Pearl Jam limited edition chrome Pono Player

15960616365

Comments

  • PJ_SoulPJ_Soul Vancouver, BC Posts: 49,473
    edited December 2015
    I have never seen such mixed and conflicting reviews for anything in my whole life. I literally have no idea what to think of the Pono, and no idea what to believe. I have seen totally opposed opinions from many people I would normally listen to, and industry reviews that vary wildly as well. It's bizarre.
    Post edited by PJ_Soul on
    With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
  • KV4053KV4053 Mike's side, crushed up against the stage Posts: 1,434
    PJ_Soul said:

    I have never seen such mixed and conflicting reviews for anything in my whole life. I literally have no idea what to think of the Pono, and no idea what to believe. I have seen totally opposed opinions from many people I would normally listen to, and industry reviews that vary wildly as well. It's bizarre.

    It's an expensive, niche product. That explains most of the diverse reviews. Personally, I love it and want a second one for the office.
    I know I was born and I know that I'll die. The in between is mine.
  • ZodZod Posts: 9,943
    Was it successful enough to have a version 2?
    PJ_Soul said:

    I have never seen such mixed and conflicting reviews for anything in my whole life. I literally have no idea what to think of the Pono, and no idea what to believe. I have seen totally opposed opinions from many people I would normally listen to, and industry reviews that vary wildly as well. It's bizarre.

    I agree. I've never seen anyone compare it to its peers. A few years ago I bought a FiiO X3 for $200. It has a high quality DAC, plays all formats (include hd flac). It's a pretty good little machine (only wish it had touchscreen like my old cowon player).

    Most of the reviews on the pono come from people comparing it to iphones, ipods, other cell phones or mp3 players. I'd like to know how it stacks up compared to other audiophile players and if it's price point is worth being that much more expensive than a fiio (or other companies players).
  • KV4053KV4053 Mike's side, crushed up against the stage Posts: 1,434
    Zod said:

    Was it successful enough to have a version 2?

    PJ_Soul said:

    I have never seen such mixed and conflicting reviews for anything in my whole life. I literally have no idea what to think of the Pono, and no idea what to believe. I have seen totally opposed opinions from many people I would normally listen to, and industry reviews that vary wildly as well. It's bizarre.

    I agree. I've never seen anyone compare it to its peers. A few years ago I bought a FiiO X3 for $200. It has a high quality DAC, plays all formats (include hd flac). It's a pretty good little machine (only wish it had touchscreen like my old cowon player).

    Most of the reviews on the pono come from people comparing it to iphones, ipods, other cell phones or mp3 players. I'd like to know how it stacks up compared to other audiophile players and if it's price point is worth being that much more expensive than a fiio (or other companies players).
    Simple review for the only other high end device I know .... Pono SQ is way, way better than my Cowon J3. Interfaces are both acceptable, not great. The only thing better in the J3 is battery life (60+ hours vs. 8 if you're lucky).
    I know I was born and I know that I'll die. The in between is mine.
  • PJ_Soul said:

    I have never seen such mixed and conflicting reviews for anything in my whole life. I literally have no idea what to think of the Pono, and no idea what to believe. I have seen totally opposed opinions from many people I would normally listen to, and industry reviews that vary wildly as well. It's bizarre.

    One side has an agenda. Mixed reviews tend to mean 1 thing.
    Sorry. The world doesn't work the way you tell it to.
  • BF89905 said:

    I noticed someone above got offered $800 for their Pono with music on it. Ultimately, I hope people are happy with their purchases, but the few articles and videos that I've come across online after people have actually used the Pono player isn't all that great. For example,

    image

    If you can sell your Pono player for anything above cost, perhaps you should take the money and run.

