Has anyone got the specifications, signal to noise ratio, etc for the Karma. I'm trynig to talk a friend into getting one but he wants to compare it with the iPod before making his mind up.

Is there any technical comparison anywhere on the web I can show him?

I don't have specs but I had an iPod and now have a Karma and I can tell you that the Karma sounds much better. Even with iPod's firmware update that was supposed to fix sounds quality issues. But that's just opinion.

Has anyone got the specifications, signal to noise ratio, etc for the Karma.

I'm surprised that this information was not on the www.rioaudio.com site. Not even in the PDF manual. That's too bad! I think that information is in the FAQ section at riovolution for you to look up.

he wants to compare it with the iPod before making his mind up.

Interestingly, regardless of technical details like S/N ratio, I've seen people argue both directions about which of the two has the better perceived sound quality. The two players sound different, I assume because their outputs have different EQ curves coming out of the DACs. Some people like the way the iPod sounds better, others like the way the Karma sounds better. I recommend that your friend take his favorite pair of headphones into a store that's got a floor demo model and try them both out.

Finding a store with a floor demo might be hard. I saw one once, in a Magnolia Hi-Fi store.

Something to consider. The Karma has a 5-band parametric equalizer. I don't know if the iPod has a parametric one or not. But with a parametric EQ, you can tailor the sound to your liking if you're willing to do the work.

Note that one of the biggest advantages the Karma has over the iPod is battery life, so definitely make sure he knows about that when making his decision.

Thanks Tony.

Sadly there is nowhere in the UK where we can try these things out.

He isn't concerned about battery life either, just sound quality.

Well, FWIW the Karma has the best sound quality of any electronic device I've ever purchased. I just can't say enough good things about it. Granted I've not heard an iPod, but I can't fathom anybody buying a Karma and complaining about the way it sounds. Maybe someone won't like the size/shape/ui or whatever, but the sound should be a firm lock.

But of course this is all subjective and not much use to you.

Greetings!

You could always send him over to the written reviews of the Karma. All of them comment on the sound quality compared to other devices.

Would this help you? Someone on a "head-fi.org" forum took some graphs of the Karma's performance at maximum volume.