Related
So, how does it fair to Galaxy S3? Does the Octo version comes with Wolfson audio chip?
So, Exynos version will have wolfson wm5102 sound chip afterall...
I want to know about the volume level - my Nexus 4 went back to Google due to the low aux volume. I aux out all the time and it's an absolute requirement for my phone to be able to output at a reasonable volume. The N4 is laughable in that department, and yes that's with hacks too. Someone please confirm the output volume via the headphone jack is LOUD and I'll be happy!
SMS92 said:
I want to know about the volume level - my Nexus 4 went back to Google due to the low aux volume. I aux out all the time and it's an absolute requirement for my phone to be able to output at a reasonable volume. The N4 is laughable in that department, and yes that's with hacks too. Someone please confirm the output volume via the headphone jack is LOUD and I'll be happy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GSM Arena's review said that the S600 S4 was clear, but had low output. They also said that the HTC One was much louder, which is why I'm almost considering it over the S4.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Accourding to GSMArena, in the latest unit the speaker volume is pretty decent, even better than One.
When connected to the amplifier, the sound is superior than almost every phone available in the market. But the DAC is the embedded DAC of S600, so don't know why the difference can be that big.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s4-review-914p8.php
Wolfson DAC in Exynos Octa maybe even better
The volume of the headphone output was one of my main complaints about Galaxy S III. No headroom at last year's flagship Samsung was not, in fact, using rebar headphones Etymotic hf5 maximum volume is not enough for comfortable listening to classical music (which usually has a wider dynamic range than other music genres). Fortunately, the Galaxy S4 solved this problem: using the same headphones and listening to the same records I've never had to turn up the volume to the maximum. Also, if the Galaxy S III was a telephone and a deep voice sounded muffled because of this, the Galaxy S4 boasts a more even tonal balance. In general, continuous improvement, anyway
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://gagadget.com/cellphones/2013-03-27-obzor-samsung-galaxy-s4/
hung2900 said:
Accourding to GSMArena, in the latest unit the speaker volume is pretty decent, even better than One.
When connected to the amplifier, the sound is superior than almost every phone available in the market. But the DAC is the embedded DAC of S600, so don't know why the difference can be that big.
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s4-review-914p8.php
Wolfson DAC in Exynos Octa maybe even better
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They said the crosstalk was the only downside of the One and you'd need high tech equipment to even hear it. However, they also said that the S4 was still quiet when compared with the One/Butterfly, which is what the OP is focusing on the most.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
jtc276 said:
They said the crosstalk was the only downside of the One and you'd need high tech equipment to even hear it. However, they also said that the S4 was still quiet when compared with the One/Butterfly, which is what the OP is focusing on the most.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course the One/Butterfly are louder, they have a separate inbuilt headphone amplifier like all of HTCs recent phones (I think it first appeared in their WP models from last year).
That isn't, in and of itself, a reason to get a One over an S4 necessarily - it still depends on your use-case scenarios and what headphones you use etc. The majority using fairly sensitive IEMs are not going to experience a great deal of benefit from the headphone amplifier. For those who are using harder to drive headphones and don't want to use an external headphone amp then it starts to make more sense.
NZtechfreak said:
Of course the One/Butterfly are louder, they have a separate inbuilt headphone amplifier like all of HTCs recent phones (I think it first appeared in their WP models from last year).
That isn't, in and of itself, a reason to get a One over an S4 necessarily - it still depends on your use-case scenarios and what headphones you use etc. The majority using fairly sensitive IEMs are not going to experience a great deal of benefit from the headphone amplifier. For those who are using harder to drive headphones and don't want to use an external headphone amp then it starts to make more sense.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But the OP definitely stated that if the S4 is not very loud, it won't be the phone for him due to Aux purposes (I'm guessing in his/her car). And GSM Arena proved the One to be louder. So the better choice (in terms of sound) for the OP would be the One.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Let's put it this way, set an alarm on the one and you won't sleep through it..
