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[Audiophiles] Note 2 DAC quality

Calling all audiophiles.
What do you think of the quality of the digital analogue converter (DAC) on the Note 2? Is it good enough to justify buying an expensive high end set of headphones? I've been burned before by HTC's supposed focus on audio and the deal with Beats, only to find the sound quality utter garbage.

I'm not an audiophile, but a crystal clear sound is a must for me. I'm pretty happy with Note's 2 performance, but i think you might need to just check for yourself cause this is very subjective. But i completely agree on HTC Beats audio - garbage sound with ridiculously high amounts of enchancements and low boosts does not mean good audio quality ( beats fans, dont eat me alive pls, its just my opinion )

I think that most true audiophiles would not be caught dead listening to music using a Samsung phone. To me, that word means people who are willing to spend thousands of dollars on cables. Some audiophiles have cables at home that cost more than my car.
The definition of the word audiophile may of course vary...
With that said, I work full-time as a musician and audio quality is very important to me although I would never call myself an audiophile. My Note II with the PlayerPro player listening to FLAC files has been a truly pleasant surprise. I don't even use an EQ anymore because I love the sound of the hardware a lot.
What is a high end set of headphones to you? My Note II sounds fantastic with my Sennheiser HD-25-1 II cans. Sounds really great! I also have a pair of Beyerdynamic DT1350 and they also sound great with my Note II, but the comfort isn't quite to my liking so I usually keep the Beyerdynamics on my nightstand and use them when I watch videos or listen to music in bed for short periods of time. The HD-25-1 II is what I carry around with me on the go and I am more than pleased with this as my portable listening rig. Actually I'm incredibly satisfied. I had my Note II for a month before I even tried listening to music with it, so I wasn't aiming on using it as a portable player when I bought it. Since the day I finally tried it though I have been using it to listen to music nearly every day. I sold my iPod video 5.5 gen and Sansa clip zip. I still have my Cowon J3, not going to sell that.
I also have a pair of Shure SRH940 that I use in my home recording studio, they are amazing with the Note II also, but I only use the Shures at my desk, I don't take them out of the house.

ozaghloul said:
Calling all audiophiles.
What do you think of the quality of the digital analogue converter (DAC) on the Note 2? Is it good enough to justify buying an expensive high end set of headphones? I've been burned before by HTC's supposed focus on audio and the deal with Beats, only to find the sound quality utter garbage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's more or less the same as the chip in the I9300. Just make sure you use a kernel that supports Voodoo Sound aka Scooby Doo aka Eargasm, such as RedPill or Perseus.
Sound without it is pretty flat, but once you turn it on you will be pleasantly surprised! I use Sennheiser HD439

victorator said:
It's more or less the same as the chip in the I9300. Just make sure you use a kernel that supports Voodoo Sound aka Scooby Doo aka Eargasm, such as RedPill or Perseus.
Sound without it is pretty flat, but once you turn it on you will be pleasantly surprised! I use Sennheiser HD439
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not the same chip like in I9300. Note2 uses Yamaha sound chip, while S3 has Wolfson. The difference is hearable between those two devices. S3 wins with deeper bass and clarity of high frequencies. I own Note2 and S3, and I like listening to music on my S3 more.

tehaerpl said:
It is not the same chip like in I9300. Note2 uses Yamaha sound chip, while S3 has Wolfson. The difference is hearable between those two devices. S3 wins with deeper bass and clarity of high frequencies. I own Note2 and S3, and I like listening to music on my S3 more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope. The Note II has a Wolfson DAC. See here, straight from the horses mouth.
http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/media_c...dio_to_samsung_galaxy_note_10.1_and_samsung_/
Audio output with my Creative Labs Aurvana In-Ear3's is absolutely top notch with Perseus kernel eargasm setting.

tehaerpl said:
It is not the same chip like in I9300. Note2 uses Yamaha sound chip, while S3 has Wolfson. The difference is hearable between those two devices. S3 wins with deeper bass and clarity of high frequencies. I own Note2 and S3, and I like listening to music on my S3 more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude, where are you getting your news from ? The note 2 has a wolfson chip
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

KyleDevlin12 said:
Dude, where are you getting your news from ? The note 2 has a wolfson chip
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, that's strange, as I work at Samsung's R&D and every engineer says it is Yamaha in N2

If you work at Samsung do you know if they are working on a fix for the audio skipping, ect. When the Note 2's screen is off.
I've tried different players and it keeps happening. I've heard others talking about this and saying the same thing.
I'm just wondering about it as it really is a major issue if you ask me.
Thanks.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2

tehaerpl said:
It is not the same chip like in I9300. Note2 uses Yamaha sound chip, while S3 has Wolfson. The difference is hearable between those two devices. S3 wins with deeper bass and clarity of high frequencies. I own Note2 and S3, and I like listening to music on my S3 more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
tehaerpl said:
Well, that's strange, as I work at Samsung's R&D and every engineer says it is Yamaha in N2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's definitely got a Wolfson WM1811 Audio Hub. STweaks and Voodoo apps both pick up and can configure the chip. Also mentioned on iFixit tear down. Added to the above posted Wolfson news bulletin, this is kind of overwhelming evidence

