How good/bad is Rockbox on iPod 5.5?

[Roadster]

I'm new to this forum, so first of all - hi all.

Now, I've been using Rockbox for well over a year on my iRiver H320 and, apart from a few minor bugs and glitches with unofficial builds, I didn't have any major problems with it. It was great, a massive improvement over the lacklustre iRiver firmware.

But now my H320's practically dead, and I'm on the market for a new MP3 player - specifically, one that can run Rockbox. I've looked at a few models and the best one seems to be the 5.5 gen iPod video (which is more aesthetically pleasing than the iRiver ever was).

According to the FAQ, however, there are some issues... shorter battery life and glitchy playback being the main two. Bearing in mind that I found Rockbox on the H320 practically perfect, how bad are these issues on the iPod, and do they affect all the builds? If so, then are there any better (Rockbox compatible) MP3 players that anyone can recommend?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[LambdaCalculus]

The shorter battery life issue only really affects the later iPod models (4G grey/color, nano 1st gen, 5G/5.5G video). The older 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gen models have better battery life.

I've been using Rockbox on my 30GB 5.5G video for the better part of a year now, and most playback issues with various codecs seem to have been fixed over that time. I remember the SPC codec (Super NES music) was glitchy in the beginning, often pausing or stuttering. This has been fixed some months ago. Some others, like Monkey's Audio (i.e. .APE files), still have problems with compression rates and realtime decoding, but this affects all of the PortalPlayer targets (iPod, Sansa, H10). But MP3, Vorbis, AAC, and FLAC playback all work very well on the iPod video.

I say that even though you may net at most 9 hours with one full charge, the iPod video port is still very stable and will get you through the day with minimal hassle.

If you're still unsure of which device, I suggest hunting down either a Toshiba Gigabeat F or an iAUDIO X5 (which I hear are both very well supported targets).

[Roadster]

Cheer, 9 hours battery life is fine - at the moment I'm lucky to get two hours on a single charge with the H320, that's if it doesn't decide to cut off after five minutes of play.

And as long as it plays the usual formats - MP3, OGG, WAV - without any problems, that's good enough for me. I've actually looked at the iAudio X5, but not only is the screen of a much lower quality than both the iPod and iRiver, but the actual device is pricier and hard to find.

[scharkalvin]

Your H320 may only need a new battery for a new lease on life.

I just got myself a Gigabeat F40 and really like it.  This player is also best with Rockbox as the OF sucks.  I've noticed a few glitches with mine but not with actual playback.  The Gigabeat also has the fastest cpu of all the supported players and would make mincemeat out of .APE files while the portal player units are stuttering.  Not to mention great video playback too (except you have to turn the unit sideways).  If you want one, better be quick before the supply on ebay dries up.  Right now you can still find one for under $150.

[LambdaCalculus]

Roadster: If you're looking to unload your iriver, give me a holler. I'd like to have a fulltime Coldfire target on hand.

[Roadster]

Cheers everyone. I've looked at the Toshiba Gigabeat, but it's hard to find now and only comes in 20GB anyway.  I think I'll just go with the 80GB iPod... how easy is it to install Rockbox on it anyway? Any other things I may need to know about, before I take the plunge and order?

Lambda - sure, you can take my iRiver if you want. Only problem is I'm based in the UK...

[LambdaCalculus]

Roadster: I'm U.S. based, but I'll send a money order out by post to pay shipping if need be.

Personally, I had Rockbox downloaded and installed within 10 minutes of grabbing a build, the fonts pack, iPodpatcher, and a couple of themes, plus reading the instructions.

Your mileage may vary, but in my opinion, it's no more difficult than installing to an iriver or even iAUDIO. I've already installed Rockbox to several different devices, and find the process very easy to understand (and kudos to everyone who wrote the manual! . Just extract a build to the root of the iPod, then run iPodpatcher and let it detect your iPod, then just tell it to install the bootloader. It's as easy as boiling water for tea!

P.S.: Keeping trying eBay; the F40s do show up from time to time.

[melancholydm]

you could always run rbutil (RB utility) to make the whole installation even more painless. I just went and installed rbutil in my player and all i need to do is press a few buttons and my RB is installed and updated, same with bootloader.

[LambdaCalculus]

you could always run rbutil (RB utility) to make the whole installation even more painless.

Ahh yes, that's right! RBUtil also makes the install process even less painful. But if RBUtil doesn't work, the manual process is still easy to follow. That's what I wanted to point out.

[scharkalvin]

Cheers everyone. I've looked at the Toshiba Gigabeat, but it's hard to find now and only comes in 20GB

Well actually the F40 (40gb) version seems to be the most common on ebay most of the time.  The F60 (60gb) is as rare as hen's teeth, but you can always find a 60gb replacement drive and upgrade the F40.  

[GodEater]

Well actually the F40 (40gb) version seems to be the most common on ebay most of the time.  The F60 (60gb) is as rare as hen's teeth, but you can always find a 60gb replacement drive and upgrade the F40.  

Or an 80GB drive

[Roadster]

Well, it took me a while to get hold of an iPod - had a few problems with ebay - but I've finally managed to bag myself a nice 80GB 5.5 version.

And... I've just (manually) installed Rockbox. Wasn't hard at all, in fact the whole process seems to have been simplified since I last did it on my iRiver. Checked out a few themes too, looking good on the iPod screen. Now I'm just in the process of copying over my music collection.

Looking forward to getting to grips with the device now, I just hope the battery doesn't cause me any problems like it did last time...

LambdaCalculus: Sorry, but I've decided to keep my iRiver for now. I might want to use it for experiments and stuff.

Edit: Actually, I have another question - is it possible to adjust the sensitivity of the scroll bar somehow? At the moment it's far too sensitive for me.

[AlexP]

And... I've just (manually) installed Rockbox. Wasn't hard at all, in fact the whole process seems to have been simplified since I last did it on my iRiver.

It is just that different players require installing in different ways.  The iriver H1x0 and H3x0 store their firmware and bootloader in flash, therefore we have to modify it and re-flash it in order to inject our bootloader.  The iPods have the bootloader + firmware on a hidden disk partition, so it is easier (+ safer!) for us to access (in some ways)