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Author Topic: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices  (Read 12171 times)

guest

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Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« on: November 02, 2007, 09:39:28 AM »

Just purchased one of these :

http://www.pure-digital.com/Products/Product.asp?Product=VL-60803

I've been looking for something like this for AGES (on and off). I suspect it might even work with a USB hard drive (formatted "correctly") but if it doesn't then we have plenty of memory cards/pen drives knocking about anyway :) I did give some thought to buying a streaming audio "box" of some description but decided against it as :

a) There's no point in buying a box that only streams audio from the network - and we have two KiSS boxes which do audio/video already;
b) I'd rather have DAB than internet "radio" - KiSS boxes can do that anyway.

Its the perfect size for our dining room too. Here's hoping it does what it says without too many issues. The price seems reasonable (£109.99 inc delivery) so I'm hoping its not a typical "version 1.0" bit of kit :)
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kitz

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #1 on: November 03, 2007, 01:41:11 PM »

>> including support for USB flash devices and SD memory cards, multiple auxiliary inputs,

Cool - be interesting to know how it goes with a USB HDD
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guest

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #2 on: November 03, 2007, 03:40:56 PM »

It apparently works according to net gossip. If it does then job done as I have a few USB drives about the place :)
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guest

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #3 on: November 05, 2007, 04:54:29 PM »

Here's my first impressions on the unit :

1) These guys are serious about radio. The unit comes with a N-Type RF connector for the aerial (supplied). We can get 31 DAB stations which is rather better than the "portable" DAB radio we have (17 stations IIRC);

2) The DAB tuner retunes almost instantly which is a pleasant surprise;

3) Speaker volume is plenty loud enough - doesn't get to the "pain" stage but comes very close at max volume;

4) USB works with hard drives, BUT it only gets on with FAT/FAT32 (it appeared to work with NTFS and then locked up - I will try it again soon) and it will only list the first 999 tracks. FAT/FAT32 isn't a problem but only 999 tracks is mildly annoying as it means I have to split up our MP3 collection. Fair enough I only have to do it once but still mildly annoying.

Haven't tried the SD memory card input yet.

I'd give it 8 out of 10. The 999 tracks business is obviously a memory limitation and given the price of memory it's not really excusable. v2.0 will undoubtably sort this out - or if not then someone needs a kick up the backside :)

If you are looking for a micro hi-fi then I would seriously consider this one were I you. The MP3 track limitation is irritating at first glance but perhaps its not such an issue really as the LCD display isn't really suitable for creating playlists. I will give it a try creating actual playlist files (winamp/media player etc) and see if it picks those up. I suspect it won't but given that there's a USB port there is the potential at least for a firmware upgrade to deal with that.

Amusingly the first song I heard on the unit (DAB) was Queen's "Radio Ga Ga" - you weren't wrong Freddie/Roger old lads when you said that "you've yet to have your finest hour" (referring to radio). I wonder what Freddie would have made of DAB - he'd have sounded a lot better on it than FM that's for sure :)
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kitz

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #4 on: November 05, 2007, 06:01:53 PM »

Sounds pretty good.:)

The 999 tracks thing though I should imagine would be irritating for most people? 
If you buy this sort of system then youre more likely to be a music addict and have lots.  So lets hope they get that sorted soon.

Good mini-review thanks for sharing :)
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guest

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #5 on: November 05, 2007, 10:42:58 PM »

Well the problem with creating - or indeed playing - MP3/WMA content is navigating around the content using the LCD screen. The remote control has a design flaw here too in that it doesn't replicate the "Folder +/-" controls which are present on the top of the main unit. If you don't use "Folder +/-" then you have to scroll through every track in the folder (directory) before you get to the next folder. Given that anyone sane stores music in the \Artist\Album\Track directory format I think you can see where this is going? Although I have just noticed two buttons on the remote which don't appear to have a function - I'll see if they do Folder +/- but the rest of the post still holds true anyway.

In short you aren't going to be creating playlists on the DMX-25. I doubt in fact that you would manage to navigate the 293 artists and 1290 albums which we have on MP3/FLAC without losing the will to live :D I think this unit is designed for portable MP3 players really (a Creative Zen certainly just appears as a mass storage device when plugged into the USB port of the DMX-25) where 999 tracks is not likely to be a problem.

I don't know yet whether the DMX-25 will accept externally generated playlists but even if it did then how often would you break the 999 limit?

NB - you can dump 999 tracks in multiple directories into a USB device and get the DMX-25 to randomise all tracks in all directories which personally is what I'd be more likely to do. Eg - pick music for a meal with friends which would perhaps be three or four albums randomised? I'm not sure whether that is practical design or laziness :hmm:

Without fitting a much more expensive display and a touch pad/screen I'm not sure what the point of listing more than 999 tracks would be. If you think about your (small) MP3 players then you know perfectly well that you don't generally navigate that deep into the folder (directory) structure. You create some playlists on the PC and load them onto the MP3 player. I suppose an enhanced remote control with a display and softswitches would work but then again we're heading OTT for something that I'd expect to cost £80 next February.

