Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Is the sound quality on the n900 as good as an iphone or ipod?

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

If I'm not mistaken, N-series phones have always got decent headphones-out (circuitry, amp, etc.). Waiting for a review from an 'audiophile' who's already got an N900...

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I remember reading it used the same audio output as the N97. It should sound fairly good.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

It's about as nice of a headphone amp as they come. The 3.5mm out sounds absolutely amazing. The built-in speakers pump better than most laptops.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

n900 speakers are a lot better then the nokia n97

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Better be good, i'm using the Shure E5 :)

Raptor

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

No offence, but please don't refer to the Iphone as a benchmark for sound quality.

As for now, the N900 lacks music dedicated software (like EQ and much more in this area), but that's probably the only disadvantage, which is a temporary one, since it can easily be fixed in the future. Remember, software can be updated, while hardware can't.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I'm going to embarrass myself here by saying the best pair of cans I have right now is a pair of Quiet Comfort 2s (I'm sorry, I was young! We all make mistakes when we're young, right? Right? :() and the N900 sounds absolutely gorgeous on them. It sounds even better hooked up to my Axiom M22tis.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Nice to read that. From my last N-series experience, I know that Nokia does not disappoint anyone in this topic. I would not expect something different now! :)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

@c0rt3x: the 3gs sounds good on my (westone) um3x.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

You make me laugh..the iPhone..? Is iPhone a god that you have to compare everything else to?

What's next? "Does the N900 have as good round curves as an iPhone?" LOL

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Maybe that's what he has right now and he's just asking for an honest comparison.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

The pre production device have a sound which is far away better than ipod !

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I'm using Ultimate ears triple.fi headphones with N900 and I found this combo much better than N810 and also little better than N97. Can't compare to i anything though.

Those of you who wan't to have EQ should just buy decent headphones. EQ doesn't make music sound better it makes it always worse especially when you are using good headphones. I hope that EQ is not ever included in maemo devices by default.

Edit: N900 I'm using is a pre production unit. from the summit.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

yes, maybe yes...i didn't mean to sound negative, but all this comparing everywhere you look is driving me crazy... iPhone fanboys compare the two and say that the N900 is bad without looking at facts, when someone says the N900 is superior the fanboys go wild and isolate themselves in a box, ignoring everything everyone else says... like some wacky fanatics lol

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

How is the volume and gain? Does the depth of sound correlate well with the volume., or does it get saturated quickly?

My concern is Nokia is adhering to the Euro law about capping sound. Some (like Archos) screw up and get the volume and gain wrong when capping, so the sound spectrum is screwed up (lack of definition and dB level too low).

I use 13ohm UE's, so I like good ear buds too :)


mve,

That can be true, but mainly if software manipulated, and not using the actual hardware through a simple control interface. Most decent integrated chipsets with MP3 decoding have hardware EQ that does not have to be harsh (but with MP3, that is a tight rope).

A good example is Wings Over America. "Maybe I'm Amazed"- it has poorly defined cymbal sounds that stand out better with a little EQ help. I can name a few CDs that sound weaker to their 33rpm record versions. Compression is another evil factor- loudness over definition :mad:

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Unfortunately it goes both ways :)
It may cloud one's judgement and make him read too much from an otherwise neutral statement.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Well then, if the sound is well defined and has good depth, I can wait for an EQ :) But I can not wait for portrait mode ::mad: ;) :)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

iPod touch (I own the 1st and 2nd gen)and iPhone sound like rubbish compared to Nokia's 5800XM so this is a lame comparison .

Does N900 have the same sound chip as the 5800?. I doubt it will sound as good as the boom box that is 5800XM.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

This should be the one: Texas Instruments TPA6130A2.

. . . and, yes, it kicks the 5800's ***.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Hi, let me intervene for a second.

Perhaps the original poster either a.) has an iPhone or b.) has experienced audio on it and has decided this is an important factor in their decision to go with an N900 or an iPhone.