If the differences are slight, too slight to hear with standard headphones then the one is definitely better sound output wise than the s4.
Depending on what kind of user you are, this could make your choice fairly simple.
Sent from my ADR6425LVW using xda app-developers app
jtc276 said:
But the OP definitely stated that if the S4 is not very loud, it won't be the phone for him due to Aux purposes (I'm guessing in his/her car). And GSM Arena proved the One to be louder. So the better choice (in terms of sound) for the OP would be the One.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, the OP said nothing of the sort. I wasn't replying to anyone in particular, only trying to generally point out that there is more to consider than a straight numbers comparison of volume outputs.
NZtechfreak said:
Ah, the OP said nothing of the sort. I wasn't replying to anyone in particular, only trying to generally point out that there is more to consider than a straight numbers comparison of volume outputs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whoops. You're right. I was referring to the third poster in this thread.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
I find it curious that GSMarena reviewed the snapdragon version, rather than the "real gsm" exynos version with wolfson. On S3 with Wolfson, increasing hardware volume levels takes about five minutes. Root and change one number in a text file. Not sure on the snapdragon one.
After hearing how different the Nexus 4 sounded compared to their review, I take anything they say with a grain of salt.
Supercurio's twitter feed is worth watching for commentary on audio quality also: https://twitter.com/supercurio
Indeed, GSMArena's sound tests need to be taken with a degree of scepticism, having been heavily criticized by people like Supercurio.
That's why i never quoted gsmarena's review in any part of my posts here and other thread... The test itself is "unproper" to begin with...
I got S3 and recently got HTC one and can confirm that its a best quality sound I heard in phone from speaker and headphone since 2002 and I have Bose headphone, urbets from dr dre and standard headphone in box and I found that htc's headphone got excellent clarity, loundness, deep bass and trable which is better than Bose headphone and as good as urbets of course in HTC one
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
onlinejobwork said:
I got S3 and recently got HTC one and can confirm that its a best quality sound I heard in phone from speaker and headphone since 2002 and I have Bose headphone, urbets from dr dre and standard headphone in box and I found that htc's headphone got excellent clarity, loundness, deep bass and trable which is better than Bose headphone and as good as urbets of course in HTC one
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried the HTC One in-store the other day, i agree the speakers on there is quiet good, but headphone wise, its not as good as compared to my Note 2. The Note 2 is much more cleaner and fuller audio quality without any tweaks, with wolfson audio kernel, the HTC One does not even come close.
ama3654 said:
I tried the HTC One in-store the other day, i agree the speakers on there is quiet good, but headphone wise, its not as good as compared to my Note 2. The Note 2 is much more cleaner and fuller audio quality without any tweaks, with wolfson audio kernel, the HTC One does not even come close.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree,with some audio kernel , wolfson DAC is untouchable(with headphones)
sent from an Galaxy s3 GT I9300
Running perseus kernel 33.1 , XELLA 4.1.2 leaked build
forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1784401
Dont click,you might regret , I won't be responsible if you brick ur head
Did a blind and volume-matched test with the One and S4 (i9505 international version with the same DAC as the one). Listened on 12 and 16ohm IEMs and 32ohm cans.
First interesting thing was that the Samsung stock player is noticeably louder than PowerAMP (not yet tested other third party players). Around 10dB louder if PowerAMP has direct volume control off and ~5dB louder if PowerAMP is using direct volume control. Since we wanted to use the same player in both devices we had to drop the HTC One volume down three notches for them to match closely (only one step to match with the S4 stock player).
Turned off Beats on the One.
Noted with interest that when blinding was removed we both preferred the S4 sound over the One overall, better instrument separation and clarity, less fatiguing and harsh. Generally preferred the bass on the One, although the One was quite boomy. There was one MAJOR problem with the S4 though - crackling with prominent low bass frequencies. This was absent on the T5p at 32ohm, noticeable on the 16ohm IEMs, and very noticeable on the 12ohm IEMs. If this is output impedance related as it appears to be this would put the S4 (i9505) output impedance somewhere in the 4-8ohm range, making it impossible to recommend to anyone using more sensitive IEMs.
