Will a portable amp Improve the headphone quality? - Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Questions and Answers

Probably the most stupidest question out there but just wondering..
Since a lot of people are saying that the headphone quality is meh will a portable amp improve the quality?

crap in, crap out
amplifying a crap headphone out (if it is crap to you where you think a seperate amp should be used) will result in a crap result
if the usb has a line out, that might be of some use....does it? I'd be interested to know

An amp with its own DAC, like the Fiio E18 for example, would improve the sound quality. I've not used mine since I got my Exynos S7 though, the sound quality sounds good enough.

dazzer1975 said:
crap in, crap out
amplifying a crap headphone out (if it is crap to you where you think a seperate amp should be used) will result in a crap result
if the usb has a line out, that might be of some use....does it? I'd be interested to know
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Yeah i have no idea, some people have said that getting a portable amp and plugging it to your phone will increase the audio quality :\ but your saying of "crap in, crap out" makes a lot of sense.. haha

jbpf77 said:
An amp with its own DAC, like the Fiio E18 for example, would improve the sound quality. I've not used mine since I got my Exynos S7 though, the sound quality sounds good enough.
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Cheers for that, yeah i'll be getting the exynos as well is it as bad as everyone saying it is ? (sound quality)

dazzer1975 said:
crap in, crap out
amplifying a crap headphone out (if it is crap to you where you think a seperate amp should be used) will result in a crap result
if the usb has a line out, that might be of some use....does it? I'd be interested to know
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Click to collapse
portable amps don't utilize the 3.5mm jack. And yes, a portable amp will improve the quality. If you have the snapdragon version, then you'd want a portable dac/amp combo.

andiedee said:
Cheers for that, yeah i'll be getting the exynos as well is it as bad as everyone saying it is ? (sound quality)
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For me, listening at my desk at work in a fairly quiet environment, the sound quality and volume levels are absolutely fine. I used to have to use my E18 with my Note 4 all the time as the sound quality was really bad, especially noticeable as I had an M8 before that, but I've not used the E18 at all since I got the S7.

jbpf77 said:
For me, listening at my desk at work in a fairly quiet environment, the sound quality and volume levels are absolutely fine. I used to have to use my E18 with my Note 4 all the time as the sound quality was really bad, especially noticeable as I had an M8 before that, but I've not used the E18 at all since I got the S7.
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oh okay! sounds good to me
I got the m8 at the moment its 2 years old, gotta replace it with the s7e or the new HTC 10 i don't know if i can be bothered waiting for the HTC 10 though :\

I'm using my senheiser omx 980 and waiting for the oppo ha 2 hopefully it will sound different. I'm satisfied with the audio as it is now nonetheless
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

I have funded this on Kickstarter. Its a DAC that is connected via the USB port.
AQUA DAC
Shipping at the end of this month hopefully. Write up seems good. I will have to wait till it comes to see if it works.

andiedee said:
Cheers for that, yeah i'll be getting the exynos as well is it as bad as everyone saying it is ? (sound quality)
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Which headphones are you Using??
I'm using a Pair of UE 900 (UVP 399€ quad-driver in-ear-monitors), and i have no problems, of deficites. I used an htc one m8 before, and i dont really notice a worse soundquality.
Sure, if you really try hard enough and compare then like you want to dissect it, you might find differences.
But like i said, i have no Problems there. The Output impedance is low enough with almost 2 Ohm, soundquality, and output Power is really enough (i can not listen to 100% Volume, it's just way too loud for me).
Of course, you'll ha ve to decide that yourself, maybe you have much better in-ears / headphones, and have much higher, more audiophile standards.
(but, if you dont dissect your music, but just want to enjoy listening, it's totally fine)