Onemoa said:
If you work at Samsung do you know if they are working on a fix for the audio skipping, ect. When the Note 2's screen is off.
I've tried different players and it keeps happening. I've heard others talking about this and saying the same thing.
I'm just wondering about it as it really is a major issue if you ask me.
Thanks.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I work at European R&D, we request only international projects (N7100 for example) so I cannot answer your question.
---------- Post added at 01:13 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:08 PM ----------
mitchelln said:
It's definitely got a Wolfson WM1811 Audio Hub. STweaks and Voodoo apps both pick up and can configure the chip. Also mentioned on iFixit tear down. Added to the above posted Wolfson news bulletin, this is kind of overwhelming evidence
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I just googled it. Well, maybe the engineers were referring to old H/W version. There's a lot of hardware changes when the project is in "ongoing" phase. Sorry for my mistake.

Well its all cool as long as the final result is the right answer
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

I keep mi iPhone and my Bose Mie2i sounds much better on iPhone. But SGN2 still have an amazing audio quality, just keep away the stock earphone also the Monster are a myth, best experience on Sennheiser ie80 or Bose Mie2 (w/o "i").
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium

The galaxy note 2 sound output is more than enough for me
Sound alive + scoobydoo sound = best sound ever
Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

Thanks for all the replies. I didn't really think about the definition of audiophile before, and I guess it varies greatly. I am not a musician, nor do I know how to play any instrument. I can however tune many instruments only using my ear. My current music setup is the newest ipod with a set of Sennheiser IE60. However my cat chewed through those, so I was considering buying the IE80, but didn't want to do it if the Note 2 didn't have a good DAC. It seems from all the replies that the DAC is good enough to justify the $460 for the IE80.

victorator said:
It's more or less the same as the chip in the I9300. Just make sure you use a kernel that supports Voodoo Sound aka Scooby Doo aka Eargasm, such as RedPill or Perseus.
Sound without it is pretty flat, but once you turn it on you will be pleasantly surprised! I use Sennheiser HD439
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for sounding noobish, do I need to root to use those kernels? Do they come with a rom? I'd really rather not have to root and risk voiding warranty, and from previous experience with a One X the custom roms didn't add much to my experience. Is it possible to get Voodoo Sound or Sound Alive without rooting?

ozaghloul said:
t seems from all the replies that the DAC is good enough to justify the $460 for the IE80.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not $460 USD I hope! They can be had from Amazon for sub $300.

mitchelln said:
Not $460 USD I hope! They can be had from Amazon for sub $300.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're RIGHT! I was checking the price on the Sennheiser website.

ozaghloul said:
Is it possible to get Voodoo Sound or Sound Alive without rooting?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound Alive comes in the stock ROM. Check out the settings in the Music Player app.
---------- Post added at 05:20 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:19 PM ----------
ozaghloul said:
You're RIGHT! I was checking the price on the Sennheiser website.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Blimey, that's a mark up and a half! You have $160 to spend on something else now

ozaghloul said:
Sorry for sounding noobish, do I need to root to use those kernels? Do they come with a rom? I'd really rather not have to root and risk voiding warranty, and from previous experience with a One X the custom roms didn't add much to my experience. Is it possible to get Voodoo Sound or Sound Alive without rooting?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sound alive is Stock music player enchantments
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for Voodoo sound u need non stock kernel like Perseus or Redpill but trust me it really make difference
and forget about one x cuz Rooting and installing kernels - Roms are so easy on Samsung devices

Earphone sound quality

Well after Sony & Handtec completly screwed everything up I purchased the Z2 off CPW with next day delivey,
I'm not impressed with the sound quality with the earphones. I've tried 3 different quality headsets and the bundled set with the phone.
unimpressive I'm afraid.

Did you try the Sony MDR-NC13EM Digital Noise Cancelling Headset?

That's the bundled headset

Not The Flong said:
That's the bundled headset
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No it depends, in the UK, if you pre-ordered the phone you get the active noise cancelling earphones MDR-NC31EM otherwise you just get a standard pair of earphones.
Do yours look like this? (Make note of how many contact points there are on the plug)
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Even in UK I think you can get z2 without MDR-NC13EM. OP should check the model number listed on the little tag attached to the headset wire.
I highly doubt anyone would be disappointed with MDR-NC13EM. I understand sound quality is a highly subjective matter but I still think z2 with MDR-NC13EM is the best you can get from a smartphone compared to other OEM headsets.

