Audio Quality

[miyanc]

to many people 6-7-8-900$ decisions are life altering and with the amount of integration a phone has now a days it does influence my life quite a bit. If you are referring to the amount of stock one person puts into certain reports about a purchase, then buyer beware. If you are referring to any sense of journalistic pride one should have when they make comments in any format that in somehow disseminated, well then thats a bigger thing all together.

I am just kidding, in the terms of the sentence I was just saying:effect, impact, control, sway. Just like I said unrealistic or: impractical, unfeasible. In the context of this discussion, its all a bit preposterous or: absurd, ridiculous, foolish. Many more oddities then my choice of verbiage.

 

[monkeypimp]

So you have a higher standard for what's considered 'good'. Congratulations, I guess?

People can buy a phone for audio for more than one use case. Phone calls, music at home, music at the gym etc.

They can buy the best they can afford because they enjoy listening to music and they can tangibly appreciate the differences between low end and mid end.

You don't have to understand it, just as I would never understand anyone who still wastes their time with analog audio.

I don't have a higher standard about anything in life compared to someone else. My standard is what I like,Your standard should be what you like, Regardless if what we like is different.

Can you tell me what it is about the audio on your HTC 10 that outperforms the Moto X? What is it that makes it sound better to you? And if one sounds better than the other and it is important enough for you to choose a particular one then I am glad you are getting what you like.

I find audio to be fascinating and I am always interested in what it is that make people like particular products. We all have different ears and appreciate different qualties in the reproduction of music. That could easily mean that what you value as Better is different that what I value as Better. I happen to think the Pixel sounds excellent and suits my needs. You may disagree and that is fine, me and my friends all have very different home stereo systems and yet we think our own sounds the best. Who is right? We all are as we like what we have and it fulfills what we tend to value as better audio.

 

[monkeypimp]

Forget the earbuds - that is a variable I can control. What I can't control is the sound quality output of the phone. Unless your contention is that quality is the same in every phone, there is therefor a continuum from worst to best among phones. Unfortunately this phone is not best on that continuum. It is certainly acceptable, but it would have been nice if Google had made it a priority to be the best.

Is it not the best by your standards or by everyones? Or are you saying scientifically you can prove it isn't better? I think Klipsch speakers are the worst sounding speakers that exist, but others think they are the best. Who is right? Audio is subjective. There are people who are satisfied and content with a transistor radio and others who aren't content with $100,000 systems, they need something better.

 

[tadpoles]

Having been exposed to the my HiFi headphone setups and system, as well as the S7e, V10, and V20 I can say the improvement on cans like the Bose QC25 on the V10 and V20 is tangible over my iPhone 5s. It's good enough that it can do well against my Oppo HA-1/Senn HD650. It makes a nice solution for mobile listening.

I think as more phone OEMs are exposed to the ESS Sabre 9218 (V20) and subsequent chipsets aimed at the mobile market we'll start to hear the kind of quality LG has claimed for their flagships. I don't know if the follow-on to the Pixel will be there but I'd expect HTC and Samsung to jump on board the "audio quality is paramount" train instead of just making it passable like I'm getting the impression is the case with the Pixel.

Keep in mind though that there's always the AudioQuest DragonFly series for folks who really care about audio but don't find LG's latest flagships appealing.

 

[miyanc]

This is how I compare sound quality: When I wanted to replace my Sony mp3 player a few years ago, I bought an iPod Touch. I put exactly the same music file on both players. Then I did an A/B test using exactly the same earphones. My old Sony had a much better sound (to my ears) than the iPod Touch, so I returned it. I really didn't need graphs and charts and test equipment.

many times, people try and compare a/b and they are not considering things in the same level or manor. for example, maybe you compared one on volume level 5 and the other on volume level 5, but maybe sony has a higher output at level 5. Maybe sony uses a different percentage increase from 1-3 then 4-6 then 7-10. or maybe they have a level 11 ( if so they nobody can compete). Maybe the mp3 is preset to be configured to just play music and the ipod touch required adjustments and setting changes because it does things other then play music. You find a bigger fan of people returning anything made by apple. I would still say that if you were to start a thread or upload a youtube video saying that either the sony was the best or the ipod was the worst and the best you could provide was an a/b comparison, then I would say that is unfair.

 

[anon(470989)]

Except they don't. My HTC 10 does way better than my Moto X when listening to music at the gym or at work.