Related

Audio quality of the Nexus One

Hi guys,
I am a iPhone convert (have used the 2G, 3G and the 3GS currently.)
Could you guys please give objective and subjective comments about the 'line out' of the Nexus One? I hope it doesn't blow as that will be sad.
Regards,
Karan Misra
No one listens to music on their Nexus One!?
it is a mono speaker not a stereo speaker.
if you listen you should use the earbuds.
cuitao said:
it is a mono speake no a stereo speaker. so quality is not good,
if you listen you should use the earbuds.
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I am talking about the 'line out' of the phone, i.e. using good to high end ear phones (like Shure, Sennheiser CX500, etc) through the 3.5 mm jack.
I'm waiting for mine to get in today so I can sink my Etymotic hf5 canalphones into it.
student.driver said:
I'm waiting for mine to get in today so I can sink my Etymotic hf5 canalphones into it.
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Eagerly waiting for your feedback.
I hope it is not bad like the HD2 though HD2 scores a 10 out of 100 with 100 given to the 3GS. Speaking from personal experience (corroborating by http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_hd2-review-418p8.php... scroll down to the audio quality comparision)
KiD0M4N said:
Hi guys,
I am a iPhone convert (have used the 2G, 3G and the 3GS currently.)
Could you guys please give objective and subjective comments about the 'line out' of the Nexus One? I hope it doesn't blow as that will be sad.
Regards,
Karan Misra
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not too bad for music, I don't know what you would expect from it but as I listen to music only on the train, it's pretty good for me. one thing: the overall volume is a bit low...
Also the stock earphones suck pretty bad. they are barely good for phone calls and no bass at all.
wow fail sorry this post was BS just technical difficulties. but FYI the included headphones, tho not sounding or feeling spectacular, have a remote that has a mic and play/pause/end call and forward/backward. so that's neat .
Regular headphones that use a 3.5mm headphone connector (common to various media players, etc) will work just fine with Nexus One.
cboy007 said:
OMG BIG ISSUE. headphone dont work. like this is like the iphone or whatever. you need special headphone i think? my zune headphones wont work. the ones that come with it have the like remote thing like the iphone and so my normal headhpones wont work. i mean these headphones arent horrible quality but still my comfy zune squishy ones! ah! can anyone confirm this? btw the ones that come have THREE black bands along the connector instead of the regular 2...
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Something's wrong at your end bro... a issue like that won't go past Q/A you know.
swetland said:
Regular headphones that use a 3.5mm headphone connector (common to various media players, etc) will work just fine with Nexus One.
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Have you tried the playback? Hows the clarity, bass, and noise level?
WOW FAIL WHAT THE HECK NOW IT WORKS. htat was weird. it was defienitely in all the way before too. maybe it was because i put them in before i opened up music app...idk that was weird. anyways now my zune ones work and sound beautiful and bass-y. . i'm not an audiophile but i think these sound just as good as with my zune. woo
cboy007 said:
WOW FAIL WHAT THE HECK NOW IT WORKS. htat was weird. it was defienitely in all the way before too. maybe it was because i put them in before i opened up music app...idk that was weird. anyways now my zune ones work and sound beautiful and bass-y. . i'm not an audiophile but i think these sound just as good as with my zune. woo
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Thats a good indicator. Any comparisons to the 3GS/HD2?
Surely geeks also listen to music
cboy007 said:
wow fail sorry this post was BS just technical difficulties. but FYI the included headphones, tho not sounding or feeling spectacular, have a remote that has a mic and play/pause/end call and forward/backward. so that's neat .
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Tried a pair of Shure SE530s, Sony V700s and my Zune buds...all work just fine.
kido...since it seems on par with my zune as far as i can tell i'm assuming it's just as good as the 3gs...but again i'm not at all an audiophile.
I hooked my N1 up to a pair beyerdynamic DT880s and ran through a few musical styles with MP3s ripped using lame with vbr -q 0.
The jack provided enough power to power the DT880s reasonably well without an amp but I probably would not try high impedance headphones. Anything "in ear" will be fine and by the time you get to the point you would need an amp it would be a waste to use them on a phone. Sound range is fine, perhaps a bit neutral, it is not weighted heavily towards bass which some cheaper mp3 players do.
Treble is clean but perhaps a bit thin. As you get into the high end of mid range it is a little muddy (the guitar felt fuzzy in Imperfectly as an example). Over all the sound is better than the G1, the only other phone I have handy to compare real time.
Rest of the mid range down to bass is good. The bass is not overpowering but solid. Against a neutral rig I would say that the Nexus probably accentuates the lower range but not a lot. If you really want a driving beat (the physical feel) in techno then you probably would need some form of equalizer but other than that it is fine, though not powerful.
Songs used:
Reactivate by DJ Akira
Jet Pilot by System of a Down
Metabolic by Slipknot
Imperfectly by Ani DiFranco
Glory O' by Blood or Whiskey (note: lower bitrate MP3. Really did not like the blend but on ear buds it would probably be fine)
Dulaman by Clannad
Machine Screw by Type O Negative ( )
Black Box Recording by Firewater
I did not have any classical with me but if need be I can add some (or other musical style that you are interested in).
As an addendum I would note that the included earbuds are utterly craptastic. If you want to listen to music for any reason other than to drown out the background I would suggest getting better.
EDIT: for the heck of it I put in a amp and it helped the bass a bit, the rest seemed about the same. The difference was not remarkable but noticeable.
Thanks for the detailed reply my friend.
Waiting for comparoes to the iPhone line up.
So mine is finally shipped....
I will let you all know... since no one evidently listens to music here
I would rate it as just okay compared to my 3GS, not bad but not great either....
I had similar results to JP up there, i used the HD555's that i have and got a fair sound out of it... again bass wasnt overpowering but produced enough to get my head bobbin (deadmau5 was my primary artist of choice)...
i would like to see a quality equalizer app/widget/phone integration in the future since i prolly wont need to carry my ipod around anymore now that i have a phone with a proper jack