Being the internet, you may now continue to project your feelings onto the misunderstood questions of others.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Of course iPod touch sound is just poor and noisy. I wish N900 will sound as good as 5800XM which probably a top 3 device in terms of sound quality

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

what better than 5800 - you kidding right ?. :D

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I'm by no means an audiophile but by subjective ear-testing the N900 sounds considerably better than the N810, and sounds decent even when connected to external speakers (i.e. when watching movies). The headphones that come with the unit are also better than the ones that came with the N810.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

This might not be popular, but; the Itouch and iphone 3gs is an excellent DAP - not perfect but as an audio device, they are excellent (and yes i'm a serious audiophile).
My DAP is the Sanza Fuze, but thats mainly foor its drag 'n' drop support of Flac, ichoons drives me crazy!
I have the N800, N810 and N95 - and the audio SQ is very poor on both the N800 and N810 - the N95 is better but no where near the itouch sq. I tried to use Flac with both the N800/810 and it was never quite up to the task. I'm hoping the audio from the N900 is better, and with some decent media support.
BT

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

iPod touch a serious DAP ? Come on man, just come on.

iPod touch sounds loud but the definition and range is not just there - I know I have 2 of these but I use my 5800 now. Just check out gsmarena.com for some technical analysis. The iPhone sounds very poor compared to Nokia's 5800.

ps
I'm not an audiophile like you but I have a bit of common sense :cool:

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I need to turn you onto some $10,000 headphone amps!

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

*On reasonably priced consumer electronics. ;)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

First I do not want to start a Flame war, but I am have been working as a sound engineer in recording studios.
we have to clarify a couple of things.
1.
when you produce things in a studio you have so many sound altering devices that they are too many to mention.
1b.
so your job is to change original sound to "interesting" sound.
2.
studios pay a lot of money to have "neutral sounding " speaker monitors, so you have a reference to listen to
2b.
good sound is really personal, that is why you can hear difference between different studios or producers, we are all individuals.
3.
people tend to forget the importance of good quality MP3 ripping. compressed music is not Hi-Fi...it can be good and I listen all day long to it, but it is not High-end Audio reproduction stuff. very handy though.

Reproduce Audio
This is where things go wrong with people say NO to (good) EQ

you forget the listening environment.
to give an example, when you have been at a Rock show the sound probably was bad in the beginning of the concert ( as they cut time on pre-show sound testing ) it is also hard to test the sound without an audience, which affect the sound a lot.

this is the same scenario when you are in a car or in an airplane, or even in your living room, there is different background noise, and acoustics that you need to compensate for, even wearing most headphones ( if not totally removing outside noise)

I agree that you cannot use and EQ to compensate for crappy sound, headphones or speakers, that is where you should start, but and EQ do help ( used within reason ) to compensate an not perfect listening room, crappy speakers, personal taste, why shall you not have be able to personal sound, we all hear things different as ask a Dr specialized in hearing.

I also agree that most cheap built in digital EQ can easily create distorsion, so when using EQ listen carefully so it is within limits of what the pre-amp / hardware / software can do.

and a fact for most non-EQ fans....you can turn it off......

As I said in the beginning not here to start a flame war, just giving my personal opinion.

and if you could not guess, I am Pro-EQ

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I've been looking at n900s a lot And can't seem to find the needle, wher do I put the record?

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Is the audio quality "acceptable" when using the fm transmitter, when compared to connected directly by jack? (on the autoradio for example)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Sounds great to me. The best FM transmitter I've used by far.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I was looking into getting the BH-905 Bluetooth headset, do we already know if the N900 supports the playback controls of bluetooth headsets?

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I can't speak to iPhone sound quality, but I've been listening to music on the N900 through cheap Nokia earbuds and even then it sounds very nice.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Rhaaa I like this phone more and more every day, even without owning it yet :)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

I have the BH-604 and all buttons work. The sound quality is very good and I am a very happy music listener in my commuting time.

I haven't got the chance to compare in equal conditions (same song files, same headset) with the 5800 or Apple products but I did compare with my previous E71 and N82 and the N900 sounds good to me. ;)

fwiw I was using EQ in these devices but I'm not missing it in the N900. I actually asked Lennart Poettering (PulseAudio maintainer) in the Summit about EQ functionality supported in PA and he also was of the opinion that EQs are not needed when the right pieces are well in place. I don't want to join any flame either, just thought the quote was interesting.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

... and while I was typing these lines look what garage project has been created: https://garage.maemo.org/projects/mafweqrenderer/

The beauty of open source and community development. :)

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Is N900's Speaker better than N97?

Better than 5800?

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

Previous posts in this same thread have already answered this.

It's either Equal or Better.

Re: Is the sound quality as good as an ipod/iphone?
 

There is a Video on Youtube - N900 Preview Unit speaker comparison.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TquCVQNVQqg

I don't understand why we had to listen to music on MONO Speakers for so many years. It's not comparable to listen to anything that is mono compared to the STEREO Speakers of the N900!