I found the sound awful. The "bass" simply lowered the voice and other instrumental features of a song to make the foreground bass sound bassier. When the bass parts of the song speed the voice would then become loud again.
It made some songs almost inaudible.
Tried my earphones (which I had great quality with my previous phone) and the ones that came pre bundled and both sounded the same.
Also couldn't figure out where the noise cancelling was as they where no different to my standard ear phones in terms of noise cancellation.
Gone to the s5 now and the sound was far superior before root, let alone after!
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app

Sony's bass is usually realistic. It's not meant to be thumping like beats. It's usually a nice rounded sound. I haven't got mine yet so I can't comment too much.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

Errm what?
These are THE BEST earphones ever on an Android device!
Here's a review of the earphones only :
http://www.digitalversus.com/headph...rphones-ever-come-with-smartphone-n33617.html

riso123 said:
I found the sound awful. The "bass" simply lowered the voice and other instrumental features of a song to make the foreground bass sound bassier. When the bass parts of the song speed the voice would then become loud again.
It made some songs almost inaudible.
Tried my earphones (which I had great quality with my previous phone) and the ones that came pre bundled and both sounded the same.
Also couldn't figure out where the noise cancelling was as they where no different to my standard ear phones in terms of noise cancellation.
Gone to the s5 now and the sound was far superior before root, let alone after!
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like you've had normalisation enabled which levels the audio to the same volume - this can have a negative effect on the audio quality overall regardless of what device and headset you're using so this setting should only be active if you're in a situation where you need it (can't think of a reason you'd need it and I'd recommend leaving this setting off).
As for the active noise-cancelling, to ensure noise cancelling is active, first you have to set accessories in the sound settings to "Noise-cancelling headset", then after you've plugged in the headset, additional options should be displayed in the "Sound effects" menu where you can set when the noise cancelling is in effect and the appropriate environment you're in. You should also notice an icon that gets displayed in the notification bar to show that it is active.
You also have to remember that the active-noise cancelling isn't performed on any headset, you can't just plug in a standard 3-pole headset and expect there to be the active noise-cancelling it doesn't work like that.

TheOnlyIntruder said:
Sounds like you've had normalisation enabled which levels the audio to the same volume - this can have a negative effect on the audio quality overall regardless of what device and headset you're using so this setting should only be active if you're in a situation where you need it (can't think of a reason you'd need it and I'd recommend leaving this setting off).
As for the active noise-cancelling, to ensure noise cancelling is active, first you have to set accessories in the sound settings to "Noise-cancelling headset", then after you've plugged in the headset, additional options should be displayed in the "Sound effects" menu where you can set when the noise cancelling is in effect and the appropriate environment you're in. You should also notice an icon that gets displayed in the notification bar to show that it is active.
You also have to remember that the active-noise cancelling isn't performed on any headset, you can't just plug in a standard 3-pole headset and expect there to be the active noise-cancelling it doesn't work like that.
As I've explained, how you've described what you've done suggests that your opinion while valid has been used for the wrong reasons and when users who have read your opinion which is a stark contrast to the majority, there is no wonder that there's a backlash.
My opinion is that you're biased and incapable of understanding how to operate the technology in your hand thus in-turn creating a false or rather poor outcome to your experiences.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that was a bit more constrictive!
I'm not biased at all though, I played around with the settings in various dodgem ways and could never reach ample sound output.
To suggest I am unable to operate the technology is a huge statement with no substance to back it up and again quite rude. You don't know my capabilities and so shouldn't assume I'm wrong and don't know how to handle the tech.
Instead give feedback like you did and then ASK politely if I had tried what you suggested instead of assuming the negative.
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app

riso123 said:
Well that was a bit more constrictive!
I'm not biased at all though, I played around with the settings in various dodgem ways and could never reach ample sound output.
To suggest I am unable to operate the technology is a huge statement with no substance to back it up and again quite rude. You don't know my capabilities and so shouldn't assume I'm wrong and don't know how to handle the tech.
Instead give feedback like you did and then ASK politely if I had tried what you suggested instead of assuming the negative.
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since I am extremely eager to get my Z2, I have a slight OCD behavior when it comes to news about this phone.
In my info binging endeavor, I came across a similar review to yours in a swedish forum. It had the same complaints about the headset.
When I got my first Android phone, the biggest gripe I had with it was the dismal sound output when compared to the iPhone. So I am very sad to hear that poor sound still is something that haunts the Android universe. The noise canceling headset was one of the biggest draws for me with the Z2. I'll have to try for myself, but I trust your opinion since it coincides with others.

KyleSforza said:
Errm what?
These are THE BEST earphones ever on an Android device!
Here's a review of the earphones only :
http://www.digitalversus.com/headph...rphones-ever-come-with-smartphone-n33617.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fully agree, I'm using the supplied MDR-NC31EM noise cancelling headphones and the audio quality is superb...when used with the Z2.
bass strong, acoustic setting do make differences in sound and I like various forms of music from classical through pop, house and hard rock
However I did try them in my ipad and the sound was awful, really bad.