ADDIT: Confirmation from users of CIEMs re: crackling on the i9505.
WARNING: DO NOT BUY THE INTERNATIONAL S4 i9505 IF YOU USE SENSITIVE IEMS and plan to use it as a music player without taking advantage of USB audio. This is why you cannot trust any of the major sites audio reviews for handsets.
I now urgently need to test the i9500...
ama3654 said:
I tried the HTC One in-store the other day, i agree the speakers on there is quiet good, but headphone wise, its not as good as compared to my Note 2. The Note 2 is much more cleaner and fuller audio quality without any tweaks, with wolfson audio kernel, the HTC One does not even come close.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1. Obviously Stereo speakers in itself makes it HTC One hands down the best in that department. But nothing beats Wolfson DAC for headphone audio quality IMHO.
So how's the sound chip compared to the Iphone 5s and other top smartphones ? I heard that since the chipset is SNP800 , the sound chip should be good too, but i'm no pro and have yet to try the headphone out.
Can anyone provide an explanation ?
2nd question (to avoid making 2 threads) :
I know kitkat 4.4 is only 32 bit now , but if for some reason Google releases android 5.0 in the future and it's 64 bit ...will the nexus chipset support it ?
1. Sound is good
2. Doesn't matter
[hfm] said:
1. Sound is good
2. Doesn't matter
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure what you meant for the 2nd answer ?
64 bit computing hardly matters in the mobile space currently. Currently it is only relevant in marketing.
To answer the question. You are still using 32-bit hardware even if 64-bit capable software came out. Odds are Google will not release a 64-bit exclusive operating system in the near future.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
ravenwood27 said:
So how's the sound chip compared to the Iphone 5s and other top smartphones ? I heard that since the chipset is SNP800 , the sound chip should be good too, but i'm no pro and have yet to try the headphone out.
Can anyone provide an explanation ?
it ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
According to the test done by GSMarena, the Nexus 5 sound quality is no where near iOS devices. It has similar sound performance compared to the LG G2 but lower volume output. http://www.gsmarena.com/lg_nexus_5-review-1011p7.php As the graph is shown, there is quite a lot of "wobbling" which isn't good compared to the iOS devices (link is the 5s sound quality: http://www.gsmarena.com/apple_iphone_5s-review-994p7.php). This is assuming you actually rip songs from CDs, download 320+ kbps (if you don't know what this is you don't download it), download from Google Play or iTunes, rather than using an app or random website to get free music. Otherwise it wouldn't matter what device you get to listen to music since the sound file wouldn't have enough detail to actually use the iPhone soundboard properly. From experience even the Voodoo sound board on the Galaxy S3+ (not sure about the S4) doesn't reach the levels of iOS devices especially on loudness and clarity. Otherwise for the casual listener, the sound quality on the Nexus 5 should be more than enough unless you're really serious about sound quality.
Edit: according to the benchmarks done on the same website, the Samsung S4 holds it ground fairly well but there is some wobble at later parts of the graph and that's just nitpicking. Won't be hearing the effects of that unless you have songs that are 500 kbps+ and are playing on a good speaker.
RoboWarriorSr said:
According to the test done by GSMarena, the Nexus 5 sound quality is no where near iOS devices. It has similar sound performance compared to the LG G2 but lower volume output. http://www.gsmarena.com/lg_nexus_5-review-1011p7.php As the graph is shown, there is quite a lot of "wobbling" which isn't good compared to the iOS devices (link is the 5s sound quality: http://www.gsmarena.com/apple_iphone_5s-review-994p7.php). This is assuming you actually rip songs from CDs, download 320+ kbps (if you don't know what this is you don't download it), download from Google Play or iTunes, rather than using an app or random website to get free music. Otherwise it wouldn't matter what device you get to listen to music since the sound file wouldn't have enough detail to actually use the iPhone soundboard properly. From experience even the Voodoo sound board on the Galaxy S3+ (not sure about the S4) doesn't reach the levels of iOS devices especially on loudness and clarity. Otherwise for the casual listener, the sound quality on the Nexus 5 should be more than enough unless you're really serious about sound quality.
