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Now i have been looking for an all in one solution mobile device for some time.
Audio is probably the most important feature for me aside from actually being a phone.
At first i was not sure if i was just hearing things, but after a little over a weeks testing i am absolutely sure that there are differences in the soundscape that comes out of the HD2 and Iphone 3GS(and Ipod Touch 1G on original firmware which is very similar to the Iphone in sound).
I have tested on a range of speakers from cheap to studio quality and headphones again from cheap to studio quality.
I would listen to entire songs on one then the other and i would listen to specific parts quickly switch to the other.
What i cannot figure out is why this is the case.
Shouldn't the same songs in the same encoding come out of the audio jack sounding exactly the same?
What differences in software and hardware would cause this?
the main factor is the quality of the DAC (digital to analog converter) hardware. Software is basically pushing bits to this hardware and is of little effect. There are software solutions like WOW driver and equalizers to cover where hardware lacks but I personally prefer the plain sound.
ozkaya said:
the main factor is the quality of the DAC (digital to analog converter) hardware. Software is basically pushing bits to this hardware and is of little effect. There are software solutions like WOW driver and equalizers to cover where hardware lacks but I personally prefer the plain sound.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See, i have been playing with the WOW driver and i just can't get it quite the same.
It's the strangest thing, but when i listen to music on the Ipod/Iphone i want to dance lol , but with the HD2 the the music just doesn't have that effect.
Of course this is a very subjective issue and I'm personally very disappointed that the HD2 could not be the one for me music wise, it certainly beats out the 3GS in many other ways.
I hope that when windows 7 is released with it's built in Zune player, the hardware offer plenty of people the audio experience they are looking for, with some being comparable to the Iphone.
Right now however I think I've got to make the switch back
It should be same. However I would be surprised. There are aspects which are hard to 'make same'. It's not that there is no amplifier. Even the jack needs some low-power amplifier. And every audio circuit has SOME characteristics. Frequency curve is never totally flat, especially bases can be cut off on this level. There can also be noises (some MP3 players are non-listenable because of noise), distortions for louder sounds (this can be also common problem of software equalizers), DA converters also incorporate low-pass filter for clipping the sampling frequency and above. In phone there is also problem of interference from transmitters.
Some of these characteristics are clearly audible and you immediately know what is going on. Some are subtle. You 'feel' the difference, but you can't tell what is different. Sometimes it is mere illusion. There are endless arguments on audiophiles forums about technologies which from scientific point of view can have no impact on audio, but some people swear they can hear the difference (things like golden power sockets, static charge removers for CDs, and so on).
So yeah .. it's ok, unless there is really obvious 'problem' with the sound.
In my HD2 there is no such problem. Compared to anything it does feel different, especially if you can directly compare it, but that is normal.
It's funny you should mention this, as with my shure headphones i find the HD2 to blow my ipod touch out of the water in terms of sound quality. The audio booster i've found to also be the first equaliser i've truly thought improves sound quality to my preferences given the correct song. Shame with many roms it will only stay on for 1 song at a time.
You mean to tell me that different hardware produce different audio quality?!?!
lude219 said:
You mean to tell me that different hardware produce different audio quality?!?!
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Click to collapse
Of course!
If this weren't the case, then why would anyone ever buy a BOSE sound system instead of a cheap one?
I really enjoy almost everything about the Focus. I bought it because I was so happy with my Zune HD.
I was underwhelmed when I plugged in my Grado headphones tho. Perhaps the Zune is just very high caliber, but It seems like I am missing some lows and the soundstage seems flat. Does anyone know what sort of Hardware went into this phone? If the hardware is good, is there anything I can do software or backend to make it sound better?
I have a second complaint. When I stick a headphone jack in the mic turns off, it probably is expecting an inline mic with the headphones. My problem is when I then go to pull out my headphones the phone doesn't notice and will continue to not hear. It takes two or three times reinserting and pulling out the headphones to remidy this. Is anyone else haveing this issue.
this is a known issue and will probably be addressed in the first or second update January-February. As of now the only thing you can do is adjust the default volume to be louder...there might be other things you can tweak regarding the root menu of the device. Check out the diagnosic codes thread.
Regarding the hardware i'm pretty sure its good hardware, I think that new apps will inhance the audio experience in our beloved phones.
Welcome to the forum, please do not start two of the same threads since it will clutter the forum.
