revised 5th generation iPod definitely sounds better than Classic

I received my refurbished generation 5.5 iPod Video this morning (fast shipping, way to go FedEx!). As I expected it certainly looks like a brand new unit with no scratches on the polished back or the lucite front (which is notoriously scratch prone).

However when I plugged it in iTunes showed its capacity as 27 GB! This unit was clearly identified as an 80GB but it looks like some refurb tech dropped in a 30 GB drive. A call to Apple, and in less than 5 minutes I had a return authorization and a replacement unit on its way. Kudos to Apple, this kind of service is truly top-notch!

So how about the sound quality? Read on...The sound is definitely better than my 4th generation iPod and the Classic I returned last week. So the user comments on various blogs were largely correct. Stereo imaging, resolution, accuracy, bass response are all markedly improved. High frequency roll-off is much sooner and there is a very warm feel to the sound. There is a noticeable absence of harshness that is most associated with clock jitter. I can also say that this iPod sounds better than any portable CD player I have ever owned.

I also played the iPod through my high-end audio system (Bryston B-60 and KEF Q5a) and compared song-for-song with my very analog-sounding Rotel RCD-975 CD player. Of course I did not expect the iPod to sound as good, but aside from compression artifacts the sound is very similar at low volumes. It does become noticeably harsh when you crank it up, with a noticeable lack of depth and resolution. Listening to Led Zeppelin's Since I've Been Loving You, the Rotel had much more detailed in the lower frequencies (it is known for this) and sounds much softer when all the instruments are playing. on the iPod you could hear where the VBR is shifting between quiet and loud passages (but this is the MP3 compromise I was willing to live with when I re-ripped my music collection) .

This is very impressive for a music player that cost about one fifth the Rotel when it was new 15 years ago. (and NO I will not sell my Rotel!). I'm sure this iPod sound better than the majority of consumer HiFi CD players and probably a few entry level high-end units (e.g. Denon).