Does anyone know if the Sensation will have dual mics used for noise cancellation during calls?
I love this feature on the Nexus One. It works amazingly well. I can't see very switching to a phone that doesn't have it.
Yes it has.
dangerousp said:
Yes it has.
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Thanks. Is there a spec sheet somewhere that shows that? How do we know this is correct?
I think that is part of the dailer/software function instead of hardware thing. So, all android phone should have that function.
siamchen said:
I think that is part of the dailer/software function instead of hardware thing. So, all android phone should have that function.
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it in some way has to do with hardware tho since you need 2 mics to do it
the sensation does have more than 1 mic and yes it does have noise cancelling...
siamchen said:
I think that is part of the dailer/software function instead of hardware thing. So, all android phone should have that function.
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No, this is a hardware function that requires two mics, as xnifex says, and a special voice processing chip made by a company called Audience.
http://www.audience.com/index.php
The Nexus One was one of the first phones to use this chip, much later the iPhone 4 adopted it, so I want to know if the Sensation is using the same audience chip technology as found in the Nexus One.
I guess we'll have to wait for iFixit to tear it apart.
Looking at my sensation, the small hole above the camera appears to be a second microphone since if you remove the cover, the area underneath it has a little rubber grommet which I normally associate with microphones...
The Doctor said:
Looking at my sensation, the small hole above the camera appears to be a second microphone since if you remove the cover, the area underneath it has a little rubber grommet which I normally associate with microphones...
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Thanks for the info. That does seem like a promising sign. Although I do know that some phones, on accasion, have had an extra mic for stereo sound or noise cancellation in video capture, but then not use the mic for calls. And that can also be separate from having the audience chip, which really does an amazing job.
But it's sounding promising so far.
Audience chip is only one way of applying noise cancellation. It could be done via different methods. And it does have two mics (it has to to record in stereo). The manual doesn't mention it but it doesn't mention many things (it's huge and detailed but then again there are SO many things to cover that to cover them all would be overwhelming for any user).
Only a proper review or one of the ones to have the phone will be able to give you a definite answer.
to answer the question with fact here is what i found while trying to solve the 1 processor theory in many of the bench marks... yes there is hardware noise cancellation
The Snapdragon chipset platform is a highly integrated, mobile optimized system on a chip that features Qualcomm?s own ARM-based microprocessor core, graphics core, rich multimedia, GPS engine and wireless connectivity. Its advanced feature set includes:
Enhanced ARM-based CPUs designed from the ground up to deliver unprecedented computing performance
Industry-leading levels of power optimization, allowing manufacturers to design slim yet powerful devices with all-day battery life
Integrated 3G mobile broadband for a rich Internet experience with full Web browsing
Integrated GPU core for accelerated 2D and 3D graphics capabilities for rich multimedia, enhanced gaming, and user interface experiences
Built-in GPS engine with standalone-GPS and Assisted-GPS modes for access to real-time, personalized and location-aware content
High-quality, high-resolution camera, HD video record and playback, and enhanced audio with noise cancellation
Support for leading mobile OS?s such as Android®, Windows® Phone and Brew™ Mobile Platform
solsearch said:
Audience chip is only one way of applying noise cancellation. It could be done via different methods. And it does have two mics (it has to to record in stereo). The manual doesn't mention it but it doesn't mention many things (it's huge and detailed but then again there are SO many things to cover that to cover them all would be overwhelming for any user).
Only a proper review or one of the ones to have the phone will be able to give you a definite answer.
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Yes there are different ways to do this. Motorola has their own solution. But in my experience the audience chip is very much superior to other solutions out there. The Nexus one is just amazing, in noisy settings. And it does seem odd to me that HTC would not be promoting this feature or even mention it in the manual. This is a feature that was very much highlighted in the release of the Nexus One and the iPhone. And, again, dual mics does not necessarily mean they're being used for the calls. Still you're right that perhaps only a review will settle the matter (although I'm always astonished how superficially the question of call quality is treated in reviews, if not ignored altogether).
boostedb16b said:
High-quality, high-resolution camera, HD video record and playback, and enhanced audio with noise cancellation.
