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Audio Quality?

Now that this phone has officially launched, I'd like to get an idea about the audio quality of the Sensation through the 3.5mm headphone jack. Audio quality is a huge deal for me when it comes to purchasing new phones so please be as detailed as you can.

i to would like to know, im coming from the Nexus S with the one hack i forget what its called havent use my Nexus S since like March, damn o yea its called Voo Doo sound. And it sounds ****in amazing excuse my language its just that great in ear headphones with voo doo. I would like for the Sensation to be better or @ least on par with it.

Also, someone who has the phone can tell us about the quality of the external speaker and if it is any better than that of older HTC phones. The one on my desire really sucks in comparison with the Galaxy S or the iphone.

giorgisp said:
Also, someone who has the phone can tell us about the quality of the external speaker and if it is any better than that of older HTC phones. The one on my desire really sucks in comparison with the Galaxy S or the iphone.
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Someone said it was an improvement over their previous HTC phone (I think it was sjgore saying it was better than the Desire HD)l

I can honestly say the sound quality is good and clear. Lacking bass though and not loud through the speaker

Virtue94 said:
Now that this phone has officially launched, I'd like to get an idea about the audio quality of the Sensation through the 3.5mm headphone jack. Audio quality is a huge deal for me when it comes to purchasing new phones so please be as detailed as you can.
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I'm also very curious on this as I'd value such a device as an audio player to use with audiophile headphones (some of the ones I have are low impedance IEMs, others I'd use with portable amplifiers like the Meier Corda Move), mostly to play flacs.
I've owned the Samsung Galaxy S and the audio quality was pretty decent, flat, black silence and so on. Wondering if this latest HTC is better than previous HTC models.
I only care about the 3.5mm jack audio, not the speaker.. don't use that for music.

sound
And as the whole quality of sound on Sensation? Slightly better Desire HD or well?

Im more interested about the speaker quality when you talk to someone thorough the speaker phone.. can you hear the person loud and clear? can he hear you clearly?

yea like the guy 2 or 3 post above me said, im wayy more interested in the Sound Output from the headphone jack. Ive heard that the Thunderbolts external speaker is absolutely amazing like the HTC Surrounds so if the sensation is on par or even better than those 2's then itll be great for internal speaker. But im not sure about external output to the phone

The sound quality is great on the phone, it is louder than a stock DHD and the quality and bass is perfect through the headphones especially with the SRS effects. The headphones I am using are Sennheiser cx400, it would be wise to use a good pair of headphones

Audio quality TI Audio chip v/s Wolfson 8994 ???
HTC Sensation if "TI Audio chipset" then crappy sound.
If HTC sensation comes with "WOLFSON 8994" then amazing sound.
Still looking for the HTC sensation internal motherboard pics or plan.

agent.m said:
I can honestly say the sound quality is good and clear. Lacking bass though and not loud through the speaker
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Are you talking about the sound quality through headphones or the loud speaker? I could care less about the latter.

beautyangel said:
HTC Sensation if "TI Audio chipset" then crappy sound.
If HTC sensation comes with "WOLFSON 8994" then amazing sound.
Still looking for the HTC sensation internal motherboard pics or plan.
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Wrong. Preamps dictate the sound signature of the phone. DACs don't matter as much as you think they do. As long as it's clean, we're good.

Preamps
If preamps Over rule on sensation, thats a great news. Thx for the correction if the Sensation is carrying a preamps.

m1r4j91 said:
The sound quality is great on the phone, it is louder than a stock DHD and the quality and bass is perfect through the headphones especially with the SRS effects. The headphones I am using are Sennheiser cx400, it would be wise to use a good pair of headphones
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+1, except that I'm using Sennheiser CX 300's.

can anyone comment about the loudspeaker quality when talking to a person? can you hear him well without distortions and vice versa?

Virtue94 said:
Wrong. Preamps dictate the sound signature of the phone. DACs don't matter as much as you think they do. As long as it's clean, we're good.
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Wrong.
Crap in crap out, if the source is low grade, the OPA will do nothing to change that. I'm not saying that DACs are the most important thing, but they are definitely at the beginning of the system. Of course, the very very beginning would be the sound file in question.... FLAC(which stock android wont even support), or low bitrate MP3.

