Database Users

Official Sound Quality Thread

As usual
i presume NoteII use the same variant of Wolfson seen in SGSIII

knights.JayTana said:
As usual
i presume NoteII use the same variant of Wolfson seen in SGSIII
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Click to collapse
It better and if memory serves me right, the Yamaha in the Note I sounded better than the one in the GS2, because the Note was larger. Let's hope for Wolfson with even better sound than the GS3, due to more room in the Note II.
Thank You for making this thread
Edit: Yes. I've just received confirmation from an anonymous source, that it has a WM1811

..

Can't wait!

Cool!

Sound Quality should be quiet decent with Wolfson WM1811.
https://twitter.com/supercurio/status/242625984879280128

Just pre-ordered my Note 2, will post impressions on SQ when it arrives, as per usual
Hoping to get some time with it before retail release too, but don't know how that will pan out.

NZtechfreak said:
Just pre-ordered my Note 2, will post impressions on SQ when it arrives, as per usual
Hoping to get some time with it before retail release too, but don't know how that will pan out.
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ç
As an iPhone 4S owner that listens thru high end iems i'm really looking forward to your impressiones. Especially now that iPhone 5 has turned out to be a slight step back over 4/4S. It might be time for switching...

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_ii-review-824p8.php
"Audio output is perfectly clean, but on the quiet side
The Samsung Galaxy Note II obviously shares many of its music playback-related internals with the Galaxy S III as it managed to aced our audio quality test in a similar manner to its more compact sibling.
The only average volume levels aside, the Galaxy Note II results came out perfect in the first part of our test. When connected to an active external amplifier, the phablet produces excellently clean output with no weak points whatsoever.
Even more impressively, stereo crosstalk is the only thing to get damaged when we plugged in a pair of headphones. On that occasion the Note II produced one of the cleanest outputs we have seen from a mobile device and that includes the recently tested Apple iPhone 5."

The volume levels are worrying. I figure a large device like this with all it's juice should be able to drive most off the shelf earphones well.
I have the S3 and it is ok, but still the 4S beats it for music playback. And still no Voodoo for the S3.
In any event I've ordered the Note and I suppose if it is not what I hope for it will be easy to sell quickly.

got mine today
an improvement in sound quality compared with the Note 1 but not very impressed with maximum loudness with earphones (Monster Turbine Coppers)
The Loudspeaker is a massive improvement and is nearly as loud as my macbook pro 15!!

msx999 said:
got mine today
an improvement in sound quality compared with the Note 1 but not very impressed with maximum loudness with earphones (Monster Turbine Coppers)
The Loudspeaker is a massive improvement and is nearly as loud as my macbook pro 15!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's why we need VooDoo... Hope Supercurio will do that...

@gsmarena REVIEW OF THE GALAXY NOTE II
Audio output is perfectly clean, but on the quiet side
The Samsung Galaxy Note II obviously shares many of its music playback-related internals with the Galaxy S III as it managed to aced our audio quality test in a similar manner to its more compact sibling.
The only average volume levels aside, the Galaxy Note II results came out perfect in the first part of our test. When connected to an active external amplifier, the phablet produces excellently clean output with no weak points whatsoever.
Even more impressively, stereo crosstalk is the only thing to get damaged when we plugged in a pair of headphones. On that occasion the Note II produced one of the cleanest outputs we have seen from a mobile device and that includes the recently tested Apple iPhone 5. The higher volume levels of iOS flagship would probably still make it a slightly better option for audiophiles, though.

ama3654 said:
@gsmarena REVIEW OF THE GALAXY NOTE II
Audio output is perfectly clean, but on the quiet side
The Samsung Galaxy Note II obviously shares many of its music playback-related internals with the Galaxy S III as it managed to aced our audio quality test in a similar manner to its more compact sibling.
The only average volume levels aside, the Galaxy Note II results came out perfect in the first part of our test. When connected to an active external amplifier, the phablet produces excellently clean output with no weak points whatsoever.
Even more impressively, stereo crosstalk is the only thing to get damaged when we plugged in a pair of headphones. On that occasion the Note II produced one of the cleanest outputs we have seen from a mobile device and that includes the recently tested Apple iPhone 5. The higher volume levels of iOS flagship would probably still make it a slightly better option for audiophiles, though.
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Click to collapse
Tried one in store yesterday. The audio thru my Westone UM3x was quite decent but i could not assess the output power properly since i don't know the intrinsic loudness of the preloaded tune.
The usual Android background hiss was there and switching back and forth with an S3 running ICS it had the same level. Thus that rumours about Jelly Bean improving the audio engine have not turned out to be fulfilled for the moment.
Overall i'd rate is a 3.5-4 star headphone out (Out of 5) depending on the output power. Still not on par with the iPhone 4/4S (which is the benchmark for handset headphone outs) but it's an step in the right direction. Linearity was pretty damn good

It's early days with my note 2 but I have power-amp installed & so far I'm finding the S3 sounds better, maybe the Note 2 DAC needs running a bit.
Hopefully then It'll be just as good
The FM radio still has the horrid back ground hiss & buzz that is present on the S3. This is a little disappointing.

