I love the player, works great but I don't care for the headphone quality sound. I was thinking about using a good set of earbuds not necessarly water proof, if that makes a difference?

most likely regular earbuds wont be covered completely and water will get into them. water and electricity dont mix well so im pretty sure they will break.

Pick up some of the H20 headphones. They work really well, and because of the water they're really bassy. I used to use them for swimming laps in the pool. I'd regularly swim a mile every night, and without music it would just get really dull, so I picked up that and a waterproof ipod case from ebay, and well, awesome. totally worth it.