Yesterday I bought an 8 gb Fuze online, but now I am having second thoughts because of some issues I had with my previous Sansa player – an E260 v1.I really liked my E260 (v1), but when I listened to it the lower end of the bass always seemed to be lacking or missing.This has been an issue because I listen to a lot of synthesizer based music that tends to have a lot of low bass in the songs. This resulted in songs sounding a bit hollow, like they are missing something.I tried to mess with the custom equalizer, but after raising the bass only a little bit (which didn’t make much of a difference), the music would become distorted and sound terrible.I know the distortion is coming from the player because I have a decent set of headphones (Creative EP630) that can handle the considerable bass put out by my Sony A728.I know that the Fuze uses a different sound chip than the E260 v1 did, and from what I am reading it sounds like the new chip produces a much cleaner sound.However, I have heard differing views as to whether the new hardware actually produces deeper bass.I’m wondering if there is anyone who has used both a E2XX v1 and a Fuze that can give me their opinion of the difference in the bass output of these two players.Is the bass produced by the Fuze just (clearer/cleaner) or does it produce bass that is actually a bit deeper than the E260 v1?
I don’t have a V1, but all reports indicate that the sound quality difference between the V1 and Fuze is huge. The Fuze is one of the best sounding players on the market.
As for bass, again I can’t compare to V1, but I find the Fuze to have quite a flat response curve (a good thing). Neither the highs or the lows are exagerated or lacking. Just very smooth and clean. I also listen to a lot of electronic and other bass heavy music and typically don’t use any EQ at all. The normal non-EQ’d output is really good.
I suspect the Fuze’s flat response curve extends further into the low frequencies than many other players. So while it isn’t exagerating the low bass like your Sony, it doesn’t require boosting to actually hear the low end. I think a lot of lesser player’s (like the V1’s) response curves roll off sooner and thus require EQ to get back to flat.
And if you’re a true bass-head, the Fuze’s EQ is is good and should have you covered. You’ll definitely be able to get as much bass as you want without distortion (as long as your phones can handle it).
I’m sure you’ll love the Fuze, but just out of curiosity, what made you get a one if you already have a Sony? The Sony’s supposed to be a very good player.
Thanks for your reply – I’m glad to hear that you don’t have to do a lot of boosting to get good bass out of the Fuze.Other than the lack of bass on some songs I really liked my E260 and was hoping the Fuze would have enough bass to warm up the songs a bit more.I’m not a major bass-head, but I don’t like it when the bass is lacking either.
To answer your question about why I’m buying a Fuze when I already have a Sony- I love my Sony.It has incredible sound quality but it was expensive enough that I don’t like throwing it in my backpack for my commute to work.I mainly use it at home, on trips, etc…My E260 was the player that I left in my backpack to listen to on the train/bus on the way to work.I always liked my E260, even though it did lack bass on some songs, so when it started acting upafter my last firmware upgrade and I decided to replace it, I decided to stick with Sandisk and try the Fuze.I considered another Sony, but because of the difference in cost and because I actually like the menu system better on the Sansa, I decided against it.I also really like the scroll wheel better than the button system used by Sony.But those are only minor issues, the real reason was the price.I got the 8 GB Fuze for $87 where an 8 GB Sony with the options I wanted would have cost $150.The Sony does produce some great bass with the ClearBass option (enough to give you a headache at +3), but I have noticed that the noise from the train/bus cancels out the really low bass frequencies unless you are using active noise canceling.Because of this I figure if the Fuze has decent bass, and the sound quality is as good as everyone is saying, they would probably sound about the same anyway.And I don’t have to give up the scroll wheel, etc…
Anyway…Thanks again – your response makes me feel a lot better about my purchase.
I went from an e260 v1 last month to an 8 gb Fuze as well. Never looked back.