Got mine yesterday, sound quality is good but low which is absolutely not to my liking.

hagba said:
Got mine yesterday, sound quality is good but low which is absolutely not to my liking.
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It would help to assess the output power if users quote the headphones they are using. In order to discern which sensivity & impedance are no gos with that handset.

Remember that the UK and European Union have laws that limit the headphone volume (Volume Limit Cap) in music players and mobile phones.. That is why the headphone volume of these EU notes are quieter than the US phones.

Viper2005 said:
Remember that the UK and European Union have laws that limit the headphone volume (Volume Limit Cap) in music players and mobile phones.. That is why the headphone volume of these EU notes are quieter than the US phones.
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Click to collapse
On my sansa clip (R.I.P ) it was possible to change it in the settings.
Can it be done here to?

DubelBoom said:
On my sansa clip (R.I.P ) it was possible to change it in the settings.
Can it be done here to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is anybody using balanced armature iems experiencing low sound pressure levels ?
As for UE regulations it seems that they do not apply to Apple. iPhone 4S can go really really loud. And my old iPhone 3GS cpuld as well.
Why is it Samsung caps the headphone out and Apple does not ?

REALLY disappointed in the speakers!

Just received my AT&T note 3... first thing I noticed right away, before even comparing it to my I9500 S4, is how terrible the speakers sounded! I then whipped out my S4 and sure enough the speakers are actually WORSE on the Note 3 than on the S4... this is really disappointing!! Even my Note 2 had better speakers than the S4 so to hear this note 3 with even worse speakers than S4 is just sickening...

Cool story bro.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app

JoJo2211 said:
Just received my AT&T note 3... first thing I noticed right away, before even comparing it to my I9500 S4, is how terrible the speakers sounded! I then whipped out my S4 and sure enough the speakers are actually WORSE on the Note 3 than on the S4... this is really disappointing!! Even my Note 2 had better speakers than the S4 so to hear this note 3 with even worse speakers than S4 is just sickening...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This has been pretty much brought up by everyone. I agree, very disappointing, and yes I do use the speakers often. I travel a lot for work and will use the phone in the bathroom while showering/getting ready, speakerphone for con calls, etc.

Mine sounds perfectly fine. You got a special edition that has more than one speaker?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk 4

americasteam said:
Mine sounds perfectly fine. You got a special edition that has more than one speaker?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk 4
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If it came with dual speakers it would sound better, I think.

JoJo2211 said:
If it came with dual speakers it would sound better, I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Touche.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk 4

My speakerphone distorts on any volume 75% or higher. I will be exchanging my phone at AT&T as soon as they get a black one in stock which is on its way to the store.
I am hoping the replacement resolves the distortion/crackling sound.
Daniel

Does anyone actually purchase a cell phone for the audiophilia of the onboard speakers?

Banggugyangu said:
Does anyone actually purchase a cell phone for the audiophilia of the onboard speakers?
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Click to collapse
No but it SHOULD be better than the PREVIOUS version of the phone it is replacing. Right?

If it weren't for notifications and ringtones, I wouldn't even know my phone HAD an external speaker... And you can EQ the speaker to sound better (or worse, whichever you prefer).

i do wish it had a better speaker. mine, too, distorts over 75%. i use the phone speaker and it seems silly that a flagship device not spring for a little better speaker.

Banggugyangu said:
Does anyone actually purchase a cell phone for the audiophilia of the onboard speakers?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I do purchase phones to talk on, and I often use the speakerphone to talk. So yeah, speaker quality is non-trivial to me. But with that said, at least mine is at least as good or better than the Note 1 that it replaced. Not great, or even good, but passable as long as I'm not trying to understand what's on the other end while in a loud place. But it would be nice to have a loud, clear speaker, for once, that was usable in more situations.

Man I can't STRESS this enought but these speakers a JOKE. I just got a message on my Note 3 and it sounded like it came from a TIN CAN. My S4 makes a more manlier sound than this JOKE of a speaker. I love the phone though, just wish they IMPROVED on the speaker from the LAST generation of the note line (note 2).
Speaker rating:
Note 2 > Note 1 > S4 > S3 > Note 3
Note 3 sux THAT much.

Since I use my phone for business use, including as a speaker phone in a conference with other coworkers, a phone with a bad speaker is a no go for me. Looks like I will need to pass on the Note 3 and keep using the Note II.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk now Free

