Hello,
I am noticing problems in the sound of my Z1, mostly only with its external speaker (I mean, not when using headphones). So I am pretty sure it is not a software problems, or it should be through the headphones too.
I have played some songs to test it well, disabling all the clear audio, normalizations, jingles and bells. Also the eq disabled, xLoud disabled. All the sliders of the eq at min (-10). Then I have put the first slider (400hz) at 0, and moved it between 0 and +10, adding later also the 1khz one.
This way I was able to track the problem. Can you please confirm if you too, with some different songs, can hear from the speaker a somehow distorted cracking sound? You can play also with the volume, normalization and xLoud to make it more evident to your ears.
I also have noticed this problem using some free apps to make music. So I would like to invite you to try it too, with any app you may have to make music, or try the one I used, which is SphereTones. With this app I can clearly notice that the sound is perfect through the headphones, bad through the speaker.
Then I tried an app called Springs (if you search for it you find many and I cannot post link because this is my first post, so, well, it is an app whose name is simply "Springs", with a white icon with black spheres. Developer bérenger recoules, category "music & audio"). With this app the sound is very bad also through the headphones. The developer has got no idea why and the reviews are good so I am curious to discover with you if the problem is in every Z1.
I also have noticed that the quality of all possible audio recordings (audio notes with any note app, also the mini app of the Z1, and also the apps to make loops with your voice) is very bad.
And finally, the phone calls quality is not so good. In this case there is no difference between headphones of speaker, so I have no idea why.
I discovered that in the call settings there is an eq and setting it to smooth is a good idea, also by disabling the speaker voice enhancement the problem is reduced, but not completely. Basically, the sound is somehow buzzing/crackling/scratching.
So.
Do I have a faulty phone?
THANKS
Well mate you skip important part.
If you suspect it's software fault - could you tell us which firmware are you using?
Are you on 4.3 or 4.2.2?
I don't have that problems, I found XZ1 very good, clear and loud (I'm not even using my bluetooth handsfree anymore - in the car - I just flip to speaker and I hear other side loud and clear).
Also, even I'm not that much into music - I'm very satisfied with sound (YouTube or walkman)...
Sent from my Z1
Mine sounds fine too, back on 4.2 and still in 4.3
Sent from my C6906 using Tapatalk
Ah, right, sorry
So, 4.2.2, because the 4.3 is not yet available in Germany.
All the apps and system, all is updated to last version.
I did a factory reset and also a software repair with the pc companion, but nothing changes (apart the lost of time and some problems while recovering the backup, damn it..).
Ok, faulty phone then?
Did you try with this spheretones app? I am curios because with that app (which well, the only problem is that sometimes it is kind of difficult to create the sphere) the distortion is very clear, while with music it depends on the music, some make it more obvious...
That's my first activity here,so I just wanna say hello
I know Z3 and Z3C are the newests phones from Sony,but maybe somebody who has Z3C and already used a mp3 player on it,is able to tell me,how it sounds from headphone output?Is the audio quality comparable to Z2/One m8?
Greetings
Can't speak for the other phones you mentioned, but I'm coming from a HTC One S, which is known to have very good sound quality. From my listening tests over the past few days I'd say the z3c has excellent sound quality through headphones. I've been listening from Google play music streaming over WiFi, no eq. When using the Sony Walkman app I turned on clearaudio+ which seemed to help although it did add some hiss.
The bass on this sounds really good though my headphones, must be a perfect match! It's so good I prefer using them now to my in ear phones. The bass notes are loud & deep with no distortion, and different drums, bass guitars etc are all easy to discern. I find myself listening at volume of about 8, I'll go to 9 or even 10 if I want to push it. For some the volume may not be enough if they have difficult to drive headphones or want to blow their heads off.
Listening using Phonak Audeo PFE's and Creative Aurvana Live!2 headphones.
Thank you for your respond.How about individual tones?Does Z3C has more lows(warm sound,sometimes full of bass),mids(neutral sound),or highs(less bass,usually the best instruments)?
If you'll try to use poweramp,or install viper4android,noozxoide etc,you can also share your impressions here .
Highs, mids and lows are all very clear and well balanced, the bass does not overpower anything, the highs can be crystal clear when needed. If I had to find a small criticism I'd say the mids could do with been a little more forward sometimes, but then again that depends just as much on the track your listening to.
For me I wouldn't bother with any third party players etc, in the end you'll just be adding loudness and eq (maybe distortion) till you get a different sound. Will that sound be any 'better'? well only you could answer that, and no one would have a right to disagree with you as music is such a personal experience.
Will my headphones be distorting the music? Off course they are. Does it sound good to me? Absolutely!
Which have better sound quality: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact or Iphone 5s ?
SteveYorks said:
Highs, mids and lows are all very clear and well balanced, the bass does not overpower anything, the highs can be crystal clear when needed. If I had to find a small criticism I'd say the mids could do with been a little more forward sometimes, but then again that depends just as much on the track your listening to.