PhaedraCorruption said:
Wrong.
Crap in crap out, if the source is low grade, the OPA will do nothing to change that. I'm not saying that DACs are the most important thing, but they are definitely at the beginning of the system. Of course, the very very beginning would be the sound file in question.... FLAC(which stock android wont even support), or low bitrate MP3.
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I am aware of that fact. But us users can actually do something about the source files that we play. FLAC and ALAC support is included with certain apps like PowerAmp so it can remedied to a certain extent. Audio hardware however, can't be modified so easily; you're basically stuck with a certain audio setup once you buy the device. So am I right on point this time?

Virtue94 said:
I am aware of that fact. But us users can actually do something about the source files that we play. FLAC and ALAC support is included with certain apps like PowerAmp so it can remedied to a certain extent. Audio hardware however, can't be modified so easily; you're basically stuck with a certain audio setup once you buy the device. So am I right on point this time?
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Well my point is, while the DAC is definitely not the most important part of the system, it is more important that the OPA(optical parametric amplifier), which you said was more crucial than the dac. .
This fact is only applies for 99.99% of circumstances though, you could be the oddball with the full sized headphones that are hard to drive... but really, if you're going to spend $200+ on headphones, you might as well get a portable amp along with it.

PhaedraCorruption said:
Well my point is, while the DAC is definitely not the most important part of the system, it is more important that the OPA(operational amplifier), which you said was more crucial than the dac. .
This fact is only applies for 99.99% of circumstances though, you could be the oddball with the full sized headphones that are hard to drive... but really, if you're going to spend $200+ on headphones, you might as well get a portable amp along with it.
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Lol I am that oddball And I do have a portable amp btw. I just really hate walking around with it since it isn't very portable.

LG Optimus 3D Audio Quality

Hi,
How good is the SQ of O3D? Is it comparable to iP4/SGS 2?
Thanks!
Sent from my GT-I5801 using XDA App

The speakers aren't great and I think it's pretty bad at recording sound, especially in a loud environment.
Works well with headphones though

Hmmm....So did you tried any 3rd party headphones or only using those that came bundled with O3D?
Sent from my GT-I5801 using XDA App

I'm using high-end headphones, but the ones that came with it looked OK. I never expect much from what constructors put in the box...
Sent from my LG-P920 using XDA App

Wow you guys got headphones with your O3D. We didn't get that with the Thrill!

I havent even opened the headphones that came with it. Ive used it with several different sets of cans though, including sony vf-150s and beyerdynamic dt-770ms and it sounds pretty great on all of them.
One flaw ive noticed with audio is that the phone creates a loud pop when the audio driver kicks in at the beginning of playback. Quite annoying if you ever plug it into a PA system.
Sent from my LG-P920 using xda premium

BigCiX said:
Wow you guys got headphones with your O3D. We didn't get that with the Thrill!
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We got an HDMI cable though.

Killer Bee said:
We got an HDMI cable though.
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Lol at first I was like :/ but then I was all

Headphones are really good, speakers are loud and good. But, recording voice quality is horrible when there is a noise or lound voices, so, that is just what annoyes me.

The sound coming out of the speakers is tiny and according to this review, the quality of the sound coming out of the headphones is one of the worst they've heard :S. They rate it as excellent if you plug it in your car or PA system...

LG earphones+poweramp with dance preset and bass and treble knob turned to middle= best earphones compared to every other earphone that comes bundled with any other mobile!

ofutur said:
The sound coming out of the speakers is tiny and according to this review, the quality of the sound coming out of the headphones is one of the worst they've heard :S. They rate it as excellent if you plug it in your car or PA system...
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I think you are misreading what they are stating. Here is the exact quote:
GSMARENA said:
When headphones come into play, however, the stereo crosstalk takes a really serious hit - it gets relegated from excellent to one of the worst we have seen.
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What they are saying is that the stereo crosstalk, when using headphones, dips to one of the lowest levels they have seen. This is not the same as saying that "the quality of sound coming out of the headphones is one of the worst they have heard."
In addition, if you look at the comparison chart, the only phone in that list that is significantly better then all the rest is the HTC Sensation.

speaker quality compared to iphone4: bad. very bad.
speaker loudness compared to iphone4: much much better.
i prefer the optimus 3d. i have x-mini mobile speakers if i really want to listen to my phone.

