Music has been a big part of my life. From early memories of jamming to what I now see to be some quite embarrassing artists, to my formative teenage years when band loyalty was more definitive than my sports team, music has been a constant
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So, at the end of 2023, when I anxiously opened my year-end Tidal playlist, I was disappointed in my taste. What I saw was, honestly, quite sad. No new artists listened to, just the same songs that I absent-mindedly would throw on when working, commuting, or exercising.
I admit, I felt like my year-end result marked my end as a music lover. But it also urged me to take action and revive that teenage boy, hungry for new music. I got to work. I did a bit of research, did some digging on the internet and finally emerged with a plan: New year, new age, new listener. So, this year, I gave myself the gift of music, taking form in the Sony NW-A45.
Sony NW-A306
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While I did listen to a lot of music last year, it was merely playing. I wasn’t actually absorbing content, but just using it as a background filler. I wasn’t fully engaged like I was in my prime listening years.
These last few years though — especially after buying a Symfonisk Lamp Speaker and Galaxy Buds 2 — I gradually prioritized the sheer convenience of the device’s portability rather than the lyrics or story. I realized it was music’s availability and convenience that actually limited my real listening.
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While it may sound counter-intuitive, when you have to deliberately do something, and make at least a little bit of effort, it immediately becomes that much more engaging and rewarding. As odd as it sounds, I finally bought the Sony NW-A45 to make listening less convenient and more intentional.
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I don’t want an app for that…
Similarly to an MP3, my vinyl record player doesn’t have what other “convenient” listening modems do: apps. My vinyl record player, in fact, is not convenient at all. I listen to (almost) everything manually, and – surprise – I love it. I sit down, listen to an album or two, and just unwind in front of my speakers while listening to music. That same kind of poetic and intentional listening is what landed me on the Sony MP3.
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While some think the obvious choice would’ve been an iPod, I wanted my MP3 to be able to work as a DAC. That way, even if I didn’t like using it as an MP3 after all, I could connect it to my PC and get better sound when using the desktop at least.
I was also skeptical of buying an Android device. Modern higher-end MP3 players come with Android installed, so you can use all the conveniences available, but that’s exactly what I was trying to avoid. Therefore, I’ve decided to either go for something a bit more budget-friendly.
Another requirement was to pick an MP3 from a reputable brand, and Sony, a long leading sound giant, fit the bill — both in quality and price.
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Additionally, I wanted a microSD card slot and physical buttons, the ability to drag-and-drop files, FLAC support and, of course, good quality audio output, but I didn’t need balanced output or a specific audio chip.
So, finally, after a few days of research, I found a great deal and got myself a second-hand Sony NW-A45. It’s a 2017 MP3 player (or, to be precise, I should say a DAP, which stands for a Digital Audio Player). It has a 3.1-inch touchscreen display with physical buttons on the side, a 16GB internal storage with a microSD card slot, supports all the popular hi-fi music formats and has everything I wanted from it and more, in a small, light package.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
Additionally, I bought a set of “chi-fi” (Chinese hi-fi) IEMs just to complete the set. These are KZ ZSN Pro X — great value wired earbuds that you need to try out if you’re looking for a set of cheap and great-sounding in-ear monitors. The whole set cost me around $110 — $80 for the MP3 player with a bundled 64GB microSD card, and $30 for the IEMs.
I’m actually listening to music again
So, after all the planning and struggles to find the perfect device –was it worth it at, and did it change anything? Yes, yes it did.
Getting an MP3 player did all the things that I hoped it would — and probably more. For the first few days, I limited myself to only using the player to listen to music, and it changed the way I listened — and the way I spent my days — dramatically. I listened to music a lot less time-wise, but I finally felt that my listening was satisfying, and not a background activity.
I would simply lay down on a couch and listen to some favorite albums, or grab some new ones and listen through them to get to know a new sound. I can leave my phone somewhere, grab my small MP3 player with IEMs and go for a walk with my dog without worrying about new messages or notifications, or just listen without the constant need to check what’s going on Instagram.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
Using an MP3 player in 2024 to listen to music more attentively might be, I’ll admit, an extremely first-world problem to have, but it’s something that has, these last few days, changed my life for the better. Not only am I rediscovering the love for music that I was afraid I was losing, but I also finally feel like I’m spending quality time when doing so. From a background noise, listening became the thing to do.
How does the Sony NW-A45 actually perform in 2024?
If I told you the Sony MP3 is a perfect device, I’d be lying – I will get to its quirks and flaws – but overall it does all I wanted it to do well. It’s a handy, easily pocketable and light little device with decent battery life, great sound quality and an interface that’s easy enough for your daily tasks, with all the features that a non-audiophile music lover would want.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
In terms of specs, the Sony NW-A45 sports a 3.1-inch TFT LCD display with a resolution of 800 x 480. It’s not the crispiest screen, but it gets the job done — the album art looks good and the text is sharp.
It measures 97.5 mm x 55.9 mm x 10.9 mm and weighs 98g, and the chassis is made out of metal, with a plastic back. The device runs Sony’s proprietary OS which supports all the common audio standards: MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, ALAC, AIFF, DSD, APE, MQA. There is also an FM radio if you’re really wanting a change from modern listening practices. The device also comes equipped with Bluetooth 4.0 and supports NFC pairing (hence the plastic back). It also has 16 GB of built-in memory with one microSD slot. You can get from 30 to 50 hours of playback on one charge, depending on the quality of the audio files you’re playing.