For me I wouldn't bother with any third party players etc, in the end you'll just be adding loudness and eq (maybe distortion) till you get a different sound. Will that sound be any 'better'? well only you could answer that, and no one would have a right to disagree with you as music is such a personal experience.
Will my headphones be distorting the music? Off course they are. Does it sound good to me? Absolutely!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When compare the sound quality from the new Sony Xperia Z3 Compact versus Iphone 5s, which have better sound quality ?
I have a old Sonyericsson K750i (with W800i firmware) that have good sound quality and a Nokia 808 Pureview with average sound
quality.
Thanks in advance.
santos_vitor said:
When compare the sound quality from the new Sony Xperia Z3 Compact versus Iphone 5s, which have better sound quality ?
I have a old Sonyericsson K750i (with W800i firmware) that have good sound quality and a Nokia 808 Pureview with average sound
quality.
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the sound of the z3c is pretty loud and the quality isn't really bad (i've disabled clearaudio+ and tweaked the equalizer to enhance the high frequencies), just some basses are missing in comparison to the 5s but on the other hand you have the stereophonic sound, which is amazing while watching a movie or even listening to a mp3, and the front-positioned speakers that can not be covered while holding the device in your hands.
the headphones output is balanced and loud..no issues at all when plugged into an aux source.
fafa90 said:
the sound of the z3c is pretty loud and the quality isn't really bad (i've disabled clearaudio+ and tweaked the equalizer to enhance the high frequencies), just some basses are missing in comparison to the 5s but on the other hand you have the STEREOPHONIC sound, which is amazing while watching a movie or even listening to a mp3, and the front-positioned speakers that can not be covered while holding the device in your hands.
the headphones output is balanced and loud..no issues at all when plugged into an aux source.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By stereophonic sound do you mean this?
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Jiyeon90 said:
By stereophonic sound do you mean this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no i was talking about the double loudspeaker system, the stereo effect is immediately noticeable if you've never owned a two speakers smartphone.
those options shown in the screenshot are available just with the headphones plugged in and the result isn't bad at all!
the overall sound system of the smartphone (both hardware and software) is really impressive to be honest with the noise suppression, stereo effects, hi res audio, etc..
Do stereo speakers work when the phone is ringing on incoming calls
spinz78 said:
Do stereo speakers work when the phone is ringing on incoming calls
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
nope, just the main speaker will ring (the one at the bottom).
This phone is still too quiet with ringtones for my needs.
However, when playing movies and games, it loud, but thin and not very wide.
The biggest thing of note for me aside from the sound quality is that you feel the sound. This is the first phone I have had the completely vibrates like a subwoofer in your hand while playing games.
Please don't misunderstand. I am not saying this phone has perceivable bass to your ears. I am saying the phone does not contain the sound well and vibrates in your hands. Very strange to the touch while playing games and media at a loud volume.
Interesting.
Sounds like a resonant frequency of the body is
absorbing the bass frequencies from the speakers instead of turning them into sound.
This would explain the lack of bass but loud volume.
You have not felt this before because there have rarely been two speakers on a device this small.
Audio engineers could have possibly minimized by using a slightly different speaker for left and right or a
damping insulation .
You may be able to minimize with EQ app, and get more
bass also, and turning down the tiniest amount may help.
Kudos to SONY for putting some power in the Audio.
Also the glass panels may have an absorbing effect at their resonant frequency -the back glass vibrates most ?
Also if any of you have a way to contact SONY engineering, there is a possibility that these speakers are wired out of phase, i.e. one speaker is pushing out while one is pushing in , rather than both in sync.
This also would lack bass and increase vibration, simply a matter of reversing polarity on outputs of one Speaker.
I've just attached an interesting statictic,which shows xperia Z3C power of headphone output and speakers and comparsions it to other the most popular smartphones.
My headphones have an impedance of 32 Ohms and it drives them loud enough for me. Volume 10 is usually too loud.
For anyone who wants a richer sound from the built-in speakers, try this equalizer:
(ignoring clear bass) +9, -6, +3, +7, +9
S-Force surround is off because it makes the sound hollow imo.
degraaff said:
For anyone who wants a richer sound from the built-in speakers, try this equalizer:
(ignoring clear bass) +9, -6, +3, +7, +9
S-Force surround is off because it makes the sound hollow imo.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will that setting only work on the walkman app or be universal?
techguyone said:
Will that setting only work on the walkman app or be universal?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The equalizer in sound settings is universal.
You can configure it either from the sound settings menu or from the walk man apps, it changes for both.
Good tip Degraff , there also equalizers that you can just
boost up to 15 db per band...
If you have a Z3 Compact, after hearing video comparisons, I doubt that the graph above is accurate .
I believe the Z3 C will be louder than for example a S5.
