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The processed i had to do through to open it and set it all up was over 30 minutes, which is just annoying and frustrating.The sound is not all that great as they made it to be. My ipod sound just as good. My main reason for buying this was because of all the positive review about the sound quality and yes it's OK but that what i expected. by the way i do use the seinheinsser CX500 earbud.The earbud that they put with this isn't that great either, wouldn't fit my ear and stay in. Sound was ok from it. It sound just a TINY bit better than my 30 GB video ipod when playing mp3. Im returning it but before i do im just going to give it one more chance and convert my mp4 files to avi and see how it sound compare to ipod.
Button navigation was mediocre, especially scrolling through artists, though using the alphabet on the side did help a little. I tried many genres of music and various audio settings including the crystalizer, but no change. I didn't think the wi-fi capabilities were all they were cracked up to be.
When the battery started running low, it would crash many times and I would have to reset it. Plus the instant messaging was pointless. When I first got my 32 gb X-fi, I was very satisfied with it.
However, I found that the bass sounded very distorted, whether it was the included earbuds or the player itself, I'm not sure. I was pleased that I got it to work with my Mac through xnjb and loved the external speaker. I liked the assignable short cut button and managing my library (such as deleting songs and editing playlists) through the player was convenient.
In the end, I decided to return it after about 2 months and got a refurbished iPod Touch which was only about $30 more.
The screen is great for video viewing also.The main problem is the compatibility of Windows Media Player. However, if you want great control of your music library without the tediousness of managing it manually, then stay away. It has great sound quality, the interface is very sleek and very customizable, and the included ear buds retail for around $30-$40, much better than the included earbuds of say an iPod. I'd have to constantly reset my player after syncing them. I looked all over the Creative support website, and there are absolutely no mention of this problem at all. If you want a great MP3 player and you're old school who doesn't care about automatic syncing, then definitely give this player equal consideration with other MP3 players. I absolutely believe that Creative just dropped the ball here, now that not one but TWO products have the same issues.
Conclusion:The product itself is great, but the software issues (as well as the useless bundled software) creates a major headache for me. I have a pretty large selection, so manually syncing the Zen to my computer is almost impossible. Syncing my music has become the most frustrating experience for me, and it seems like Windows Media Player CHOOSES when to sync and when to crash my player. My recommendation. I honestly blame Creative for not making the effort to fix this issue. Now, this problem is prevalent not only in the X-Fi, but also prevalent in the older cousin Creative Zen. Pros: Sound quality is superb Included headphones is high quality Easy to use interface Many different features Great looking screen (which is great for video)Cons:- Extremely disappointing and frustrating software compatibility issues- Extra, useless buttons- Most video files require transcoding- Some features are more gimmick than practical- Interface is not as smooth as it could beSummary:The player itself is great.
The problem is whenever I try to sync, 50of the time my Zen would crash. Although many people will say that Windows Media Player will support the Creative Zen X-Fi just fine, I have a very frustrating experience with it. I'm the kind of guy who likes to maintain all his album information and likes control of what stays and what goes on my music, and I prefer to sync my music rather than go through the major trouble of manually keeping track of my music. Had I known there were these issues with Windows Media Player, I'd definitely take that into major consideration.
The speaker's sound quality was a nice surprise. Also, the idea of an SD slot seemed extremely useful. However, I couldn't get the device to work with Linux. Have not tried the voice recording.I managed to crash it once (no batteries plus connecting it to a non-charging source), but rebooting as it tells me to on the Creative support site fixed the problem.
I don't think most users would even contemplate that, though.I hear that the SD card content is not integrated into the player's library, which means I'll have to store my less-used movies and music there when it comes time. Charging is the same as any other USB device, and I'm really glad I don't need to use a proprietary connector (like Apple uses) or dock to charge it from my computer- my camera cable or cell phone cable both work for this, since they're all mini-to-USB.
It keeps track of my iTunes library very well in terms of tracks, but it's terrible for importing playlists.-Creating and editing a playlist on the device is difficult to figure out.-I wish I could play all the songs by one artist. As for the controls, they weren't difficult after reading through the quickstart guide once.
I'm also pleased by the ability to delete files from the device without connecting it to a computer. I was thinking of buying an Apple iPod, as the new ones are pretty, but I heartily object to Apple's treating me like a thief (mp3 names scrambled) and not letting me use the player as storage as well.
