Customer Reviews

The Listener's NIV MP3 Audio Bible

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is so much more than just hearing the Bible read. Max McLean shows a passion for the word that is very moving. I delayed getting this for some time, because I'm not a particular fan of the NIV translation, but after hearing some samples I realized that the strength of performance overcomes any imprecision in translation.

The audio quality of the MP3's isn't quite as good as the audio CDs (the MP3's are 96 Kbps, 44 MHz), so if you aren't concerned about the price difference or the extra bulk, the audio CDs might be the way to go. Even so, I wouldn't say the lower sound quality is a significant distraction (just a bit of "tinny" ring from time to time), and the MP3 format is very convenient.

Max McLean's voice takes a little while to get used to. I'll be honest, at first it kind of annoyed me. But to have my favorite Bible version (ESV) in audio makes up for any personal issues I may have with the reader's voice. In fact, after getting used to some of his mannerisms, I appreciate the way that he reads. He reads slowly, which I have read some others complain about. But the way that he reads allows the listener to contemplate and think about what is being heard. In my opinion, the reader is very effective.

In case you might be wondering how you will use this product, let me tell you how I use them. I have put the mp3-format audio files on my iPod and use them for half of my read-through-the-Bible program. I never want to have my only regular exposure to the Bible in audio form and not in written form. So I am always reading/listening from different portions of the Bible at the same time. The way I have it set up, I will read through the Bible at least once in a year and listen through the Bible at least once in a year. I listen while I walk or jog in the morning. If that doesn't give me enough time it is very easy to listen in the car as well. I love listening aloud with my wife because it gives us the opportunity to be exposed to the same scripture at the same time.

These are just suggestions which I hope are helpful. Do it however you like. I do strongly recommend, nevertheless, that you make an audio Bible of whatever your version-of-choice is (I commend the ESV to you for many reason, contact me if you'd like guidance in this) a regular part of your Bible reading time. Inform your conscience with the Word. Why listen to the radio and inform your worldview from a worldly view. Let's fight hard to have God's perspective shown to us in His Word our perspective. The only way that I know to do that is to be prayfully and humbly exposed to massive amounts of Scripture. This is one tool to help you in that regard. I hope this helps.
-Jacob Hantla

This is my 3rd audio Bible. My first was dramatized, second with Alexander Scorby. This by all means my favorite. It is like I step into a Virtual Bible. I put my headphones on and all the imagination my brain can harness paints a picture before my eyes. My big beef and main reason for not giving it 5 stars is because of a technical issue. I had the purpose of listening to this on my Creative Labs 40GB Nomad MP3 Player. The struggle was that when I imported them into my "Real" player all the names for each chapter file were the same. So I had to rename each file and give each file a CD track # so my MP3 Player could play each track in each book in the proper order. Otherwise very well done.

I am a devout KJV bible reader, but when it came to the car I knew I needed something a little lighter and easier to understand (I didn't want to be thinking too hard on something other than driving), so the NIV audio bible by Max McLean it was.

He is very easy to understand. His dramatic presentation makes it very easy to absorb and retain the bible. I also look forward to purchasing more of his products.

The audio bible came in a well presented double case with 4 CDs. The files are all organized well that they should be compatible with any MP3 player and play in the correct order. Each chapter is its own MP3 so it is very easy to skip backwards or forwards. I downloaded it onto my Creative Zen Micro and it works beautifully. I only have a 1GB flash player so I was only able to copy from Genesis throgh Job. That doesn't bother me any, I just know I need a bigger player. The data size is just a shade over 2GBs (my computer says it is 2.08G) so you will likely need a 3GB player to fit it all on.

This MP3 CD will work in your computer or on an MP3 player. If you want this to work in your car stereo or home stereo system they must be able to read the special MP3 CDs as this CD does not contain any audio tracks but rather a single data track with the MP3 files.

This is a fantastic product at a fantastic price. Yes, you have to be able to play MP3 files (or convert them to audio files), but you get a very handy carrying case and only seven (7) CDs -- hard to believe that would include the whole Bible in NIV translation.

When I first listened to Max McLean on the cassette version, several years ago, I was thrilled. I was worried about the quality when going from audio to MP3. Now, I have transferred many sermons from CD quality to MP3, so I also knew that it can be done well and still save a lot of space. These CDs do just that -- great audio on one-tenth the number of CDs.

The audio chapters are short and make it easy to skip around. The reading is dynamic, articulated and dynamic. Just all around great.

This audio version of the NIV translation by Max McLean is terriffic! I listen to it every day now, and its such a blessing. Max McLean really gives life to the scripture and the way he reads it really brings certain things to light that I may have missed before when I just read it on my own.
Warning for iPod users, its a bit cumbersome to import in an orderly fashion that is user friendly for your iPod. I tried to import it as an Audiobook, however Apple really doesn't let you do that. I finally came up with a system that works for me, changing ALL the files (yes every chapter) to an "audiobook" genre in the "Get Info" preferences of iTunes. I also changed the "artist name" to each book of the Bible to find books easily in the audiobook genre. Also, you can change each file to "skip when shuffling" to avoid hearing a book of the bible in the middle of listening to your songs when your in "shuffle" mode.
Once I figured out a system for myself, it was great and I am so happy with this product. Importing may sound like a bit of a pain, but believe me its all worth it once its in there!!
Highly recommended!!

I'm pretty disappointed in this product for 2 reasons. First, there are 1189 chapters in the Bible, and each one has its own track. I really wasn't thinking about this when I transferred it to my mp3 player. This dwarfs the music I have on my device and visually takes up a lot of space when viewing my audio library in Windows Media Player. This combined with the fact that the books are listed alphabetically when copied to a device makes it almost unusable. So you see your books/chapters listed like this: Philemon 01, Philippians 01, Proverbs 01, Psalm 001, Revelation 01, Romans 01,... pretty much useless. There aren't even any instructions that talk about how to fix the book/chapter order once copied. You pretty much have to listen to the mp3 discs to hear it in the right order.

I purchased this MP3 version and am broadly speaking very pleased with it. There are some occasional infelicities such as McLean pronouncing "news" as "noos", breathing in the wrong place, reading a little fast at times etc. However, my big bugaboo, and main reason for only awarding 4 stars is the fact that you have intrusive chapter announcements occurring right in the middle of the great narrative passages in the historical books and the gospels, frequently in places where the narrative overlaps from one chapter into another. There must be a better way of doing this, if indeed you need to do it at all, probably when you come to a natural break in the storyline at the beginning of a new paragraph. Other than that this is a fine piece of work and the MP3 format is wonderfully convenient compared to having lots and lots of tapes or CDs.

We have Max's NIV New Testament on tape and it is worn out. Listening to McLean speak is like hearing the voice of God - his voice is that powerful. Even if you are familiar with the bible, this reading will give you a whole new perspective. Purchasing it on MP3 is the most economical way to buy this because you can rewrite it onto CD (for personal use only). BUY THIS ITEM - DO NOT WAIT.

I enjoy being able to listen to the Bible. I have five young children so that makes it difficult to read my Bible very much.

I've listened to a lot of different readers who just sound cheesy and bored. But Max Mclean sounds like he is really getting into the story and like he cares about what is being said. Though occasionally he sounds like he is a just hair too enthusiastic (thus 4 stars instead of 5) considering what is being said.

Overall, I really like it. He usually captures the moment and has a good understanding of the feel and mood of the current passage.