Poor Sound Myth on SGSII

I've noticed 1 or 2 posts relating to poor sound on the SGSII particularly when it comes to music, well for me the sound was absolutely fine actually it was excellent, i just used the Samsung earphones all the time, unfortunately the other day i lost them so before i get another good pair im just using cheap ones i had lying around the house and the sound is nowhere near as good as it was in fact it's pretty awful when your walking down the street you can hear the traffic more than you can the music, with the Samsung earphones it was mostly the music you could hear the sound was far far better,therefore ive come to the conclusion that there's nothing wrong with the sound on the SGSII, good pair of earphones = sound is great - cheap pair of earphones = sound is bad.
jonny68 said:
good pair of earphones = sound is great - cheap pair of earphones = sound is bad.
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Did you pay a lot of money for your Samsung earphones? Mine were pretty cheap...came free with the phone
TheSopranos16 said:
Did you pay a lot of money for your Samsung earphones? Mine were pretty cheap...came free with the phone
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No exactly the same ones i use Power Amp and Equalizer and since the 2.3.5 upgrade the sound has improved substantially.
I'm not one for spending a lot on earphones as im prone to losing them id say max id spend would be about €20 but for that you will get pretty decent earphones.
I agree, the supplied Samsung earbuds are superb, since i changed from the medium bud size to the small size they stay in my ears better, they cut most of the worldside sounds out and allow for pure music listening, the use of equalizer is also superb, although can create a little background noise when songs go quiet if not setup correctly, compared to the lousy iphone earphones and some others you get supplied with phones, these are very good, I am more than happy with the sound from my SGS2, bluetooth sound is superb also.
I actually think those Samsung earphones were that good ill buy them again, was there a specific model number i need to search for/any recommendations as to where i can purchase these?
Ok i'm getting pissed now. You guys seriously have to pull your head out of your ass. Obviously you have never listened to music on a Cowon or some other *decent* music player if you come here and state such bull****. The SGS2 has a mid-to-low audio quality (for a phone, which means very low for a dedicated media player), period. Sure it sounds a little bit better when i plug my Shure SE425 into it, but i shouldn't need a pair of 300€ earbuds to make a 600€ device sound decent at most. The output is totally FLAT, heading slightly towards the low tone, so that it sounds muffled and dirty, plus the stereo crosstalk is quite insane. This is a fact, i'm not pulling this out of my ass, read the Anandtech review about this device (focus on audio) if you don't believe me, they say pretty much what i said here.
Quit calling bs what you can't understand because you don't have a clue. Noobs.
/endrant
vnvman said:
Ok i'm getting pissed now. You guys seriously have to pull your head out of your ass. Obviously you have never listened to music on a Cowon or some other *decent* music player if you come here and state such bull****. The SGS2 has a mid-to-low audio quality (for a phone, which means very low for a dedicated media player), period. Sure it sounds a little bit better when i plug my Shure SE425 into it, but i shouldn't need a pair of 300€ earbuds to make a 600€ device sound decent at most. The output is totally FLAT, heading slightly towards the low tone, so that it sounds muffled and dirty, plus the stereo crosstalk is quite insane. This is a fact, i'm not pulling this out of my ass, read the Anandtech review about this device (focus on audio) if you don't believe me, they say pretty much what i said here.
Quit calling bs what you can't understand because you don't have a clue. Noobs.
/endrant
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This post is harsh, but I have to agree with it completely. The samsung earphones are awesome? Wow. Now that's the joke of the year.
I apologize for the harshness, i also had quite a bad day lol...but seriously, there's too much fanboyism going on about this phone. I love my phone, but i have no problem admitting its flaws. This forum is for developers, people here should at least try to cope with reality
Fanboyism you nutter no mate im telling it as it is actually and it's true, because i might not have listened to music on a "cowon" means jack **** i know good sound when i hear it and the facts are with the Samsung earphones using Power Amp and Equalizer the sound is actually excellent and that's all there is to it, and i highly doubt the Sammy earphones cost mega bucks either.
m2smoe said:
This post is harsh, but I have to agree with it completely. The samsung earphones are awesome? Wow. Now that's the joke of the year.
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Your post is joke of the year, simple facts are the sound is awesome with the Sammy earphones coupled with Power Amp and Equalizer with everything correctly set, maybe your going deaf or something
You're joking me? The Samsung earphones are abysmal. I use a $50 pair of Sony in-ears and they sounds about a million times better. Invest in a good pair of earphones and then you'll see what we mean.
I also had a pair of Sennheiser CX300(which i also lost) for another MP3 player i have and used them on the SGSII and while they were good i still thought the Sammy headphones were better overall.
Also i credit the 2.3.5 upgrade with a substantial improvement in sound.
MistaBishi said:
You're joking me? The Samsung earphones are abysmal. I use a $50 pair of Sony in-ears and they sounds about a million times better. Invest in a good pair of earphones and then you'll see what we mean.
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I'm not joking you at all there is absolutely nothing wrong with them whatsoever, they are excellent, fu*k me you people must be right snobs when it comes to "absolute perfect sound"
go buy yourself a paid of Bose speakers while your at it eh
I have to agree with vnvman, i hear the same music with GS2 and with my PC using the same earbuds, i can't say they are superb but they isn't bad also, at least for me.
The phone, on the other hand, is impossible to find an equalizer that makes the music clear, it's not about loudness, bass or treble, is about the sound being "weird" compared to other devices.
As i said the Sennheiser earphones i had which were not particularly cheap STILL didn't sound as good as the Sammy ones and Sennheiser are renowned for quality earphones so anyone saying to me "invest in a good pair of earphones" i already did.
Heh, each to their own.
Replacement buds would be hard to source, I don't reckon they sell them separate from the GSII. Unless someone on the forum here had a pair they didn't want, I reckon you're out of luck.
jonny68 said:
Your post is joke of the year, simple facts are the sound is awesome with the Sammy earphones coupled with Power Amp and Equalizer with everything correctly set, maybe your going deaf or something
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Read the 10000 posts about them on XDA and find out why you're the one who's going deaf.
im not sure if you read this
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4686/samsung-galaxy-s-2-international-review-the-best-redefined
but on the hardware level the sound chip is bad
but with my experience i used an Audio Technica ATH-A700 Headphones with my phone and it was amazing (played making of a cyborg (high bitrate))
then used the headphones on my yamaha 671 reciever amp playing it through a high end media player
and i really cant tell the difference
m2smoe said:
Read the 10000 posts about them on XDA and find out why you're the one who's going deaf.
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read 10000 posts i think your losing your marbles mate
jonny68 said:
Fanboyism you nutter no mate im telling it as it is actually and it's true, because i might not have listened to music on a "cowon" means jack **** i know good sound when i hear it and the facts are with the Samsung earphones using Power Amp and Equalizer the sound is actually excellent and that's all there is to it, and i highly doubt the Sammy earphones cost mega bucks either.
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Idk what you're listening to but Samsung earbuds are a piece of crap. Lol you think you can get a good sound out of bad hardware with an equalizer and some earbus worth 8€..gotta be kidding me...