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Thanks boostedb16b for the information about the chip. To me the fact that the noise cancellation is listed as a feature in the line that's about video recording suggests, as I said, that the feature may only be there for video recording and not for calls. This is the case in some other phones, like the Nokia N8, which also uses an ARM based cpu.
So I remain hopeful, but a little skeptical of the information given so far.
Well, the Sensation is starting to get a lot of reviews now. As usual, reviewers pay almost no attention to call quality and don't make serious attempts to test it.
That said, I'm seeing contradictory information about the noise cancellation on the Sensation.
Engadget says:
Calls on the Sensation were for the most part clear and competently handled. HTC has an extra microphone on the back of the handset, whose job we presume is to analyze external noise and nullify its effects. In voice calls, the other party heard us even on a busy street where we had our own struggles keeping up with what they were saying to us.
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But, in contrast, Techradar says:
Call quality on the HTC Sensation seems to be poorer than many other phones, which is even more perplexing when there seems to a be a separate noise reduction microphone on offer above the camera.
Even in slight wind we were asked if it was really gusty where we were, and in a bar environment we were practically inaudible.
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Engadget also pointed out the wind issue, when recording video.
I don't know, that's not really sounding like the kind of noise cancellation implementation found in the Nexus One and other phones equipped with the Audience chip. Most phones I find handle street noise (as in Engadget's positive review of the noise cancellation), much better that loud bars (as in Techradar's negative review of the noise cancellation). But on the Nexus One I can be in amazingly loud enviroments (loud music, other people talking, machines operating in the background) and people don't hear anything, often thinking I'm at home.
I'm thinking perhaps HTC passed on the audience chip either as a cost cutting measure or to save space (since the Sensation is pretty compact for a 4.3" screen device).
Related
No matter how much we try to deny it, or try not to talk about it- we must all admit that the speaker output of the Sensation isn't amongst the best we've come across. I've missed calls numerous times (especially in a crowded street or so) just because I couldn't hear the ringer.
Yes, we do have apps such as Volume+ and PowerAmp which does seem to do an alright job- but still doesn't satisfy our need.
Here's my Q- Would installing a speaker from a different model/ phone have a better output? I understand that it might need additional software tweaks as well ( not to mention finding a suitable speaker which fits )- but is it possible?
PS. I'm not a sound crazy noob who just wants to impress people with a loud phone, I honestly can't hear it half the time.
Regards,
Tony
Would be interesting! This is my chief complaint with my phone.
I dont understand why this has not been touched yet. Its been the number one issue since day one, volume+ only helps with media.
Dacoit said:
I dont understand why this has not been touched yet. Its been the number one issue since day one, volume+ only helps with media.
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Sure has been. Any input from someone who has a better understanding of the internals of a Sensation would definitely be helpful. And I for one definitely wouldn't mind risking the warranty if it actually seems possible.
Which one of the HTC line would have the most powerful loudspeaker? I suppose those within the HTC family maybe an easier fit.
I think HTC Sensation has the same speaker as the HTC Droid Incredible 2, HTC Evo 3d(expected),HTC Freestyle & HTC Incredible S based to how they used the same picture for these phones speakers on www.repairsuniverse.com. Anybody know about the sound quality from these phones?
I've heard that the Evo 3D stores a pretty powerful sound output. Judging by the link, I'd say it might be a good fit on the sensation as well.
But I sure hope it isn't exactly the same speaker. That'd be like installing a Sensation XE speaker on the Sensation- Foolish.
The only thing i fear is that our phones have a weak speaker because of the design of the case. The hole for the speaker on the sensation is small and off center of the actual speaker. The Evo3d has a seemingly larger slits for the speaker and it seems to be on center so that might be the difference. Has anybody opened the phone and used the speaker without the plastic body and the battery cover in the way?
kevinliu2336 said:
The only thing i fear is that our phones have a weak speaker because of the design of the case. The hole for the speaker on the sensation is small and off center of the actual speaker. The Evo3d has a seemingly larger slits for the speaker and it seems to be on center so that might be the difference. Has anybody opened the phone and used the speaker without the plastic body and the battery cover in the way?