naplesbill said:
I think you are misreading what they are stating. Here is the exact quote:
What they are saying is that the stereo crosstalk, when using headphones, dips to one of the lowest levels they have seen. This is not the same as saying that "the quality of sound coming out of the headphones is one of the worst they have heard."
In addition, if you look at the comparison chart, the only phone in that list that is significantly better then all the rest is the HTC Sensation.
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No offence, but I think that you don't know what stereo crosstalk is. -44.1 is pretty bad. Vinyls give you around -30.
Look at the numbers for Apple which is still a reference when it comes to pocketable audio players.

ofutur said:
No offence, but I think that you don't know what stereo crosstalk is. -44.1 is pretty bad. Vinyls give you around -30.
Look at the numbers for Apple which is still a reference when it comes to pocketable audio players.
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I am not debating that. I just felt the need to point out the difference in verbage, which insinuated something different than what was actually stated. I understand the value of the crosstalk measurement, but it's not the only measurement involved. Sorry if you felt offended.
Additionally, look at the other devices compared and you will see that it wasn't the worst of the pack. It looks almost par with the GSII in most regards. Of course, I don't think that is such a great thing either.
I also noticed that in the chart for Apple, that the original Galaxy S is worse than the Optimus 3D as well.

I agree with you and I apologize . My original statement was misleading. The crosstalk is one of the worst, but overall the quality of the sound coming out of the O3D was rated as being average.

Audio out quality

Hi all
Ordered my 32gb, white N5, which should be delivered early next week.
But while anxiously waiting and reading first feedbacks, I had a question that seemed to have not been answered yet.
What about audio jack quality? I don't expect a smartphone to drive a high spec earbud like a professional DAC, but the N4 was a bit disappointing. Muddy bass, irritating highs, it was definitely not enough for my Fidelio S2.
So what to expect from the N5? Does it come with a Wolfson DAC (I don't think so) or with the same DAC the G2 is equipped with? How does it sound?

i would imagine it uses a Qualcomm dac like the N4 before it only perhaps an updated one. i found the N4 to sound alright on my Sure SE535's but bass not as clear / punchy as any wolfson ive had previously.
if you goto the snapdragon S800 page if i recall it does talk about the DAC
Also the S800 now has a Dedicated DSP processor and 4.4 uses direct audio tunneling to the DSP so it will be interesting to see how this will effect the audio quality to.
EDIT: from what i understand tho the Qualcomm DAC's are more analytical in sound they tend to give detail and lack warmth in the sound.

How is the volume? I'm hearing impaired and I was always listening my music on full volume.
I read somewhere that the N5 would be louder. Can someone confirm this for me?

audio is a big one for me as well.
if it isnt a big improvement over the n4 it will be getting sold. Ive been spoiled with my htc one after having the n4.

aimetti said:
audio is a big one for me as well.
if it isnt a big improvement over the n4 it will be getting sold. Ive been spoiled with my htc one after having the n4.
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yeah, I used to listen my music on my ipod touch 64GB but it broke down. Just recently I started using my N4 as my daily music-"machine" D) and google music all access is great. However, the N4 was just not loud enough for some albums (usually older and quieter stuff) and 16GB weren't much enough.
I hope my new N5 white 32GB will be better as music player... I will find out at the latest on monday..

Just pasting my comment from a discussion on G+, some may find it useful:
From a quick test I believe it sounds better than my good ol' Nexus 4. The sound is a bit more bass-y, though I'm not sure if it's just "coloured", or the fact that Nexus 4's sound is a bit on the "tinny" side (note: I'm not using audiophile-grade gear, just slightly(?)-above-the-average Klipsch S4 in-ears). I'd say the sound is more balanced now. Also, output appears to be higher than on the Nexus 4.
Take the above with a grain of salt, this is a matter of personal preference after all. For proper analysis you should wait for Supercurio or someone with the proper tools + time to do it.
Edit: Before anyone asks about external DACs, just tried to connect my ODAC hoping for some sound to play from my speakers. No luck. Not even with a Y-Cable so I guess we're going to have to rely on custom kernels again.

