Customer Reviews

Neuros 4020300 USB 2.0 MP3 Digital Audio Computer Bundle (20 GB/128 MB)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I've owned my Neuros 20GB for about four months. I had the opportunity to audition a number of portable music players, including the iPod and the Archos Jukebox, among others. The Neuros won't win any beauty contests and its USB 1.1 interface is not the fastest in the world. But it has some very interesting features, including "MyFi", an FM transmitter that I use every day to listen to the Neuros over my truck's radio. I've used HiSi a few times with moderate success. It allows the user to record a snippet of music from the radio, then identifies the song when the player is synchronized with a PC and the Neuros synchronization software. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

The Neuros supports Ogg Vorbis files with the version 1.45 (beta) firmware. Initially I was concerned that the firmware was beta, since I didn't really want to be a guinea pig on my dime, but it's quite stable...I have had no problems at all. The Windows-based synchronization software seems a little clunky to me, but an excellent third party application, NeurosDBM works much better (and it's free). The Neuros (when used with NeurosDBM) is platform independent - I've synchronized it on PCs running Windows and Linux, a Sun Blade 1000 and an Apple iMac.

But what really sets this device apart from anything that I auditioned is the quality of the sound and its ability to drive low impedance, high quality headphones. I listen with a pair of Grado SR-125 headphones. They have the (occaisionally irritating) quality of bringing out the worst of a marginally performing piece of equipment, besides being a very challenging electrical load to drive. The Neuros sounds extraordinary through them. No, it's not like my home system, but it's leaps and bounds ahead of the iPod (and anything else I've listened to) in pure audio quality. Even with high impedance Sennheisers, the Neuros beats anything else that I've heard. To me, the music is what matters. So, while the slow USB interface can be a bit of a pain, the wait is well worth it. My recommendation? Buy the Neuros 20GB, use the money you saved over an iPod to buy a GOOD pair of 'phones, grab the latest firmware and NeurosDBM software. You won't look back!

A few months back, I was in the market for an MP3 player. The options I wanted were fairly simple: Large capacity (10 Gigs of space or more), multiple format choices (MP3, WMA, OGG, etc.), playlist compatible, and upgradeability.

So I started my research. Right off the bat, I LOVED the iPod choice. It was small, had great capacity, and support for many different file types. Plus, it is made by Apple, and while that usually means more money, it also means quality. However, when a friend suggested I take a look at the Neuros, I was won over almost immediately.

The 20 Gig version had everything I was looking for, but it was the things I wasn't looking for that completely sealed the deal. It has a built-in FM broadcaster, so you don't have to worry about getting an after-market one. And it broadcasts over most of the FM spectrum, instead of just 4 channels, like most do. It also has a built-in FM receiver, microphone (time is limited only to the hard drive space available), ability to record from FM, and a feature called "HiSi" which allows you to take a digital fingerprint of a song from the radio and find out what the song is.

Plus, the software and firmware are open source, which allows creative developers to add lots of functionality to the machine.

I've had mine now for a little more than a month and have been very pleased with it. The only reason I don't give it 5 full stars is that it is sometimes a little temperamental, but if you have the patience to hang in there, it's so worth it.

Also, right now, they have brought the price down to under two hundred dollars, but Amazon hasn't changed their price yet. Go to their website to find it for less (google neuros or go to neurosaudio dot com).

Finally, the Neuros has a great set of users and developers who are constantly posting on the forums set up at their site. I have found this to be a great source for figuring out how to solve problems or do things better with the machine.

I bought this player a few days ago, and it's really something special. It's not perfect, but it comes close.