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I had that suspicion earlier today as well. And I did try it out with the rear housing off. There really wasn't much of a difference- it might seem a bit louder with the back off, but at the same time it seems to pump more bass with it on.
I wouldn't mind trying out an EVO 3D speaker on mine to figure if it does make a difference, but I'd need someone to confirm that they aren't the same speakers as the sensation. Any additional info/ tips would be appreciated- Let me get this done and make myself a bit useful to the forum
If you are using an mp3 as a ringtone, that can be re-recorded at a higher output level. Not sure if there is an Android audio app that would let you do that directly on the phone, but certainly there are lots of audio apps for Mac and PC that will do the job.
stroobach said:
If you are using an mp3 as a ringtone, that can be re-recorded at a higher output level. Not sure if there is an Android audio app that would let you do that directly on the phone, but certainly there are lots of audio apps for Mac and PC that will do the job.
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Sure there are apps which would help increase output to a certain level, but still does't reach expected levels. For all having issues with the loudspeaker output- I'd recommend this thread for now: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1389756
All credits go to the OP of that thread- that sure was an amazing find! Worked well for me, and editing that particular file whilst installing a different speaker might help even better. Will get back on that as soon as I'm done with a project deadline.
I guess we all agree that the loudspeaker on the Sensation is woeful. I own a Touch Pro 2 and the dual speakers are LOUD. They are probably the loudest speaker phone that you can ever find from the entire HTC product line. Interestingly, the dual speakers are also designed such that the left speaker is behaving like the tweeter (higher pitch sounds) while the right speaker is the woofer (lower pitch sounds). It is very apparent when you cover up one and then the other while some music is playing.
I have ordered a spare speaker (meant for repairs) for the Touch Pro 2 and will be playing around with it to see if some hardware mods are possible to improve the Sensation's speakers. The delivery is expected to take 3 weeks to arrive.
I don't wish to dig up zombies, but I thought it better to continue an old thread than start a new one due to others insights.
Has anyone tried other speakers to see if they fit in the Sensation? I too have come from the Touch Pro2, and there was a tweak on it which made the speaker even louder (it was already quite loud!). I could hold a conversation, hands-free, in my car with the window down on the motorway no problem. And now, coming to the Senny, I'm almost embarrased to play music to anyone (unless using the headphones). I realise we can't get the TP2 speakers on the Senny (as there is more involved than just swapping a speaker - even if there was room for 2 larger speakers in the Senny).
Anyway. @darkytoothpaste, or anyone else, has there been any progress with the speaker hardware?
I'm wondering if anyone has been able to figure out if the Nexus 5 has the Audience Earsmart noise cancellation chip, like the LG G2. That is the feature that I most miss from the Nexus One, when I upgraded to the Nexus 4.
Qualcomm's Fluence noise cancellation if far inferior to the Audience chip. But I don't really want to have to get the G2 or an S4 to get Audience's noise cancellation.
Well, if anyone is interested, AnandTech finally did one of their incredibly thorough reviews of the Nexus 5 and confirmed what I suspected, which is that the N5 uses Qualcomm's Fluence for noise cancellation, not the Audience chip:
http://anandtech.com/show/7517/google-nexus-5-review/7
In their noise suppression test, the N5 did seem to do better than other Fluence based phones, so it's nice that Fluence may be improving. But it's still nowhere near as good as the Nexus One was with the Audience chip (or the iPhone 4, before Apple also bizarrely dropped the Audience chip from the iPhone 5).
cb474 said:
Well, if anyone is interested, AnandTech finally did one of their incredibly thorough reviews of the Nexus 5 and confirmed what I suspected, which is that the N5 uses Qualcomm's Fluence for noise cancellation, not the Audience chip:
http://anandtech.com/show/7517/google-nexus-5-review/7
In their noise suppression test, the N5 did seem to do better than other Fluence based phones, so it's nice that Fluence may be improving. But it's still nowhere near as good as the Nexus One was with the Audience chip (or the iPhone 4, before Apple also bizarrely dropped the Audience chip from the iPhone 5).