phunkycow said:
Just pasting my comment from a discussion on G+, some may find it useful:
From a quick test I believe it sounds better than my good ol' Nexus 4. The sound is a bit more bass-y, though I'm not sure if it's just "coloured", or the fact that Nexus 4's sound is a bit on the "tinny" side (note: I'm not using audiophile-grade gear, just slightly(?)-above-the-average Klipsch S4 in-ears). I'd say the sound is more balanced now. Also, output appears to be higher than on the Nexus 4.
Take the above with a grain of salt, this is a matter of personal preference after all. For proper analysis you should wait for Supercurio or someone with the proper tools + time to do it.
Edit: Before anyone asks about external DACs, just tried to connect my ODAC hoping for some sound to play from my speakers. No luck. Not even with a Y-Cable so I guess we're going to have to rely on custom kernels again.
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Thanks!
With higher output, do you mean more volume, louder?
I also have Klipsch S4 (II) and I found it already quite (too?) bassy on my N4

Blocoholi said:
Thanks!
With higher output, do you mean more volume, louder?
I also have Klipsch S4 (II) and I found it already quite (too?) bassy on my N4
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Got the S4 (I), not sure if there's a difference!
Yep, that's what I meant about the output, sorry for the confusion.

Indeed. I hope the audio is better than the n4. Heck, my i9100 has better audio quality than the n4.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 4

I'm coming from a GNexus and when I plug my phone into the aux jack in my car it sounds absolutely terrible. It's just horribly muffled and muddy compared to virtually anything else I've plugged in.
Anyone know what kind of improvements I can expect? Was the N4 any better than the GNexus? It's pretty embarrassing to want to share a song with friends and after someone unplugs their iphone my phone sounds like garbage.

feedtheducks said:
Indeed. I hope the audio is better than the n4. Heck, my i9100 has better audio quality than the n4.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 4
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Nope nooope no no no no no nopity nope no no no. I'm sorry but having owned both Galaxy S2 and Nexus 4, the Nexus 4 definitely has better music-playing quality through headphones. 100%.
Will receive my Nexus 5 hopefully Monday!

Hopefully the audio quality can compete with a Samsung Galaxy S3 + Boeffla Sound Engine. I´ll really miss this one

Headphone volume question

Hello everyone. I currently have the Nexus 4 and wanted to know how the audio compares on the Nexus 5 to the Nexus 4. One problem I've had with the Nexus 4 is that audio through wired headphones is too low. I'm a little hard of hearing and the volume through the headphone jack has always been an issue on the N4 for me. When I use the same headphones on a different phone (tried on galaxy s4 and iPhone) the volume is much higher. Can anyone tell me how the volume on the N5 compares. Is it higher than the N4?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

JohnnyDanger said:
Hello everyone. I currently have the Nexus 4 and wanted to know how the audio compares on the Nexus 5 to the Nexus 4. One problem I've had with the Nexus 4 is that audio through wired headphones is too low. I'm a little hard of hearing and the volume through the headphone jack has always been an issue on the N4 for me. When I use the same headphones on a different phone (tried on galaxy s4 and iPhone) the volume is much higher. Can anyone tell me how the volume on the N5 compares. Is it higher than the N4?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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What I can tell you is that the volume is still low on the Nexus 5. Not sure how it compares with the nexus fuor, but I am already looking for a portable amplifier.
In an unrelated question, I'd like to know if the Nexus 5 supports higher frequency (96 khz) lossless audio like the LG G2.

Well that's a shame. That is a big factor in me getting it. I use my phone so much for music I really need decent volume.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

I dont know what you guys are talking about. I came from the note 3 and htc one and this is actually BETTER than both of them. Maybe not in pure volume, but the clarity is excellent. WAY better than the N4,

aooga said:
I dont know what you guys are talking about. I came from the note 3 and htc one and this is actually BETTER than both of them. Maybe not in pure volume, but the clarity is excellent. WAY better than the N4,
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For me, volume is just as important as clarity. I wish there was somewhere that I could actually test the Nexus 5. No one I know buys Nexus phones, so Im kind of stuck buying them and hoping I like what I get. Everything I read points to me liking it, but the volume is just a big concern.

JohnnyDanger said:
For me, volume is just as important as clarity. I wish there was somewhere that I could actually test the Nexus 5. No one I know buys Nexus phones, so Im kind of stuck buying them and hoping I like what I get. Everything I read points to me liking it, but the volume is just a big concern.
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If volumes important I'd hold off and see what the kernel devs come up with. As it stands with no audio mods I can turn the volume all the way up and keep the headphones in. It's loud enough for me but if your hearing impaired it's another story. Compared to other phones I've owned it's pretty low(for now). Some apps like rocket player pro already have a preamp that you can enable and it helps but until the gain can be adjusted further it might not be enough. More gain = more distortion but it's a trade off I'd be willing to make. With all that said I will tell you as far as music clarity goes out of the box this is a great phone. No EQs enabled and it sounds rad. Turn on the EQ and I'm very happy so far.