I have also heard an S 4 and an S5 next to each other
and S4 was louder.
Is your Z3C louder than S4, S5 …?
robertkoa said:
Good tip Degraff , there also equalizers that you can just
boost up to 15 db per band...
If you have a Z3 Compact, after hearing video comparisons, I doubt that the graph above is accurate .
I believe the Z3 C will be louder than for example a S5.
I have also heard an S 4 and an S5 next to each other
and S4 was louder.
Is your Z3C louder than S4, S5 …?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also find my Z3C to be much louder than the comments here made my expect.
And if it needs to be REALLY load, putting all of the equalizer slider on max will do the trick. Clear Audio+ also seems to make the sound louder. And there's an option to make specifically the ring tone louder.
I have no experience with any Samsung phones so I can't comment on that.
I am overlooking the "Make ringside louder option.
Please direct me to that setting.
Thanks in advance!
Hi,
strangely, i find the audio quality to be very poor (much worse than the GNEX i'm coming from anyway).
- sound stage is much narrower using the walkman app.
- using poweramp has proven to be impossible : there is an awful background noize (that i don't get either with the walkman app, either with google play music, like a FM radio interference.) The sound stage seems wider (I suppose this is thanks to the "direct volume control" feature of poweramp)
I did the test with 320kbps mp3, and a wide range of CD quality FLAC files.
I have tried the high res usb DAC output, but will not be using it on a daily basis as :
- it requires the platic waterproof protection to be off
- with my usb dac (dragonfly 1.2) the phone cannot control the dac's volume control (100% output volume would smash to pieces my earphones, and my ears)
- having a cable attached to the microusb port is the best way to break the port...
I'm not using any of the rubbishy musiFX, clearaudio stuff.
My earphones are high end IEMs (westone W60).
Anyone experienced this too ?
Well, I have encountered similar problem with you..
For the noise floor, it seems that this problem appears only if you use Poweramp, I have tried to use walkman and folder player with creative in-ear 3 and ATH-AD900X, the noise floor is not very obvious. Generally, I think z3c has a relatively good control of noise floor, and the arising of noise is due to Poweramp.
For the sound stage, yes it is narrower when you use Walkman, open the Clear Audio+ will enlarge sound stage a little bit but then the problem of sibilance arises
YEEES. Thank you so much for confirming I'm not going nuts and my phone is not malfunctioning !
I've sent a bug report to poweramp devs. I hope it gets fixed...
I personally can't bare clearaudio-style features which tend to give the feeling the music was recording microphone was set up inside a can...
ps: btw I learnt a new word today : sibilance.
ps2 : please upvote the bug thread on poweramp's forum (http://forum.powerampapp.com/index.php?/topic/6857-horrible-noise-floor-on-z3-compact/)
ps3: forgot to mention, this noise problem is related to Direct Volume Control. disabling this feature in poweramp removes the noise issue, but also reduces sound quality and sound stage.
icsha said:
Well, I have encountered similar problem with you..
For the noise floor, it seems that this problem appears only if you use Poweramp, I have tried to use walkman and folder player with creative in-ear 3 and ATH-AD900X, the noise floor is not very obvious. Generally, I think z3c has a relatively good control of noise floor, and the arising of noise is due to Poweramp.
For the sound stage, yes it is narrower when you use Walkman, open the Clear Audio+ will enlarge sound stage a little bit but then the problem of sibilance arises
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi, i'm too dissapointed about the music quality.
it was much better when i installed custom rom on xperia tipo with z1 features, clearaudio+ gave the huge quality boost
Can someone comment on the music player audio quality and how it compares to viperaudio mod? If it is subpar, what music player are you using? I'm on verizon so viperaudio is not an option until/if we get root. Thanks in advance.
kheltek said:
Can someone comment on the music player audio quality and how it compares to viperaudio mod? If it is subpar, what music player are you using? I'm on verizon so viperaudio is not an option until/if we get root. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience so far has been good. Through the 3.5mm headphone jack it plays really well through my car stereo, nice dynamic sound with pretty low distortion. More base heavy than I would go for but definitely well rounded. The phone speaker itself I find a little distorted due to the big base but it depends on your style of music and volume levels. The volume goes quite high also.
I'm comparing this to my last phone which was the nexus 5, personally I felt the nexus 5 volume was too low and lacked any base and made it sound tinny because of it. Even with viper audio I was never satisfied with it. The Moto x on the other hand got a few smiles from me with how it handled some of my favorite tracks on my commute.
The last phone I can remember really enjoying my music on was the galaxy s1 international version with voodoo music mod. That was quite a while though and honestly can't remember it enough to compare. Still, maybe that gives you some indication to what I would be looking for audio wise
Im using Apollo for my music player and the sound is great. If u have upgraded to 5.0 theres a built in EQ under settings/sound where u can modify how it sounds thru headphones and front speakers.
That's also in 4.4