iPods - do they really sound that good?

[admin_exported]

Disclaimer - if you like your iPod, you might not want to read this. I tested on music alone, discounting any other features each one may have.

So, I've done some listening tests, using a variety of fairly cheap (around £30) 'phones, both on ear and in ear, then my hifi system. I tried an iPod Nano 8Gb, iPod Touch 8Gb, and my Samsung YP-K3 (a £50 MP3 player), played at roughly the same level, with the same tracks and the same bitrates.

The iPod Touch was the worst, easily. It was nearing unlistenable, then I played with the eq settings (Jazz sounded about the best). It got to a point where I could listen to it, but not seriously. The midrange was all wrong, the bass and treble were detail-less, but still managed to be fatiguing. Sure, you could get thuds, but there was no texture to the bass guitar in Sultans of Swing by Dire Straits, for example.

Next was the Nano. Playing Put Your Lights On, by Satana, it could've impressed - the midrange was far smoother than that of the Touch, the bass had more detailed, and the timbre of cymbals etc were getting there. Stereo imaging was wide, with instruments placed with reasonable aaccuracy

Put on my MP3 player, and it was clear what was missing from the Nano - the vocals sounded much nicer, and the different frequencies of the voices were more coherant. The bass carried more texture, but still wasn't completely right (referenced to my PC). The treble was similar. The stereo imaging was a little narrower, but the positioning was a little better.

I know that the Nano has far more features than mine, but surely, for that sort of money, they could get the music spot on? The iPod touch... well, I'm not sure how it's managed to pick up any awards for multimedia. Sure, it plays videos, but if it's noticably fatiguing to listen to, what's the point? Even my sister, who loathes my obsession with hifi, had to mess with the eq to make it sound better.

Anyone else with similar experiences?

Chris

Test tracks were:

Stanley Road album, by Paul Weller

Money for Nothing album, Dire Straits

Supernatural, Carlos Santana

 

[SHAXOS]

No not really. Sound great to me.

 

[bemahler1]

No not really, they just sound brilliant.

 

[Anonymous]

I find that with a pair of Shure SE110 headphones the iPhone sounds very neutral and quite detailed. The bass lacks punch and it seems to be wanting for dynamics with some music. I have to have the EQ on classical to add a little bass and drop the midrange a tad, how I seem to prefer my audio.

It's the best portable music device I've ever used, but in the same way as I find for hifi, you need to spend some decent cash on the speakers/phones bit. Other portable music players I've used sound very coloured, often at the cost of detail.

 

[Sorreltiger]

Unless you were playing lossless files, your findings are worthless. If you were playing compressed files, it could easily be argued that the iPods were best at revealing the deficiencies in the original!

 

[Anonymous]

I used the highest bitrates available (320k) to compare the MP3 player to the iPods, then used lossless for my PC vs the iPods.

The speakers I use are about level to £800 worth of speaker (they're DIY, but I've asked several people to listen, and the values given went to £1000). The amplifier is about the same.

Off on holidays now, back in a week.

Chris

 

[rymidd]

ipod touch second gen sounds the best the first gen lacks something which i carnt put my finger on , the bose in ear phones sound amazing with the ipod

 

[Anonymous]

You're using cheap headphones to compare the devices? That isn't exactly a great comparison. I love my iPod Touch with Ortofon e-Q7s--it is far, far better than my old iPod Video 5.5G and my mates current Nano. It absolutely owns MP3 players as it can do lossless and they can't!

 

[manicm]

After owning 4 iPods, I must agree with HiFiAddict.

By far my iPod 'fatty' Nano was the best sounding one after the original iPod Mini.

I've had the previous Classic 120GB and it sounded bloodless and boring.

I now have the Touch 64GB, and while better than the Classic above, is still not as good as the Nano.

As I like to say, WRT iPods Jobs' attitude toward sound quality is: Today is not your day, and tomorrow does not look good either.

 

[manicm]

igglebert:I find that with a pair of Shure SE110 headphones the iPhone sounds very neutral and quite detailed. The bass lacks punch and it seems to be wanting for dynamics with some music. I have to have the EQ on classical to add a little bass and drop the midrange a tad, how I seem to prefer my audio. It's the best portable music device I've ever used, but in the same way as I find for hifi, you need to spend some decent cash on the speakers/phones bit. Other portable music players I've used sound very coloured, often at the cost of detail.

Great to know you like the SE110s, I also had them and IMO they're only good if you like mud in your ears.

I gave them to my friend - he loved them too. Oh well - did my bit for charity.

 

[Anonymous]

Mud in your ears? Do you mean the way they fit with their foam buds or do you find the midrange muddy? Any recommendations for phones that have greater dynamics?

 

[GazzyP]

Having previoulsy owned two Sony MiniDisc Walkmans, then a Sony HDD network Walkman - when I finally gave in and got an iPod I was very dissapointed with the sound quality. It always feels like its struggling to keep up, it easily distorts and there is a very small 'sweet spot' within the volume range where it sounds 'ok'. I have a 50 quid pair of Sony in-ear earphones - which I have had since my first MiniDisc Walkman.