Earphone sound output/quality discussion

So there's a lot of discussion going around about the device, minus the sound output. Can the users (if there are any audiophiles out there) please share your reviews about the music quality output from the device. This is purely with earphones plugged in and not the boomsound speakers. How is the bass, treble, mids, highs, etc. How is the earphones quality that is provided with the m8.
The z2 seems to be getting mixed reviews, hence i am eager to know about the m8. I know gsmarena has posted a review but i wanted more inputs from actual users. Will appreciate any inputs.Thanks.
The M8 reviews all say good things about the headphone output. Personally I think it's fantastic, highs, lows and mids are all very clear and well balanced. The M8 drives a lot higher voltage output compared to the M7 too, I read someone who measured it.
kartoonz said:
So there's a lot of discussion going around about the device, minus the sound output. Can the users (if there are any audiophiles out there) please share your reviews about the music quality output from the device. This is purely with earphones plugged in and not the boomsound speakers. How is the bass, treble, mids, highs, etc. How is the earphones quality that is provided with the m8.
The z2 seems to be getting mixed reviews, hence i am eager to know about the m8. I know gsmarena has posted a review but i wanted more inputs from actual users. Will appreciate any inputs.Thanks.
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the_scotsman said:
The M8 reviews all say good things about the headphone output. Personally I think it's fantastic, highs, lows and mids are all very clear and well balanced. The M8 drives a lot higher voltage output compared to the M7 too, I read someone who measured it.
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I can confirm that the output quality is amazing. Partly due to there being a 2.5v amplifier next to the headphone jack, is this correct regarding the amplifier?
i don't miss beats much as the m8 has sound just like it and due to hardware not an equalizer
Yea the m8 has an amplifier for both headphone jack and loud speakers
And yes this phone has the best stock audio quality I ever had with an phone...
Gesendet von meinem HTC One_M8 mit Tapatalk
One-M8-Master said:
Yea the m8 has an amplifier for both headphone jack and loud speakers
And yes this phone has the best stock audio quality I ever had with an phone...
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and yes i damn well think i agree with you on that one!!
ot, didnt u used to be one-x-master? how do you change your name???
exocetdj said:
and yes i damn well think i agree with you on that one!!
ot, didnt u used to be one-x-master? how do you change your name???
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Haha yea my name was one-x-master before I just asked a moderator if I can change the name he said yes I said which name and he gave that name to the admins of xda and because I don't have the one x anymore the name was a bit strange then xD
Gesendet von meinem HTC One_M8 mit Tapatalk
One-M8-Master said:
Haha yea my name was one-x-master before I just asked a moderator if I can change the name he said yes I said which name and he gave that name to the admins of xda and because I don't have the one x anymore the name was a bit strange then xD
Gesendet von meinem HTC One_M8 mit Tapatalk
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cool, thanks mate
thank you all for sharing your views... so then m8 has the best sound output as of now, period... sounds great to me and +1 another reason to upgrade...
BTW are you guys using the stock earphones or other brands?
kartoonz said:
thank you all for sharing your views... so then m8 has the best sound output as of now, period... sounds great to me and +1 another reason to upgrade...
BTW are you guys using the stock earphones or other brands?
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I, too, can confirm that the sound output quality on headphones and speaker are phenomenal on this device - even without any sound mods flashed.
Tested the HTC in ear buds and as well as a sennheiser headset and a pair of pro Beyerdynamic headphones. All sounded absolutely clear and nice, even on Google Play Music All Access streaming.
So far, I am VERY pleased with audio quality on this baby.
i purchased and use regularly a set of jaybirds bluebuds (wirless stereo ear bud type headset) when at work. i havent used these since getting my htc m8 (used them with my htc one x) only just paired them. reading this thread i decided to try the included wired headset that are usually rubbish. long story short, they are incredible. i can honestly say that they sound like im in my lounge room listening to my harmon kardon amp and denon dvd player with the bass of my 15 inch sub. they sound that good. just a shame about the wire.
wow so many good reviews... htc seemed to have nailed the sound department with this phone...
Perfect speakers, useing earphones is very good the loudest output I've heard.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Does anyone have a slight hissing sound when playing music on low I can hear it. Or after music is done playing its there.
Also, if I'm playing music and I turn the volume off I can hear hissing through the loud speakers
I have a small dead pixel, and I didn't want to return it just for that.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk
Would there be a need for vIPER4Android with this phone? Is it even compatible?
Sent from my Markox/Gustavo_s powered KitKatted S2
I use a Pair of Logitech ue900 (399bucks on Logitech), with Quad Drivers (and those are pretty sensible on bad outputs, or too high output impedance).
I hear absolutely nothing which lets me wich for a better quality. You will probably have to buy in-ears/headphones for around 700-1500 bucks so you might complain.