This has been discussed (to death) in the international forum. The N3's speaker is just as loud as the N2's and SGS4's. Those other two phones, especially the N2, do have more detail.
Here's my N2 taping a video playing playing on my N3 and vice versa. It's the same TV show (Modern Family) being played back on my cable company's video app minutes apart. Both phones are at max volume. The N3's flat on its back on a desk and the N2 is propped up in a Seidio kickstand case because it can't lie flat on its back without hobbling its audio. The recording distance is the same.
N2 recording N3
N3 recording N2
Speakerphone loudness test
From GSMArena...
A loudspeaker that is nice and... well, loud, is a nice asset for your mobile. Whether it's hearing the other person on the speakerphone or your phone ringing from the other room, or even playing music on your get-together's, a loud speaker is definitely something that's nice to have. And while the quality of the loudspeaker sound is difficult to measure and is for the most part a subjective matter, we can effectively measure how loud it is. For this, we use a digital noise/loudness meter which measures the peak loudness of the phones and tablets we review, in decibels (dB). We do our tests in a soundproof studio taking measurements with the handset loudspeaker facing the loudness meter at a distance of exactly 1 m. For each test we make several consecutive measurements - we usually disregard the highest readings and take the lowest of the maximum values, as that's least likely to have been misread. We test three different types of audio samples for three different scenarios:
A phone ringing. For the first part of the test we use a ringtone which resembles the ringing of an old rotary phone, because it seems that most phones do well when we use it.
Pink noise. Next we try a sample of pink noise. Our readings with it are pretty indicative on how well the handset loudspeaker can play most music.
Human voice, male. This is an important test, since if you tend the use the loudspeaker for speakerphone purposes, loudness is really important, regardless of whether you are in the conference room or in your car.
Once we have the results in db for all three sound samples, we sum them up and use a in-house developed formula to produce a qualitative description of the loudness levels: Below Average, Average, Good, Very Good and Excellent. As many of our results are separated by a difference of only a few decibels, it is important to keep in mind that the decibel is a logarithmic unit, which means that a reading of +3dB represents roughly two times the power. We'd like to reiterate again that this test is not about the quality of the sound produced by the loudspeaker. A mild, relatively deep-sounding loudspeaker that soothes the ear won't do well in this test. Instead, what we are after is pure peak loudness - it's our hunt for the loudest phone, ever.​​
And here are the results. What’s ironic is the N3 is better than most newer smartphones and the best selling smartphone in the world, the iP5/s.
And the editorial...
Note 3
We put the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 through our loudspeaker test and were pleased with the results. It's extremely loud and even managed to slightly top the HTC One's dual front speakers. While the One produces deeper sound the Galaxy Note 3 is louder.
Note II
We also ran our traditional loudspeaker test on the Note II. It scored a good all-round mark, meaning more often than not you'll hear it, save for the noisiest environments.
SGS4
It's extremely loud and even managed to slightly top the HTC One's dual front speakers. While the One produces deeper sound the Galaxy S4 is louder.​Conclusion?
Objectively, and without doubt, raw output wise the N3's external speaker is equal to the N2 and SGS4's. Subjectively, and with great debate, the quality of that sound isn't as good as the N2 and SGS4's.

Hmm, this is weird, because I had my Note 2 all kinds of tweaked out, and though it was louder with aftermarket kernel and mods, I definitely hear more clarity in the Note 3 speaker... Did they change sound card manufacturers?
No complaints from me...
The headphone output is DEF improved over the Note 2...

OK, please take this conversation to the sticky thread.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2466099

Z1 experience coming from Galaxy S3

I recently changed to a Z1 from a Galaxy S3 primarily for the camera and secondarily for waterproofing.
No phone is perfect, so here are my own personal opinions on what I liked and didn't like about the Z1, in case it is useful for anyone else coming from a Samsung Galaxy as you might have a similar experience.
Take them for what they are, you may disagree and haven't thought of these as cons/pros, but this what my own experience has been.
First, the cons:
- The notification LED is useless, at least on my black. It is hidden inside the earpiece, so only appears at maximum brightness when you are looking at the Z1 from the right angle. Maximum brightness is also about 1/4 that on the S3 - I can't see it outside in broad daylight for example. This means I am often turning on the phone to check for messages.
- Sound is very quiet. I've been using Android for years - was an Xperia X10 fan boy back in the day - and this is one of the quietest phones I've used. The quality seems good, but for notifications, combined with the dull LED as above, means it's already frustrating missing messages.
- The usable area of the 5" screen is LESS than the 4.8" screen of the S3. This is because the soft-keys take a lot of room at the bottom. I have compared them side-by-side. The bezel area is also huge.
- I hit the soft-keys by mistake often and end up switching apps or bouncing to the home screen. I'm sure this is just a matter of getting used to it. But so far I miss the physical home button a lot. Even if asthetically it "looks better" without one, it's actually quite useful to have another button to wake up the phone.
- The screen is dull and has a very small colour gamut. It is disappointing. For reading text it is fine. The AMOLED of the S3 is streets ahead in gamut coverage. That's with the S3 set to the "Professional Photo" profile which is decently calibrated, rather than the over-saturated Standard setting it has out of the box. I would not use it to review my photos (stick with the iPad for better integration with Lightroom anyway).
- The phone is HUGE for less screen area than a S3.
- There is far less ROM customisation for Z1's than S3, no surprise as I remember having the same experience on the X10. Going to an S and then S2 afterwards blew my mind how much more customisation there was. Rooting the S3 took 10 minutes after I first opened the box having not read up in advance. I guess the Z1 can be done in the same time once you know what you're doing, but the information is vague, the forums have different information all over the place, and it feels like a lot of rooting or flashing is sort of hopeful that it works. Information seems in posts scattered around rather than helpful and up-to-date guides. There are many more people in the Z1 forums complaining of boot loops or stuck phones.
Now having said all those negatives, here are the pros, of which there are some really good ones:
- The camera IS fantastic. Having used the S3, S4 and various other smartphones this is truly a brilliant camera. Yes, there are cons, such as pixel peeping shows patterns from the software processing. And 20mp looks like about 10mp up-sampled. But the colours are great and the dynamic range is surprisingly good.
- I love the ability to hold the camera button to wake the Z1 and instantly open the camera. This is very useful.
- Waterproofing gives me lot of peace of mind when travelling. I was very nervous when using a previous phone in Europe last November during rain and trying to look up maps.
- The battery life is incredible compared to the S3. I don't have figures or stats but I think it's roughly twice as good. I'm very impressed with this, given how large the screen is in particular.
- The Xperia software seems to be more useful than the gimmicky stuff Samsung puts in their Galaxy range. For example, the auto-triggered Sleep pattern to turn off sync, Wifi when you plug in the charger after 10pm is really neat. (For anyone who hasn't used this, you can customise the trigger, time range and actions that occur).
- It feels like a higher quality device. Also more precious and delicate. Definitely more "premium" as I've heard it said.
- The wifi signal is slightly stronger on 802.11n.
I'm sure there are other pros and cons. These are the ones that mattered to me personally, your mileage may and is likely to completely differ

