Ive got an old 2nd Gen Ipod, Firewire only.

Im getting a little bored of it. Its a lot bigger than the newer ones. Firewire isnt as commoner Interface as USB on computers I use. Infact im one of the few people i know with FW.

Im considering upgrading to a different player. While 20GB is not necessary. More than 5 definitely is. I guess the primary thing is size. FLAC support would be an added bonus. But not 100% essential.

What does everyone recommend?

Apple iPod mini should suit you well, as its got almost everything you ask for.

+ USB 2.0 connection (optional FireWire).
+ 6GB storage (you asked for 5GB +).
+ Small size (9,1 x 5,1 x 1,3cm, 103 grams).

- No FLAC support (but it supports Apple Lossless).

Do you know any programs that can Encode in Apple Lossless? I dont think DBPowerAMP Converter can...

It can if you have Quicktime (pro) and the dBpowerAMP QuickTime Encoder (on the mp4 download page) - set quicktime to default as Apple Lossless and you are away.

Recently the reversed engineered Apple Lossless code (from David) was integrated into our m4a codec (you need the new beta to write m4a tags to lossless files, which is much better than using the quicktime runtime as it was slow), it is expected that an Apple Lossless encoder will soon be forthcoming.

Or an easier way is to just encode to WMA Lossless and use iTunes to import and convert to ALAC.

Apple iTunes

How about the iRiver H320, they are excellent HDD players, have FM radio, better battery lifes than some iPod's and a lot of very useful extra features.

Plays Ogg's, MP3's, WMA's, WAV's and they aren't expensive nowadays, in fact you can probably get 'em cheaper than an iPod.

Also, you aren't tied to any program to convert/transfer your music as the H320 can act as a mass storage (USB 2.0) device.

Regards,

Rio Karma is the way to go!!
It supports FLAC, Ogg, MP3, wma.
It does perfect gapless playback.
It has a killer EQ found on no other player.
It has an awesome LCD.
The sound quality is amazing.

God!! I sound like a walking ad for the Karma.

Personnaly i would recommend a Coldfire based HD jukebox as iRiver H3xx and iAudio M3 since the Rockbox port would be quite easier from the iHP1xx one when released (since it use the same Coldfire procesor)

Just my 2 cents...

Ordered the rio karma, for its codec (FLAC, ogg) support and sound quality. A lot of things pointed to very good output, eq as well. All in all couldnt find a fault with it reading around. Doesnt look the most eyecatching device, but then i want functionality over style.

thanks for help