I read on head-fi.org, that viper4android is just an Equalizer which mostly raises the amount of bass (NOT the quality of bass), and most people think "more bass = better soundquality". So tonality gets changed. A bit like when you activate "Boomsound" on the settings with headphones plugged in. This raises bass, treble, and the volume level, and in direct comparison (mostly with bad/cheap headphones) it might sound better.
But its not, the soundquality gets worse with that.
I personally use this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=39672554
But i cant tell you, if it really improves the audio quality. I only tried a half song with my ue 900, and i didnt really heared a difference. Maybe because the difference is too small, or that you HAVE to have a 2nd device to compare both at the same time, to hear any difference.
i also didnt heared any hiss or any distortions.
But i think.... Alot people are not turning "BoomSound" OFF, so the Treble is way too much, and this can be that hiss, people are complaining about.
Thread name changed
Since I think this thread really belongs here in General, I changed the thread title to a statement instead of a question. Please continue and act like I wasn't here.
xxquicksh0txx said:
Does anyone have a slight hissing sound when playing music on low I can hear it. Or after music is done playing its there.
Also, if I'm playing music and I turn the volume off I can hear hissing through the loud speakers
I have a small dead pixel, and I didn't want to return it just for that.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk
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was this problem also not present on the m7? thats a bit of concern if its so on the m8... have you tried another pair of earphones?
Darkseth said:
I use a Pair of Logitech ue900 (399bucks on Logitech), with Quad Drivers (and those are pretty sensible on bad outputs, or too high output impedance).
I hear absolutely nothing which lets me wich for a better quality. You will probably have to buy in-ears/headphones for around 700-1500 bucks so you might complain.
I read on head-fi.org, that viper4android is just an Equalizer which mostly raises the amount of bass (NOT the quality of bass), and most people think "more bass = better soundquality". So tonality gets changed. A bit like when you activate "Boomsound" on the settings with headphones plugged in. This raises bass, treble, and the volume level, and in direct comparison (mostly with bad/cheap headphones) it might sound better.
But its not, the soundquality gets worse with that.
I personally use this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=39672554
But i cant tell you, if it really improves the audio quality. I only tried a half song with my ue 900, and i didnt really heared a difference. Maybe because the difference is too small, or that you HAVE to have a 2nd device to compare both at the same time, to hear any difference.
i also didnt heared any hiss or any distortions.
But i think.... Alot people are not turning "BoomSound" OFF, so the Treble is way too much, and this can be that hiss, people are complaining about.
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+1 its similar to the beats on the one x... it just increases the loudness... of course the bass itself is not that bad but are you saying that boomsound is amplifying the sound similar to beats??
I only had "Beats Audio" via Mod on my desire HD like almost 2 years ago. So i cannot give you an exact comparison. But yes, it should be pretty similar.
At least, on my headphones (Beyerdynamic T90 / UE 900) with boomsound activated, it was un-listenable, because of TOO heavy treble (due to boomsound). Without the treble changes on that setting, it might even be nice, to make the sound on neutral headphoens more fun when needed.
I haven't tried the earphones that come with the device ('cause I already had a pair I use and I've never used a pair of packed-in earphones in the past), but the audio quality through my Sony earphones are fantastic. I switched BoomSound on and off and it does make it noticeably better if you're comparing them "side-by-side" like that, and despite what others say, I didn't notice it raising bass all that much. It felt like the audio got a bit less tinny and...hollow, and sounded like it was more surrounding my head, instead of sounding like it was coming from the sides and slightly farther away. A very...untechnical explanation, but that's the way I heard it.
Some extra tinkering in PowerAmp and having moved from an iPhone 5 to this baby, the pure giddy bliss I dive into every time I listen to music with this device is unimaginable.
Earphone sound quality-wise, you can't get much better than this.
Fraught said:
I haven't tried the earphones that come with the device ('cause I already had a pair I use and I've never used a pair of packed-in earphones in the past), but the audio quality through my Sony earphones are fantastic. I switched BoomSound on and off and it does make it noticeably better if you're comparing them "side-by-side" like that, and despite what others say, I didn't notice it raising bass all that much. It felt like the audio got a bit less tinny and...hollow, and sounded like it was more surrounding my head, instead of sounding like it was coming from the sides and slightly farther away. A very...untechnical explanation, but that's the way I heard it.
Some extra tinkering in PowerAmp and having moved from an iPhone 5 to this baby, the pure giddy bliss I dive into every time I listen to music with this device is unimaginable.
Earphone sound quality-wise, you can't get much better than this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The "Surrounding more around my head," is the sound stage. So a better sound stage is a good thing.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

How is the sound quality in the NON QUAD DAC version?

