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Anyone using an aftermarket headset with the phone? I've been using the phone as my sole music player (sorry cowon d2+) and i want to get a bit more sound quality out of them. IEM that comes with the phone is not bad but i keep reaching over for my over the ear headphones and that also means i have to use the phone for conversation instead of leaving it in the pocket
I was thinking of giving the phonak PFE 022 a try. Any suggestions?
I've been using the UE TripleFi 10vi, they work just fine.
Until I recently got my BT headphones, I was using the motorola EH20's. They're inexpensive (<20$), hit like a train ,they sound 10x better than the ones that come with the captivate, literally, I put those ones in once and after that they stayed in the box lol, and theyre really good at noise cancelling. More than I expected for what I paid. and for being headphones, if you put them in correctly, they wont come out. Ive ran with them many times and not once did they fall out.
I was using my Shure 115's ....till I lost them in my gf's messy ass room. So I got a pair of "Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's" coming in tomorrow for $60 on sale at buy.com. I'll give a review tomorrow.
mikeypopps said:
I was using my Shure 115's ....till I lost them in my gf's messy ass room. So I got a pair of "Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's" coming in tomorrow for $60 on sale at buy.com. I'll give a review tomorrow.
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I look forward to the review
mesasone said:
I've been using the UE TripleFi 10vi, they work just fine.
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I haven't personally experienced the UE TripleFI 10/10vi but from what i hear from the price point which it's in ($300+ range), i've seen a bit of mix reviews on the unit. I frequent head-fi.org and those guys are very picky.
If you don't mind, do you mind providing a bit more review on the headset? UE Triple FI 10 is definitely on the top of my list but i don't want to make too much compromises just for the mic capability
Hey Guys. I was using my old iPhone earbuds that came with my old iPhone 3G until they broke. My wife has a HTC Aria and the earbuds that came with them have 3 controls on them plus the mic. Any idea if you can get something with more than just the one control on the wire to work with the Captivate?
compared to the 115s
So the Ultimate Ears came in today - Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's
Come with two sizes of memory foam earbuds and 4 sizes of silicon.
The port on the Shure's is much smaller allowing you to compress the memory foam a good bit smaller before insertion.
As well at Shure's foam is black and slick coated allowing for easier insertion and wont get earwax colored.
Click to control works just as a pause and play button for music no track skipping.
The mic is still well placed when you use the phones in the over the ear configuration. Landing somewhere mid jaw.
Plugging them into our 3.5 port is very snug almost worrying that you might be making it to loose for other plugs. But at least you wont pull these out by accident.
The mic pick up is very good even in loud environments.
Sound clarity is great I tested them with some Lady Gaga, Simon & Garfunkel, R Kelly, Kesha, and Big Boi. All in flac format, I love that our phones can play flac. Sound were very crisp and tight. Older songs like Simon & Garfunkel sounded better with our 5.1 on but others like Big Boi Shutter Bug are muddled by it.
Bass production is good and more than suffice for my music , but then again that could be the flac helping a lot. I like clean bass its bad if it distorts the other channels. I only expect the bass to get better once they get some more time on them and open up.
Now as for as construction compared to Shure's. Nothing can top Shures they just feel solid. And their customer service is bar none. But if I never have to call Ultimate Ears about these it would be an even better testimony.
The biggest difference sound wise compared to shure 115's is the hi's sound punchier more tuned with the Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's not better but different, I think better for classical music would be the best way to describe it. Better for Lady Gaga too with all the crazy sounds in the background coming out more. The choice and ears are yours. Obviously the 115's dont have an inline mic so nothing to mention there.
mikeypopps said:
So the Ultimate Ears came in today - Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's
Come with two sizes of memory foam earbuds and 4 sizes of silicon.
The port on the Shure's is much smaller allowing you to compress the memory foam a good bit smaller before insertion.
As well at Shure's foam is black and slick coated allowing for easier insertion and wont get earwax colored.
Click to control works just as a pause and play button for music no track skipping.
