Need music player advice!!

I'm in the market for a new music player for the gym... I'm not partial to iPod or MP3.... but I have a few problems with my currnt player and would LOVE some input on selecting my new one.

I'm currently using a Creative Zen MuVo tx

First...it's loud in the gym...eardrum damage aside, I really need one with some sort of VOLUME, mine is too quiet, and sorry everyone but hearing Christina Aguilara in the background over my Rob Zombie is just not going to cut it.

Second, it needs to have clear, wonderful sound quality. My current player sounds a bit muddy (I know, the earbuds may have a part in this, too). When I play the exact same files on my computer at home, they sound awesome...at the gym, I can't hear backup vocals, certain instruments..it just sounds flat. It's not the equalizer, either..I know a lot about sound and this pplayer just isn't capable.

Third...it must have accurate playback. For some reason, the tracks seem to play slower on my current MP3 player than they do ANYwhere else. I'll put a song on the playlist after playing it in the car, and playing it at home during a workout, and deciding that the tempo would be perfect for the elliptical....but when I get to the gym, the song is a fraction of the speed and I can't use it.

Finally, it has to be a USB flash drive. No hard drive devices!!

Any suggestions??

I have an Ipod I don't go to a gym so background noise isn't an issue for me I use mine only for walking.

As far as the earphones I would recommend the Bose.  My husband has a pair for his computer and watches movies all the time on the couch while I watch tv in the same room and he can't hear the tv or me LOL -- I have to flag him if I need to ask him a question.

These headphones aren't cheap but they work wonders for blocking noise from the outside.

I have a Creative Labs Zen V Plus and I adore it. It's durable as heck, has lots of after-market accessories (like arm bands for the gym), it sounds really good and is flash. Cheaper than the comparable capacity ipods and comes with the bonus of FM radio and video that the ipod nano doesnt have. I'm going to be selling my 2GB ZEN V Plus soon to get the 8GB (which is only about $220 including shipping on ebay).  The reviewers have pretty much all said that the ear buds that come with it are good enough quality for most people (as opposed to the stock buds that come with most other players). Here are some reviews:
http://www.anythingbutipod.com/archives/2006/ 10/creative-zen-v-plus-review.php
http://gear.ign.com/articles/721/721173p1.htm l

The prices are off on those though, so check Amazon and such for current prices. Target and Walmart now carry this player in certian capacities. Good luck!

I have a Creative Zen Micro and I looooove it!  Has good battery life, is compatible with "Plays For Sure" DRM (good if you want a subscription to Napster or Yahoo Music Jukebox, bad if you want to use iTunes.)  Fits in my pocket and is easy to use.  I did purchase a better pair of headphones for it, though, as the ones that are included with most players are usually pretty cheap.  I recommend buying actual on-the-ear or over-the-ear headphones as opposed to ear buds.  They will help block out noisy environments.

I have a 2 Gig iPod Nano that I use in the gym. It's a Flash player, not a hard drive, and I think it's the best thing in the world. I have an arm band designed for the nano, so it sits on my arm and I never have problems with volume :)

I also agree that you should look for an on-the-ear set of headphones. I have Sony Headphones with Noise Cancellation (it spews out white noise) and it works  really well :D

I have the Creative Labs Zeno Nano, and I love it. I just got it a few months ago. It's VERY small, so it's easy to carry. But it also comes with an armband and a clip. I don't think that I've even had to replace the battery once, and I workout 30 min to an hour a day! I use the ear buds that come with it. I haven't had a problem with outside noise. I can turn it down enough so I can talk to people or pay attention to my surroundings, but I can also blast it and block everything out. I've never gone past vol 9 on the player, and I think it goes up to like 20 or 30!

good luck! i hope you find something that works for you!

I am an ipod person too....  Absolutely love it and would buy another one if this one broke.  Though I did get a different set of headphones for it.  I think they are a phillips sanyo but can't remember offhand.  They were about $25, so not too bad on the price and it worked great at my gym in Phoenix.   It's such a personal choice, it's hard to make a decision.  I shopped around for months and did some comparisons and then wound up getting the ipod on ebay for slightly under cost.  Good luck on your search!

SD Memory card player (about the size of iPod nano) it's cross compatible to MP3/WMA/WAV and can be used on MAC/Windows/Linux, has FM-Radio & recorder too, can even record radio if you want or from line-in if you want to transfer music from the internet radio channels or TV-music channels.

1 "AAA" rechargeable battery would do the trick, and you probably already have the SD card(s) from a digital camera or cell phone, if not, they're cheap enough too (takes up to a 4-GB card) and you can keep more on hand for lots of potential music.

BEST ADVICE is getting some good noise cancelling earphones. They probably go for $99 to $199 on eaby for the ones that aren't off the wall on the top end. But they do great. I can hear fine at medium volume while walking down city streets & even riding on bus trips.The retail on earphones like this would probablygo between $189 to $329, so keep that in mind if you don't want to do the ebay thing.

Here's an active link as of right now: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem &item=170070044326

I hope the money you save on getting a less expensive player will help you afford some "premium" earphones! Heres what I use for earphones, and I can usually walk by road construction with almost no interference (while still on medium volume): Shure E3c: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem &item=130069593424

Or if you prefer "name brand" I've seen this SAMSUNG model to be very popular in the last couple months:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem &item=270079846429 

For Valentine's day last year my hubby got me an "XM2Go" radio (such a romantic - that way I can listen to Spring Training Diamondbacks baseball games).  Its a little bigger than a deck of cards, but it stores up to 5 hours of music or what every you want to record.  It will record over the older stuff if  you add more than 5 hours.  I use the recorded stuff for my walks when I get tired of whats on my IPod and I use the "live" XM in my car at work and at home since its a portable and "base" radio.

I have a RCA LYRA... It has the clear tones and  the volume.... I usally put the head phones around my neck and blast the volume, and I can hear it perfectly. It is small in size, light and heheh it comes in RED! It is easly to use too, it is an MP3 player but even I can download songs with out any trouble.

I have an ipod, but I mostly use it for the car, leisure, etc. I run, a lot, and for that I use a SONY jellybean, for 2 reasons, 1) it's really small, and 2) it's really durable. I can't tell you how many times I've dropped it on the pavment and it's still the same. My ipod can't withstand that.

I just got an iPod 2nd gen. shuffle. I love that little thing. I bought it specifically for working out and having my own tunes to listen to. I loaded it up with music last night, jumped on my treadmill and off I went. I just clipped it to my top and barely noticed it was there. I know at one point my DD came downstairs to talk to me and I saw lips moving but heard nothing. I couldn't even hear the treadmill going and I really didn't have the music all that loud.

Another fan of the iPod nano here!