Okay thanks. I saw the diagnostic thread. It was difficult to see what the values correlate with. How do you delete a thread? The double post was not intentional
The Zune HD uses a Wolfson Microelectronics audio chip, so that's top-tier level of audio quality.
The Focus uses the built-in Snapdragon audio codec, which just isn't as good, and unfortunately, it shows.
Raptor550 said:
I have a second complaint. When I stick a headphone jack in the mic turns off, it probably is expecting an inline mic with the headphones. My problem is when I then go to pull out my headphones the phone doesn't notice and will continue to not hear. It takes two or three times reinserting and pulling out the headphones to remidy this. Is anyone else haveing this issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same problem here. But is worst, I connect the Focus to my Car Auxiliary jack to use it as a mega speaker, I mean, when someone calls I can hear them, but they can not hear me. The microphone is dead when I plug it in. Someone knows a fix for this?
After doing some comparison with my high-end DAPs, my Focus is being relegated to movie watching only...lol. It has low quality sound. I did have about 8GB of music on it and have deleted it all. There just is no need to use my Focus for music when it sounds the way it does. It isn't horrible...erm...in a sense, that is. Before I compared it I thought it was quite good...lol. Now, however, I just can't stand it.
The Focus is a nice phone and does a lot of good things and those are things it will continue to do.
I'm using Samsung Focus as MP3 player replacement, which is perfectly fine. No different from Samsung Captivate with Wolfson chip, at least to my ears.
I decided to give music on my Focus another go after the NoDo/Firmware update. It seems to have improved the sound quality...unless it's just a placebo effect. I think I can live with the SQ now and am putting my music back on it.
I'm wondering which ear phones those guys use that complain about audio issues.
I think without this additional information the comlaints are rather useless.
Sebo1985 said:
I'm wondering which ear phones those guys use that complain about audio issues.
I think without this additional information the comlaints are rather useless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my case, I use high-end canalphones. Shure SE530, Klipsch Image X10/X5, Sleek Audio SA6, UE Triple fi-10 and so forth.
Yeah, that's really high end. With my Westone Um1 i'm satisfied with the overall audio performance, even when there is some hissing and and whirring with low volume. I'm interested if the sound improves with the firmware update, just have to wait a few more days.
Sebo1985 said:
Yeah, that's really high end. With my Westone Um1 i'm satisfied with the overall audio performance, even when there is some hissing and and whirring with low volume. I'm interested if the sound improves with the firmware update, just have to wait a few more days.
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Click to collapse
I believe it does improve with the update. Before the update, the sound was undefined and muddy. After the update, it seems a lot less muddy and more defined.
MartyLK said:
I believe it does improve with the update. Before the update, the sound was undefined and muddy. After the update, it seems a lot less muddy and more defined.
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Click to collapse
Interesting, I'll have to do a little testing.
I often use my Focus at work to demo PA gear and typically use a Proco iFace for connection. I've never A/B'd my Focus and Zune30, though.
It is so hard to do AB testing because even a half decibel difference in level balance can be taken as an improvement.
The best way is to do sweeps plugged into a soundcard and graph the differences. even then some distortions can be pleasurable. But at least you can test its reproduction faithfulness comparing the wave to the original song.
It would be really interesting for somebody to run sweeps before and after nodo and see if the are identical or not.
It is possible that its improved. Sadly my zune was stolen so I can no longer compare. I can tell it still lacks some depth and can get get overwhelmed in complex passages those could be powering issues tho. I'm guessing thats what you are describing as muddy Marty.
its a worse than my work machine and i know that was a little worse than my zune which is a little worse than my home marantz. But for anyone reading this, the focus's sound is probably good enough for most people and at least comparable to most phones I think if not a bit better (never heard an I phone tho).
I will say about the HD, it had a much higher then average sound output.
Guys I think my speaker is broken, it crackles as hell on high volume just listen to this:
high volume:
http://www31.zippyshare.com/v/68247432/file.html
medium volume:
http://www44.zippyshare.com/v/73829333/file.html
is it normal? if yes then why the hell would google allow something like this? it's worst sounding speaker I've ever heard...