    Holy Balls! That's the most scathing tech report from Mom's kitchen I've ever seen!
  • 2-feign-reluctance2-feign-reluctance TigerTown, USA Posts: 23,090
    Kid's a spazz, but I think he's right. I'm so glad I didn't invest in one of these. So glad!
    www.cluthelee.com
  • demetriosdemetrios Canada Posts: 87,335
    http://www.recode.net/2016/7/24/12265668/neil-young-pono-music-offline

    Neil Young’s Pono Music will be offline for ‘several weeks’
    The uncompressed music service is switching infrastructure providers after its partner got bought.
  • Kev - Coat and KeysKev - Coat and Keys Earth Posts: 357
    Hopefully the website comes back with a UK store. It won't, of course, but I hope things progress smoothly.

    I spent a few hours the other week working up the old Pono.
    I moved all the PJ music onto the internal drive and then re-named all the albums ('001 Ten', '002 Vs', '003 Vitalogy'... up to '020 PJ20') so they now display in my preferred order on my preferred album view menu.
    The thing plays great and looks great. Good stuff.
  • on2legson2legs Standing in the Jersey rain… Posts: 14,379

    Hopefully the website comes back with a UK store. It won't, of course, but I hope things progress smoothly.

    I spent a few hours the other week working up the old Pono.
    I moved all the PJ music onto the internal drive and then re-named all the albums ('001 Ten', '002 Vs', '003 Vitalogy'... up to '020 PJ20') so they now display in my preferred order on my preferred album view menu.
    The thing plays great and looks great. Good stuff.

    Can't sort by year?
    1996: Randall's Island 2  1998: East Rutherford | MSG 1 & 2  2000: Cincinnati | Columbus | Jones Beach 1, 2, & 3 | Boston 1 | Camden 1 & 2 2003: Philadelphia | Uniondale | MSG 1 & 2 | Holmdel  2005: Atlantic City 1  2006: Camden 1 | East Rutherford 1 & 2 2008: Camden 1 & 2 | MSG 1 & 2 | Newark (EV)  2009: Philadelphia 1, 2 & 4  2010: Newark | MSG 1 & 2  2011: Toronto 1  2013: Wrigley Field | Brooklyn 2 | Philadelphia 1 & 2 | Baltimore  2015: Central Park  2016: Philadelphia 1 & 2 | MSG 1 & 2 | Fenway Park 2 | MSG (TOTD)  2017: Brooklyn (RnR HOF)  2020: MSG | Asbury Park  2021: Asbury Park  2022: MSG | Camden | Nashville  2024: MSG 1 & 2 | Philadelphia 1 & 2 | Baltimore


  • Kev - Coat and KeysKev - Coat and Keys Earth Posts: 357
    edited July 2016
    on2legs said:


    Can't sort by year?

    I think the Pono is only alphabetical, but the way I do it would keep the live stuff together and after the studio albums.
    Plus when using external memory it means all the PJ stuff still comes first.
    (The extra 0s in my 'system' is to avoid 10,000 days mucking things up. Thanks Tool.)


  • demetriosdemetrios Canada Posts: 87,335
    https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/13/neil-young-pono-high-resolution-adaptive-streaming-service/

    "Neil Young's Pono will launch an adaptive bitrate streaming service
    It will adjust quality on the fly, based on your connection speed."
  • KV4053KV4053 Mike's side, crushed up against the stage Posts: 1,434
    demetrios said:

    https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/13/neil-young-pono-high-resolution-adaptive-streaming-service/

    "Neil Young's Pono will launch an adaptive bitrate streaming service
    It will adjust quality on the fly, based on your connection speed."

    Pono is dead. Long live Pono
    I know I was born and I know that I'll die. The in between is mine.
  • buck502000buck502000 Birthplace of GIBSON guitar Posts: 8,951
    If anyone has a Pono they don't want/need feel free to send it my way....
  • KV4053KV4053 Mike's side, crushed up against the stage Posts: 1,434

    If anyone has a Pono they don't want/need feel free to send it my way....

    Love mine. Was hoping to get a deal on another one on black Friday but no luck
    I know I was born and I know that I'll die. The in between is mine.
  • KV4053 said:

    If anyone has a Pono they don't want/need feel free to send it my way....

