OK ...

I have a 3rd gen iPod and have been wanting to upgrade to get better sound quality for my Shure e5c in ear monitors.

I have been tempted by the Cowon X5 thing, but the prospect of being to browse only by "folder" seems pretty horrible to me and a deal breaker.

What is the best sound quality in a high capacity (30 gig +) player out there?

30 gig players available are: Zen V:M, ipod G5 and iAudio. I can't say anything definitive about which has the best sound quality, but they are all considered to be very good, as most HDD mp3 players are... Past generation ipod's were definitive worse than the others, but G5 are considered an improvement quality wise. It's pretty hard to find any objective information about this topic on the net...

I think between these it's a matter of taste and which features you need most. If you're happy with your ipod the G5 is probably right for you.

I actually do not like the sound quality of the 3g iPod. Now that I have the Shure headphones I realize how dull and lifeless the sound is. I encode my music using high bitrate and it should sound better. Even the bass is rather weak on a lot of the music. I have heard that the 5g sound quality is better.