S3 to Z1
I went to the 4G (2GB Ram) version of the S3 and back whilst my Z1 was being replaced.
you forgot to mention one Massive crucial point,
the S3 felt like a Lag-Fest compared to the Z1 with it's S800 processor and Adreno 330 GPU.
Also much of the Screen issues can be resolved by calibrating the colour and white balance,
and theres no comparison between Quality of the Z1's 1080P panel with 441 PPI compared to a 720P panel with 306 PPI (with some Pixels noticeable)
regards

I too just upgraded from S3 to Z1
Lag fest, true that. Only thing that I miss is the AMOLED display.
S3- Lags (stock ROM, AOSP ROM's are somewhat fast)
Can be used as frying pan, 1080p video fps drops when scenes become too complex (like shooting ocean waves), Gallery sucks, samsung apps are resource hungry. Newer games lag a lot (sometimes quits )

halleyrokz said:
Lag fest, true that. Only thing that I miss is the AMOLED display.
S3- Lags (stock ROM, AOSP ROM's are somewhat fast)
Can be used as frying pan, 1080p video fps drops when scenes become too complex (like shooting ocean waves), Gallery sucks, samsung apps are resource hungry. Newer games lag a lot (sometimes quits )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ditto

Interested in buying this phone also, coming from the s2, tho I'm worrying about the sound quality of this phone, is it really that bad?

uchechris said:
Interested in buying this phone also, coming from the s2, tho I'm worrying about the sound quality of this phone, is it really that bad?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the speakerphone is better than the S2/S3,
you can always try it in the shops and hear for yourself, make sure you turn on ClearAudio+ and Dynamic Normaliser on,
If you want the Best speakerphone quality ... theres only one choice at the moment HTC One.
regards

raziel123 said:
the speakerphone is better than the S2/S3,
you can always try it in the shops and hear for yourself, make sure you turn on ClearAudio+ and Dynamic Normaliser on,
If you want the Best speakerphone quality ... theres only one choice at the moment HTC One.
regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol I see, never try sony phones before and I wanna give it a try....done with samsung since battery is an issue and overheating , i don't wanna do HTC due to its camera.....iphones is a no , so imma do sony , might get the Z1 international since the Z1s don't have 4.4 kitkat and has a locked boot loader :/

uchechris said:
Interested in buying this phone also, coming from the s2, tho I'm worrying about the sound quality of this phone, is it really that bad?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The loudspeaker is quieter and the earpiece is harder to hear people on call.
However I prefer listening to music with the same headphones plugged into this vs S2 or S3. The Z1 has a warmer sound to the music and I think captures the very low bass just slightly better than the S3. This is without the enhancements turned on. I find the enhancements a bit over the top, like applying HDR to every photo, it doesn't suit everything.
So I enjoy music more - but the loudspeaker is quieter which is annoying for conference calls at work.
I've heard it explained as quieter due to the waterproofing, which is understandable.

awojtas said:
The loudspeaker is quieter and the earpiece is harder to hear people on call.
However I prefer listening to music with the same headphones plugged into this vs S2 or S3. The Z1 has a warmer sound to the music and I think captures the very low bass just slightly better than the S3. This is without the enhancements turned on. I find the enhancements a bit over the top, like applying HDR to every photo, it doesn't suit everything.
So I enjoy music more - but the loudspeaker is quieter which is annoying for conference calls at work.
I've heard it explained as quieter due to the waterproofing, which is understandable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know I actually find the earpiece louder than most phones I used in the past. I thought it was quiet at first as well until I realized that I am holding up to my ear wrong. I find anyone that also used my phone kinda does the same thing. Most of the time the earpiece is usually in the middle of the bezel of the edge and the screen. But because the earpiece is the very top of the phone you have to remember to slide the phone down and make sure the speaker is right at the ear canal. I still do that sometimes but I find it very clear and loud once its position correctly.
Maybe its just me...