The headphone volume on the nexus 5 is a joke. Can you fix it? Of course. But wait, it distorts and adds a ton of hiss. I don't know what Google was thinking when they made it that low. Compared to my iphone 5s, my nexus 5 would be at 100% when my iphone would be at 50%. I promptly sent it back for this very reason

does the 4.4.2 update fix the low sound or not? mine is stock low but if i use one of those volume boost, its pretty good but ofcourse distorts ot 100%loudness, goes with the territory i guess

I'm coming from the Galaxy S3. The volume is lower than other phones I've used but I found it more than adequate for all purposes. I find myself pumping it to 100% when I need to get a bit of beat going in my ears and it is enough. I don't think I can listen to 100% volume with the google music app for longer than 2-3min and I do like loud music.
FWIW, with the S3 i never had it above 75% since it was way too loud.

cobyman7035 said:
does the 4.4.2 update fix the low sound or not? mine is stock low but if i use one of those volume boost, its pretty good but ofcourse distorts ot 100%loudness, goes with the territory i guess
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Nope, I was running 4.4.2 when I sent it back. This is probably hardware related and google can't really fix it. I remember most of the nexus devices being pretty low
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Install Viper4android. It will solve most of your audio problems. I'm very satisfied with the N5 audio now.

marleyfan61 said:
Install Viper4android. It will solve most of your audio problems. I'm very satisfied with the N5 audio now.
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I tried that the first day, it didn't do much. It might for others though
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk

Droid Army said:
I tried that the first day, it didn't do much. It might for others though
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk
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Hmm....that's very odd. Which music player are you using? Did you go into the Viper settings and activate it? It's made a huge difference in sound volume and quality for me. Previous to installing it my sweets spot for volume was around 80%. Post installation and set up it's now at about 50-60%. You have to play around with the settings tho. If you google Viper4android settings you will find some very useful profiles.

If you're using the top volume levels with in ears then its no wonder it sounds too quiet for you now. Nothing will bring that hearing range back once its lost, there's a reason for the warning.
Cranking the volume to compensate for loud environments is just about the worst thing you can do to your ears. It doesn't cancel it out it adds it together.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

bblzd said:
If you're using the top volume levels with in ears then its no wonder it sounds too quiet for you now. Nothing will bring that hearing range back once its lost, there's a reason for the warning.
Cranking the volume to compensate for loud environments is just about the worst thing you can do to your ears. It doesn't cancel it out it adds it together.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
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I never use top volumes, I had to on the nexus. On my iPhone I listen around 55-60%. The nexus has terrible volume, it isn't my ears
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk

Droid Army said:
I never use top volumes, I had to on the nexus. On my iPhone I listen around 55-60%. The nexus has terrible volume, it isn't my ears
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk
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I am using Viper with JVC HA-FXT90 buds and I can get "stupid" level volume. It is not as loud or good with other earphones. I think the earphones are as much to blame as anything else.

rogem_kk said:
I am using Viper with JVC HA-FXT90 buds and I can get "stupid" level volume. It is not as loud or good with other earphones. I think the earphones are as much to blame as anything else.
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They're klipsh s4's. I've tried others with the same result. I'm sorry, compared to other devices the nexus is soft.
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk

Droid Army said:
They're klipsh s4's. I've tried others with the same result. I'm sorry, compared to other devices the nexus is soft.
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk
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You don't have to be sorry. It's already been shown in the Anand review that the N5 has less max volume output then current flagships besides the G2.
However I still think with IEMs the max volume is louder then people should be listening to. Either you're Klipsch model has an unusually high impedance rating, no passive noise cancellation benefits or you're ears have just adjusted to higher volume levels. Just checked and the Klipsch S4 is rated at a fairly low impedance of 18 OHM.
This is going to be subjective of course but with Shure 115 in ears above 75% volume is painful since 4.4.2 These were advertised at the time as passive noise cancellation however and are rated at 16 OHM.

