Actually once you get over the volume issue, with whatever you choose to listen to it with, the sound is pretty good. There isn't any EQ on the standard media player or Canola to use, but using various iem's and headphones, I'd say the sound overall is neutral with a hint of bass, but the clarity is good. Those Ksc 75's are normally great under most circumstances; just not punchy enough with the Nokia N810 or loud enough outside. Isolation is a must have with the Nokia and that's where the IEM's come in handy plus the added bonus of being so portable. Like I said, lower impedance is essential with the Nokia. When you take into account everything that the IT tablet can do, you can forgive it that it won't be the best mp3 player, but I personally think it's good at everything it tries to do, especially after this latest diablo update. I'm now sold on having something that's an all in one device as I got tired of taking too many devices with me everytime I travelled somewhere.