Low Audio Output from Headphones

[Bushido Brown]

I almost returned my Bose Noise Cancelling headphones thinking they were defective, turns out its the phone. I have an S4 and played the same song at the same spot back to back and there was a considerable difference. Its bad enough I was trying to get over the speakerphone that kind of sounded like the person on the other end was speaking through a tin can.

The battery life is good, the build quality is amazing, the software doesn't annoy me. but this may be a deal breaker. Really didn't wanna get another Samsung. Has anyone else experienced this?

 

[seb1987]

have you tried the clear + settings i have the bose qc25 and its seems plenty loud enough for me. i swapped my note4 for the z3 and i think it beast the note 4 on audio quality but that is my 2 pence

 

[Bushido Brown]

Those are the same headphones I have. I'm give that a try and see what happens

update: There's no difference. If anything, its lower. My S4 trounces the Xperia. I don't need my ears blown off, but I need more volume than this. Shame.

 

[hiya1987]

It seems strange I'm mean I have my volume 3/4 full and Then thats starting to make me ears hurt, I'm not sure each to their own is it the same with the bundled headphones?

 

[Bushido Brown]

Mine didn't come bundled with any headphones. I don't have the international version. I will say, there is a huge difference when just using a decent pair of earbuds. but it sucks my $300 pair of cans sound subpar.

I'm debating on either returning those, or eating a restocking fee to get a Note

 

[LuvMusic]

IME the headphone output on the Z3 is a little low. There is another thread here where someone posted an article where the output was measured and it was less than other smartphones. That said, the quality of the audio output is much better than other smartphones I have listened to.

One possible solution is to find a music player app that allows you to boost the preamp signal. I use Poweramp and it does allow you to do this. When I use my Bose QC 15's (which I just did while traveling for Thanksgiving) I increase the preamp level by about two clicks and that solves the problem. Much more than that and the preamp starts to distort. BTW, you can use the full version of Poweramp free for 5 days, then you have to pay. I've been using Poweramp since the original Motorola Droid and it is well worth the investment.

Overall, I really enjoy the audio capabilities of the Z3.

 

[darigaaz12]

From my experience Sony phone do have lower output but they do sound better. I'd go with the recommendation above and try power amp out. My z2 has the same issue but I don't notice it because I run noise canceling headphones.

 

[Lbesze]

Can't be lower then the Nexus 5 talk about a real crappy audio experience. My Z3 is way better. Having said that I use outboard amps or DAC amp combo when I listen to music, especially if you use full size cans. For a restocking fee you can get a Fiio E11 amp which would solve any amplitude issues.