I guess I also shouldn't bother with buying higher quality headphones unless I'm listening to a tube amp paired vinyl player in my soundproof studio

I use an HTC 10 as well, and its fine, but honestly its not like its so much better than a One Plus X I was using before. Granted, I stream and use like $100 bluetooth earphones so I mean, it is more than adequate. I will agree that for the price point, sure, it *should* have as good of audio quality as the 10 does...but for my needs and many for lots of other people like me, it will be fine. If audio really means that much to you no matter what you are doing, then by all means, buy a 10 or a Axon 7 I guess, if it makes you feel better.

 

[akin_t]

I use an HTC 10 as well, and its fine, but honestly its not like its so much better than a One Plus X I was using before. Granted, I stream and use like $100 bluetooth earphones so I mean, it is more than adequate. I will agree that for the price point, sure, it *should* have as good of audio quality as the 10 does...but for my needs and many for lots of other people like me, it will be fine. If audio really means that much to you no matter what you are doing, then by all means, buy a 10 or a Axon 7 I guess, if it makes you feel better.

If you're using Bluetooth, you're not using the DAC or amplifier on the HTC 10; you're using the DAC built into your Bluetooth headphones.

Only way of getting analog audio (this is what we're capable of hearing) from a phone is to convert the digital 1s and 0s by use of a DAC.

Bluetooth transmits those digital 1s and 0s wirelessly, and as a result, the conversion to analog (and any resultant applied gain) has to take place on the Bluetooth headset.

 

[hpilot]

many times, people try and compare a/b and they are not considering things in the same level or manor. for example, maybe you compared one on volume level 5 and the other on volume level 5, but maybe sony has a higher output at level 5. Maybe sony uses a different percentage increase from 1-3 then 4-6 then 7-10. or maybe they have a level 11 ( if so they nobody can compete). Maybe the mp3 is preset to be configured to just play music and the ipod touch required adjustments and setting changes because it does things other then play music. You find a bigger fan of people returning anything made by apple. I would still say that if you were to start a thread or upload a youtube video saying that either the sony was the best or the ipod was the worst and the best you could provide was an a/b comparison, then I would say that is unfair.

Wow! You should be in politics - what a total nonsensical response. Who in this world sets volume level by looking at the volume number? It's totally irrelevant to this this discussion, but this was a Sony $500 high-end mp3 player. Every review I read praised it's high end audio components. And yes, I DID use the same volume. The rest of your response is unintelligible.

 

[akin_t]

many times, people try and compare a/b and they are not considering things in the same level or manor. for example, maybe you compared one on volume level 5 and the other on volume level 5, but maybe sony has a higher output at level 5. Maybe sony uses a different percentage increase from 1-3 then 4-6 then 7-10. or maybe they have a level 11 ( if so they nobody can compete). Maybe the mp3 is preset to be configured to just play music and the ipod touch required adjustments and setting changes because it does things other then play music. You find a bigger fan of people returning anything made by apple. I would still say that if you were to start a thread or upload a youtube video saying that either the sony was the best or the ipod was the worst and the best you could provide was an a/b comparison, then I would say that is unfair.

But to be fair, none of that matters.

What matters is the end result. You can theorize why and perhaps even explain why it's not fair. But when it comes to usage, people will pick what performs best for their use case.

 

[akin_t]

I don't have a higher standard about anything in life compared to someone else. My standard is what I like,Your standard should be what you like, Regardless if what we like is different.

Can you tell me what it is about the audio on your HTC 10 that outperforms the Moto X? What is it that makes it sound better to you? And if one sounds better than the other and it is important enough for you to choose a particular one then I am glad you are getting what you like.

I find audio to be fascinating and I am always interested in what it is that make people like particular products. We all have different ears and appreciate different qualties in the reproduction of music. That could easily mean that what you value as Better is different that what I value as Better. I happen to think the Pixel sounds excellent and suits my needs. You may disagree and that is fine, me and my friends all have very different home stereo systems and yet we think our own sounds the best. Who is right? We all are as we like what we have and it fulfills what we tend to value as better audio.

I use Sony MDR-1R headphones, if it matters.

With the HTC 10, there seems to be more 'separation' between notes, there's a certain warmth to the lows and mids that seemed flat on my Moto X ... Of course, this could be because the HTC 10 allows you to tune the gain for each frequency for each channel, but that's all besides the point, at the end of the day, I prefer listening to music on my HTC 10 than on my Moto X.

Also hate that Motorola didn't bother to properly shield on the PCB (I'm guessing here). While the phone is charging you can hear some static through the aux port, even though there's nothing playing. My HTC 10 doesn't have this issue.

 

[I800C0LLECT]

Wow. Hi-fi doesn't costs thousands, hundreds, or millions, or pennies. There's no direct correlation with costs.

There is a direct correlation between science and sound. Unfortunately, audio becomes very snobbish in an attempt to validate positions.