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It's nice that we have something. I've talked to people before on IPhone 4's and it's unbelievable how well the noise cancellation works on those phones. One of our sales guys was in a very noisy factory and it literally sounds like he's in a mostly quiet room.
jawmail said:
It's nice that we have something. I've talked to people before on IPhone 4's and it's unbelievable how well the noise cancellation works on those phones. One of our sales guys was in a very noisy factory and it literally sounds like he's in a mostly quiet room.
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Yeah, I'd rather have some noise cancellation than no noise cancellation, but it's ridiculous how much better the Audience chip is than Qualcomm's Fluence, as you've experienced with the iPhone 4.
But the thing that's hard for me to let go of is that the Nexus One had the Audience chip (before the iPhone, by the way, but of course Apple still got the credit for "discovering" noise cancellation). Everything else since then has been a big step backwards. There's just no reason to have to put up with Fluence, when Audience exists. There's no reason the Nexus 4 and 5 should be leagues behind the Nexus One for any feature. And meanwhile Audience has been improving its chip, which was already even years ago way better than anything else available today.
The only company that seems to get this is Samsung. They put Audience in all their top end phones. It's so much better than everything else, why bother. I think everyone else is probably being cheap/greedy about the licensing fees. There's no excuse in a flagship phone. Apple has no excuse going backwards with the iPhone 5. Even HTC stopped using Audience. It was in the One X, but dropped in the One (shame on you HTC, the One is an expensive phone, you don't get to cheap out on the noise cancellation--especially since the One is supposed to be "the" high quality audio phone).
Anyway, perhaps one of these days I'll have to just get a Samsung phone. I really don't like the designs. But I really miss the Audience chip from the Nexus One.
In a phone that's counting every penny I can see exactly why Google did it. Always wondering how they got so much phone into such a small price bracket and this is just one more way they'd rather integrate then use a separate processor for. Maybe in the Moto X.
just got my nexus 5 after nearly a month of waiting. only had two days with it so far, but coming from an iPhone 5, the speaker volume is rather lacking. Compared the same exact music/sounds with my iPhone 5. iPhone practically stomped on volume loudness. the most bothersome of this issue is that ringtones, google voice, etc is not very audible, even at the nexus 5's highest volume. so, is this issue a software issue that can be fixed in an update? like has it been confirmed? im aware of the hardware mod on this forum, but id rather wait on voiding my warranty if I can, so im willing to wait if a firmware update CAN fix this.
unvaluablespace said:
just got my nexus 5 after nearly a month of waiting. only had two days with it so far, but coming from an iPhone 5, the speaker volume is rather lacking. Compared the same exact music/sounds with my iPhone 5. iPhone practically stomped on volume loudness. the most bothersome of this issue is that ringtones, google voice, etc is not very audible, even at the nexus 5's highest volume. so, is this issue a software issue that can be fixed in an update? like has it been confirmed? im aware of the hardware mod on this forum, but id rather wait on voiding my warranty if I can, so im willing to wait if a firmware update CAN fix this.
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According to this, it's a software issue but I don't know how anyone will know for sure until a software update comes out.
unvaluablespace said:
just got my nexus 5 after nearly a month of waiting. only had two days with it so far, but coming from an iPhone 5, the speaker volume is rather lacking. Compared the same exact music/sounds with my iPhone 5. iPhone practically stomped on volume loudness. the most bothersome of this issue is that ringtones, google voice, etc is not very audible, even at the nexus 5's highest volume. so, is this issue a software issue that can be fixed in an update? like has it been confirmed? im aware of the hardware mod on this forum, but id rather wait on voiding my warranty if I can, so im willing to wait if a firmware update CAN fix this.
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Being one of the people who did the HW mod, I'd say both. The HW is definitely not properly made, most notably the speaker hosing is sealed which doesn't allow the speaker to move air efficiently and so makes for a very lousy sound. There also have been some success in SW which makes me think that with 5min spent to do the HW mod and decent SW update the phone can finally become borderline usable as far as speaker goes.
