[Work in Progress] Kizune's Cowon Z2 Review

[Rob_127]

Originally Posted by Milic

Just installed it as per your recommendation ... doesnt play anything, as soon as I select a track it brings me back to Z2 home screen
I used the latest daily in: http://rasher.dk/rockbox/android/
Am I doing something wrong?

Still seeking for the perfect audio player: sound of Cowon player is good but flac tags are broken and 3rd party (other than Rockbox) have background noise and hiss and ...

I was experiencing the same problem, try deleting these files from the Rockbox folder: .playlist_control, config.cfg, database, and nvram. Then update your datebase again.

[Milic]

Originally Posted by Rob_127

I was experiencing the same problem, try deleting these files from the Rockbox folder: .playlist_control, config.cfg, database, and nvram. Then update your datebase again.

ooops sorry but not working ... I initialize the db, asks me to reboot, I do, then I launch it, but it asks me again! if I just quit the app, when I run it I get a severe system error message: tiny characters on a white screen (like BSOD in Windows), I quit and rerun but back to update db ...

If I start to play a file manually through folders, it doesnt play and gets me back to home screen ... not clean at all ...

Quick update: 64GB NTFS works fine in Z2, just a confirmation ...

[cawboy12]

hello,

I thinking about buying cowon z2 but i have two concerns.

In cowon J3 with side buttons I can fast forward or rewind by 5 seconds (with one press) in video or more by holding button for longer time. Does side buttons in cowon z2 work the same as in cowon J3. Are there any problems with them like slow response etc.

My second concern is about playing different videos. How many mkv (with h.264 codec) didn't work on this device ( is there a problem with playing mkv files).

Thanks for any help

[mathen]

Hi,Kizu,I have x7 working just fine,do you think its worth buying cowon z2,am deeply moved by z2's physical design and uci? Do you like z2 or not,I am asking because I went through your review twice,and am confused, as I know how badly android can hang on you even with 1gb ram and dual core processor,here its single core and just 512mb ram!!Do you recommend buying or should it be wise to wait ,since I have this wonderfully working x7?My problem is, Head says No ,when my heart says Yes,you buy it

[Kizune]

I think the Z2 is, despite of its flaws, a nice product. Android doesn't freeze very often for me and the player does its main tasks (playing music/videos) very well. Moreover, most apps and games, such as Angry Birds (any edition), the World of Goo,..., work flawlessly.
Now it just depends on what you want: A huge disadvantage of the Z2 is its bad battery life. If this point is of importance for you, you should probably wait for the J3's successor which Cowon announced a few weeks ago.

[Kizune]

Originally Posted by cawboy12

In cowon J3 with side buttons I can fast forward or rewind by 5 seconds (with one press) in video or more by holding button for longer time. Does side buttons in cowon z2 work the same as in cowon J3. Are there any problems with them like slow response etc.

The buttons work the same as on the Z2. Also, ff/rew works way better on the Z2 because there's almost no delay after each jump (as you probably have noticed, on the J3 there's a tiny delay).

Originally Posted by cawboy12

My second concern is about playing different videos. How many mkv (with h.264 codec) didn't work on this device ( is there a problem with playing mkv files).

I'll test this and report back. So far, I haven't had any problems with videos.

[snakebite2]

Originally Posted by Kizune

The buttons work the same as on the Z2. Also, ff/rew works way better on the Z2 because there's almost no delay after each jump (as you probably have noticed, on the J3 there's a tiny delay).

You said the delay happens with track change? Did cowon fix it with the lastest firmware?

[Milic]

I didnt notice any particular delay when switching from one track to another ...

[Kizune]

Originally Posted by snakebite2

You said the delay happens with track change? Did cowon fix it with the lastest firmware?

I was talking about rewind and fast forward in the post you quoted. The delay when you change the track is still there.

@Milic: The delay is only there if you use the stock music app. It takes up to two seconds and occurs all the time, but the duration varies. It's annoying as hell for me because the J3 reacts immediately in this regard.

[Milic]

OK to be totally accurate, there is a slight delay, possibly more noticable than J3 but unless you spend your time switching from 1 track to another, I dont, it is bearly noticable. I have never noticed anything over 1 second even 1 second. Maybe it will changes as my Z2 fills up but so far so good.

I am way more bothered by FLAC tag management (quite average to say the least when 3rd party app do well) and mostly by album/artist/genre access, with 1 level, it makes tag navigation useless, compared to J3. My work around is to navigate by folders but not perfect.
And btw, I use the stock app because it is the only one with "no background noise and hiss" (I use high end in ear monitors, Earsonics if you ask)

[snakebite2]

Originally Posted by Kizune

I was talking about rewind and fast forward in the post you quoted. The delay when you change the track is still there.

@Milic: The delay is only there if you use the stock music app. It takes up to two seconds and occurs all the time, but the duration varies. It's annoying as hell for me because the J3 reacts immediately in this regard.

So it doesn't happen with the jetaudio player?

[losAntonis]

Originally Posted by Milic

OK to be totally accurate, there is a slight delay, possibly more noticable than J3 but unless you spend your time switching from 1 track to another, I dont, it is bearly noticable. I have never noticed anything over 1 second even 1 second. Maybe it will changes as my Z2 fills up but so far so good.

I am way more bothered by FLAC tag management (quite average to say the least when 3rd party app do well) and mostly by album/artist/genre access, with 1 level, it makes tag navigation useless, compared to J3. My work around is to navigate by folders but not perfect.
And btw, I use the stock app because it is the only one with "no background noise and hiss" (I use high end in ear monitors, Earsonics if you ask)

The Audio Player from the Z2 is really horrible. For that reason I did the market hack and installed a 3rd party player (Poweramp). I am really satisfied with it. (after finding the right settings) Gapless with FLAC and CBR MP3 works well. In adition to that it has Reply Gain support and the navigation is great also.

I realised in this moment, that the jetaudio Player is out for android. Great. I am looking forward to test it today evening.

[Kizune]

Originally Posted by snakebite2

So it doesn't happen with the jetaudio player?

Exactly.

[Milic]

Originally Posted by Kizune

Exactly.

Apologies but ... no (not the delay when switching tracks, the sound quality) the just tested it, looks quite nice, but even after I deactived all equalizer settings and on quiet pieces, there is a background noise, which I admit for most of us wont be noticed but I do, and the stock player is perfectly "clean": no noise, no hiss, nothing ...

[Kizune]

Read snakebite2's post again - he meant the delay.