Hmm mine sounds great.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
progosu said:
Guys I think my speaker is broken, it crackles as hell on high volume just listen to this:
high volume:
http://www31.zippyshare.com/v/68247432/file.html
medium volume:
http://www44.zippyshare.com/v/73829333/file.html
is it normal? if yes then why the hell would google allow something like this? it's worst sounding speaker I've ever heard...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your speaker has a problem I'd say.....did you spill water on it? Or has it been like this since you bought it?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
It's a brand new phone, it's been like this from the very beginning
look at this...
medium volume:
http://www8.zippyshare.com/v/61560322/file.html
max volume:
http://www8.zippyshare.com/v/62512333/file.html
progosu said:
It's a brand new phone, it's been like this from the very beginning
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Click to collapse
RMA time dude
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
God, why...
I don't think there is anything wrong with your speaker as it sounds fine at medium to low levels, and that is all the Nexus 4 is capable of. I think what you are hearing is amplifier clipping.
This happens when an amplifier is being asked to output more power than it is able to, based upon the input level of the source. When an amp reaches this limit, the natural sine waves of the audio are clipped off (hence the term clipping), and the waveform takes on a shape more akin to a square wave. Some amplifiers handle this more gracefully than others, but the resultant clipped waveform usually sounds spitty, sibilant, harsh, fuzzy, etc. Most folks attribute this sound to speaker distortion, but it is in fact the amplifier. The tiny amp in your phone has little power supply in reserve so pushing it past its limits results in extreme clipping (which is what I am hearing in your files).
BTW, this kind of distortion is one of the most common cause of speaker failure (usually tweeters and midrange drivers - but I have seen woofers blown by it as well). Speakers are not designed to handle this kind of mutilated waveform.
Solutions Etcetera said:
I don't think there is anything wrong with your speaker as it sounds fine at medium to low levels, and that is all the Nexus 4 is capable of. I think what you are hearing is amplifier clipping.
This happens when an amplifier is being asked to output more power than it is able to, based upon the input level of the source. When an amp reaches this limit, the natural sine waves of the audio are clipped off (hence the term clipping), and the waveform takes on a shape more akin to a square wave. Some amplifiers handle this more gracefully than others, but the resultant clipped waveform usually sounds spitty, sibilant, harsh, fuzzy, etc. Most folks attribute this sound to speaker distortion, but it is in fact the amplifier. The tiny amp in your phone has little power supply in reserve so pushing it past its limits results in extreme clipping (which is what I am hearing in your files).
BTW, this kind of distortion is one of the most common cause of speaker failure (usually tweeters and midrange drivers - but I have seen woofers blown by it as well). Speakers are not designed to handle this kind of mutilated waveform.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But it sounds fine on my nexus 4.....
Sent from my Nexus 4
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Devices:
LG Google Nexus 4 16 GB
Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini ST15i
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You're not a noob, you just don't read
tiru.adi13 said:
But it sounds fine on my nexus 4.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So have the OP send you the files he is using and try turning yours up all the way.
Audio files are recorded at different reference levels. I have some podcasts that vary by 10dB or more. From an amplifier power output reference, that is a factor of 10! Just because you don't have any audio files recorded at a high enough level to clip your amp, doesn't mean that the OP doesn't.
This happens when an amplifier is being asked to output more power than it is able to, based upon the input level of the source.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
---------- Post added at 07:54 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:44 AM ----------
BTW... speakers don't generate these kinds of sounds on their own. A voice coil can open and go silent. They can be deformed and/or charred from heat and will rub or chafe, compression drivers can whistle, and torn diaphragms can rattle or huff. But the purely electronic sounding distortion present in the OP's posted files is coming from the amplifier.
Solutions Etcetera said:
So have the OP send you the files he is using and try turning yours up all the way.
Audio files are recorded at different reference levels. I have some podcasts that vary by 10dB or more. From an amplifier power output reference, that is a factor of 10! Just because you don't have any audio files recorded at a high enough level to clip your amp, doesn't mean that the OP doesn't.
---------- Post added at 07:54 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:44 AM ----------
BTW... speakers don't generate these kinds of sounds on their own. A voice coil can open and go silent. They can be deformed and/or charred from heat and will rub or chafe, compression drivers can whistle, and torn diaphragms can rattle or huff. But the purely electronic sounding distortion present in the OP's posted files is coming from the amplifier.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
progosu said:
high volume:
medium volume:
http://www8.zippyshare.com/v/61560322/file.html
max volume:
http://www8.zippyshare.com/v/62512333/file.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is a stock ringtone called "Themos".
so tomorrow I'm sending my phone for repair, it's gonna suck if it's not broken...