Warkman said:
Fully agree, I'm using the supplied MDR-NC31EM noise cancelling headphones and the audio quality is superb...when used with the Z2.
bass strong, acoustic setting do make differences in sound and I like various forms of music from classical through pop, house and hard rock
However I did try them in my ipad and the sound was awful, really bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Conversely I plugged in my Audio Technica W5000's into the phone and they were plenty loud enough. I haven't had time to really compare the sound quality though but it sounded ok to me
When I plugged in the noise cancelling earphones I thought they sounded really good but again I haven't compared them to anything yet.

Let's stick to the topic here thanks and resist the urge to make this personal... Thread cleaned.

ApriliaM3 said:
Let's stick to the topic here thanks and resist the urge to make this personal... Thread cleaned.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
one of the big reason i want to move to z2 is the earphone sound output... and now these mixed reviews are making my decision tough... i am currently using sony xb90ex earphones with my one x and they are good enough... i just hope the z2 upgrade is not a downgrade after all :crying:

kartoonz said:
one of the big reason i want to move to z2 is the earphone sound output... and now these mixed reviews are making my decision tough... i am currently using sony xb90ex earphones with my one x and they are good enough... i just hope the z2 upgrade is not a downgrade after all :crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I came from a One X and I used ARHD on it with all the sound mods including the additional beats profiles and EIZO DSP modifier and I can certainly say, the output of the Z2 is much better than that of the One X with the additional profiles. I think the Z2 must use a higher grade DAC or something (seems like it anyway), it is certainly more noticeable when you compare both devices without any psychoacoustic settings enabled (so listening to them flat), the One X had a noticeable hiss and crackle at low volume levels, Z2 not so much

TheOnlyIntruder said:
I came from a One X and I used ARHD on it with all the sound mods including the additional beats profiles and EIZO DSP modifier and I can certainly say, the output of the Z2 is much better than that of the One X with the additional profiles. I think the Z2 must use a higher grade DAC or something (seems like it anyway), it is certainly more noticeable when you compare both devices without any psychoacoustic settings enabled (so listening to them flat), the One X had a noticeable hiss and crackle at low volume levels, Z2 not so much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i will most certainly not root or install any of the above mentioned profiles you mentioned... so was the default sound output good enough...did you get a chance to test it??

kartoonz said:
i will most certainly not root or install any of the above mentioned profiles you mentioned... so was the default sound output good enough...did you get a chance to test it??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you misunderstood, I'm saying the Z2 sounds better default than the One X modded.

TheOnlyIntruder said:
I think you misunderstood, I'm saying the Z2 sounds better default than the One X modded.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oh i get you :silly: that's good news for me...

riso123 said:
I found the sound awful. The "bass" simply lowered the voice and other instrumental features of a song to make the foreground bass sound bassier. When the bass parts of the song speed the voice would then become loud again.
It made some songs almost inaudible.
Tried my earphones (which I had great quality with my previous phone) and the ones that came pre bundled and both sounded the same.
Also couldn't figure out where the noise cancelling was as they where no different to my standard ear phones in terms of noise cancellation.
Gone to the s5 now and the sound was far superior before root, let alone after!
Sent from my SM-G900F using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is also exactly my experience unfortunately
My previous phone was the one x with beats audio + headphones, I'm now using the beats headphones with the Z2 and the bass leaves so much to be desired... I've tried all the settings to no avail, as mentioned above the bass specific setting seems to lower mediums and highs instead of pumping bass.
Enviado desde mi D6503 mediante Tapatalk

Gsmarena review

http://m.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z2-review-1078.php
Pretty good review by gsmarena if anyone is interested, what caught my eye was battery life, which seems to blow every competitor with ease.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk 2

feis said:
http://m.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_z2-review-1078.php
Pretty good review by gsmarena if anyone is interested, what caught my eye was battery life, which seems to blow every competitor with ease.
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the battery performance has been praised by them... having said that they have really pinned down the z2's audio performance... is the audio performance that bad... i was gonna buy this phone in the next 2 weeks but now what!!! i'm really into music....

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I never got that kind of screen quality from the several Z1 units I tried (the device on the right). I see that Z2 provides the necessary improvement and this kind of display is not fitted only into special units for reviewing/ media purposes :victory:

kartoonz said:
the battery performance has been praised by them... having said that they have really pinned down the z2's audio performance... is the audio performance that bad... i was gonna buy this phone in the next 2 weeks but now what!!! i'm really into music....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can only speak for my ears. I am also very into music and I think this phone is plenty good enough. In comparison to my old S3 I would say it is perhaps a little less rich in sound and not as loud. However, I am using Poweramp, and by tweaking the sound settings in the app and turning up the preamp, I am getting pretty great and loud sound out of mine. If they were using the Walkman app, I can confirm that the sound out of that was not good. Of course, I am old (haha, 45 years) and don't need to crank it up like I did when I was younger, but I am satisfied with the sound I am getting.