Overall I’d describe the sound on the Fuze as more open, more clear, better articulation and separation of elements. For most music I would say that the bass just has more presence and reality. it really feels more like concert hall bass than something being generated on an inexpensive chip into a cheap set of earbuds. I’d warrant that it would be fairly astonishing with a true audiophile earbud, such as the Shure E3 series. I am really impressed and I think you’ll be very happy. I haven’t tried it but I’d guess if you pumped up the bass withthe custome EQ that you’d clearly get what you are looking for, assuming that the earphones/earbuds could actually represent the lower frequency spectrum adequately.
They are down to $87 now? That is just phenomenal. There’s no way you could get a better unit for the money. AND you still get FM radio and the Voice Recorder! AND you get video as well (although there are certainly gripes about the video and Sansa’s Media Converter, in general).
Be advised, if you DO intend on messing with VIDEO, do not get the Kingston 8gb Class 4 microSDHC cards. They are very glitchy with this device. Stick to a SanDisk card. I HAVE used the Kingson older 2gb Non-HC cards and they do work fine.
Make sure you go for the firmware upgrade when yo uget it. Most folks are recommending staying in MSC USB mode unless you are in love with Windows Media Player and the synch functions therein.
Also I can vouch for the Invisible Shield screen protector membrane from ZAGG. Put one on while the device is still virgin!
Thanks for your input on this. I am feeling a lot better after reading the responses so far.
Have you used any of the preset equalizer settings or do you just use the normal equalizer setting too? I’m just wondering if they are any good. I always thought that the normal and custom settings were the only good ones on my E260. The rest of them sounded weak.
Thanks for your input on this. I am feeling a lot better after reading the responses so far.
Have you used any of the preset equalizer settings or do you just use the normal equalizer setting too? I’m just wondering if they are any good. I always thought that the normal and custom settings were the only good ones on my E260. The rest of them sounded weak.
Message Edited by Spud on 11-12-2008 08:55 PM
I find a lot of the presets to be a little to extreme. The Jazz one works pretty well with a lot of styles, but I usually find myself going back to Normal (no EQ) or just slight tweaks with the custom EQ.
The presets seem gimicky. I find with the Fuze that stock “flat” is fine. I did use the custom a bit on the e260. Probably the only time I’d go to custom now would be just to get more volume out of a particular track that had very low volume, as with some YouTube videos, or if I’m outputting to one of those car FM transmitters.
The Fuze and Clip normal setting results in a perfectly flat frequency response, even down to sub Bass.
Best results are acheieved by using good headphones such as the JVC HA FX 66 (Air Cushions) Or Vmoda headphones, which provide a subtle boost to the Bass and High end.
The other advantange to the “Flat Setting” appears when you connect the player to your Stereo input where you ideally want a flat response.
e200v1 had a significant roll off of the Bass, and the latest models are far superior.
On board eq also consumes about 10% more battery power, so another good reason to leave it in Normal setting.
The Fuze and Clip normal setting results in a perfectly flat frequency response, even down to sub Bass.
Best results are acheieved by using good headphones such as the JVC HA FX 66 (Air Cushions) Or Vmoda headphones, which provide a subtle boost to the Bass and High end.
The other advantange to the “Flat Setting” appears when you connect the player to your Stereo input where you ideally want a flat response.
e200v1 had a significant roll off of the Bass, and the latest models are far superior.
On board eq also consumes about 10% more battery power, so another good reason to leave it in Normal setting.
Spud how’s the bass on the Fuze? as im thinking of getting one, i have the Sony MDREX300SLB headphones and i want the bass to be very gd.
I have both an e280 V1 and the 8gb Fuze. I can’t really comment on the bass too much since I’m not a basshead.
But the upgrade in sound quality was huge. The biggest differences I’ve noticed are clarity, detail, instrument separation in complex tracks - and a better soundstage.
I’ve relegated my e280 V1 to being my dap while running - since sound quality really is limited by everything going on around you, your breathing, foot pounding, cars, etc.