I also came from the S3 and agree regarding the notification LED and the soft-keys. The LED on the S3 was perfect (the Z, too), however the Z1's is definitely harder to see. I solved the soft-key issue by switching on pie controls in xposed/gravity box and deactivating the Android soft keys. I can easily use the phone single-handed, tapping the pie keys with the thumb.
I quickly got used to the less explosive colors (which imho are far too saturated on the S3/4) and enjoy the better handling in bright sunlight compared to the S3.
My biggest con is the phone's size. It's so large I don't want to put it into a flip-cover, which would make it even bigger. On the other hand the naked phone is a bit difficult to hold because it's quite slippery.

sumerland said:
I also came from the S3 and agree regarding the notification LED and the soft-keys. The LED on the S3 was perfect (the Z, too), however the Z1's is definitely harder to see. I solved the soft-key issue by switching on pie controls in xposed/gravity box and deactivating the Android soft keys. I can easily use the phone single-handed, tapping the pie keys with the thumb.
I quickly got used to the less explosive colors (which imho are far too saturated on the S3/4) and enjoy the better handling in bright sunlight compared to the S3.
My biggest con is the phone's size. It's so large I don't want to put it into a flip-cover, which would make it even bigger. On the other hand the naked phone is a bit difficult to hold because it's quite slippery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using this case,
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Case-mate-B...F8&qid=1401215095&sr=1-3&keywords=casemate+z1
I've had the black one for months now, pretty good,
regards

COMMUNICATIONS: Speakerphone (loudness, clarity)

Proper etiquette aside (hint: don't use speakerphone while doing your "business" in a public bathroom), rate this thread to express how you think the Note5's speakerphone performs. A higher rating indicates that you love it: it's loud and it's clear.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

I think unless you have dual front-facing speakers like on HTC phones or the Nexus 6, you have to keep your expectations in check when it comes to speakerphone loudness and clarity. But I must say that the Note5's speakerphone gets extremely loud, however at the very highest registers of volume, it distorts a little. However, I don't even need to jack up the volume that high because it's so loud at medium settings.

plz help
hi guys i want to know about the quality sound of the note 5 headphones and if it loud or no ?
and is the iphone 6 sounds better if you put apple earpod or the samsung note 5 with there headphones better ?
be fair please!
thanks ...

mohdr47r6 said:
hi guys i want to know about the quality sound of the note 5 headphones and if it loud or no ?
and is the iphone 6 sounds better if you put apple earpod or the samsung note 5 with there headphones better ?
be fair please!
thanks ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its not very loud. Really need to crank it up. And the equalizer sucks too. Bass gets distorted and treble is given more prominence.

Comparing the Note 5 speaker to the Note 4 speaker....In the brief time I did was kind of let down a bit. Though I feel I need more time to make a final decision
The Note 4 was really loud. And despite what people claim not that bad either. Supposedly rated 82-85DB
The Note 5 moved from the 1 watt speaker to a 1.2 watt speaker and dropped the volume down to whats I believe measured 72-75DB. Yet it didn't sound that much better to me in fidelity or bass.
---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:12 AM ----------
Since I still have my Samsung Omnia HD from early 2009 I can't understand how Samsung dropped to quieter single speakers after that when it head some of if not the best speakers back then.
And it took til around the S4 or so to make it to acceptable performance. And since then the Note 4 did great.....But here we are almost 7 years later and still only single speaker and with more powerful speaker than the Note 4 is quieter and not much better sounding....
Why??????
Just put the Galaxy Beam "projector phon which I also have" but make it 60-100 lumen laser, the Zoom "their 10x optical zoom lens phone" into the Note. Give it a larger camera sensor, huge battery, and no less than 4 speakers. A physical keyboard wouldn't hurt.

xdathekilljoy said:
Comparing the Note 5 speaker to the Note 4 speaker....In the brief time I did was kind of let down a bit. Though I feel I need more time to make a final decision
The Note 4 was really loud. And despite what people claim not that bad either. Supposedly rated 82-85DB
The Note 5 moved from the 1 watt speaker to a 1.2 watt speaker and dropped the volume down to whats I believe measured 72-75DB. Yet it didn't sound that much better to me in fidelity or bass.
---------- Post added at 11:17 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:12 AM ----------
Since I still have my Samsung Omnia HD from early 2009 I can't understand how Samsung dropped to quieter single speakers after that when it head some of if not the best speakers back then.
And it took til around the S4 or so to make it to acceptable performance. And since then the Note 4 did great.....But here we are almost 7 years later and still only single speaker and with more powerful speaker than the Note 4 is quieter and not much better sounding....
Why??????
Just put the Galaxy Beam "projector phon which I also have" but make it 60-100 lumen laser, the Zoom "their 10x optical zoom lens phone" into the Note. Give it a larger camera sensor, huge battery, and no less than 4 speakers. A physical keyboard wouldn't hurt.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If they are giving speakers, they might as well match it with the other flagship phones to atleast stay in completion.
Even the headphone output is really low. My Oneplus One and Xiaomi Mi4 had amazing headphones output compared to what I am getting on my Note 5. Samsung can easily improve it by modifying the software. Hope they make it better in the next updates.
Sent from my Note 5 SM-N920G using Tapatalk

aakaashjois said:
If they are giving speakers, they might as well match it with the other flagship phones to atleast stay in completion.
Even the headphone output is really low. My Oneplus One and Xiaomi Mi4 had amazing headphones output compared to what I am getting on my Note 5. Samsung can easily improve it by modifying the software. Hope they make it better in the next updates.
Sent from my Note 5 SM-N920G using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The audio DAC in the Exynos devices, especially that of the S6/Note 5 means business. Samsung's ability to deliver on it....Not so much. It's one area where they seem to be way less knowledgable and need to figure it out or mature up and ask for help/hire someone that can do the job. Camera, display, SoC, features are class leading. Audio hardware top notch....But audio software...terrible?? No. It's quality is among the better and volume is ok for stock...But very held back.