Morning all, I've always had an android phone, more recently I've joined a well known financial firm and obtained a brand new iPhone 6 for literally nothing, which is essentially the anti Christ in my eyes, to my dismay I realised that not only was this phone everything I thought it wasn't it's also got superb battery life and is ridiculously louder than my note 4 with far better bass, my question is this, can lollipop sound be boosted, I'm currently on echo pop Rom, the audio with ael kernel doesn't work as it should by all accounts. But having owned an S3, I know Samsung phones are toned down when it comes to the audio.
My iPhone is pure stock, it's audio is amazing, both on headphones, Bluetooth and speaker volume.
All help appreciated.
@dladz IPhone? You know that santan will come for your soul tonight, right? But to get back on the subject, I have to agree on the sound, I personally think that with the same Headset the iPhone sounds better then the stock Note4. Battery life of the iPhone is the same or a little less then the Note4. Regards
My dogs names marley, weird. But I agree, the audio is superior. Samsung shouldn't hold their audio back, think they've always done that though. .
Hi, I would say that the audio from the note 4 is better than the iphone, but only when you are using google play music. This is because it is one of the few apps that doesn't use Samsung's software equaliser, The DAC on the snapdragon 805 is better than that of the iphones cirrus logic chip, plus it supports 24 bit 192 khz audio decoding on the chip. I'm surprised that there hasn't been more praise for the note 4's audio.
P.s. The Note 4 (SM-N910F) & SoundMagic E10 are a stunning combo.
Sent from my SM-N910F using XDA Free mobile app
I all bull****. Iphones audio quality is rubbish. No equalizers, viper audio is far superior.
Sent from the first Samsung Galaxy ever
I'm sure theres a few thread knocking around in the apps and themes section. They will probably up the default volumes by a bit by altering the default values in the system, then I would use Viper Audio, which I also agree is superior.
I literally could not believe the difference once Viper was installed and configured it blew me away.
Samsung may have a better way of decoding the audio but what good is that with a small shi**y speaker.
I think personally if you want a phone for its audio quality its HTC one all day.
Brava27 said:
I all bull****. Iphones audio quality is rubbish. No equalizers, viper audio is far superior.
Sent from the first Samsung Galaxy ever
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you actually read what I wrote ? I have always hated apple. I got this phone for next to nothing, the only reason I chose it is because I've never has one, that being said I didn't start this thread to spark a debate, that's not what this is so if you want to come in here and moan on about apple and say the audio is terrible then don't, I asked a question, if you do not have an answer then kindly either remove your comment or don't write anything.
Viper audio is a good mod, as is acid sound mod too. However, at stock levels the iPhone is miles ahead. Even with the note 4 tweaked the iPhone was ahead. I haven't tried acid mod as I don't think it's available for the note 4 as of yet but besides that I think it's a lost cause.
jshq97 said:
Hi, I would say that the audio from the note 4 is better than the iphone, but only when you are using google play music. This is because it is one of the few apps that doesn't use Samsung's software equaliser, The DAC on the snapdragon 805 is better than that of the iphones cirrus logic chip, plus it supports 24 bit 192 khz audio decoding on the chip. I'm surprised that there hasn't been more praise for the note 4's audio.
P.s. The Note 4 (SM-N910F) & SoundMagic E10 are a stunning combo.
Sent from my SM-N910F using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree with the chip, we know from HTC that great things can be done with it, however this isn't HTC it's Samsung and the speaker is tinny and low (at stock) I just compared the two devices with the same song..please try it next time you're in a phone shop, the difference is undeniable.
Haven't used sound magic, but I do own the 910f, at least until the M9 comes out anyway.
If acid mod comes out on the note 4 I have no doubt that the audio will vastly improve, last time I used this (or even needed it) was on my galaxy S3, the audio on that phone was similarly shocking, with that mod it was one of the loudest phones I've ever heard.
On your second point. I completely disagree with it, Google play makes no difference in this comparison.
I have tried, I also use power amp which is undoubtedly the best player to ever grace android.
mklass said:
I'm sure theres a few thread knocking around in the apps and themes section. They will probably up the default volumes by a bit by altering the default values in the system, then I would use Viper Audio, which I also agree is superior.
I literally could not believe the difference once Viper was installed and configured it blew me away.