Edit: according to the benchmarks done on the same website, the Samsung S4 holds it ground fairly well but there is some wobble at later parts of the graph and that's just nitpicking. Won't be hearing the effects of that unless you have songs that are 500 kbps+ and are playing on a good speaker.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is what I really dont get. I had an iphone 5s for a couple weeks and everything besides the earphones that came in the box sounded horrible. Zero bass, zero highs, just the mids. Also had the HTC one, which is supposed to have a great audio chip, and it did. That phone soudned the best out of all the phone's I've had. (I turned beats off, that is just pure junk). Compared to the HTC one, this phone is actually very good. I still get deep bass, and good highs with no distortion even at high volumes. With the iphone, anything higher than 50%, things got a bit crackly and distorted especially hooked up to my speakers.
OP: The sound chip, in my opinion (I listen to a LOT of music and am pretty much a huge audiophile.), is very good. As some users said, the pure loudness of it isn't that great, but the quality is very good. Not as good as the HTC one, but very close.
EDIT: Quote from GSM arena pretty much saying what I said.
The scores stay close to perfect even when you plug in a pair of headphones. The stereo crosstalk worsens a bit but the rest of the readings are virtually unaffected (frequency response actually improves a bit). Unfortunately, the volume levels remained just as uninspiring.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
aooga said:
This is what I really dont get. I had an iphone 5s for a couple weeks and everything besides the earphones that came in the box sounded horrible. Zero bass, zero highs, just the mids. Also had the HTC one, which is supposed to have a great audio chip, and it did. That phone soudned the best out of all the phone's I've had. (I turned beats off, that is just pure junk). Compared to the HTC one, this phone is actually very good. I still get deep bass, and good highs with no distortion even at high volumes. With the iphone, anything higher than 50%, things got a bit crackly and distorted especially hooked up to my speakers.
OP: The sound chip, in my opinion (I listen to a LOT of music and am pretty much a huge audiophile.), is very good. As some users said, the pure loudness of it isn't that great, but the quality is very good. Not as good as the HTC one, but very close.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The review on the website show that the HTC One has a excellent audio output but at best decent audio quality. The bass is overemphasized but nothing compared to the One X which was a disaster in terms of audio quality. Realized that the iPhone sound quality may sound worse to many people since it has a "flat" and stabilized audio quality which is what actually is looked for. Many companies tweak the audio to make it more "pleasing" to the masses and overshadow the bad soundboard which include bigger bass (blame Dr. Dre).
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
RoboWarriorSr said:
The review on the website show that the HTC One has a excellent audio output but at best decent audio quality. The bass is overemphasized but compared to the One X which was a disaster in terms of audio quality. Realized that the iPhone sound quality may sound worse to many people since it has a "flat" and stabilized audio quality which is what actually is looked for. Many companies tweak the audio to make it more "pleasing" to the masses and overshadow the bad soundboard.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know flat sound is technically prefered in benchmarks and things, but I haven't met a single person that actually likes listening to it. Anyway, that was just my opinion. IMO, no matter how technically good the quality is on the iphone, I still think that it sounds horrible. And the software is hideous/crashed way too often.
EDIT: I see you have an iphone. Do you have a N5 as well, or are you just posting here? I'm not trying to be an idiot, just wondering if you have compared the quality between the two
N5 sound sucks.. I'm biased because I upgraded from a HTC one lol. Everything else is solid with my n5
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
The built-in speaker is mediocre to crappy. The audio through other connections is quite good, IMO.