The battery life score seems to be highest (89) among s5 (72), m8 (71), g2(81), and note3(75).
Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk

kartoonz said:
the battery performance has been praised by them... having said that they have really pinned down the z2's audio performance... is the audio performance that bad... i was gonna buy this phone in the next 2 weeks but now what!!! i'm really into music....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't let the review put you off. I love my music and find the sound on this phone fantastic through my in-ear headphones. I never use the stock player though, is always Power Amp for me.
Compared to my previous phone, the (Note II) I find no negative difference in sound, and that audio chip was highly praised by GSM Arena.
I would compare their audio statistics the same as providing benchmark results. It may look good (or bad) on paper but it's real world performance that matters, and I am very happy with all aspects if my Z2
Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

kartoonz said:
the battery performance has been praised by them... having said that they have really pinned down the z2's audio performance... is the audio performance that bad... i was gonna buy this phone in the next 2 weeks but now what!!! i'm really into music....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As being an audiophile myself I can tell you that you can buy the Z2 with blinded eyes
Sound is clear and natural
Envoyé de mon D6503 en utilisant Tapatalk

Thanks a lot for confirming... Are you guys using the noise cancellation earphones by any chance?

kartoonz said:
Thanks a lot for confirming... Are you guys using the noise cancellation earphones by any chance?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, great feature even without music.
Some sounds from the outside are still there but there is a huge difference
Envoyé de mon D6503 en utilisant Tapatalk

can someone report on how spotify is? and if the audio effects carry through?

p4t4h said:
The battery life score seems to be highest (89) among s5 (72), m8 (71), g2(81), and note3(75).
Sent from my 2013023 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually can confirm that the battery life is just awesome.
Sent From My Sony Xperia Z2 D6502 White

kartoonz said:
the battery performance has been praised by them... having said that they have really pinned down the z2's audio performance... is the audio performance that bad... i was gonna buy this phone in the next 2 weeks but now what!!! i'm really into music....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can assure u after having this phone, iphone5s and the m8, this phone has the best audio quality through headphones. Through the speaker the m8 betters it but through headphones it's extremely good( through high end headphones).
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app
---------- Post added at 06:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:45 AM ----------
ppau0822 said:
can someone report on how spotify is? and if the audio effects carry through?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Spotify is fantastic and yes the audio effects all work
Sent from my D6503 using XDA Free mobile app

I feel that the audio experience can be a bit more rich. Hopefully, the Devs release a audio hack for the Z2 like they did for the Z1!

in my opinion, sound quality is brilliant, where it falls short is the volume........ thats not much of an issue for me tho as i use the nc headphones (fantastic imo, but the only nc headphones ive ever used lol) or the bluetooth speaker (btx300) i got with the phone.

I have a bug with Bluetooth headsets. I have NFC DR-BTN200 headset and whenever I use them if I get a notification audio pauses for a second and then it comes out from the phone speakers, and if that happens for few times then it starts playing music from the phone speakers instead of the headphones. and then I will have to restart the phone to get them work again. If I put the phone into vibrate mode then everything's fine

The audio is good enough for me especially with the NC headset. If I increase the volume to more than half, I will be deaf in the next 5 yrs. I don't know what gsmarena is looking for or expecting in audio output. Rest assured that the audio quality is good or the same as any mp3 players out there.

If everyone is confirming then I guess gsmarena is doing some rigorous tests out there. Perhaps we should take their reviews with a pinch of salt and let ourselves decide what's best for us

kartoonz said:
If everyone is confirming then I guess gsmarena is doing some rigorous tests out there. Perhaps we should take their reviews with a pinch of salt and let ourselves decide what's best for us
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Reviews are never objective.
Best way is to go in a Sony Center and test the phone.
Compare between different phones is useless. You must choose according to your own criterias with device in hand.
Envoyé de mon D6503 en utilisant Tapatalk

Its obvious that the guys from Gsmarena are marketing the plastic fantastic S5, they've already reviewed and praised it three times in the past month ...so imo, they are not trustworthy!

debrandman said:
Its obvious that the guys from Gsmarena are marketing the plastic fantastic S5, they've already reviewed and praised it three times in the past month ...so imo, they are not trustworthy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that's right. Many blogs and websites are clearly on Samsung's payroll. Samsung's PR is one of the best when it comes to this stuff. I still cant believe that Heathrow is naming a terminal as S5 for a few weeks

S6 audio quality..

