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Monday, September 17, 2007 

So after getting all my possessions jacked I've been replacing a few of them as I was able or as it was sensible. I got a great deal on a last generation 80gb video ipod (still an upgrade from my 30gb photo) because I'm a student and I had to buy a macbook. Unfortunately, as of last night I was convinced that I was going to have to return it. There was a significant amount of distortion when listening to louder music!

Once again I turned to the almighty google and found my fix. Did I find it on the apple site? No. For the record I think Apple is just as much an evil empire as Microsoft. Sorry all you hippies out there who think Apple is the counterculture alternative, it's not. It's a multinational corporation that is interested in protecting it's own interests. So what was wrong with my ipod?

I found the answer on a blog. It appears that apple has produced a product that can't use it's equalizer because it pushes the sound up past the level at which it can be played with appropriate fidelity. Hence, the distortion. That in my opinion is a major design flaw. Any DECENT piece of audio equipment should be able to handle whatever mass market produced music or recordings I throw at it. At 350$ it's got to be able to rock and roll without sounding like I already have tinnitus. I'm saving that experience for later.

I love ipods. They have an idiot proof user interface and apple has continued to be innovative in their design with the release of the touch version (although it is essentially an iphone without the phone...I mean come on if you want one just spring for it). Anyway, enough ranting. I turned off the equalizer and it sounds fine now.

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I'm seriously coveting the ipod touch dude...Too bad it only comes in 16gigs though. Some of the korean companies also make pretty sweet mp3 players, albeit not as sexy looking. Check out I-station

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About me

  • Who: Scott Sanders
  • When: 8-22-1981
  • Scott Sanders is a PhD student at the University of Southern California in the Annenberg School of Communication. His research interests lie in how people use communication technologies to maintain and support interpersonal relationships.

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Don't step down, Miss Julie. Listen to me--no one would believe that you stepped down of your own accord; people always say that one falls down. -- Jean, Miss Julie.