In terms of using the device, it’s nothing innovative, but in this case, that’s what I wanted. The OS is simple enough, with a simple main menu and a slew of options ranging from music quality, through noise-cancelling (only for a few chosen Sony earbuds), to various ways of organizing your music. It runs well enough, without significant stutters, albeit with a noticeable input delay.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
I have around 2500 FLAC files on the device, which take up almost all available space on the device, and a 64GB microSD card. However, I didn’t notice any slowdown compared to using the device without any music on it as it works just as well and browses through files just fine.
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When it comes to sound, keep in mind that I’m what I call a “rookie audiophile,” where I can appreciate good music, but I’m not the most up to date with the latest audio tech. That said, to my ears, the Sony NW-A45 sounds great. It’s a noticeable improvement over my desktop PC’s output, and it also sounds much better than the 3.5mm jack on my Surface Laptop Go.
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The sound is fuller, and the music feels more spatial. You can hear details in tracks — especially when listening to something orchestral or live – much better and more clearly. It’s true both when using the device on its own, and using it as a DAC when connected to the PC. It also has to be said — the sound quality is noticeably better, even using “chi-fi” headphones for $30 than my Galaxy Buds 2, which cost more than the MP3 player and the headphones combined.
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Of course, I didn’t expect using only an MP3 player to listen to music to go smoothly — and smooth it wasn’t. One thing is getting your hands on the files for all the music that you want – there are legitimate and less savory methods of doing so, but you can eventually have quite a library of tracks on your PC. However, that’s just one step on quite an annoying journey.
We take good UI for granted
Sony’s player has a usable, clean UI, but compared to Tidal, it feels like a stone-age relic. It’s extremely utilitarian – you get your four shortcuts at the bottom, you get your main menu with a few ways of sorting music that you can hide and rearrange (Albums, Artists, Playlists, Folders, etc.) You also have a DAC, language learning and FM radio toggles at the top, but that’s about it. There is, of course, a persistent music player which can be accessed by tapping one of the shortcuts at the bottom. However, that is the MP3 player’s feature extent.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
Of course, this spartan UI is not a problem in itself. The problem is how uninviting it is. For example, there is no “search” function. So, if I go to “All Songs,” I have to scroll. What’s even worse, the player seems to struggle with the alphabet.
The last drawback I noticed is its over-complex playlist creation. For whatever reason, Sony doesn’t allow you to create playlists on-device – you need to make them in an app first, and only then can you add songs to them either in the desktop app or using the player. Whoever thought of that limitation should never touch a user experience project again.
Overall, the whole menu feels simplistic and utilitarian, but clunky and a bit thoughtless. Features such as creating a playlist should not be hidden in the companion app, and many more details are sorely lacking to make using the device something more than a necessity.
Sony, why are you using a proprietary port?
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
Another instance where I’d opt for convenience is when it comes to charging and connecting the device. I’ve finally gotten to the point where all the devices I was using on a daily basis were using USB-C for charging, so I could just use one cable for everything. But, lo and behold, Sony’s MP3 player – released in 2017, at a time when USB-C was already everywhere — uses a proprietary connector.
Companion apps that are far from friendly
Sony, together with its MP3 player, pushes its companion app – Sony Music Center. Keep in mind, it’s not necessary to use this app – you can plug the device into a PC and simply drag and drop your files, it works just fine. However, you’ll need the app anyway – it’s the only place where you can create playlists, which in itself is quite complicated for some reason. Overall, the app works poorly, it duplicates songs in playlists, and is slower at transferring your files to the device than a simple drag and drop.
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What’s worse, one of the things that the app offers is downloading metadata — especially album art — for your files (it unfortunately doesn’t see the original embedded album art for some reason). This feature works well enough, but when transferring the tracks to the MP3 player, something gets lost in translation and the album art is gone. It’s an annoying quirk, especially when there is no search function on the device.
Overall, I did not miss the days of all the proprietary apps and interfaces, and I’m glad they are gone with our phones. I will, however, deal with them just fine for the sake of… well, the opposite of convenience.
Bottom line: Is a blast from the past the future of intentional listening?
Well, that, of course, depends. If you like listening to music casually, as a background for your everyday tasks or just something to fill the room — I’ll be totally honest and say that you shouldn’t bother. MP3 players are out of fashion for a reason – smartphones with Bluetooth buds are just a much more convenient, easy way to listen to your favorite tunes, especially when you’re on the move. If that’s working for you, getting an MP3 player will only leave you frustrated with all the trade-offs.
However, for me, these trade-offs are benefits. Making the whole experience slower and more methodical makes listening an experience. That’s the place for MP3 players today — they fell out of favor a few years ago because they could only play music just to return and advertise only being able to play music as their headlining feature.
Adrian Sobolewski-Kiwerski/ Pocket-lint
Yes, the UI will likely be clunky, getting your files transferred will be a bit of a pain, and getting a hold of all your playlists, tracks and album art will require a bit of work, but after setting everything up, you get an uninterrupted listening experience. You can just sink in for a while, without all the distraction gnawing at the back of your head. I really missed that feeling and getting the Sony NW-A45 helped me get it back again. So, if you’re looking for that kind of experience — an MP3 player is a great place to start. You may not even have to buy one — just scour your drawers for your long-forgotten MP3 player from a few years ago, get yourself a nice pair of headphones and listen away.
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