Swapping equipment because it doesn't sound the way you want is an expensive way to operate. There are passive and active techniques to get tone and staging. There's nothing magical about the pixel, HTC 10, or anything else.

A product isn't better or worse out of the box because it did or didn't meet your preferential demands. Audio isn't the unicorn many make it out to be. But it's the one hobby that seems to employ more snake oil than most and there's mass confusion and ridiculous theories running rampant. So if the product didn't meet your demands... Why? Can you help that? Very likely.

Using the pixel within its operating constraints will produce excellent results. It may not be what the butt head uses down the road with his six figure setup. it may not have the affectionate terms or stories to back up the idea that only aficionados need apply. It may not be draped in the headlines of your preferred hi-fi mentor and it sure as hell doesn't incorporate exotic materials that insinuate it's a cut above. And if it didn't meet your needs will an equalizer help? Will higher sensitivity speakers help? Do you know the T/s parameters of your headphones? Does it matter?

My opinion... Swapping hardware and not knowing how to get what you want out of the device is the crux. Good luck with all that

 

[hpilot]

Wow. Hi-fi doesn't costs thousands, hundreds, or millions, or pennies. There's no direct correlation with costs.

There is a direct correlation between science and sound. Unfortunately, audio becomes very snobbish in an attempt to validate positions.

Swapping equipment because it doesn't sound the way you want is an expensive way to operate. There are passive and active techniques to get tone and staging. There's nothing magical about the pixel, HTC 10, or anything else.

A product isn't better or worse out of the box because it did or didn't meet your preferential demands. Audio isn't the unicorn many make it out to be. But it's the one hobby that seems to employ more snake oil than most and there's mass confusion and ridiculous theories running rampant. So if the product didn't meet your demands... Why? Can you help that? Very likely.

Using the pixel within its operating constraints will produce excellent results. It may not be what the butt head uses down the road with his six figure setup. it may not have the affectionate terms or stories to back up the idea that only aficionados need apply. It may not be draped in the headlines of your preferred hi-fi mentor and it sure as hell doesn't incorporate exotic materials that insinuate it's a cut above. And if it didn't meet your needs will an equalizer help? Will higher sensitivity speakers help? Do you know the T/s parameters of your headphones? Does it matter?

My opinion... Swapping hardware and not knowing how to get what you want out of the device is the crux. Good luck with all that

If you could tell me how to increase the max volume of my phone calls, I'd be much obliged.

 

[anon(470989)]

If you could tell me how to increase the max volume of my phone calls, I'd be much obliged.

Just tell the person you are speaking with to YELL LIKE THIS WHEN THEY TALK TO YOU!

 

[hpilot]

just tell the person you are speaking with to yell like this when they talk to you.

Ok! THANKS!

 

[I800C0LLECT]

If you could tell me how to increase the max volume of my phone calls, I'd be much obliged.

Not sure if that's sarcasm but you can try this...

https://forums.androidcentral.com/e....enlightment.easyvolumecontrol&token=6Ifi8Fjx

Otherwise, my post was directed at the audio quality presuming everybody understood that's specific to the headphone jack and headphones

 

[anon(661246)]

Let's put it truthfully, the audio quality totally SUCKS. All this money for what, no expantion, no waterproofing, no ois, horrible sound. I'm very happy I kept my S7 edge and axon 7. Pixel going back. If you're an audiophile, nothing beats the axon7.

Google never went with sd expansion so I don't know why you or anyone expected that? Ois is done through software. Now people care about water proofing?

 

[I800C0LLECT]

They have to validate their opinions as the best...

 

[hpilot]

Not sure if that's sarcasm but you can try this...

https://forums.androidcentral.com/e....enlightment.easyvolumecontrol&token=OhuId1IA

Otherwise, my post was directed at the audio quality presuming everybody understood that's specific to the headphone jack and headphones

Thanks, I'll try it...

 

[Matty]

If you think the lgv20 sounds good, go listen to an axon 7 from ZTE. Incredible.

I think the reason why people know more about the LGv20 is because they advertise their DAC. Whereas i haven't seen any advertising from Axon about their audio quality (not saying their hasn't been). If i see one in the shop, ill definitely give it a list.

 

[anon(470989)]

I think the reason why people know more about the LGv20 is because they advertise their DAC. Whereas i haven't seen any advertising from Axon about their audio quality (not saying their hasn't been). If i see one in the shop, ill definitely give it a list.

A month ago or so I went to the theater to see Magnificent Seven and there was a really nice advertisement for the Axon 7 before the previews began. Sound quality was definitely advertised. It really is a nice device but its a fat one. I think it felt a lot like the Moto x Pure in hand, which was ok but still too chubby for me.