The mic is still well placed when you use the phones in the over the ear configuration. Landing somewhere mid jaw.
Plugging them into our 3.5 port is very snug almost worrying that you might be making it to loose for other plugs. But at least you wont pull these out by accident.
The mic pick up is very good even in loud environments.
Sound clarity is great I tested them with some Lady Gaga, Simon & Garfunkel, R Kelly, Kesha, and Big Boi. All in flac format, I love that our phones can play flac. Sound were very crisp and tight. Older songs like Simon & Garfunkel sounded better with our 5.1 on but others like Big Boi Shutter Bug are muddled by it.
Bass production is good and more than suffice for my music , but then again that could be the flac helping a lot. I like clean bass its bad if it distorts the other channels. I only expect the bass to get better once they get some more time on them and open up.
Now as for as construction compared to Shure's. Nothing can top Shures they just feel solid. And their customer service is bar none. But if I never have to call Ultimate Ears about these it would be an even better testimony.
The biggest difference sound wise compared to shure 115's is the hi's sound punchier more tuned with the Ultimate Ears Super.fi 5vi's not better but different, I think better for classical music would be the best way to describe it. Better for Lady Gaga too with all the crazy sounds in the background coming out more. The choice and ears are yours. Obviously the 115's dont have an inline mic so nothing to mention there.
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How's the battery life with Flac? I tried the same buds and hated them b/c of the lack of bass reproduction, even in 320kbps variable.
Wow - finally a post I can offer some real assistance.
I'm a musician, and I have the Shure E2 and the UE Superfi.5 (the originals, which they don't sell anymore) for my wireless monitoring on stage. Both are excellent phones, although I think the quality of the UEs are better and the sound is a bit cleaner through all the frequencies.
My best advice is to replace the foam on either with Comply tips, they are tons more comfortable and mold much better to the ear. You'll notice a difference immediately, but a huge difference after an hour.
Thanks for the replies everyone.
Here is my last question. Can i buy UE TripleFi 10 and replace the wire with TripleFi 10vi? i think i've heard that they're compatible but i wasn't exactly sure
60hzrumble said:
Wow - finally a post I can offer some real assistance.
I'm a musician, and I have the Shure E2 and the UE Superfi.5 (the originals, which they don't sell anymore) for my wireless monitoring on stage. Both are excellent phones, although I think the quality of the UEs are better and the sound is a bit cleaner through all the frequencies.
My best advice is to replace the foam on either with Comply tips, they are tons more comfortable and mold much better to the ear. You'll notice a difference immediately, but a huge difference after an hour.
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Click to collapse
@60hzrumble
Thanks. I play bass and like bass in my rock music. For instance, take the song Airbag from Radiohead's OK Computer. great bass in a non-funky/r&b song. On my old Sony X Walkman this sounded awesome. The bass sounds great on the Captivate using Rock On (cubed) with my Skullcandy Heavy Metals, but there is not enough at the high-end. The 5vi's are awesome on the high-end. Any recommendations for good overall reproduction?
You might be heading to dual driver land aka $200+ phones land.
60hzrumble said:
My best advice is to replace the foam on either with Comply tips, they are tons more comfortable and mold much better to the ear. You'll notice a difference immediately, but a huge difference after an hour.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is the foam on comply tips slick coated like Shure's are. I knew its brody licking them before compressing and inserting but the Shures just slide right in when you do that.
Is there anyone that knows how to make the rear speaker LOUDER! on the Sprint HTC Arrive? When you turn the volume up, it's still not loud enough. I use SlingPlayer with it and have trouble hearing it on this phone. I did not have any problem hearing the SlingPlayer on my Sprint HTC Touch Pro2 at all. The volume goes up to 30. What is 30? Why not 100? Can you guy's PLEASE HELP with this issue.
While I don't have an answer to your question (my Arrive is just as loud as my TP2), the number 30 is just a number. All it means is that the full spectrum of the volume is divided into thirty increments. It doesn't mean that the phone is less loud. Putting 100 and having an increment at every one would take a long time to turn the volume all the way up or all the way down. I wouldn't let the 30 bother you.
