My Sister wants an i-pod

Thanks! You guys offered some great advice for this mid-40's, out-of-the-loop audiophile:
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I don't expect them to be high end, but when I travel, they are a must

your sister will probably be very pleased with the earbuds that come with the iPod.

put your favorites on there in lossless format and fill up the rest with compressed files. [That's a good idea; also, some CD's are recorded well (use lossless) and some aren't that well recorded to begin with...]

Get iPod 40Gb 'cause it doesn't pay to underestimate the fun

don't worry, be happy! [The best advice for an audiophile purchasing an iPod.]

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The an$wer to an audiophile's que$tion:
CD > iTunes (Apple Lossless Compression) > 40G G4 iPod (just sound; no photo or video) > HeadRoom Portable Amp (Airhead/Bithead of some sort) > Shure E3 or E4 earphones. Welcome to iPod nervosa!

[Thanks for the advice; problem is (not your fault), for a little more money than this she could put together a small home theatre system!]

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Thanks guys, I know know where to start and what it would take to make an iPod great (ok, good).

We'll start with a 40GB iPod and regular earbuds and avoid compressing files for a few weeks, then see where we are.

For the price of (good) earbuds one could purchase two pair of good Grado (125) headphones!!! We won't be going that direction right away. I think we will avoid comparing our factory earbuds to someone else's shure earbuds - ignorance will be bliss!

Thanks again; plus, now I also know how to SPELL iPod!

I have had an ipod for several years. I don't use my ipod at home because my main system sounds better and my record/cd collection can't possibly fit on any ipod built today. But I think that the ipod is fantastic for portable use and even with my headamp and Sennheiser HD600s the sound is better than fair. The ipod is a fantastic way to have access to several thousand of your favorite songs any place and any time.

FYI...The iPod you buy either way...

Used Headroom Total Airhead (v. 1) $80-$100,
Used Shure E3s w/ new ear fit-kit $80-$100,

...enjoyment factor at home and on the road...priceless!

(The Total Airhead will do a decent job of driving most headphones, not just in-ear phones; however the in-ear phones do an awesome job of ambient noise supression)

I Bought the wife a pair of schure E3c's for her Ipod. They kill the standard earbuds even when listening to MP3's.

Good Luck

listen here all you audiophile malcontents who downplay the ipod, and all other mp3 type devices. these were made for conveninance and that is all. are you going to buy a ford and complain that it will not perform like a $100000 + sports car. personally i love connecting my ipod to my home system and putting on shuffle play, ( i love going from dvorak to white stripes to ray charles etc... i also use it for parties and get togethers. When ever i want to listen to something critically that is what the cd player is used for.