MP3 players forum: mp3 player to store, manage and play large music library

DON'T buy a Archos 20GB gmini player - I had two tries & both suffered from major 'drop-out' problems after I'd had them a month or so.

Next came a Zen ATMT Storm 20GB mp3 player....which wouldn't charge!!

Being somewhat miffed by now & needing a player for my holidays, I plumped for a cheap Venturer Digital Audio Player. It cost 80 at the time (now on sale for 50) and has a FORTY GB HD! I reckon I'll get about 8,000 tracks on it by the time I've finished!

Now, the Venturer isn't pretty, looking like a cross between a Sony Walkman & a house brick, but it is sturdy. I've dropped mine 3 times (how?) & it still works fine.

It plays mp3 & wma files, can be used as a memo recorder, & will as happily store data files as it does music files (though it can only access music files). You can transfer your files by 'drag & drop' very efficiently & can access them through a number of tags (Playlist / Artists / Titles / Albums / Genres / Folders/Files). All the usual equaliser settings are available & 'repeat' & 'shuffle' of various types, if required. Transfer is by USB cable (supplied) which also charges the unit, though there is a separate charger for if you are away from your PC. The playback quality is good (but not brilliant).

So if you just want a player that works& are not bothered by looks, you can't do better for the price. Just make sure you have a large pocket!!

My humble opinion:

I had a music library of about 130 GB, and I know how time consuming it is just to rip all that music, so if I were you, I would put all your music into one big folder. Then, I would back it up on an external HD (or get an enclosure) because it's really not that expensive anymore. You'll be thanking yourself when you lose the music.

I use the ipod (30GB) because I occasionally buy downloads from itunes and use the videos pretty often. itunes is also really easy to organize, browse, and create playlists/smart-playlists. With 30,000+ songs, the smart-playlists come in handy. Granted, the ipod will cost you a premium, but for some, it's worth it. It would also be easy to add all your music if it's in one folder.

I realize this doesn't answer your question, because you want everything organized like it is on your PC w/ messed up tags and multiple file sources. But trust me, HD failures are far too common to not back everything up unless you have the time to get back all the music you could potentially lose.