Pocket HiFi

[mnhnhyouh]

Anybody looking at this player? It might be a good one for Rockbox as their tech specs are high:

The excellent 24bit/192kHz sound quality is largely due to the single HiFi DAC (Digital-to-Analogue Converter) that has been used inside the Pocket HiFi C4. Wang team who designed the Colorfly Pocket HiFi C4 Pro decided to use the CIRRUS logic CS4398, a high-end chipset usually only found in top-of-the-range HiFi components. This DAC offers outstanding levels of performance with excellent dynamic range up to 120dB and the ability to decode 24bit/192kHz audio .

• ADI AD823 chip
• CIRRUS LOGIC CS4398 DAC chip
• CIRRUS LOGIC CS8422 SRC chip
• TCXO high-precision crystal Oscillators



http://www.colorfly.eu/product.html

[saratoga]

I think a hardware resampler chip and an RF amplifier is a pretty useless thing to put on an mp3 player. 

I hadn't heard of the player, but their website helpfully has board scans: 

http://www.colorfly.eu/images/product_show/c4_14.jpg
http://www.colorfly.eu/images/product_show/c4_12.jpg

Weirdly, they have a an Altera FPGA module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.  I guess the processor is the chip labeled "C4 Master". 

[mnhnhyouh]

I think a hardware resampler chip and an RF amplifier is a pretty useless thing to put on an mp3 player. 


Weirdly, they have a an Altera FPGA module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.

Would it be possible for you to elaborate in a way the less technically trained (like me) can understand this?

[saratoga]

Its got a bunch of hardware that isn't really needed or useful for an mp3 player. 

[mnhnhyouh]

Its got a bunch of hardware that isn't really needed or useful for an mp3 player.

I guess I was hoping for something between those two extremes

h

[[Saint]]

This device is borderline is taking the piss.

I really wish I didn't visit that website. It has a hilarious smattering of juicy technophile buzzwords and nonsensical jargon. Parts of it seems like translation fails, other parts smack of a genuine detachment from reality.

When combined with audio quality that only Neil Young (thinks) he can appreciate, with needless definition well beyond the realms of human perception, and a truly ridiculous price tag, and this device sure turns out to be a real winner.

I'm sure this isn't what you wanted to hear.

Realistically, for cost vs. performance, one of the absolute best devices you can get that is Rockbox supported is the iPod Classic. That thing is actually a bit of a beast, and has rather surprising measurements for a consumer grade DAP. Its also remarkably affordable when compared to the prior mentioned offering.

Alternatively, if you're dead set on audio voodoo and meaningless marketing jargon packaged into a truly hideous form, I hear the Pono will be going for approximately half the price of the aforementioned monstrosity.


[Saint]

[mnhnhyouh]

I'm sure this isn't what you wanted to hear.

Realistically, for cost vs. performance, one of the absolute best devices you can get that is Rockbox supported is the iPod Classic. That thing is actually a bit of a beast, and has rather surprising measurements for a consumer grade DAP. Its also remarkably affordable when compared to the prior mentioned offering.

[Saint]

I have an iPod 6G and am happy with it, but am starting to feel limited by the capacity, and would like a bigger one. Just came across this on another website and thought that this would be a good place to find people who know lots more about this kind of thing than I do.

h

[Norbert]

Weirdly, they have a an Altera FPGA module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.

I can't see any FPGA around here. The Altera Max II is not a FPGA, it is a CPLD and that is something quite different.

Its got a bunch of hardware that isn't really needed or useful for an mp3 player.

If you use "discrete" parts like separate MC, SRC, DAC and so on and you have sequential circuitry instead of an all-in-one SOC that you will find in almost all MP3 players today, such a CPLD is really useful because otherwise you need a lot of additional glue logic. But his construction makes really sense to obtain true HiFi sound quality that you cannot get with a SOC based player.

It has a hilarious smattering of juicy technophile buzzwords and nonsensical jargon.

Wow, just listen to the real experts ...

I'm really impressed!

SCNR

Norbert

[__builtin]

Weirdly, they have a an  Altera FPGA  module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.  I guess the processor is the chip labeled "C4 Master". 

It has a FPGA?!?! What is this thing, a battery-powered bitcoin miner?! 

The website seems like it was put through Google translate:

Wan抯 team who designed the Colorfly Pocket HiFi C4 Pro decided to use the CIRRUS logic CS4398, a high-end chipset usually only found in top-of杢he-range HiFi components.

[vocrobot]

Although it can be carried around its really meant to be used as a hifi component rather than as a portable device and looking at what I have read from some people about the battery life I am not surprised. It looks nice from the outside but I am certain it is like the C3 and will display music in the order in which it was transferred to the player rather than in alphabetical and numerical order. The sound quality is apparently very good but with the faff of ordering and the cost I wouldn't go there.

[saratoga]

Weirdly, they have a an    module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.  I guess the processor is the chip labeled "C4 Master". 

It has a FPGA?!?! What is this thing, a battery-powered bitcoin miner?! 

The website seems like it was put through Google translate:

Wan抯 team who designed the Colorfly Pocket HiFi C4 Pro decided to use the CIRRUS logic CS4398, a high-end chipset usually only found in top-of杢he-range HiFi components.

Its probably used as glue logic to connect two different components. I doubt they reprogram it but rather probably just fix a handful of gates at the factory.

Still using a MHz amplifier and a completely useless hardware resampler chip is strange.

[__builtin]

Weirdly, they have a an    module, which is also not something I would expect to see on an mp3 player.  I guess the processor is the chip labeled "C4 Master". 

It has a FPGA?!?! What is this thing, a battery-powered bitcoin miner?! 

The website seems like it was put through Google translate:

Wan抯 team who designed the Colorfly Pocket HiFi C4 Pro decided to use the CIRRUS logic CS4398, a high-end chipset usually only found in top-of杢he-range HiFi components.

Its probably used as glue logic to connect two different components. I doubt they reprogram it but rather probably just fix a handful of gates at the factory.

Still using a MHz amplifier and a completely useless hardware resampler chip is strange.

If Rockbox could run on it, could the FPGA be used? To accelerate the decoding of audio? To mine bitcoins ?

[saratoga]

If Rockbox could run on it, could the FPGA be used? To accelerate the decoding of audio? To mine bitcoins ?

Theres no real functional units or anything like that on it, just a few programmable logic gates.  Its probably for interfacing a bunch of those random hardware devices together.