    Love mine. Was hoping to get a deal on another one on black Friday but no luck
    Yeah two years on I was kinda expecting it to have fuzzed by now, but my Pono is an amazing digital music player for every day use.
    Peace Trail is another solid album too, so always trust in Uncle Neil.
  • FastrichieFastrichie Sandy Hook, CT Posts: 915
    Love mine too. Just disappointed in the pono store and how long its taking to re-open.
    04/06/94 Springfield, 04/17/94 NYC, 10/02/96 Hartford, 11/14/97 Oakland, 09/08/98 NJ, 09/10/98 MSG, 09/11/98 MSG, 09/13/98 Hartford, 08/24/00 Jones Beach, 08/25/00 Jones Beach 04/30/03 Uniondale, 07/08/03 MSG, 07/09/03 MSG, 09/28/04 Boston, 10/01/05 Borgata, 10/03/05 Philly, 05/13/06 Hartford 05/25/06 Boston, 06/01/06 NJ, 06/03/06 NJ, 08/05/07 Chicago, 06/24/08 MSG, 06/25/08 MSG, 06/27/08 Hartford, 06/30/08 Mansfield, 07/01/08 The Beacon, 08/21/09 Toronto, 10/27/09 Philly, 10/28/09 Philly, 10/30/09 Philly, 10/31/09 Philly, 05/15/2010 Hartford, 05/17/2010 Boston, 05/20/2010 MSG, 05/21/2010 MSG, Montreal 09/07/2011, Philly 09/01/2012, Wrigley 07/19-20,2013, Worcester 10/16/13, Brooklyn 10/18, Brooklyn 10/19/13, Hartford 10/25/13, Ed Sullivan 09/23/2015, Central Park 09/26/2015 Philly 04/29/2016. MSG 05/01/2016, MSG 05/02/2016, Fenway 08/05/2016, Fenway 08/07/2016, Brooklyn 04/07/2017, Seattle 08/08/2018, Seattle 08/10/2018, Chicago 08/20/2018, Fenway 09/02/2018, Fenway 09/04/2018, Asbury Park 09/18/2021, Apollo Theater 09/10/2022, MSG 09/11/2022, Camden 09/14/2022


  • manitoumanmanitouman In My Head Posts: 1,073

    Love mine too. Just disappointed in the pono store and how long its taking to re-open.

    ^^^^This
    Soldier Field, Chicago, IL 7-11-1995; United Center, Chicago, IL 6-29-1998; MGM Grand, Las Vegas, NV 10-22-2000 ~PJ10~; Pepsi Center, Denver, CO 4-1-2003; Cricket Pavilion, Phoenix, AZ 6-7-2003; United Center, Chicago, IL 6-18-2003; Alpine Valley, East Troy, WI 6-21-2003; Fox Theatre, St. Louis, MO 10-5-2004; The Gorge, George, WA 9-1-2005; United Center, Chicago, IL 5-16-2006; United Center, Chicago, IL 5-17-2006; Pepsi Center, Denver, CO 7-2-2006; Pepsi Center, Denver, CO 7-3-2006; United Center, Chicago, IL 8-23-2009; United Center, Chicago, IL 8-24-2009; Rogers Arena, Vancouver, BC 12-4-2013; Key Arena, Seattle, WA 12-6-2013; iWireless Arena, Moline, IL 10-17-2014 ~No Code Show~; Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN 10-19-2014; Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI 10-20-2014 ~Yield Show~; Pepsi Center, Denver, CO 10-22-2014 ~PJ24~: Wrigley Field 1 & 2, 2016; Safeco Field, Seattle Home Shows 1 & 2; Wrigley Field, Chicago Away Shows 1 & 2....
  • Jason PJason P Posts: 19,121
    XSTREAM!!!! Now with electrolytes!
  • cp3iversoncp3iverson Posts: 8,632
    Has he abandoned Pono? He initially said that streaming was the worst thing to happen to music
  • MedozKMedozK Tennessee Posts: 9,209
    edited April 2017

    Has he abandoned Pono? He initially said that streaming was the worst thing to happen to music

    Not anymore. Pono is dead (3 years was a good run) and now to Xstream.
  • demetriosdemetrios Canada Posts: 87,335
    The regional exclusive digital purchases and the prices Pono were offering on their digital albums ... sucked!!! How horrible it was that you live in Canada and wanted to purchase all the Rush 24Bit Flacs, and many other Canadian artists but you couldn't because the digital downloads were exclusive to USA Pono store only. It was so stupid which was why things failed.