Samsung may have a better way of decoding the audio but what good is that with a small shi**y speaker.
I think personally if you want a phone for its audio quality its HTC one all day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are a few threads, not the one I was looking for (acid mod) but again like you said it's a terrible speaker, also if you think about it, with HTC (besides the speakers) you have an active eq, software that adapts and adapts well, that's literally what the iphone has, they also own beats now too which is essentially what the eq was on HTC devices, I'm guessing that they might have used some code from the beats software for boomsound.
With viper , as much as it may help , it's not an active eq, it doesn't mould to the music the way the other two do, neither does acid.
Louder ? Maybe. Better audio quality ? I'm not so sure.
dladz said:
Agree with the chip, we know from HTC that great things can be done with it, however this isn't HTC it's Samsung and the speaker is tinny and low (at stock) I just compared the two devices with the same song..please try it next time you're in a phone shop, the difference is undeniable.
Haven't used sound magic, but I do own the 910f, at least until the M9 comes out anyway.
If acid mod comes out on the note 4 I have no doubt that the audio will vastly improve, last time I used this (or even needed it) was on my galaxy S3, the audio on that phone was similarly shocking, with that mod it was one of the loudest phones I've ever heard.
On your second point. I completely disagree with it, Google play makes no difference in this comparison.
I have tried, I also use power amp which is undoubtedly the best player to ever grace android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do like HTC for their boom sound speakers, but when I have my headphones on I'm more of an audiophile. It may be a selective carrier thing or just software variations but with play music (actually, after some testing, all non samsung audio player apps) have a much more natural and slightly louder sound. There must be some software sound enhancement trickery on the touchwiz side.
I do understand that sound is subjective, so what I hear others may hear differently. These are just my obeservations
jshq97 said:
I do like HTC for their boom sound speakers, but when I have my headphones on I'm more of an audiophile. It may be a selective carrier thing or just software variations but with play music (actually, after some testing, all non samsung audio player apps) have a much more natural and slightly louder sound. There must be some software sound enhancement trickery on the touchwiz side.
I do understand that sound is subjective, so what I hear others may hear differently. These are just my obeservations
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try audiotechnica w5000's never heard anything quite like them before. Cost you an arm and a leg but the audio is phenomenal.
the solution is
doing a root an install Walkman player fuul ported from its Z3
really amazing Sony is with its sound technology
---------- Post added at 04:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:28 PM ----------
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2730431
crazydeepman said:
the solution is
doing a root an install Walkman player fuul ported from its Z3
really amazing Sony is with its sound technology
---------- Post added at 04:35 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:28 PM ----------
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2730431
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haven't tried that before but I did own a Z1 which i rooted, the audio for me wasn't out of this world, the iPhone still has much better audio i'm afraid, htc definitely better audio.
Sony does have some plus points but don't think the audio is better mate.
Hi there,
Firstly i'm sorry if there are any other posts related to this subject, i've searched and i found no results.
I've just purchased a new toy "Note 4" Vodafone Romania. I absolutely love this phone. Usually when i buy a new phone i'm testing to see if there are any quality problems left over by the Samsung Quality Department.
The only thing that i've managed to find and it really bothers me is that in call quality is quite low due to noise reduction not working!? I've tried to check/uncheck dialog box for many times, restart the device, clear phone app cache and data nothing seems to work. Altough all the mics seems to work correctly in all recording modes terefore i don't think it's a hardware issue.
Does anyone experience this issue? Or could you please tell me if i have a faulty unit or it's just a software issue that can be fixed by Marshmallow perhaps?
Thank you.
the call quality on my note 4 is very good and loud (compared to my nexus 4). What 5.1.1 in particular is your phone on?
imeem said:
the call quality on my note 4 is very good and loud (compared to my nexus 4). What 5.1.1 in particular is your phone on?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I also experience a clear and loud voice reception on my note 4. The problem is with noise reduction setting, the problems is on the other side of the line, in loud environments the person who am i talking with can hear me well, but also can hear the noise in the background pretty well so it seems that with or without noise reduction active it has the same result background noise isn't suppressed.
I come from Note 3 where even in very loud environments the noise reduction was acting flawless, on the other line i was heard like sitting on the couch in a "zen - place".
The mics are working flawless, so i suppose it's a software issue.
Any dev. that could help me?
Thanks.