Will see if firmware upgrades ever do that.I admit I haven't tried anything with video or pictures. I've had good luck with Creative sound cards and read many positive reviews here, so I decided to buy this little gadget.While not an audiophile, I do a lot of music production and studio work and have to say I prefer the sound from the Creative Zen X-Fi to my friend's iPod for the same headphones and sound file.
It seems less fuzzy somehow- I think they must be doing something with the EQ.My issues are as follows:-Creative Centrale is not very good software. But the functionality is amazing, the sound quality lovely and crisp, and the ability to manage my own files means this one's a keeper and I recommend it to all who want to be 'power users' of their portable devices.
For one thing, it installs a help file on your PC that's a lot more detailed than the Quick Start guide that comes in the package. It is not Creative's fault as this is happening to users of other MP3 players who are on Windows as well.The headphones are terrific and are far far better than the stock headphones that come with most players. With the Zen X-Fi you have to open the covers of the leather cases to get to the volume and pause controls. In NY City, it's great.
Other than that, I'm very happy with this purchase. The sound quality is very good. If this happens to you, do a google search on that error message and follow the link to myCreative Fansite. This is an additional way to load music files along with other alternate options such as Windows Media Player or J River Media Center.I would have given this player 5 stars if not for the poor integration of the SD card with the internal memory. And this Zen is considerably smaller than those other two devices which is a big plus for me. I had planned to sell them on eBay since I have a few sets of earbuds already, but I'm going to keep them now as they have a nice rich sound and work well with this player. However it's harmless and I think uninstalling it might remove some of the needed drivers your PC may require in order to recognize the Zen X-Fi. Because of this, I might simply go with a hard plastic case with cutouts or a silicone skin.
My Zen NX has this. It will show up as a separate drive instantly when you connect. The solution is really simple and worked like a charm, and my Zen is now fully recognized by my PC and the Creative software. They are fairly easy to drive too so you can keep your volume on the Zen low which means your battery should last longer. You also get a nice hard plastic case to store all the little papers and accessories that came with the player.To clear up something a recent reviewer said. once you have the correct drivers installed from the CD that comes with the unit (and apply any Windows fix if you have the umdf issue like I did), you do NOT have to go through Creative's Centrale software to get files into this player. As for syncing, I am using the J River Media Center. Just click on My Computer to access it and you can browse the folder structure and drag and drop files.
It lacks the capacity of the other two players, but the SD slot sort of makes up for it, even though it isn't well integrated with the internal memory. So I went for the Zen X-Fi 32gb and I'm glad I did. It syncs fine with the Zen X-Fi and I prefer it to the non-intuitive Centrale software.The Centrale software bundled with the device is not totally useless. I think it will depend on where you live. I assigned the volume control to it since that isn't directly available via another button in all screens. For example, if I am listening with these headphones with the volume set to 7, I might have to set the volume level at 15 to get the same loudness using my Sony MDR-EX71 earbuds. Also, SD prices have been falling fast, so I can see 32gb SD cards being sold for a reasonable price in the not too distant future.
You should install Centrale at least for the help file. I tried re-installing the Creative software and updating the drivers through Windows device manager but I kept getting this error message -- "A service installation section in this INF is invalid." A google search came up with the solution. Other players I considered were the Zune 120gb and the iPod 120gb but the Zune lacks an equalizer which was a dealbreaker for me and the iPod only has equalizer presets -- no customization. Speaking of drivers, there is a Windows glich that prevented my Windows XP machine from initially recognizing my Zen x-Fi so I couldn't update the firmware or sync. In the first post is the answer -- A missing umdf file -- and a link to download it. I also really wish they had volume and pause hardware controls on the SIDE of the player which would allow one to control them even with a closed leather case. I bought the Nomad Zen NX about 5 years ago and it still works great.
You can also re-format the player using Centrale. However, it is relatively big and heavy, and that's why I decided to upgrade now. After you copy it elsewhere, you may be able to uninstall Centrale if you want. I like that it has a customnizable button to configure however you like. Now I can more easily access it at all times.FM reception in my area is superb, with little distortion or static. As I said, this little player is almost perfect.
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