xdathekilljoy said:
The audio DAC in the Exynos devices, especially that of the S6/Note 5 means business. Samsung's ability to deliver on it....Not so much. It's one area where they seem to be way less knowledgable and need to figure it out or mature up and ask for help/hire someone that can do the job. Camera, display, SoC, features are class leading. Audio hardware top notch....But audio software...terrible?? No. It's quality is among the better and volume is ok for stock...But very held back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really wish they make it better. I have stopped listening to music on my phone because it's not loud enough and even the bass is low... I use my 5 year old Nexus One to listen to songs now.
Sent from my Note 5 SM-N920G using Tapatalk

Ahh, the small kink in this MASSIVE armor of this juggernote phone. The speaker is not awful, it's loud enough it's clarity is ok but I thought for this high end device, it could be better. I try not to use the speaker unless I have to. Most of the time, I have bluetooth headset on or bluetooth in the car going through the speakers. But honestly, who really usses speaker phone now adays? unless you have an older car that does not have bluebooth connectivity. It's a deal breaker for me, the speaker quality is good enough. Snapchat, messenger video and google hangouts video speaker quality and loudness is just above average. Better off using a bluetooth headset, bluetooth in car or wired headset. Not awful, but not excellent either.

Is it worth buying this phone only for the audio?? And a few more questions

Hi. My note 4 is making me insane with all the lag and etc and it's near dying! And the camera is broken(not physically)
First. Please don't answer this question if you've never used an iPhone/nexus
Does it lag(if you had v10 or g5)? People told me no about Samsung s7 and note 7 but they do lag! They told me no about note 4 too but it's laggier than a 10 year old computer with a failing hdd. The keyboard is insane
Second: does the DAC ACTUALLY make a difference? Specially for a half-avarage person. I'm not an audiophile but I do care about Audio quality. But for example on mynote 4 I can't tell the difference between flac and mp3 (@320kbps).
But I do hear a difference Between 120kbps and flac with my Sennheiser cx 1.00 on some songs. I currently don't have any good headphones but I'm going to buy audio Technica 500x or m40x
Also as I listen to music on low volume I don't need an AMP or anything. Heck I can tell the name of the song that's playing on the tv o on the background of a movie while I'm in my room listening to music with headphones xD
And there's no background noise on my note 4. Or my PC! I don't understand why people complain about noise on internal DACs
I heard on somewhere that the v10 it barely makes a difference in Audio other than high volume
Third: how is LG at delivering software updates? Is LG fast? Samsung is awful at update! Specially when they have 1000 versions of the same phone
My other choices are iPhone 7+ or Pixel xl (I'll buy iPhone as a last resort as I don't likr apple and IOS although it's smooth)
Thanks Awesome XDA community I Love this site!

kamranhaghighi said:
Hi. My note 4 is making me insane with all the lag and etc and it's near dying! And the camera is broken(not physically)
First. Please don't answer this question if you've never used an iPhone/nexus
Does it lag(if you had v10 or g5)? People told me no about Samsung s7 and note 7 but they do lag! They told me no about note 4 too but it's laggier than a 10 year old computer with a failing hdd. The keyboard is insane
Second: does the DAC ACTUALLY make a difference? Specially for a half-avarage person. I'm not an audiophile but I do care about Audio quality. But for example on mynote 4 I can't tell the difference between flac and mp3 (@320kbps).
But I do hear a difference Between 120kbps and flac with my Sennheiser cx 1.00 on some songs. I currently don't have any good headphones but I'm going to buy audio Technica 500x or m40x
Also as I listen to music on low volume I don't need an AMP or anything. Heck I can tell the name of the song that's playing on the tv o on the background of a movie while I'm in my room listening to music with headphones xD
And there's no background noise on my note 4. Or my PC! I don't understand why people complain about noise on internal DACs
I heard on somewhere that the v10 it barely makes a difference in Audio other than high volume
Third: how is LG at delivering software updates? Is LG fast? Samsung is awful at update! Specially when they have 1000 versions of the same phone
My other choices are iPhone 7+ or Pixel xl (I'll buy iPhone as a last resort as I don't likr apple and IOS although it's smooth)
Thanks Awesome XDA community I Love this site!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree about the Note 4 lag, as I have a Developer Edition of the phone. Even though I can wipe it and install a custom ROM, within a month it is acting slow and lagy. Im always having to click Close all open app.
When I tried out the Note 7 a few times in the store, I wasn't really impressed with it, and not big on the curved screen.
So I am also hold hope that the V20 will be a good upgrade (despite it will probably never get root access).
I'm interested in it for the camera, audio quality, notification display, and Android 7. As a previous owner of a Note 2 & 3, I have yet to see Samsung release updates in a timely manner.
The only thing I wish the V20 had was an AMOLED display, as I've really gotten use to those over the years.

