I still haven't quite got over not being able to play my vinyl records anymore, now my CD's are out of date and I need to buy a new-fangled i-pod/ mp3 thingy. Help me!

[HerBeatitude]

Where do I start? How do they work? How much should I pay? What about proper speakers, can I use my good quality old stereo speakers on them?

TIA

You can get good speakers for your computer. I play most of my music through the laptop or MP3 these days. Our speakers were only about £14 and they are OK. I suspect I could plug them into my MP3 player if I wanted to asa well. You can get an MP3 for about £30 upwards - I have a Samsung YU5 (I think) It's very good and cost £35. But you can pay as much as you like.

Is there a massive difference between an i-pod (which some people are telling me I have to get because there's no point getting anything else) and a £30 job? Is it money down the drain getting a cheap one, as some people are telling me?

I am not sure what an IPod is tbh and what the difference is. I have got through quite a few MP3s over the years but that is mainly because I run with them and they get bashed and dropped and rained on . But as with most things you get what you pay for up to a point. Not much advice I'm afraid.

No, im my opinion, I would go for a cheapish MP3 player with a high capacity.

BTW, you can get USB turntables to attach to your PC for your vynl, not sure if you can play directly or just copy the cynl this way, but wortha thought, seen them in maplin for about 40 quid.

What's a high capacity?

Have seen those turntables, wondered how they worked.

My mum is having this problem ATM. She has been advised that you can still buy decent quality CD stereos, try looking for a specialised hi-fi shop, or local electrical shop, rather than going to Curry's etc, and buy a CD player as a stereo separates component, then you can always add an MP3 gadgety thing later, if you want to. It should work with your existing speakers. You can even get a compatible turntable this way, though they are expensive.

I wouldn't give up on CDs just yet.

Oh but if you are wanting to go for an MP3 player then I might be able to help a bit.

An iPod is just a brand of MP3 player. They are known for being "the best" but TBH if you are just playing your music through a stereo, then you don't need an iPod. Also, if you use an iPod then you can only get your music via iTunes (or copying CDs onto the computer) - with any other MP3 player, you can use various programs to put the music on them, or you can even just do it through Windows on your computer.

iPods also have different connections to other MP3 players, so something which is iPod compatible may not be compatible with a normal MP3 player and vice versa.

Capacity just means how many songs they will hold. Most of them hold loads now, thousands. To be honest even if you went for a cheap one with a low capacity, you could plug it into the computer and change the songs on it before plugging it into your stereo, but this would be a bit annoying to do every time.

However if you get one with a high capacity then make sure it has a big screen and an easy to use menu or you will get annoyed every time you try to select a different CD or playlist.

The USB turntables are quite good and you can copy the tracks to CD or to the computer, you can then play them through the computer or put them onto an MP3 player/iPod.

Thanks bb v. helpful. So what does high capacity mean then? Gigabytes or something?

oh and what about speakers? Or do i need a docking station?

"An iPod is just a brand of MP3 player. "

Aha! A eureka moment. I never knew that. Thanks

High capacity means you can hold a lot of songs. Not sure what in terms of gigabytes would be considered high capacity these days, it goes up all the time. I would go by the amount of songs/albums it holds - it should give an idea on the box or in the shop or website you buy from.

You need a docking station if your speakers are not compatible with the MP3 player. Also, the docking station will probably have a screen and a remote control, so you could ignore my advice about getting one with a big screen if you went for a docking station. It probably is best to get a docking station because they tend to charge the MP3 player while playing the music which means you don't have to constantly charge/replace batteries. And they look better on your shelf!

BB - Maybe, but docking stations are often not the cheapest of solutions, usually a generic mp3 player and a pair of amplified speakers (for about 15 quid) will be a good enough solution, then again I havn't been browsing the HiFi equipment for some time, last time i checked 8gb was fairly cheap and held loads and loads of songs, i mean loads...

Thanks all for your help, I went for the ipod with docking station in the end. Thanks for the advice.