Sent from my Nexus 5
Ajfink said:
The built-in speaker is mediocre to crappy. The audio through other connections is quite good, IMO.
Sent from my Nexus 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its a bug. http://www.androidcentral.com/nexus...one-and-software-may-be-hurting-what-you-hear
aooga said:
I know flat sound is technically prefered in benchmarks and things, but I haven't met a single person that actually likes listening to it. Anyway, that was just my opinion. IMO, no matter how technically good the quality is on the iphone, I still think that it sounds horrible. And the software is hideous/crashed way too often.
EDIT: I see you have an iphone. Do you have a N5 as well, or are you just posting here? I'm not trying to be an idiot, just wondering if you have compared the quality between the two
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm just basing this off the gsmarena benchmark and from previous experience. Not in my sig but I have a HTC Desire HD and Acer A100 running custom ROMs since both devices are not supported. I hopefully plan to get a Moto G since I kinda would like to get an android device that is current and not gimped by some developers *nvidia*. I tend to randomly post in random device forums usually trying to get up to date with new devices. I have listened to Galaxy S 3 and One X since my friends have them so I have an idea how they sound. Nexus 5 just came out so gsmarena was the only site that had soundboard benchmarks, but like I said it works more than enough for most people and the tweaks made are probably for the better. If you wondering I do prefer the "flat" sound since my speakers don't play well with equalizers especially the Beats one in my HTC. I also tend to listen to more instrumentals than the average listener so the "flatness" help bring out the other instruments in the background that usually would be hidden by the bass or treble.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
zephiK said:
its a bug. http://www.androidcentral.com/nexus...one-and-software-may-be-hurting-what-you-hear
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really fail to see how that was overlooked. Hopefully they push it out sooner than later.
iPhone5 & 5s have a relatively high output impedance. They'll be a little more temperamental when used with third party buds.
I don't know if we have an impedance reading for the Nexus 5.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
If listening to music, just use Noozxoide E.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
There is definitely a bug wrt audio on the N5, but the speaker is also very crappy and so easy to completely obstruct (v similar positioning on iPhones and some Lumias)
iOStoAndroid said:
There is definitely a bug wrt audio on the N5, but the speaker is also very crappy and so easy to completely obstruct (v similar positioning on iPhones and some Lumias)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's going to obstruct wherever they put it. Top, bottom or back especially if you put it in your pocket. The Optimus G had such a high speaker volume even though the speaker was just a small slit in the back and the back was flat.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
You obviously never used one of the devices I mentioned above then.
It's the only thing that stops the N5 being the perfect device (all right maybe a bit better battery life)
Phone call:
On Handset is good...no issues.
On Speaker is ok...on full volume sound distortion is evident.
On Headphones is good but other person can't listen clearly unless I hold headphone mic in front of my lips...or speak loud.
Music:
On Speaker is terrible.
On headphones (Klipsch S4A)...quality is really good for 320kbps mp3 files...I feel best audio quality is between 50% - 70% of volume level.
Hello All !!!
I dont know if this is right forum to post this. This is my first review so please excuse any mistakes/blunders
I own both Nexus 5 and Galaxy Note 2(N7100), and from past 2 weeks I have been testing sound on both the phones. Following is the setup:
Headphones Used:
1. Monster Miles Davis Tribute
2. Monster Turbine Pro Copper
3. Shure SRH440
5. Sennheiser Momentus Over the ear(Not the on ear model)
6. HiFiman RE0
Music Used:
Please note all the albums were Flac Lossles 16bit
1. Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
2. Slint - Spiderland
3. Godspeed You Black Emperor! - Lift Yr. Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven!
4. Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians
5. Burial - Untrue
6. Broken Note - Terminal Static
Player Used: PowerAmp Pro (Flat equalizer)
Observation:
Before I begin, I would like to say that this is my subjective opinion which may vary from person to person.