It seems that we have a winner for audiophile headphones listeners...gsm arena has confirmed in audio quality test that S6 is better than last year htc m8. One drawback is the volume levels ( this is samsung registered trademark) but this is easely resolved by adding an external amplifier or by rooting and modify the volume levels.
I'm waiting for real world reviewers!!
P.S. exynox + wolfston was always a winner in this category and it seems that this time Samsung has a winner...

calinormy said:
It seems that we have a winner for audiophile headphones listeners...gsm arena has confirmed in audio quality test that S6 is better than last year htc m8. One drawback is the volume levels ( this is samsung registered trademark) but this is easely resolved by adding an external amplifier or by rooting and modify the volume levels.
I'm waiting for real world reviewers!!
P.S. exynox + wolfston was always a winner in this category and it seems that this time Samsung has a winner...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This time I agree with them, but what they writes better not to read. Look only tests results.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=56587777&postcount=17
Dynamic range (higher is better)
htc one m8 93.9
galaxy s6 91.9
Noise level (higher is better)
htc one m8 -94.9
galaxy s6 -92.6
Stereo Crosstalk (higher is better)
galaxy s6 -83.4
htc one (m8) -79.7
Smoother green line is better
galaxy s6
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htc one m8

2 points difference in dinamic range or noise level means for me nothing considering that stereo crosstalk is now the best for any phone.
Samsung with snapdragon had prapund -55 and now we have -83. The days with the sound delivered in the center of our head ar gone, now we have space in music!

So happy to see this. I still don't understand for the life in me why Samsung devices always have low volume output through headphones. Its very annoying in the gym.

borimol said:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was going to post the same.
Just for reference, dB is more like a logarithmic scale. It means 70 dB intensity is 10x more than 60 dB. Similarly 80 dB intensity is 10x more than 70 dB.
The difference here is 5.4 dB. This means that the actual sound intensity is increased by 3.46 times. For quick calculation of difference in sound intensity from dB:
- Find the difference (which is 75.9 - 70.5 = 5.4)
- Divide this by 10 (5.4/10 = 0.54)
- Find the base 10 antilog of 0.54 (use this antilog calculator link, which is 3.46 times)
And somehow GSMArena found S6 to be quieter than S5
The loudspeaker is average in loudness and quieter than the Galaxy S5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

MattMJB0188 said:
So happy to see this. I still don't understand for the life in me why Samsung devices always have low volume output through headphones. Its very annoying in the gym.
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Click to collapse
maybe cheap earbuds or possibly need some ear cleaning?
my S4 i rarely go past 60-70% while at the gym and it's more than loud for me. i don't like taking my earbuds off and hearing my ears ring afterwards.. it's no wonder people seem to be going deaf these days..

Gsmarena has found that speaker loudness is worst than s5, not the headphone volume...

calinormy said:
Gsmarena has found that speaker loudness is worst than s5, not the headphone volume...
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Click to collapse
And they have already been proven wrong a few times. Their review sucked

calinormy said:
It seems that we have a winner for audiophile headphones listeners...gsm arena has confirmed in audio quality test that S6 is better than last year htc m8. One drawback is the volume levels ( this is samsung registered trademark) but this is easely resolved by adding an external amplifier or by rooting and modify the volume levels.
I'm waiting for real world reviewers!!
P.S. exynox + wolfston was always a winner in this category and it seems that this time Samsung has a winner...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do u still listen to music from ur phone with the built in audio jack? like seriously? -_-
there are quite affordable audio AMPs and DACs combos available these days, and they DO make a difference. why not get the portable ones and use them to power ur music?
thats the dilemma, people are ready to spend like US $800 on a phone but cant buy a US $50 audio device to power their music and call them selves, "AUDIOPHILE"....
*SMH*

aami.aami said:
do u still listen to music from ur phone with the built in audio jack? like seriously? -_-
there are quite affordable audio AMPs and DACs combos available these days, and they DO make a difference. why not get the portable ones and use them to power ur music?
thats the dilemma, people are ready to spend like US $800 on a phone but cant buy a US $50 audio device to power their music and call them selves, "AUDIOPHILE"....
*SMH*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh gawd...one of those...
Do you really play games on your phone? That's what a PC is for..
Do you really take pictures with your phone? Buy a real camera!
Do you really watch movies? That's what a TV is for.
A smartphone is a jack of all trades master of non. So yes..I listen to music on my phone. And I expect it to do well.

Think the same. Yes, I listen music on my mobile phone, and, for me, it's something important.

If you rely on the USB DAC for audio you will lose the ability to pick up calls handsfree while listening to music, and more importantly stress the USB connector if you are listening on the go. My only concern with the headphone audio is a comment made by François Simond ( Supercurio ) about his listening to the S6, possible artifacts in resampling 44.1 to 48k on the device.

any idea if its better than the note 4?
its my current music device, carrying 15gbs of music (mp3 and under 320)

GreeleyXda said:
any idea if its better than the note 4?
its my current music device, carrying 15gbs of music (mp3 and under 320)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's almost guaranteed to be better. The Note 4 uses the built in DAC on the Snapdragon 805 chip which is considered to be fairly poor. The S6 on the other hand will use a Wolfson DAC which will sound great stock and even better when developers begin tuning the sound output.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