bblzd said:
You don't have to be sorry. It's already been shown in the Anand review that the N5 has less max volume output then current flagships besides the G2.
However I still think with IEMs the max volume is louder then people should be listening to. Either you're Klipsch model has an unusually high impedance rating, no passive noise cancellation benefits or you're ears have just adjusted to higher volume levels. Just checked and the Klipsch S4 is rated at a fairly low impedance of 18 OHM.
This is going to be subjective of course but with Shure 115 in ears above 75% volume is painful since 4.4.2 These were advertised at the time as passive noise cancellation however and are rated at 16 OHM.
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The ones I use are noise isolating which is really nice and one of the reasons I bought them. I do tend to listen to music a bit on the louder side; I like the punch of the bass with my ear buds. I'm guess my ears have adjusted to a little bit higher of a listening area but still a lot of devices sound significantly louder than the nexus 5
Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk

Headphone quality sucks

Coming from the HTC one s, I think the headphone quality really sucks on this phone. Bass is not deep enough and the sound is just very "flat".. What do you guys think?

c19932 said:
Coming from the HTC one s, I think the headphone quality really sucks on this phone. Bass is not deep enough and the sound is just very "flat".. What do you guys think?
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i think u should go back to ur htc one s

Im also coming from the HTC One S and i disagree. Not as Loud, but quality sounds just as good to me.

hello00 said:
i think u should go back to ur htc one s
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I knew people would catch feelings over their phones :laugh::laugh:

coming from a lumia, no noticeable difference for me.

c19932 said:
Coming from the HTC one s, I think the headphone quality really sucks on this phone. Bass is not deep enough and the sound is just very "flat".. What do you guys think?
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You came from a phone that had an emphasis on sound quality to a dev friendly phone that's almost bare bones software wise. It should have been obvious.

You maybe had that BS Beats software on the HTC? It's just an equalizer pushing bass and treble... Sound is good to me. Streaming Google play music via Bluetooth in my car right now and it sounds great.
I do admit that the HTC one s had a great sound chip which I believe is confirmed in tests and I did use that phone for several months.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

c19932 said:
Coming from the HTC one s, I think the headphone quality really sucks on this phone. Bass is not deep enough and the sound is just very "flat".. What do you guys think?
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Click to collapse
that would normally be a good thing for in-ear headphones. in-ear headphones are ussually extremely bass heavy unless they are very expensive hifi models. but most of us actually like the exhagerated bass, so $50 headsets don't bother us. i tend to like cheaper heasets and haven't gone for etymotics or anything yet because sometimes low-fi brings certain character to the mix, ever try playing a guitar through a PA system? or some reference monitors? ever wonder why people go through such lengths to re-create the past in music? it's not because the tech was better in 1930-1969. well in some ways it actually was compared to low end stuff today, but the flaws were as important to the music as the talent. i don't have my phone yet, so i can't say the headset is good, but because you prefer the htc headset doesn't mean it's better (nor does anything i said mean it's worse). so why not just use the htc headset instead of complaining on the internet? or buy a set you like? dennon has a bullet proof set of in-ear for $35 and they are very ballanced for a cheap set. but if you like extreme bass i liked the sound of my $80 xeers, they were the best for bass heavy blues/rock stuff like the black keys or the white stripes. these were not ballanced at all but in a way that was pleasing to the ear.
edit, just realized it's about the sound output of the phone.... not even sure the nexus comes with a headset since mine is still in shipping..... ya know the beats software can be added to any phone right? i mean i can't confirm it workes at all but people were doing this mod back when the one x and whatever it's predecessor was came out and everyone insisted that by adding some of the libs and an app that it sounded so much better...

JmPTaz09 said:
You maybe had that BS Beats software on the HTC? It's just an equalizer pushing bass and treble... Sound is good to me. Streaming Google play music via Bluetooth in my car right now and it sounds great.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Yeah, must be because of the Beats.

It's because of the Equalizer settings in the One. Install Viper4Android on this phone and set it up and you'll see the clarity and quality is just amazing. Beats products are highly Equalized especially the Laptops and Phones. They're also setup to go under completely flat line Equalizer when disable to make it sound bad without the beats audio. This in turn makes those people who know nothing about audio think beats audio is a god send when in fact it's just a regular equalizer that sounds awesome enabled and worse disabled. If Viper4Android (See forum thread here on xda) doesn't work yet then use an equalizer app from the market and play around with it. You'll enjoy your sound a lot more.