Galaxy Note 2:
I love this phone. Been my daily driver from past one year. The ability to expand the memory and replaceable battery is amazing. More memory means more music for me :good: I only listen to flac so this is a huge plus for me.
This phone drives all headphones pretty well. Although one might feel that Momentus and RE-0 were kind of dull as compared to the other headphones. The sound seemed veiled.
So I changed the kernel to NEAK. This kernel have utility to increase the volume and some other fancy adjustments like oversampling etc. I was skeptical what changing kernel would do, and boy was I wrong. Not only did the volume increase but sound became fuller and had solid character. Instruments were perfect, texture was amazing and the bass wasn't sloppy anymore but controlled and very punchy. :victory:
Nexus 5:
Nexus 5 is totally a different beast. Coming from Note2 I was excited about this phone. The build quality and weight was quite better than Note2. I loaded up the albums and fired up the PowerAmp. From the start I could feel something was amiss. Although the resolution of the instruments was good and overall response of the headphones and music was not bad; but I was not blown away. Even after increasing the preamp volume to full, the headphones could not reach their full potential except Pro Coppers. So I broke out my trusty Fiio E5 portable headphone amplifier and sound did improve. After long listening sessions everyday my brain accepted the sound signature of this phone and by the end of 4th day I quite liked the sound.
In the end I had comparisons in a way that I listened the tracks going back-n-forth on both the phones. I definitely like my Note2 with NEAK kernel. But if you take out the kernel from the comparison, difference between the quality is not that huge although the sound from Note2 is lush compared to Nexus5. Both phones lack amplification to drive some headphones to their full potential.
For average Joe: If you are using lossy music and use headphones which are mediocre, then this phone is pretty good for you. You wont be able to tell the difference between sound quality of Nexus and any other phone.
For my Audiophile friend: To be honest this phone will leave you wanting for more. Although Nexus have good DAC but amplification is poor. I would recommend you to grab a good but cheap headphone amp and you should be good. Although 32 GB is real deal breaker if you you use lossless music. For that OTG cable comes to rescue. I would also recommend getting your hand on a kernel/utility which improves sound. I have not come across any yet.:fingers-crossed: Also battery becomes a concern when using such utility/kernal.
My rating: 3.5/5
Pros:
Exceptional pricing
Good DAC
Build Quality
Ability to play Hi-Res FLAC
Cons:
Poor Amplification
Lack of expandable storage (You can use OTG cable though)
Poor Battery (Especially if you will be using utility to improve sound)
Sound quality is so subjective. Some people like how Denon sounds and others like Yamaha. And then there are those who like Bose!
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Nice review. Can you use OTG w/ a E18 Kunlun?
kenbhaji said:
I would also recommend getting your hand on a kernel/utility which improves sound. I have not come across any yet.:fingers-crossed: Also battery becomes a concern when using such utility/kernal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try this:
Volume Mod
Report back.
The Note 2 has the Wolfson DAC. It totally crushes anything Qualcomm has.
No contest. I have the S3 and have had a host of Qualcomm based devices, but for sound quality, nothing has ever touched the Wolfson DAC on a smartphone.
Been using the moto x 2013 for some time now and its just about perfect. I dont game, my use is heavy on web, text. The problem with my X is that the microphone doesnt seem to work anymore, I have to carry a wired or bluetooth to talk on the phone...which is a pain.
I want something small, similar in size, to replace it. Ive narrowed it down to a S4 or LG G2. Which would you guys recommend? Anyone else make a move from the X 2013 to one of these models?
Thanks,
Mario
If it is bought new, sure. But second hand you can get more recent models at the same prices.
Based solely on the specs, I would go for the G2. When I'm looking for a phone the first thing I look at is the performance, and, looking at the hardware, the G2 is better equipped than the S4. But this is just on paper.
For all I know, the real world performance may be the same.