FAUguy said:
I agree about the Note 4 lag, as I have a Developer Edition of the phone. Even though I can wipe it and install a custom ROM, within a month it is acting slow and lagy. Im always having to click Close all open app.
When I tried out the Note 7 a few times in the store, I wasn't really impressed with it, and not big on the curved screen.
So I am also hold hope that the V20 will be a good upgrade (despite it will probably never get root access).
I'm interested in it for the camera, audio quality, notification display, and Android 7. As a previous owner of a Note 2 & 3, I have yet to see Samsung release updates in a timely manner.
The only thing I wish the V20 had was an AMOLED display, as I've really gotten use to those over the years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well according to YouTube it's fast and awesome!
But why wouldn't it get root? I personally find less and less reason to root as android gets better. I didn't even bother rooting my note 4 after an OTA.
Oh and I'm actually glad they didn't use amoled. All the AMOLEDs I've seen even at maximum brightness kins of leave a tail or lag at darks. It's like when I swipe in rhe gallery or scroll or watch movies etc. The blacks kind of leave a purpleish tint behind. It's a million times less than my s4 but still pretty anoyying (I sold my s4 and bought a Nexus 4 afterwards. Best decision I ever made)
Btw I also hope that they come with the earbuds in my country if not I would be very heartbroken and I would have to buy a headphone my self ( an 80$ headphone costs 185~$ in my country. No idea why headphones are so expensive)

i am currently using note 5 and i am ready to change my phone very very tired of deleting or transferring stuff because of the storage .The new V20 will be good specially with the audio but same thing as mentioned up i don't have good headphone i might go for Sony's MDR-100ABN but at the moment i don't care about the audio capabilities. The only thing is i like my phone to be rooted but i am worried about is the locked bootloader and the dead development section so i guess Pixel XL will be a safer option for me but again storage will be an issue for me.

Well. To me, the best smartphone Samsung has ever came up with is the Samsung Galaxy s5, the others are CR*P ... I still using my S5 but i think it is time to move on and LG v20 seems like a perfect candidate. I also have a LG G3 and it is even faster than my Galaxy s5. So, why wouldnt i love the V20 (that if it doesnt come with any issues of course lol). I do like AMOLED screen but i hate burn-in image, and i have developed burn in image on all my samsungs (s2, s3, s4 s5, note 2, note 3, and note 4) , yet with the G2, G3, G4, G5 and V10 I have never had burn in image. so i can sacrifice the pure black and the extreme contrast as long as i dont get burn in image. LOL AMOLED screens are way more expensive than IPS screens.
Anyway, i do believe that the V20 could be a great option. But i will buy it after 2 month of release, since this time i only have one chance to buy the phone. I willl wait to see if there will be root, roms and other developments, and no less important, if it comes with any major issues .

joseguillen1994 said:
Well. To me, the best smartphone Samsung has ever came up with is the Samsung Galaxy s5, the others are CR*P ... I still using my S5 but i think it is time to move on and LG v20 seems like a perfect candidate. I also have a LG G3 and it is even faster than my Galaxy s5. So, why wouldnt i love the V20 (that if it doesnt come with any issues of course lol). I do like AMOLED screen but i hate burn-in image, and i have developed burn in image on all my samsungs (s2, s3, s4 s5, note 2, note 3, and note 4) , yet with the G2, G3, G4, G5 and V10 I have never had burn in image. so i can sacrifice the pure black and the extreme contrast as long as i dont get burn in image. LOL AMOLED screens are way more expensive than IPS screens.
Anyway, i do believe that the V20 could be a great option. But i will buy it after 2 month of release, since this time i only have one chance to buy the phone. I willl wait to see if there will be root, roms and other developments, and no less important, if it comes with any major issues .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wad just taking another look at Motorola and moto z force sounds amazing!
Shatterproof display? Hot swappable battery? Maybe later a dac/amp mod!
Too sad that the mod acts as a power bank(afaik 80% wasted as heat and it just wears the unreplaceable internal battery further)
And I won't be able to buy a phone after a year. I assume it will take a year or a year and a half(I can handle 1.5years? Maybe) for it to lose so much capacity that I'll have to hug the wall! My note 4 has 2h SoT after 1.5 years but it's easily replaceable
I don't think there's a reason behind unreplaceable battery other than making us pay more. I mean come on lg does it good! So did note 4 and htc sensation(I know it's old. But it has an amazingly soft button for it to release and it's aluminum)
And how much space does a button waste?
Waterproofing however... S5 is waterproof and has a removable battery(Am I right?) But still...

I currently am using my S5 Active, have been for awhile. I actually bought it off eBay for $200 in brand new condition. This guy is definitely waterproof and has taken more than a dozen drops that i would consider iPhone screen shattering drops - still no scratches on my screen. Battery has been killing me recently though, can't last more than half a day (granted, I am texting and using fb messenger a lot). But other issues such as lag and random freezes have been occurring much more often now. But the nice thing is I have it rooted.
So I could care less about having a locked bootloader, but having a root for the V20 would be amazing. Still- I will be buying the v20 whether it is going to have a locked/unlocked bootloader and even if it won't have a root method. I think this phone is definitely more than a worthy upgrade especially from an S5.

does the DAC only work with the stock music player? what happens when using other music players or soundcloud, youtube,....?