Hi guys, just want to know how is the sound quality in the NON QUAD DAC version. Is it good enough? Maybe like the HTC 10, Axon 7 or Galaxy S7 sound quality? I know it must be worse than the QUAD DAC version, but how much worse? Is it still worth it or if i'm looking for a good sound smartphone i should look for another one? Where i live the version being sold is the 32GB H870.
Same as like LG G4. Over compressed weak output.
My only hope:Root-custom kernel.soundmode (Imperium G4 rom included)
kabirjedi said:
Same as like LG G4. Over compressed weak output.
My only hope:Root-custom kernel.soundmode (Imperium G4 rom included)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's that bad? It doesn't has a more simple DAC? It's using the Qualcomm one?
Mate! The HTC 10 sound quality is worlds apart from this phone. I have the g6 and am returning it due to the weak audio output. Don't know why LG gave us Europe nothing. Oh well.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
godofpornings said:
Mate! The HTC 10 sound quality is worlds apart from this phone. I have the g6 and am returning it due to the weak audio output. Don't know why LG gave us Europe nothing. Oh well.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's sad to hear. I'm not going to buy it then.
I think it sounds pretty good.
General consensus is that it sounds just a bit worse than the V20's Quad DAC and better than Galaxy S7, close to HTC M10's quality. Most users and reviewers are impressed.
I believe it does have a DAC. At least i've read that somewhere but i'm not 100% sure.
Offcorse it all depends on headphones. If you have cheap, ****ty headphones no amount of DAC can help you.
WstrKuNoužč said:
I think it sounds pretty great.
General consensus is that it sounds just a bit worse than the V20's Quad DAC and better than Galaxy S7, very close to HTC M10's quality. Most users and reviewers are impressed.
I believe it does have a DAC. At least i've read that somewhere but i'm not 100% sure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not anywhere near HTC 10 audio quality.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
godofpornings said:
Its not anywhere near HTC 10 audio quality.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't own HTC 10 so i can't know that BUT i did see a lot of ppl on forums saying and agreeing it's pretty close to it quality wise.
WstrKuNoužč said:
I don't own HTC 10 so i can't know that BUT i did see a lot of ppl on forums saying and agreeing it's pretty close to it quality wise.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No no no. The HTC 10 has a built in DAC and a amp which really makes the music stand out compared to any other phone I have ever owned. Too bad I sold it after a year and upgraded to the g6.
The g6 is a amazing phone only let down by the audio output. If they put the quad DAC in all units then that would of made this phone godly.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
godofpornings said:
No no no. The HTC 10 has a built in DAC and a amp which really makes the music stand out compared to any other phone I have ever owned. Too bad I sold it after a year and upgraded to the g6.
The g6 is a amazing phone only let down by the audio output. If they put the quad DAC in all units then that would of made this phone godly.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As i said i think it does have DAC. It is true that the output volume is not as high as M10's BUT that also depends on headphones.
If you got a pair of good headphones it's gonna sound great and loud. The headphones that come with G6 are pretty crappy tho...
All-in-all M10 is an audiophile phone so it's probably designed for high and low quality headphones meaning even crappy headphones sound okay-ish or at least a lot better than on other "normal" phones.
WstrKuNoužč said:
As i said i think it does have DAC. It is true that the output volume is not as high as M10's BUT that also depends on headphones.
If you got a pair of good headphones it's gonna sound great and loud. The headphones that come with G6 are pretty crappy tho...
All-in-all M10 is an audiophile phone so it's probably designed for high and low quality headphones meaning even crappy headphones sound okay-ish or at least a lot better than on other "normal" phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that's true. I'm using the hi Res headfones I got from the HTC 10. The g6 has no DAC. The sound quality is very poor for a flagship phone for £600 I must say. But each to there own.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
I use the free vlc player and the 10 level equalizer along with my library of flac music. I run it onto my fender audio system (jetta) via Bluetooth and the sound is incredible. Deep bass, great mids and vocals. The sound with the headphone jack into the aux port isn't noticably better. I highly recommend vlc's free player, I had no idea that it would sound so good. Just play around with each equalizer level till your music sounds the way you want it to. Make sure you start with the levels flat, then go from there. I also put my music on a 128gb Samsung microsdxc card which I purchased on Amazon for only 30.99 I also highly recommend this card. Not as fast as more expensive cards but sound quality can't be beat. Model MB-MP128D. Peace..
Sound is OK it's not bad. But compared to my V10 the sound pales. Not as clean output or wide/deep sound signature.
Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
LOL. Every digital device that outputs sound has to have a DAC (Digital to Analog Converter), it just converts those 1 and 0 binary codes to electric signal. It's just the quality differs due to price. Some DACs have enough power on their own to drive small headphones, what sets "audiophile" smartphones apart is the addition of an Amp, it takes the electric signal from DAC and amplifies it to drive more power to large headphones with high impedance.
Is there any point in keeping my g5 for its b&o dac or not I have a s8 now well law has had it 6months
Can I use Google headphone adapter from Pixel 2 on my LG G6? Dac and Amp inside Google's headphone adapter is pretty good and powerful, same as Iphone 7 headphone adapter. I bought G6 few days ago (version without Quad DAC) and I think this should be one of possible alternatives for great sounding headphones quality.
Windforce0511 said:
Can I use Google headphone adapter from Pixel 2 on my LG G6? Dac and Amp inside Google's headphone adapter is pretty good and powerful, same as Iphone 7 headphone adapter. I bought G6 few days ago (version without Quad DAC) and I think this should be one of possible alternatives for great sounding headphones quality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes,
I use the adapter from an Essential PH-1
Normal one doesn't sound very good but with quad-DAC it is outstanding IMO.
quadacless g6 sound big nothing....
tech_head said:
Yes,
I use the adapter from an Essential PH-1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How is it compared to Google's one? I know adapter from Google is sounding 99% same as one from Iphone. I haven't tried Google one yet, but one from Iphone is very powerfull and have wide sound stage. I don't know where tu buy it btw..