There's something wrong with Google Play Music. It sounds horrible I installed Rocket Player and it sounds superb. Just needs more volume. My S4 still sounds better by a small margin though.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app

Dani897 said:
edit, just realized it's about the sound output of the phone.... not even sure the nexus comes with a headset since mine is still in shipping..... ya know the beats software can be added to any phone right? i mean i can't confirm it workes at all but people were doing this mod back when the one x and whatever it's predecessor was came out and everyone insisted that by adding some of the libs and an app that it sounded so much better...
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Nexus doesn't come with headphones. Which is fine with me since I have never used set of headphones packaged with a phone. Software can make a very big difference in sound quality. I usually use PowerAmp. I'm sure that PowerAmp combined with the headphones listed in my sig will be just fine on the N5. Now if they would just ship the damn thing.

Synyster06Gates said:
You came from a phone that had an emphasis on sound quality to a dev friendly phone that's almost bare bones software wise. It should have been obvious.
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No he came from a phone with Beats Audio out of the box.
Complaining about the sound quality of the N5 compared to the One S is like claiming that Sennheiser studio headphones are **** compared to Monster Beats studio headphones.
The N5 has stellar sound quality. What it sounds like without any equalizer presets activated is what your music is SUPPOSED to sound like. Want it to sound like your One S? Choose the bass booster equalizer preset and there you go.

lukas_s said:
No he came from a phone with Beats Audio out of the box.
Complaining about the sound quality of the N5 compared to the One S is like claiming that Sennheiser studio headphones are **** compared to Monster Beats studio headphones.
The N5 has stellar sound quality. What it sounds like without any equalizer presets activated is what your music is SUPPOSED to sound like. Want it to sound like your One S? Choose the bass booster equalizer preset and there you go.
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This ^

Qualcomm DACs while not quite as good as Wolfsons are still great. I haven't had a real chance to listen to audio on my N5, but the audio on my GS4 was excellent.

BamAlmighty said:
Qualcomm DACs while not quite as good as Wolfsons are still great. I haven't had a real chance to listen to audio on my N5, but the audio on my GS4 was excellent.
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coming from htc one, audio is day and night difference, but i know what i'm getting when i bought the nexus 5

joshyth said:
coming from htc one, audio is day and night difference, but i know what i'm getting when i bought the nexus 5
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Install an equalizer and adjust to taste. Like many have said before it's because the HTC one has built in "Beats" Equalizer which changes audio settings and frequencies.

lukas_s said:
What it sounds like without any equalizer presets activated is what your music is SUPPOSED to sound like. .
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This isn't true at all. The sound engineers have no idea what kind of DAC you'll be using, or what kind of speakers/headphones you'll be using. All DAC's have different sound signatures. All headphones/speakers have different sound signatures. They mix it to sound the way they want it based on the equipment they have in the studio. Unless you're using the same equipment then you're never going to hear it the way it was SUPPOSED to sound. Some EQ will almost always be required to approximate the intended sound.
Beats audio does tend to over emphasize the bass. However to say a flat eq is the way it is supposed to sound is not accurate since every device is going to have a different flat sound, as are every different type of headphone. Decent headphones along with decent software and a decent DAC will give sound quality that will satisfy most. I have no reason to believe that the N5 will fall short.

FuMMoD said:
Install an equalizer and adjust to taste. Like many have said before it's because the HTC one has built in "Beats" Equalizer which changes audio settings and frequencies.
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No phone on the market right now can touch the stereo speaker on the One. Also, the One actually have a built in amplifier too.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

marleyfan61 said:
This isn't true at all. The sound engineers have no idea what kind of DAC you'll be using, or what kind of speakers/headphones you'll be using. All DAC's have different sound signatures. All headphones/speakers have different sound signatures. They mix it to sound the way they want it based on the equipment they have in the studio. Unless you're using the same equipment then you're never going to hear it the way it was SUPPOSED to sound. Some EQ will almost always be required to approximate the intended sound.
Beats audio does tend to over emphasize the bass. However to say a flat eq is the way it is supposed to sound is not accurate since every device is going to have a different flat sound, as are every different type of headphone. Decent headphones along with decent software and a decent DAC will give sound quality that will satisfy most. I have no reason to believe that the N5 will fall short.
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No, they mix it the way they want it to sound on various equipment. Checking how it sounds on various devices is part of the mixing and mastering. So no EQ is needed, in fact it will ruin the sound most of the time.