I am satisfied with the S4
Thanks. Yeah either the G2 or S4 new is what I want, just curious to hear what folks think getting a 2.5 year old device. Id get a new flagship but all of them are just too big.
Get the snapdragon variant. The exynos overheats
S4 is still a very good phone: it can run without problems marshmallow custom roms and you can play on it big games like fifa 16 or asphalt. But if you want a good new phone and almost same dimensions like s4, I recommand OnePlus X.
I don't think S4 will be a good idea now. I had both versions (GT-I9500 and GT-I9505) before I moved for Xperia Z3 D6643. Unfortunately, I have damaged my Z3 and until it got fixed, I will be using the GT-i9505 again.
This phone is driving me crazy, even with max brightness, it's impossible (looks like a black screen) to use it under sunligh. 3G, and 4G (not to talk about GPS) data drains a huge % of battery, average screen on time is about 3-3,5h, no battery optmizations.
The Z3 (5.2") and Z3 compact (4.6") are the best options when talking about cost x benefit. Almost 10h screen on time and +800h standby time.
Thanks all. I kept looking and looking for new S4 or g2 but everything out on the Bay was new "other" or sellers with tons of negative feedback. Lots of positive but also much negative. I just saw no trusty sellers. Ended up pulling trigger on oneplus x. Now the wait for it begins. Hope oxygen is decent.
Sent from my Moto X
i have S4 now frome aboute 1 year and realy i am happy with
run very very good i have add the QI modul and it run official rom until custome have no bug ( zero bug ) actualy custom rom have some BT problem and i use My S4 with my smart watch here why BT are important now if you see forum you have big chois of rom ( custom ) and all tested and run very very well on S4 personaly i change phone until S4 are dead hahaha but LG have an Good support in my watch runing official 6.0 firmware LG give quicly update whet are roling out but samsung are still on 5.0.1 bad guys samsung
@spawk
Samsung has it's own update cycle. Most flagships get support from Samsung up to 2 years after released.
And, in 2016, Galaxy S4 won't be supported anymore.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD
The Only thing that is extremely bad about i9505 is its sound quality in earphones.On gsmarena u will see they will say it has best audio quality but in reality its far far away from the best its so flat and dumb.Even all the chinese phones sound better than it there is literally no bass at all in the sound and if u increase it by an equalizer the volume decreases alot.
You could also try i9506 S4 LTE+/LTE A
Ive been using this device for a long time now. Recently broke my galaxy note 3's lcd and sold my lg g2. Back on my i9506 and still good. Its not far with g2 in terms performance. Although I use 2 batteries on my i9506 but hey, great device
Usama707 said:
The Only thing that is extremely bad about i9505 is its sound quality in earphones.On gsmarena u will see they will say it has best audio quality but in reality its far far away from the best its so flat and dumb.Even all the chinese phones sound better than it there is literally no bass at all in the sound and if u increase it by an equalizer the volume decreases alot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound quality depends a lot on the headphones. I hardly think that in-ear ear buds are great at producing bass.
Let's not forget about the song quality too. Anything with a bitrate lower than 320KBPS will have its quality reduced. So always go for 320 or FLAC.
It can have the best sound chip in the world if the headphones are garbage and the music file has static noise.
GDReaper said:
Sound quality depends a lot on the headphones. I hardly think that in-ear ear buds are great at producing bass.
Let's not forget about the song quality too. Anything with a bitrate lower than 320KBPS will have its quality reduced. So always go for 320 or FLAC.
It can have the best sound chip in the world if the headphones are garbage and the music file has static noise.
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Sound is really really flat although its very clear and frequency response is good too but its off no use as the sound is so flat use the same earphone on some other phone or the computer then u will understand how flat I9505 sounds
Usama707 said:
Sound is really really flat although its very clear and frequency response is good too but its off no use as the sound is so flat use the same earphone on some other phone or the computer then u will understand how flat I9505 sounds
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There are always better devices. My 2 other devices (An ZTE Blade and LG P350) sound crappy compared to my S4.