Audio Quality Thoughts

So I just got my HTC U11 today and spent a few hours setting it up. I finally got around to trying out the phone's audio capabilities.
USonic - they sound good for out of the box earphones, but they're definitely not as good as my V-Moda Forza's. I could tell immediately. I doubt I'll use this.
DAC adapter - I'm conflicted. I'm still trying to decide whether or not the adapter sounds as good as my HTC 10. My initial impression is that it's not as good. The 10 has a cleaner, fuller soundstage. I'm really bummed about the BoomSound Dolby and tuning mode not being present on the U11. I've never really listened to the 10 without that mode on, so maybe that's the reason. The U11 doesn't sound bad though.
What do you guys think?
Good enough for 90%
Sent from my HTC U11 using Tapatalk
richteralan said:
Good enough for 90%
Sent from my HTC U11 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pretty much this, most people will love it but I think anyone who had a HTC 10, an Axon 7, S7 Edge (Exynos, volume modded) will notice a bit of a step down. More so the AMP is weak rather than the DAC being bad (although Juan at PocketNow numbers show the DAC to be worse than the HTC 10, Axon 7, S7 Edge, iPhone 7).
I'm contemplating getting a Fiio K1
I just compared the sound quality between my 10 (without BoomSound on) and the U11, and they do sound quite similar.
This leads me to my disappointment -- why did they remove the BoomSound frequency tuning from the U11? It's nice that they have it for the USonic earphones, but why would you need to create multiple audio profiles for those earphones, if there's literally only one pair of earphones that can take advantage of that feature.
I'll have my thoughts later today using a dt770 as my comparison between the 10 and 11. They normally require more power than my HD600. I don't use high impedance/low sensitivity HPs with phones anyway but I figured I'd test.
djbutter said:
I just compared the sound quality between my 10 (without BoomSound on) and the U11, and they do sound quite similar.
This leads me to my disappointment -- why did they remove the BoomSound frequency tuning from the U11? It's nice that they have it for the USonic earphones, but why would you need to create multiple audio profiles for those earphones, if there's literally only one pair of earphones that can take advantage of that feature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wondering this as well, you can't edit the audio profiles anyway so what is the point in having more than one profile
I've been happy about the audio quality so far. The problem I have is that we only get 1 of the DAC to 3.5mm adapter cables included. Now in order to use my music at home, in car, and at work I now have to carry the cable around with me. It is not ideal to have to carry around an adapter. Getting the included earphones is cool (sound okay) but would rather received a total of 4 adapter cables.
I went to order 4 more and found out that they are in pre-order status. I'll just have to wait until they come in. Once I have an adapter everywhere then I won't be so pissy about it. Really wish they would have kept the 3.5mm, then phone would be considered my best phone ever.
psawjack said:
I've been happy about the audio quality so far. The problem I have is that we only get 1 of the DAC to 3.5mm adapter cables included. Now in order to use my music at home, in car, and at work I now have to carry the cable around with me. It is not ideal to have to carry around an adapter. Getting the included earphones is cool (sound okay) but would rather received a total of 4 adapter cables.
I went to order 4 more and found out that they are in pre-order status. I'll just have to wait until they come in. Once I have an adapter everywhere then I won't be so pissy about it. Really wish they would have kept the 3.5mm, then phone would be considered my best phone ever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There really was no need to remove it, only to use a worse DAC/AMP in the adaptor.
GSM spoke highly of the headphone output. (http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_u_11-review-1620p6.php)
Great audio output
The HTC U11 did splendidly in the first part of our audio test. When hooked to an active external amplifier it delivered very loud and perfectly accurate output.
When headphones come into play the volume remains nicely high and the only reading to take a hit is stereo crosstalk. It's a moderate amount of damage there and will all the other aspects of the performance remaining excellent, it's a great showing overall.
HTC U11 (headphones attached)
Frequency response: +0.05, -0.11 (+0.05, -0.02)
Noise Level: -94.1 (-93.7)
Dynamic Range: -94.1 (93.8)
THD: 0.0017 (0.0018)
IMD + Noise: 0.0067 (0.105)
Stereo crosstalk: -94.5 (-53.7)
HTC 10 (headphones attached)
Frequency response: +0.01, -0.03 (+0.06, -0.09)
Noise Level: -93.2 (-92.8)
Dynamic Range: -93.2 (93.0)
THD: 0.0022 (0.014)
IMD + Noise: 0.071 (0.141)
Stereo crosstalk: -92.8 (-77.9)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My own personal experience, I found my DT770 to sound great but was 2 notches of volume below the 10. The 10 at volume 13/15 was the U11 at 15/15. I definitely can hear the crosstalk difference GSM has measured. Heard that before I saw the measurements. Overall, I can definitely live with this. Just hope I don't put myself in situations where I need to charge and listen.
My first impressions are that I'm not particularly impressed by the Usonic earphones - but then I don't usually use the earbuds that come with a phone.