Vibration is another issue...
Some success in software? Is this something I can try before resorting to he mod? (I will probably wait before going the latter route)
Vibration doesn't seem too much of an issue to me. Not sure though, haven't compared with my old phone, though I will say the haptic feedback (I think that's what its called) every time I click a button or use the keyboard, is kind of annoying lol
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
unvaluablespace said:
Some success in software? Is this something I can try before resorting to he mod? (I will probably wait before going the latter route)
Vibration doesn't seem too much of an issue to me. Not sure though, haven't compared with my old phone, though I will say the haptic feedback (I think that's what its called) every time I click a button or use the keyboard, is kind of annoying lol
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
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The sw mod really simple and easy, and yes you can restore the factory settings easy.
Check this topic:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2532788
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
caslca said:
Being one of the people who did the HW mod, I'd say both. The HW is definitely not properly made, most notably the speaker hosing is sealed which doesn't allow the speaker to move air efficiently and so makes for a very lousy sound. There also have been some success in SW which makes me think that with 5min spent to do the HW mod and decent SW update the phone can finally become borderline usable as far as speaker goes.
Vibration is another issue...
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there is a reason speakers have a sealed back. it's to keep the sound on th erear of the speaker from cancelling the sound on the front. dipole speakers don't have a sealed back and they drop a very regular decibel every octave below the wavelength of the baffle. there isn't much room for a large baffle in a phone so the back is sealed instead to try to preserve what little bass a small speaker can create. but the bass the speaker can create is soo little you may not notice the loss and instead notice some gain from increasing speaker excursion and effectively having double the cone area.
there are also ported/bass reflex boxes that phase shift the rear sound wave through a resonant chamber and a port to extend bass by putting the rear wave in phase with the front for a small frequency window.
there are other designs. but not much that will fit in a phone. i wouldn't say the design of the phone is faulty, just ineffective on such a small scale. maybe a trasmission line design where there was a channel that snaked around all the free space in the phone would be better. a rear loaded horn would be louder but takes up a lot of space.
as far as software, well there is only so much voltage that the internal amp can drive the speaker with. they have to find a gain ratio where there is enough headroom at full volume for most content to play without clipping. music is very dynamic and the louder something is the more extra energy you need to create an equivalent apparent change in loudness. you can raise the gain on almost any well designed system and not experience clipping on 90% + of a song but there may be a section of a particular song where you lose headroom and drive it into clipping. they probably went on the safe side with the hardware gain to preserve the quality of the music. but by all means if you prefer more loudness use a software mod.
there are some things that you could do, like software compression where the gain drops on the parts that exceed the max loudness. but it can make the music sound less lively. or you can just let it clip and maybe eventually damage the amp and/or speaker but that's probably not even a problem on such a small scale.
Whenever we video record live bands my audio is just distorted and choppy but my friends audio is good on their iphones. I've compared three events. I figured it would happen to all of us because its death metal so it's super loud. But because it didn't happen with theirs I'm super envious.
augoza said:
Whenever we video record live bands my audio is just distorted and choppy but my friends audio is good on their iphones. I've compared three events. I figured it would happen to all of us because its death metal so it's super loud. But because it didn't happen with theirs I'm super envious.
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I guess this is a common issue! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlzotUTrd1Q
Recording live music is always tough I suppose as the microphones have to be capable of hearing you say "OK Google" pretty quietly... clearly in decibel terms that is mile away from volumes at a concert.
If the iPhone does it well that's probably kudos to Apple rather than a big red mark against LG. It does cost half as much afterall!
surrealjam said:
I guess this is a common issue! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlzotUTrd1Q
Recording live music is always tough I suppose as the microphones have to be capable of hearing you say "OK Google" pretty quietly... clearly in decibel terms that is mile away from volumes at a concert.
If the iPhone does it well that's probably kudos to Apple rather than a big red mark against LG. It does cost half as much afterall!