 

[Messiah]

I have been impressed with the sound from my Nano and iPhone.

Enough so that I decided to sell my Cyrus CD6s as I found the sound from my iPods in conjunction with my Onkyo DS-A2X was very similar.

 

[Anonymous]

My ipod touch sounds good to me. I often find myself doing something that would prolly make the elite cringe. I hook my touch up to the stereo via the headphone socket and listen to spotify tracks. Its not even a 50£ gold plated cable!

I just enjoy the music though, i dont sit still with my eyes closed and listen for faults ;-)

 

[rymidd]

ipods needs headphone with plenty of bass and warm sounding like the bose in ear this ear phone sound too bassy with hifi amps headphone out but great with ipod

 

[manicm]

igglebert:Mud in your ears? Do you mean the way they fit with their foam buds or do you find the midrange muddy? Any recommendations for phones that have greater dynamics?

Yes, they're the earphone equivalent of NAD hifi

 

[Anonymous]

That's what I thought you meant. I was confused because I find them to be quite clear and lean sounding! All depends on what you're used to I guess! These'll do until they break and I'll get something a bit better

 

[Anonymous]

To be honest posting this is a bit pointless as the 'Apple Brigade' will simply defend the iPod to the death...even if it simply reproduced everything in mono 😉

Like a previous post I was very disappointed with the iPod having used Minidisc recorders for many years. The Sony X series comes very close to the quality produced by MD and leaves iPod in the shade 😉

 

[Anonymous]

I agree with oeurf. In my experience most iPod users will claim an iPod has excellent or even best SQ without ever having compared it to any of it's competitors (and while using cheap headphones....)

I recommend reading head-fi for some informed user experiences.

 

[carter]

anti apple brigade vs apple brigade?

does it really matter abut sound quality in a portable device as long as its fairly good.

i would rate a portable player on reliability,ease of use,storage capacity,prce..and for me the classic is 160 gig for £180 beats most things thay have a good build and never seem to skip and set up is very easy

so if the sq is a not the best as long as ive got 160gigs worth of music in my pocket/car does it matter its not like the car or walking down the street or sitting on the train is a great listening enviroment anyway.

.

 

[John Duncan]

nodnarb4444:
anti apple brigade vs apple brigade?

does it really matter abut sound quality in a portable device as long as its fairly good.

i would rate a portable player on reliability,ease of use,storage capacity,prce..and for me the classic is 160 gig for £180 beats most things thay have a good build and never seem to skip and set up is very easy

so if the sq is a not the best as long as ive got 160gigs worth of music in my pocket/car does it matter its not like the car or walking down the street or sitting on the train is a great listening enviroment anyway.

kerching

 

[Sliced Bread]

igglebert:I find that with a pair of Shure SE110 headphones the iPhone sounds very neutral and quite detailed. The bass lacks punch and it seems to be wanting for dynamics with some music. I have to have the EQ on classical to add a little bass and drop the midrange a tad, how I seem to prefer my audio.
Seconded!

I use an itouch and SE110's. To get the most out of the ipod you need a pair of headphones that work well with the device. The Shure SE110's are easy to drive and have a presentation that, when coupled with the itouch, produces a good musical balance.

My previous Sony headphones sounded awful with the itouch, to the point where I considered returning it, however once I added the Shure's I loved it. For the price you can't beat it in my opinion.

As mentioned by others, apple lossless is the way to go.

 

[Sliced Bread]

HiFiAddict:
I used the highest bitrates available (320k) to compare the MP3 player to the iPods, then used lossless for my PC vs the iPods.

The speakers I use are about level to £800 worth of speaker (they're DIY, but I've asked several people to listen, and the values given went to £1000). The amplifier is about the same.

Off on holidays now, back in a week.

Chris

Two points:

1) The speakers may be good, but that does not necessarily mean that they work well with the ipods sonic character.

2) I found that through headphones the ipod is fantastic, however through my hifi and speakers using Russ Andrews cable, I (like you) found it disappointing. It did not match my CA cd player for quality. But it could just be that my Onkyo / Mission combo does not work well with the ipod. I should stress however that in terms of detail and separation it was also inferior to the CA player and this should be the case regardless of the partnering equipment. Strange really as the detail and separation through the headphones is not bad at all.

 

[Anonymous]

When im walking around the house or relaxing in the garden, in bed or anywhere that i dont have a music system i use my touch with the Sennheiser HD555's This combo sounds good to me. I only have a few lossless files on the touch as i mainly use spotify on the touch. The big jack with the adapter is abit cumbersome though. I may get myself one of those grado? adapter thingies unless i can find something similar in a shop near me.

 

[Craig M.]

i like apple stuff, but i think the sq from the itouch is rubbish, tried it with a few 'phones upto 80 quid mark, tonally it seems all wrong, harsh top end and slow, ill-defined bass. maybe i expect too much from it, but i think my old minidisk players were better. works well as a remote though...