    I love my Pono player and I have a ton of 24Bit 192kHz Flacs on it. None of the digital downloads were purchased from the Canadian Pono store.
  • Kev - Coat and KeysKev - Coat and Keys Earth Posts: 357
    Yeah, being a UK-based Pono owner meant it was only ever a player to me. An extremely good one, of course.
    As long as the machine keeps going nothing has really changed with Neil's latest announcement/dream.
  • ZodZod Posts: 9,943
    My thoughts are still the same.

    I think the gain from a mediocre dac (like on in a smartphone) to a high quality standalone device is night/day. On the other hand I think the gain from cd quality flac to hd flac is minimal.

    This you don't really need store to buy music from. You can just rip your old cd catalog. Plus Pono isn't the only high quality player on the block, so there were a handful of great players that were alot cheaper than the pono.
  • demetriosdemetrios Canada Posts: 87,335

    From Pono Community ...

    Hello,

    PonoMusic went out of business December 2017. SalesForce has been kind enough to allow us to meet here for free. We can't take advantage of their hospitality forever.

    This community is moving to a new location, using the Social Engine platform. This site could be turned off at any time. There is no easy way to reach everyone at once. If someone has already contacted you, we apologize for the repetition.

    The new community is up and running.There are over 400 members. It is capable of more than this one. There are 3 administrators and 6 moderators. All your favorite topics and more are being discussed. Hope you'll join us. Click the link below to ask for an invitation.

    Please contact missing friends using this PonoMusic forum. They will see it and know the community is moving. Some lost hope and don't visit, but a private message also sends them an email. We don't want to leave anyone behind. Time is short.
    Thank you

    https://www.resono-community.com


  • vaggar99vaggar99 San Diego USA Posts: 3,425
    oh man Pono.  did you have to remind me?
  • PB11041PB11041 Earth Posts: 2,759
    This is a thing I am happy to have ignored.  I love Neil, but he freaking loses his mind from time to time and increasingly so as he his creeped into the back nine. 
    His eminence has yet to show. 
    http://www.hi5sports.org/ (Sports Program for Kids with Disabilities)
    http://www.livefootsteps.org/user/?usr=3652

  • sheckyshecky San Francisco Posts: 1,440
    As much as I love Neil and like to support his projects I didn't think Pono was going to be successful. I opted instead to buy his hand-signed Carnegie Hall poster for $100. I figured even if Pono didn't last his autograph on a cool poster would. Interestingly, the 18" x 24" version of the poster that was advertised never materialized and what I received was the large (nearly 24" x 36") version of the Carnegie Hall poster that was sold at the concert (and signed later by Neil). I had to buy a 28" x 41" frame for it! Expressobeans shows the 18" x 24" version but I don't know if it really exists or was just a mockup. Would like to hear from anyone who actually received a small version.
  • TravelarTravelar Kalamazoo, USA Posts: 3,354
    shecky said:
    As much as I love Neil and like to support his projects I didn't think Pono was going to be successful. I opted instead to buy his hand-signed Carnegie Hall poster for $100. I figured even if Pono didn't last his autograph on a cool poster would. Interestingly, the 18" x 24" version of the poster that was advertised never materialized and what I received was the large (nearly 24" x 36") version of the Carnegie Hall poster that was sold at the concert (and signed later by Neil). I had to buy a 28" x 41" frame for it! Expressobeans shows the 18" x 24" version but I don't know if it really exists or was just a mockup. Would like to hear from anyone who actually received a small version.

    I also received the 24x36. Still in my portfolio because I haven't had the wallspace to put that up (or the desire to frame it).
  • mdgsolomdgsolo Posts: 782
    Ah, Pono, the audiophile pile's best friend..
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