I think the best thing for the DMX-25 would be to do the same. We have memory cards for a PSP and a USB adaptor (MobyMemory) - I think the best way for this might just be to write a few cards with MP3s and treat them as anywhere from 10 to 80 "CDs" at a time.

The memory is undoubtably the restricting factor to the number of tracks but having thought about it then it seems a reasonable design choice given the serious navigation issues.

I might sound negative but I'm very pleased with it. I do have umpteen USB devices which I can plug into it so my viewpoint there is probably skewed.

On the SD memory card side then this looks pretty simple given a 1GB SD card will cost you £8 or so and a 2GB about £12. I'll give it a try and see what happens but that would be quite attractive to me if it works as SD cards are smaller than USB devices :)
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tickmike

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #6 on: November 05, 2007, 11:48:53 PM »

This maybe what I've been look for to replace my free Hitachi stereo tuner which was thrown out by someone in our village 15 years ago. :)

I see in Argos they are £99.99 and free delivery.

Can you record off a CD to a USB memory stick ? on it, or is it just for playback.

Michael.
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mr_chris

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #7 on: November 06, 2007, 12:14:37 AM »

A USB memory stick is a read/write device, and to all intents and purposes, the computer 'sees' it as if it was simply another hard drive but plugged into the USB port.

You can use something like Windows Media Player which will recognise the fact you've got a USB memory stick in, and it will allow you to 'sync' the songs to it that you rip (extract) from a music CD.

So in answer to your question yes you can :)
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Chris

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #8 on: November 06, 2007, 08:20:38 AM »

If the question was "Can I record from a CD to a USB device using the DMX-25?" then the answer is no. I see no reason why this would be technically impossible but I suspect this has more to do with copyright issues than anything else.

As Chris has pointed out though you can do this on your PC. I prefer CDex rather than WMP :

http://www.mp3-converter.com/cdex.htm

Rip the CD direct to USB or to your hard drive and then copy the required files across.

While pretty much everyone I know rips their own CDs its worth pointing out that you are committing a civil offence by doing so - there are no so-called "fair use" rights in the UK so you don't actually have the right to transfer any of the data on a CD to any other location. I tend to ignore that :)
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mr_chris

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #9 on: November 06, 2007, 01:08:20 PM »

Quote
While pretty much everyone I know rips their own CDs its worth pointing out that you are committing a civil offence by doing so - there are no so-called "fair use" rights in the UK so you don't actually have the right to transfer any of the data on a CD to any other location. I tend to ignore that

Worth pointing out - debatable really... whilst technically a crime it isn't something that is actively pursued by law enforcement within the UK, plus it's something that just about everybody who owns a computer does. It's no different than recording your CDs onto tape to listen to in the car, which has been going on for many years without anyone doing anything about it!
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Chris

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #10 on: November 06, 2007, 01:57:34 PM »

Yeah its a civil offence though Chris, not a criminal offence so PC Plod wouldn't get involved. It only becomes criminal if money changes hands or if the intention is to defraud the copyright holder on a commercial basis.

I just thought I'd point it out as most people I know think there are "fair use" rights in the UK. As you say its been going on since the days of tapes - anyone remember the "Home taping is killing music" campaign the BPI ran in the late 70s? The BPI has cried "wolf" so many times now its impossible to believe anything they say :)
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guest

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #11 on: November 07, 2007, 09:31:35 AM »

Today as I was walking around the local Co-Op supermarket I noticed another micro hi-fi on display with USB/MP3 capability for £40. No DAB though, just AM/FM and a CD. I can't remember the manufacturer which means it must have been something like Bush or similar.

Its like buses isn't it - you wait ages for one then loads turn up  :doh:

If DAB isn't a requirement £40 seems a better deal.

Edit - I checked today and it was a Goodmans.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2007, 09:35:34 AM by rizla »
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elwishone

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #12 on: November 23, 2020, 05:26:09 PM »

The entire body of this post has been deleted.

The post was made purely as a carrier for the signature block, which contained spam links.
« Last Edit: November 23, 2020, 11:12:28 PM by burakkucat »
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j0hn

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #13 on: November 23, 2020, 05:50:18 PM »

Select the USB function.
Connect the USB device to the USB port .
When this Hi-Fi system recognizes the USB device, it displays Reading -> Storage Drive.
It may take about 10 seconds before Reading appears depending on the type of the USB device connected.

The post your replied to is only 13 years old.  ::)
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meritez

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Re: Micro hi-fi that can use USB devices
« Reply #14 on: November 23, 2020, 06:03:18 PM »

Select the USB function.
Connect the USB device to the USB port .
When this Hi-Fi system recognizes the USB device, it displays Reading -> Storage Drive.
It may take about 10 seconds before Reading appears depending on the type of the USB device connected.

any chance you could remove the malware links from your signature?
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