That's why there are mods like viper4android. With the right setup you can get nice bass.
Besides, stuff like this is just a preference. I, for instance, don't like heavy basses. I like to listen to the music, not the "boom boom" sound of the bass.
GDReaper said:
There are always better devices. My 2 other devices (An ZTE Blade and LG P350) sound crappy compared to my S4.
That's why there are mods like viper4android. With the right setup you can get nice bass.
Besides, stuff like this is just a preference. I, for instance, don't like heavy basses. I like to listen to the music, not the "boom boom" sound of the bass.
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I Dont like much bass either but the sound of i9505 compared to Sony Xperia Z2,Galaxy Grand Prime,Galaxy J5,Galaxy Ace 3 and the desktop computer is really flat and lacking.I can hear more elements in even samsungs lowest end phones than i9505 using the same earphones
Stay away from S4.
- Lollipop roms are okay but not very fast.
- Exynos AND snapdragon can overheat actually depends on the kernel.
- microphone distortion (personally) which I can hear as I play back the call recording
- not as fast or smooth as I expected for quad core when I previously had S5 mini
- Sometimes run out of ram but not too often
Generally just don't expect much. The specs look really good on paper but it's actually not that good a phone.
The screen resolution is very high which is nice.
Camera quality / focus is average as well. Slow to focus. Quality average.
I suggest buy 2nd hand used S5 or S6.
Unfortunately no S6 mini.
@fatjoez
1. Really? 5.1.1 is okay for me.
2. I've a device with Intel processor and it does the same thing. In short: All CPUs could overheat.
3. -skipped-
4. Blame Samsung's policies.
5. I'm only felt it on TW ROMs.
And no, I won't buy Exynos devices. Devices with Snapdragon SOCs are the best choice.
But, it's up to you. I couldn't interfere your mind.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD
Well I bought a oneplus x. Been using it for one day and I'm not sure about it. Works OK. Speed us good but it's just too big. I just wish I could find a phone the same size as the 2013 moto x. Now I'm thinking either a S4 or Z5 compact. :/
Sent from my ONE E1005 using Tapatalk
Hi,
I have serious complaints about the sonorisation of my Note4, which should be much better in my opinion, as one of the best devices on its range:
The inner rear loudspeaker and also the earphone performances are really poor; making distortion, even on low volume, while speaking and the loudspeaker, listening music of poor response.
Formerly I used to have an Iphone 4, which was good in sound; and I know Iphone 5 is even better than Iphone4...
Is it by default, or special to my device.?
Is there any possibility to have better parts, to get rid of distortion and have a better response while speaking and listening music from the device directly ??
Thanks in advance.
nahman said:
Is it by default, or special to my device.?
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I don't have these issues with my N910T
nahman said:
Hi,
I have serious complaints about the sonorisation of my Note4, which should be much better in my opinion, as one of the best devices on its range:
The inner rear loudspeaker and also the earphone performances are really poor; making distortion, even on low volume, while speaking and the loudspeaker, listening music of poor response.
Formerly I used to have an Iphone 4, which was good in sound; and I know Iphone 5 is even better than Iphone4...
Is it by default, or special to my device.?
Is there any possibility to have better parts, to get rid of distortion and have a better response while speaking and listening music from the device directly ??
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The N910C has a Wolfson DAC (arguably the best on the market for mobile devices), and should have excellent sound reproduction. I specifically bought mine to replace my old Sony Walkman for music playback, and it gives excellent reproduction using a pair of Sennheiser headphones. The speaker on a phone is never going to be fantastic, but I find the one on the Note 4 no worse than other phones I have owned, and don't experience any distortion on low volume.
In fact, I mean the hardware - the physical components:
The earphone simply makes distortion even on low volumes during conversation, and. The rear loudspeaker response is clesrly poor compared to the performance of the old Iphone4.....