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Yeah good points. I wonder if I turn off google now, it'll make a difference.
There is a microphone issue n the N5. You'll never get goo results. You my improve them by covering up the noise cancellation microphone.
I'm curious if this is kernel related. I know I had the problem when I was on stock. I just played a video that I recorded while on franco kernel and the sound seemed fine.
Its likely just better quality mics on the iPhone, or designed mic just like how Nokia made their phone able to record loud audio concerts over 100 db. Nexus 5 just didn't cover that function.
Or as said perhaps blocking the noise canceling mic may be a work around. A kernel could perhaps fix it but that depends on many things so I doubt that would happen.
Bought s8+ on the 6th, no problems till I played music while playing a game. No game in particular, they all do it. I'm a spotify user, enter an app and my volume decreases not by volume by button but physically, I have to maximize my volume to get back the sound I had before entering the application. Otherwise it's far too quiet. Not sure if a bug but there's no option to turn this off. Irritating. Anyone else know how to turn off?
I use spotify and other music apps but my sound it low with any headphones have volume full to max aswell
Sent from my SM-G955F using XDA-Developers Legacy app
rowbaggie22 said:
I use spotify and other music apps but my sound it low with any headphones have volume full to max aswell
Sent from my SM-G955F using XDA-Developers Legacy app
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I have the same problem. Don't think there's anything to be done about it, the DAC inside the phone is just not that good. Pretty disappointing to be honest.
ynrozturk said:
I have the same problem. Don't think there's anything to be done about it, the DAC inside the phone is just not that good. Pretty disappointing to be honest.
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Sound stage is highly subjective. No two individuals will enjoy the same music genre nor the way its reproduced. Some listeners prefer heavy 'boom boom' base while others enjoy a 'bright higher pitched' overall tone, then there's the billions in between those extremes.
One has to be realistic with a mobile phone that performs so many tasks. We read an awful lot about the camera, got to the point where many look at the camera before they even consider signal strength etc? No mobile can, nor should, match a DSLR. Same with the sound reproduction. One cannot compare the quality of sound against a dedicated high res player like the Astel&Kern costing 3k or similar stand alone mobile players. It has to be a question of compromise.
I never use the camera. I do listen to music an awful lot that is why I have spent many thousands of € buying various dedicated high res players. Problem is obvious. Summer day in shorts who wants to carry an DSLR, Dedicated Digital audio player and a mobile phone?
The S8+ sounds fine when paired with decent head phones either on ear or over ear plus ear buds. Many are enjoying the AKG developed ear buds that came with the mobile. I DON'T like the AKG ear buds, that is personal taste though.
Non the less considering the S8+ does so many things so well I cannot fault its sound reproduction considering its a mobile phone
If you desire a true hifidelity portable sound then you are going to have to dig very deep into your pockets. Putting that proposition to one side the S8+ can produce a very acceptable sound for the masses including myself who is a hifi junkie.
Suggestion. Try a number of different head gear ranging from ear buds to on ear head phones. OBVIOUSLY when using the on ear or around ear head phones volume will be affected as the S8+ is not designed to power such head sets even though it does a bloomin good job! When using ear buds you can achieve a high volume. Bluetooth are another option though sound quality does degrade accordingly.
So, all in all its compromise but Samsung has balanced the equation rather well. Again personal taste will always be a major factor eg, I don't enjoy the sound stage LG mobiles produce even though many people do. If you are looking for an exceptional sound stage from a mobile phone try out the Sony range, they should be good being the masters of portable hifi from the off. I enjoy both the Sony and Samsung sound reproduction but give the edge to Sony on most occasions.
Ryland:good:
ynrozturk said:
I have the same problem. Don't think there's anything to be done about it, the DAC inside the phone is just not that good. Pretty disappointing to be honest.
