will post updates on my 'shift-to-iPod' experience on the upcoming

posts.

 

I do I don’t

August 2, 2007

I do things my way

I sleep late

I eat ampalaya and other veggies

I eat a lot (*career high 4 cups of rice)

I smoke a lot

I wash my clothes, but I don’t wash the bed sheets

I do the dishes

I iron my clothes

I like studying physics, but my grades don’t show it

I eat chips and then wipe my cheesy hands on my pants

I wash my hands with Coke® sometimes

I’m a 'semi-audiophile'

I listen to RATM because of the political content in their lyrics

I use my phone for communication, and my music player for music

I draw triangles when I’m bored in class

I cheat on seatworks sometimes

I wanted to be an astronaut when I was a kid

I love kare-kare

I always watch the news

I buy dark colored shirts most of the time

 I only send about 20 text messages a week

I easily get annoyed or irritated

I’m always daydreaming

I am serious when I’m quiet

I'm calm like a bomb

 

I don’t talk to strangers

I don’t cheat on major exams

I don’t hang out on coffee shops

I don’t add strangers in my friendster friends list

I don't wear yellow and orange shirts 

I don’t like studying PGC, but I got good grades

I’m not good in english