Pros:

Lots of storage space (20GB)
Ability to record from line-in, microphone, or FM.
FM Tuner
FM Transmitter
Active forums with Neuros developers for new features and support
Support for MP3, Ogg, WAV, and unencrypted (i.e., non-DRM) WMA files

Cons:

Bulky. With the backpack, It's bigger than an Archos device, and <i>far</i> bigger than an iPod.
Audio stops when you use the menu

The benefits of this player far outweigh its defecits. For less than an iPod (far less), you get an FM receiver and transmitter and the ability to record. Feature for feature, the only arena where iPod wins is size, and the Neuros still fits in my shirt pocket (although it sticks out of the top, of course).

For those that don't need a tiny player, the Neuros is a great choice.

I bought this product for the price and the FM transmission. The FM transmission does not work well in the car, but works great in the house. In the car, it is difficult to position the player perfectly in order to get good reception. But I just plug it into my cassette with an adapter (I had one hanging around the house from my portable CD player days) and it plays fine. I love it for in the house. I can listen to my shows (talk shows and TV shows I download off the internet) and music wherever I am. I just carry my small portable FM player and my Neuros from room to room as I am cleaning. And I love not having to touch a CD anymore! I had problems with the player in the first two days, but customer service was GREAT! I left a message and someone called me back within an hour. He was friendly and helpful and fixed my problem in three minutes. I like this product.

http://www.neurosaudio.com/

If you go to the neuros site you can get it for cheap. nuff said.

Digital Innovations may have gotten off with a rocky start but I believe they are way ahead of the race now. I had a 1.1 version of Neuros that I upgraded to 2.o USB . They apparently had problems with a stocking of new boards (no doubt because of the demand for this product). I called to check on the status one evening at 9 pm and the President-Joe Born himself answered, and promised delivery would be soon. It shipped out that day and I received it 2 days later. Any company that has a President putting in the late hours and following thru personally is OK in my books. I own several mp3 players, one company I never heard back from after 2 E-mails. I'm so impressed with the Neuros that's why I own 3 of them. They have a ongoing forum that is full of info on support, just type in the issue and it will list all information that has been covered from other users as well as input from their people and supporting members. If you still have problems the support line is great, they will answer you within minutes or sooner. No having to pay for support. The software, as well as firmware for downloading songs can be automatically updated when opened. Oh and did I mention that it's less expensive than the Ipod ?

Thanks Joe well done .

The Neuros has by far been the best electronics product I have used in a long, long time.

Pros: Large hard drive, price (esp. compared to ipod), support from company (upgrades to PC software and unit firmware)

Get one, you won't regret it!

I'll respond to a few complaints I've seen:

USB 1.1 support only, no USB 2.0 - the company is working to produce an upgrade and is it really that big of a deal? You upload the song once and listen to it over and over. With 20 gigs, do you really need to change out songs that frequently?

Size - it's not much bigger than the competition and it comes with all of their extras as included features.

User Interface - Huh? Those must have been to previous revs to the software. Everything was very intuitive for me. As I said above, company support is great!

It's heavy, it's unwieldy, it's unreliable, it's bulky, the software stinks. Buy an iPod.

* Very Bulky
* got damaged after a few month later
* Heavy
* poor support

** FM recoder
** Sound finger print
** Built-in FM transmotter

I have the USB 1.1 version of this MP3 player, and I've had it for about 8 months. I did extensive research before I finally settled on this player and I do not have a single regret.

Pros:
- Great sound (recommend using different headphones than the ones included)
- Easy to use and install (I have XP, and it had no problems recognizing the device)
- Can be used as a back up hard drive
- Outstanding battery life (I typically get 8-10 hours of continual play...and it will retain power for several days when turned off)
- Can play and sort songs in many different ways (i.e. by Album, Artist, Genre, etc.)
- The FM transmitter that is built in is great for the car
- Looks cool with the orange lights
- Lots of storage space for the price

Cons:
- Large and heavy (compared to other players like the iPod)
- No resume after powered off
- Slow transfer rate with USB 1.1 (but now they have USB 2.0!)

If you're looking for an affordable and reliable alternative to the iPod, I suggest this. I have nothing against the iPod, but since I couldn't afford one this is what I went with.