Given the reviews here, I was a bit surprised to find the sound from the U11 adapter sounds better on first hearing than I was getting from the HTC 10, but then I haven't yet done a proper A-B comparison - it could be I was playing it a bit louder, or 'new device' enthusiasm...
As I said it already the 3.5mm adapter lacks Boomsound and this make a big difference with HTC 10, HTC can implement it in the FW of the adapter but we need to let them know we want it.
mosincredible said:
GSM spoke highly of the headphone output. (http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_u_11-review-1620p6.php)
My own personal experience, I found my DT770 to sound great but was 2 notches of volume below the 10. The 10 at volume 13/15 was the U11 at 15/15. I definitely can hear the crosstalk difference GSM has measured. Heard that before I saw the measurements. Overall, I can definitely live with this. Just hope I don't put myself in situations where I need to charge and listen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. I can see the logic behind HTC's decision, and I actually don't disagree with it. They dropped the headphone jack but added noise cancellation and a decent pair of earphones. This targets that iPhone userbase that only uses the awful in-box white ear buds. It's definitely better value for the money for the average user.
Perhaps they needed to compromise on sound quality, but it still sounds pretty fantastic with the adapter. It may not sound as good as the 10 (honestly though it's pretty close), but I'm not mad about it.
Which Boomsound speaker mode do you guys prefer? Music it theater mode? I feel like music more is crisper while tester is a bit longer but muddier.
MinimalistChris said:
Which Boomsound speaker mode do you guys prefer? Music it theater mode? I feel like music more is crisper while tester is a bit longer but muddier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use theatre mode all the time but yes it is muddier than music mode which sacrifices volume for better audio quality
About stereo crosstalk can you ''fix'' it with V4A?
Or there are no way to enhance stereo?
MinimalistChris said:
Which Boomsound speaker mode do you guys prefer? Music it theater mode? I feel like music more is crisper while tester is a bit longer but muddier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I usually use theatre mode. If I'm playing through the speakers, volume is more important to me.
On another note, I'm having this horrible issue with BT audio. When playing music in google play music through BT earphones (jaybird x2) or my home speaker (LG soundbar), occasionally there's a really loud, awful screeching noise!
Anyone else have this issue?
Otherwise, BT audio is noticeably improved over the 10!
djbutter said:
On another note, I'm having this horrible issue with BT audio. When playing music in google play music through BT earphones (jaybird x2) or my home speaker (LG soundbar), occasionally there's a really loud, awful screeching noise!
Anyone else have this issue?
Otherwise, BT audio is noticeably improved over the 10!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Was listening with aptX in my car for a while today and I had no issues along with noticing no difference. Same volume level when connected to an Audioengine B1 that has a 2 volt output to my Audison bit-Ten. Wish I could do a quicker back and forth test with my 10 but I'd have to sync the Bluetooth over and over.
I have to admit that I'm a little bit worried about the sound quality on the u11. One of the things that I really enjoyed on the m8 m9 and the 10 was the Dolby audio enhancement. I have been using that in combination with power amp music player for years and you'd be surprised what kind of sound quality I get out of my Sennheiser HD 558's. I can hear the bass in music the way it is meant to be heard, almost felt, I don't hear that distorted bass sound that you tend to hear on lower end devices.
This may sound stupid to some people but if the sound quality is not at least the same as what I get on my 10 then I'm going to send the phone back. I just got done trying out a $300 pair of Bluetooth headphones with my 10 and I was not impressed, they were close in some areas but for $300 I want more than close. There is a cheaper pair that I have been thinking about trying with the 11 but I'm not sure that I'm going to want to invest all of this money just to be able to say I own the new flagship, and get half decent sound out of it with headphones, especially when for all intents and purposes I'm perfectly happy with my 10.
Right before the phone ended up shipping out to me I was debating on canceling my order because once the feeling of new shiny device wore off I started the question what about the new phone actually got me excited and to be perfectly honest the answer for me is really nothing. I think edge sense could be cool but the apparent lack of support from case manufacturers has me a bit scared as well. I have never owned an all glass phone before and I don't think you could pay me enough to use this phone without any full-body protection I understand that the camera is much better but honestly I don't see a problem with the one that I have. So this could be the first year that I actually hang on to my phone.
I just paired this phone with the Fiio K1 DAC. Much better audio experience. The HTC 10 apparently was better than the K1 by about 10% so the fact that the K1 sounds so good compared to the adapter is quite telling

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