This is the main reason I'm getting the s6 (don't know if I'll get the edge or the regular. Depends on pricing t-mobile gives). Last phone with a dedicated dac was the galaxy note 2 for tmobile with the exynos chip. The dac and everything sound a great and a custom kernel by boeffla taped into the dac to unleash it's full potential. I'm not an audiophile but I do like my music to sound good on mobile. Converted all my flacs to m4a and have the vmoda m100 and that's plenty for me. Have looked at USB dac but I don't want to have to worry about anything else. Also Samsung pay has me drooling a little but. Hopefully tripping KNOX by rooting the thing doesn't Disable Samsung pay

msavic6 said:
It's almost guaranteed to be better. The Note 4 uses the built in DAC on the Snapdragon 805 chip which is considered to be fairly poor. The S6 on the other hand will use a Wolfson DAC which will sound great stock and even better when developers begin tuning the sound output.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I brought my mrs note 4 down to the samsung experience store with me when I tried out the s6 in headphones. The s6 is cleaner sounding but the note 4 is louder.

RCJ89 said:
I brought my mrs note 4 down to the samsung experience store with me when I tried out the s6. The s6 is cleaner sounding but the note 4 is louder.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure if you tested headphone output or speaker quality but the DAC will have most of an effect on the headphone output. A great DAC can't make up for crappy speakers.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk

msavic6 said:
I'm not sure if you tested headphone output or speaker quality but the DAC will have most of an effect on the headphone output. A great DAC can't make up for crappy speakers.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note 4 is louder in Headphones. I personally couldn't care about speakers that much, as long as its loud enough to hear my callas and texts thats good enough for me and the note 4 is louder than the s6 in speaker too.

msavic6 said:
It's almost guaranteed to be better. The Note 4 uses the built in DAC on the Snapdragon 805 chip which is considered to be fairly poor. The S6 on the other hand will use a Wolfson DAC which will sound great stock and even better when developers begin tuning the sound output.
Sent from my SM-G900W8 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you know this? Do you have any reviews that back this up?
Ta

Sound quality on earphones

Could U compare Mate 7 sound output on earphones to Galaxy note 2 or Xiaomi Mi4? The first one had very good sound quality but Mi4 has disappointed me in this field.

Yary12 said:
Could U compare Mate 7 sound output on earphones to Galaxy note 2 or Xiaomi Mi4? The first one had very good sound quality but Mi4 has disappointed me in this field.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh god yeah when I heard Mi 4 video on youtube, recorded sound I almost vomited ...

Simona Simmy said:
Oh god yeah when I heard Mi 4 video on youtube, recorded sound I almost vomited ...
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Click to collapse
I use Beyerdynamic DT1350, and I am not at all impressed with the sound of M7...it is one of the weakest things about this device..

blackinfinity said:
I use Beyerdynamic DT1350, and I am not at all impressed with the sound of M7...it is one of the weakest things about this device..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try turn DTS on

Simona Simmy said:
Try turn DTS on
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Click to collapse
I do.. it just sound fake...
my old Galaxy note sounded better..

blackinfinity said:
I use Beyerdynamic DT1350, and I am not at all impressed with the sound of M7...it is one of the weakest things about this device..
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Click to collapse
no phone will push headphones that good buy 1 of these will sound ALOT better http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audiophile-...794?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ae79a6f22

The sound is not good at all and its not very loud.
Im using Hidizs AP100

leo5111 said:
no phone will push headphones that good buy 1 of these will sound ALOT better http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audiophile-...794?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ae79a6f22
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have plugged in my headphones to many other devices and phones without an extermal headphone amp.
I can say for instance, I was quite impressed with the sound of my LG G2.
Mate 7 compared to my LG G2 is big difference...
My DT1350 headphones sounds very well without a headamp of course.. I have plans to buy a good USB DAC for my phone when I get the money
Like this one http://www.headstage.com/Arrow-5TX/....html?XTCsid=d99628f16e91ce69c9d50b1b0173b532
It is small enough to have in my backpocket in my jeans.
Further I try to avoid listening to headphones as much as possible since it will cause a big strain on your ears due added sound pressure (I have mild tinitus)
But when I am on vacation or travel to a different city and not at home it can be nice to have a good portable sound.
At Home I have an Antelope Eclipse AD/DA converter and Trident HG3 speakers.
But yes... this DTS "bull****" Mate 7 is just a marketing term just like this braindead "retina sound" for people who do not know or care much about audio..
DTS have a good effect on the Phone speakers since it adds more bottom and richness to the sound but with headphones it just adds "fake sound"
it is not a sound I would "trust" . With that said I bought this phone knowing it was not perfect, I drop my Lg G2 in the floor..I was desperate to get a new phone was and I did refuse to buy the Note 4 because of the insane price, plus I admire good screen to body ratio, a big smart phone today is NOT smartphone if there has been no focus to slim down the dead area, I want as much screen area as possible otherwise it's simply and idiotic construction, Huawei and LG are one of the few who understand screen to body ratio is important.