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Click to collapse
Are you on the Exynos version as well? Maybe it's an Exynos problem, my Snapdragon S8+ has no problem running my Sennheiser HD700's, plenty loud at half volume. (Sounds pretty good too I might add)
Cautions said:
Bought s8+ on the 6th, no problems till I played music while playing a game. No game in particular, they all do it. I'm a spotify user, enter an app and my volume decreases not by volume by button but physically, I have to maximize my volume to get back the sound I had before entering the application. Otherwise it's far too quiet. Not sure if a bug but there's no option to turn this off. Irritating. Anyone else know how to turn off?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same problem on my Oneplus 3T so I do not think it is hardware related. (I was playing pokemon GO while listening to music)
PoLoMoTo said:
Are you on the Exynos version as well? Maybe it's an Exynos problem, my Snapdragon S8+ has no problem running my Sennheiser HD700's, plenty loud at half volume. (Sounds pretty good too I might add)
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Yep, Exynos version.
---------- Post added at 09:29 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:26 AM ----------
Ryland Johnson said:
Sound stage is highly subjective. No two individuals will enjoy the same music genre nor the way its reproduced. Some listeners prefer heavy 'boom boom' base while others enjoy a 'bright higher pitched' overall tone, then there's the billions in between those extremes.
One has to be realistic with a mobile phone that performs so many tasks. We read an awful lot about the camera, got to the point where many look at the camera before they even consider signal strength etc? No mobile can, nor should, match a DSLR. Same with the sound reproduction. One cannot compare the quality of sound against a dedicated high res player like the Astel&Kern costing 3k or similar stand alone mobile players. It has to be a question of compromise.
I never use the camera. I do listen to music an awful lot that is why I have spent many thousands of € buying various dedicated high res players. Problem is obvious. Summer day in shorts who wants to carry an DSLR, Dedicated Digital audio player and a mobile phone?
The S8+ sounds fine when paired with decent head phones either on ear or over ear plus ear buds. Many are enjoying the AKG developed ear buds that came with the mobile. I DON'T like the AKG ear buds, that is personal taste though.
Non the less considering the S8+ does so many things so well I cannot fault its sound reproduction considering its a mobile phone
If you desire a true hifidelity portable sound then you are going to have to dig very deep into your pockets. Putting that proposition to one side the S8+ can produce a very acceptable sound for the masses including myself who is a hifi junkie.
Suggestion. Try a number of different head gear ranging from ear buds to on ear head phones. OBVIOUSLY when using the on ear or around ear head phones volume will be affected as the S8+ is not designed to power such head sets even though it does a bloomin good job! When using ear buds you can achieve a high volume. Bluetooth are another option though sound quality does degrade accordingly.
So, all in all its compromise but Samsung has balanced the equation rather well. Again personal taste will always be a major factor eg, I don't enjoy the sound stage LG mobiles produce even though many people do. If you are looking for an exceptional sound stage from a mobile phone try out the Sony range, they should be good being the masters of portable hifi from the off. I enjoy both the Sony and Samsung sound reproduction but give the edge to Sony on most occasions.
Ryland:good:
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Thanks for your input. I know where you're coming from because I think the same. I'm a musician so audio is kind of a big part of my life. I don't buy a phone expecting it to have the power of my DAC's or amps at home - but I want it to be decent at least. The S8's isn't decent - far from it. I've thrown a number of headphones and IEM's at it and it still performs poorly - because the DAC inside is poor. It really is that quite simple. I don't expect it to run my Beyerdynamic T1's or anything, lol. But I do expect it to run my IEM Shure or Sennheisers at least decently, which it doesn't.
I also agree about the camera part. While I do appreciate a good camera in my phone, when I go out to take pictures I would much rather have my Sony A7RII with me, along with some Zeiss glass.
Ironic that once it was the Exynos versions (Note 3) that had premium audio (Wolfson DAC) while the Snapdragon phones languished. Now it seems it's the exact opposite, lots of complaints from the Exynos crowd and nothing but praise from the Snapdragon set. I personally have the US ATT version (SD835 + Aqstic DAC) and the sound quality is superb, both with full custom Shure SE-535Vs and Sennheiser HD-700s (directly driven from the phone). Definitely a step up from my S7E.
For reference I'm also a musician with a pretty good idea of what real instruments sound like (9ft Concert Grand in my living room).