Archos JukeBox Studio (6 GB) MP3 Player
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- Number of Songs: 1500
- Usage: Music Recording
- Interface: USB
- Main Storage Type: Hard Drive
- Storage Capacity: 6 GB
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Good player with a big brain
Pros
Price, size, Explorer interface, battery life
Cons
Weight, lack of volume control knob, battery compartment
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Until something better comes out, this is my player of choice. Can't beat the price per MB ratio or the battery life.
The Archos Jukebox 6000 is a portable 6GB MP3 player. It?s the smallest player of this type on the market, approximately the size of a small cassette walkman. It?s kind of heavy (for an MP3 player) but the thought of carrying every MP3 I have on my computer with me makes the weight bearable.
I?ve read some complaints about the sound quality of this player, but for my non-audiophile ears it sounds just fine. I use it mostly while inline skating so it?s not in a pristine listening environment. I believe the quality will be more than sufficient for all but the most critical listeners, provided you replace the included headphones with a good quality pair.
As for the shock protection, I have not experienced any skipping at all while skating. I have read some reviews that claim they experience skipping while jogging. Since I do not jog, I can?t verify this but I do not doubt it. In my opinion, jogging with any hard drive based MP3 player is asking for trouble. Even with shock protection and buffer memory it can?t be good for the drive to be constantly banged around like that. If jogging is your thing I would strongly suggest one of the many flash memory based players out there.
The Jukebox 6000 came complete with an AC adapter, headphones, carrying case, an extra set of NiMH batteries and Music Match software. There is mention of a wired remote control but it is not included in the package. On the Archos website (archos.com), they show the wired remote as being available in the Automobile Kit. I have contacted the sales dept. to see if the remote is available separately, and they have informed me that they have no plans to sell the remote separately. Unfortunately that means you'll have to spend $39. for the Auto kit even if you don't want all the other stuff included with the kit. The remote would come in very hand as the carrying case included does not let you control any of the functions without first removing it.
The display on the unit is small and only shows the name of the song, song number, volume and battery levels. It does not show the artist name but I believe this function will be added in a future release of the firmware. The firmware is easily updated by downloading it from the Archos website.
People have complained about the lack of a volume knob on the player. You have to press the menu button and go to the volume setting to adjust the volume. Alternately, you can adjust the volume by holding down the ?On? button and using the plus and minus buttons. While both of these options are unnecessarily complicated there is an easy way around this limitation. I simply use a set of headphone with a built in volume control and leave the unit?s volume on high. It?s easier than adjusting the volume on the JB even if it had a dedicated knob.
The battery life is very good for a hard drive based player. I have been getting about 8 hours or so from a full charge. Changing the batteries is a real pain, but you only need to change the batteries once your running time starts decreasing. The Archos people kindly included a replacement set in the box, though no mention of them is made either on the packaging or the manual.
You don?t need to use any special software to transfer songs to the player. Windows simply sees it as another hard drive on your computer. You can just drag and drop or cut and paste songs. I prefer this method to the more common method of using an external program to transfer songs. An added benefit is you can copy any type of file to the Jukebox which make it a convenient way to transfer large files from one computer to another. Another added benefit is there are no digital rights management issues. You are free to copy songs from a friends computer without worrying about any current or future digital right scheme.
The player also supports playlists. While the manual tells you to create the in the Music Match software, I prefer WinAmp. The Jukebox had no problem using the WinAmp playlists. In fact, in can use any playlist as long as it follows the M3U standard.
All in all I have been very happy with the JB. The only things I would change are the weight, addition of a volume knob and make it easier to change the batteries. Considering the options out there, I think I made the right choice for a 6GB player. The Nomad Jukebox is bigger and more expensive without adding any obvious advantages.
I?ve read some complaints about the sound quality of this player, but for my non-audiophile ears it sounds just fine. I use it mostly while inline skating so it?s not in a pristine listening environment. I believe the quality will be more than sufficient for all but the most critical listeners, provided you replace the included headphones with a good quality pair.
As for the shock protection, I have not experienced any skipping at all while skating. I have read some reviews that claim they experience skipping while jogging. Since I do not jog, I can?t verify this but I do not doubt it. In my opinion, jogging with any hard drive based MP3 player is asking for trouble. Even with shock protection and buffer memory it can?t be good for the drive to be constantly banged around like that. If jogging is your thing I would strongly suggest one of the many flash memory based players out there.
The Jukebox 6000 came complete with an AC adapter, headphones, carrying case, an extra set of NiMH batteries and Music Match software. There is mention of a wired remote control but it is not included in the package. On the Archos website (archos.com), they show the wired remote as being available in the Automobile Kit. I have contacted the sales dept. to see if the remote is available separately, and they have informed me that they have no plans to sell the remote separately. Unfortunately that means you'll have to spend $39. for the Auto kit even if you don't want all the other stuff included with the kit. The remote would come in very hand as the carrying case included does not let you control any of the functions without first removing it.
The display on the unit is small and only shows the name of the song, song number, volume and battery levels. It does not show the artist name but I believe this function will be added in a future release of the firmware. The firmware is easily updated by downloading it from the Archos website.
People have complained about the lack of a volume knob on the player. You have to press the menu button and go to the volume setting to adjust the volume. Alternately, you can adjust the volume by holding down the ?On? button and using the plus and minus buttons. While both of these options are unnecessarily complicated there is an easy way around this limitation. I simply use a set of headphone with a built in volume control and leave the unit?s volume on high. It?s easier than adjusting the volume on the JB even if it had a dedicated knob.
The battery life is very good for a hard drive based player. I have been getting about 8 hours or so from a full charge. Changing the batteries is a real pain, but you only need to change the batteries once your running time starts decreasing. The Archos people kindly included a replacement set in the box, though no mention of them is made either on the packaging or the manual.
You don?t need to use any special software to transfer songs to the player. Windows simply sees it as another hard drive on your computer. You can just drag and drop or cut and paste songs. I prefer this method to the more common method of using an external program to transfer songs. An added benefit is you can copy any type of file to the Jukebox which make it a convenient way to transfer large files from one computer to another. Another added benefit is there are no digital rights management issues. You are free to copy songs from a friends computer without worrying about any current or future digital right scheme.
The player also supports playlists. While the manual tells you to create the in the Music Match software, I prefer WinAmp. The Jukebox had no problem using the WinAmp playlists. In fact, in can use any playlist as long as it follows the M3U standard.
All in all I have been very happy with the JB. The only things I would change are the weight, addition of a volume knob and make it easier to change the batteries. Considering the options out there, I think I made the right choice for a 6GB player. The Nomad Jukebox is bigger and more expensive without adding any obvious advantages.