On V10 the dac worked on all audio programs after MM update
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

ok thanks. i asked because on the Axon 7 it wasn´t so, right?

Not sure with the Axon.
There's an high impedance mode too but it depends on your headphones, I remember for the V10 I bought a little cable that automatically enabled high impedance on any headphones. The volume was amazing
Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

NO! You will regret buying a LG phone! No root, no bootloader unlock and no custom ROM..You will be glad if it doesn't bootloop 6 months later..

had a g2 that was rooted and had tons of development and never boot looped... but thanks!
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S7 using Tapatalk

well the Note 4 is one of the laggiest phones I have ever had. My current S7 Edge is not what I would call laggy at all. However it is not as fast as the Nexus 6 that I had.
for LG, i had the G2, G3, and V10. I liked the G2 but did not have it long. The G3 is still in use every day, but my son has it, so not my daily driver, but when I pick it up, it does not seem laggy. The V10 was not laggy, but it drank battery juice. I had to swap a battery around 5pm every day. That got annoying.
I was also considering the Moto Z Force, since it will be super quick. But then the V20 will be bigger and have some cool features, still a toss up for me

CadillacMike said:
well the Note 4 is one of the laggiest phones I have ever had. My current S7 Edge is not what I would call laggy at all. However it is not as fast as the Nexus 6 that I had.
for LG, i had the G2, G3, and V10. I liked the G2 but did not have it long. The G3 is still in use every day, but my son has it, so not my daily driver, but when I pick it up, it does not seem laggy. The V10 was not laggy, but it drank battery juice. I had to swap a battery around 5pm every day. That got annoying.
I was also considering the Moto Z Force, since it will be super quick. But then the V20 will be bigger and have some cool features, still a toss up for me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. S7E is "fast", but no way it feels as fluid as the Nexus, even just a Nexus 6. The LG phones has always been snappy for me, possibly due to the lighter skin on top.
For me, V20 has checked out almost all boxes for me. I could wish for a Samsung-like fast camera, but I can't live without the ultra wide angle now. The vibrator isn't as solid as the flagship counterpart (note, S7, iPhone 7). I would like front facing speakers, but it's not a standard feature. As with all phones, there are small things I can pick on, but for 95% of the phone, I couldn't be happier.
Back to the original question - Yes, I think it's worth it if you use it for music all the time. I can definitely hear a difference from the Quad DAC vs a normal phone or even a phone that has a wolfson DAC. I am only using some alright in ear monitor - Shure SE215 and Monster Turbine Pro.

I remember the audio on my V10 being fantastic, so I would assume the V20 will be even better

2 things that drove me nuts about the V10 and keeps me from considering the V20 is the battery life and the reception that the V10 got. I'm waiting for you all to get them in your hands and start reporting on these 2 things..

Battery is alright so far, things are still settling. Audio is fantastic!

Hi, I'm a musician and I hope I can clarify several things for you:
kamranhaghighi said:
Second: does the DAC ACTUALLY make a difference? Specially for a half-avarage person. I'm not an audiophile but I do care about Audio quality. But for example on mynote 4 I can't tell the difference between flac and mp3 (@320kbps). But I do hear a difference Between 120kbps and flac with my Sennheiser cx 1.00 on some songs. I currently don't have any good headphones but I'm going to buy audio Technica 500x or m40x
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A good DAC will definitely improve the sound quality, no matter the source is mp3 or lossless. However you must understand that for mp3 files a good DAC is totally overkill, which means the improvement would be limited, much less than the improvement of a lossless source. On the other hand, only several technologies like Sony's DSEE HX can improve/repair the quality of lossy files to a certain level and then output as Hi-Res audio.
Using higher quality equipment most of the time makes you aware more of the audio source quality differences, so that's why there is no turning back on equipment
Also as I listen to music on low volume I don't need an AMP or anything. Heck I can tell the name of the song that's playing on the tv o on the background of a movie while I'm in my room listening to music with headphones xD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes an AMP amplifies the volume, but this is not it's only job. Every AMP has it's own acoustic characteristics and that's why there are AMPs of different price tags. An AMP also affects the tone color, spectrum balance, noise ...etc no matter you're listening at high or low volume. However if you actually always listen to music and all the outer sounds at the same time then perhaps it really doesn't matter to you.
And there's no background noise on my note 4. Or my PC! I don't understand why people complain about noise on internal DACs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are speaking about the V20's advertisement of 130dB signal noise ratio (SNR), then actually the "noise" here means unwanted sound only during the signal process, which normal consumers won't care about.
If you are speaking about the noises that people sometimes can hear in the headphone or speaker, they actually have so many possible causes that takes examinations to resolve them, can't simply blame internal DAC.
V20's audio features is attractive enough for me to buy, not only the playback capability but also the HD recording feature. As for casual listeners it will definitely provide better listening experience, but it's full potential can only be discovered using high quality source files and good headphones. Oh, and perhaps a nice listening environment or a noise isolating/canceling headphone

^nice write up and welcome aboard!