Blackinfinity, you only THINK your Headphones sound good with other phones, TRUST ME, i got into audio and i for instance was using these http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-...id=1428598957&sr=8-2&keywords=beyer+dt+770+80 which are 80 ohm,s like yours and i thought the headphones sounded OK, then i got a headphone amp, and it became VERY apparent that the headphones want alot more current to sound good then what comes out of your phone,seriously when i plugged em into the amp, i thought i had seriously upgraded my headphones, sounded ALOT better

I have the d880 too... They are hard to drive and react to amplification a lot more..
Dt1350 are made to sound good unamplified since that his how most people use headphones these days... However I still want a good portable headphone amp.

your headphones are 80 ohms they will improve with a amp
Sent from my Z987 using XDA Free mobile app

guys.. i was on OPPO find 7a till few weeks ago..
trust me audio on opo find7a was so so much better than mate 7 !
I'm not an expert in audio/sound.. but even my ears could tell the big difference! I'm not talking just about the LOUDNESS.. but the richness of the quality of the sound!!
I don't use smartphone essentially for music but.. it's such a pity that this nice mat 7 lack in the audio so much :-/

leo5111 said:
Blackinfinity, you only THINK your Headphones sound good with other phones, TRUST ME, i got into audio and i for instance was using these http://www.amazon.com/Beyerdynamic-...id=1428598957&sr=8-2&keywords=beyer+dt+770+80 which are 80 ohm,s like yours and i thought the headphones sounded OK, then i got a headphone amp, and it became VERY apparent that the headphones want alot more current to sound good then what comes out of your phone,seriously when i plugged em into the amp, i thought i had seriously upgraded my headphones, sounded ALOT better
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whos gonna carry bloody amp it is like have brick in pocket then...

simika said:
guys.. i was on OPPO find 7a till few weeks ago..
trust me audio on opo find7a was so so much better than mate 7 !
I'm not an expert in audio/sound.. but even my ears could tell the big difference! I'm not talking just about the LOUDNESS.. but the richness of the quality of the sound!!
I don't use smartphone essentially for music but.. it's such a pity that this nice mat 7 lack in the audio so much :-/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Audio is not as easy as you say, impedance synergy pairing and headphone / IEM play a large role in the perception you have, for me with my IEM's collection the Mate 7 sound realy good, better than my old Wolfson Note2 using Viper4Android or Boeffla kernel.
Here the audio test part on GSMARENA to compare between both:
Find 7
The Oppo Find 7 put in a stellar performance in the first part of our audio quality test. It had excellently high volume levels to go with its very clean output. Barring for the slightly high IMD reading this is one of the best score sets we've seen lately.
However, the smartphone faltered quite a bit when we plugged in a pair of headphones. Its frequency response started missing the mark now and then, the IMD rose further and the stereo crosstalk hiked quite a bit. It's not as bad as the stereo crosstalk disaster that was the 7a, but elsewhere the more premium member of the pair lagged behind its stablemate. Volume level dropped as well, adding up to what was a good, but not quite flagship-worthy performance here.
Find 7a
The Oppo Find 7a audio output is certainly among the cleanest we have seen when the smartphone is connected to an active external amplifier. Posting excellent scores top to bottom in the first part of our test, the Find 7a was also nicely loud, producing one of the best performances out there.
Plugging in a pair of headphones tells a different story, however. The stereo crosstalk increases way beyond the point where it can be considered as good, or even acceptable. The other readings remain great, but the high cross-channel leakage has the potential of damaging the whole audio experience for more exacting users and put the Oppo Find 7a below the current crop of flagships as far as audio output is concerned.
Mate 7
The Huawei Ascend Mate7 did excellently in the active external audio test, posting great scores and showing no weaknesses to its performance. The only thing to potentially frown at is its sub-par volume, but quality-wise it's right up with there with the best.
Impressively enough, plugging in a pair of headphones causes a very minor increase in stereo crosstalk - in this scenario the Ascend Mate7 ranks even better compared to the competition, which often see more degradation. Alas, the volume is below average here too, so we can't really say it's the best phablet for audio playback, but we can certainly promise you it will play every track the way its authors meant it to sound.
With my sensitive InEar SD3 I have plenty of volume, I listening beetween 3-5 most of the time, I dont want to end up deaf
---------- Post added at 09:33 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:28 AM ----------
Simona Simmy said:
Whos gonna carry bloody amp it is like have brick in pocket then...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Audiophile

The sound quality for me on headphones is the best I have ever heard from the Mate 7.
Thoroughly impressed.

Migou67 said:
Audiophile
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am a bit of audiofile but NOT crazy one..
But guyyzz if u want TRULLY amazing audio quality FROM smartphone I'll tell you which phone to get ..
It is called Vivo X5 ..
There is studio version u probably NEVER seen packaging like this !
The phone uses audio chip
Yamaha YSS205X-CZE2,
Cirrus Logic CS4398 DAC
and headphone amplifier Maxim Integrated MAX97220
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^ lol, now that is packaging