Perhaps the way you're holding it or placing it is blocking the speaker? The three green spots on the back are where the speaker is, and covering it can actually significantly reduce the volume. Likewise, if you're setting it down, the surface makes a difference. Putting it on the couch muffles it, while putting it on a table actually helps.
Hope this helps.
@hopmedic: None of that matters. Not saying it's not true (most of it is), but the problem is the phone, not the way he's holding it or where he's putting it.
If you want a good speaker on your phone, don't buy an HTC phone. Buy a Samsung. All of HTC's phones have ****ty speakers. The HD7's speakers are crap too, as was the HD2's speakers (though marginally better since both are on the front of the phone).
There's really no reason to get an HTC WP7 device, TBQH. HTC is known for having good software/skinning, but you cannot do that on WP7. The only thing I'd say is worth it is for their YouTube App, but it's not worth getting their crappy hardware for. For a WP7 device, go with a Manufacturer who puts out decent hardware, and avoid HTC, IMO. HTC makes their money by churning out as many cheaply made phones as they can and putting them everywhere. Volume usurps quality for them (though they're always talking about how they want to make the highest quality phones, yet they still keep giving us phones with speakers that are useless for multi-media and speakerphone purposes, AFAIK).
Of course, for some of us there isn't much choice. It's HTC or go home for WP7. I wasn't about to order from Dell cause I like being able to go in the store when I have issues, so the HD7 was the only real choice for me.
HTC is great for Android due to HTC Sense being so superior to TouchWiz and Blue. For WP7, Samsung is the best choice. They have the best hardware with the best screens, cell radios/reception, and the best speaker/sound output (though they seem to try hard to miff up whatever they can when software is involved, even WP7). Samsung could have better cameras, but the lack of a Flash on so many of their phones just makes them useless to me for that purpose. I'm so often indoors and in inoptimally lighted areas (rinks, etc.) that having no flash is a becoming a dealbreaker on a smartphone these days.
N8ter said:
@hopmedic: None of that matters. Not saying it's not true (most of it is), but the problem is the phone, not the way he's holding it or where he's putting it.
If you want a good speaker on your phone, don't buy an HTC phone. Buy a Samsung. All of HTC's phones have ****ty speakers. The HD7's speakers are crap too, as was the HD2's speakers (though marginally better since both are on the front of the phone).
There's really no reason to get an HTC WP7 device, TBQH. HTC is known for having good software/skinning, but you cannot do that on WP7. The only thing I'd say is worth it is for their YouTube App, but it's not worth getting their crappy hardware for. For a WP7 device, go with a Manufacturer who puts out decent hardware, and avoid HTC, IMO. HTC makes their money by churning out as many cheaply made phones as they can and putting them everywhere. Volume usurps quality for them (though they're always talking about how they want to make the highest quality phones, yet they still keep giving us phones with speakers that are useless for multi-media and speakerphone purposes, AFAIK).
Of course, for some of us there isn't much choice. It's HTC or go home for WP7. I wasn't about to order from Dell cause I like being able to go in the store when I have issues, so the HD7 was the only real choice for me.
HTC is great for Android due to HTC Sense being so superior to TouchWiz and Blue. For WP7, Samsung is the best choice. They have the best hardware with the best screens, cell radios/reception, and the best speaker/sound output (though they seem to try hard to miff up whatever they can when software is involved, even WP7). Samsung could have better cameras, but the lack of a Flash on so many of their phones just makes them useless to me for that purpose. I'm so often indoors and in inoptimally lighted areas (rinks, etc.) that having no flash is a becoming a dealbreaker on a smartphone these days.
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This is simply false information. While I admit that HTC has been lazy with many of their Android phones, and perhaps even some of their Windows Phones, it simply isn't the case with the Arrive. As I will show in my side by side comparison later today is that the speaker is just as loud, and perhaps better than on my Samsung Focus device.
I watch SlingPlayer all the time. When I watched it on my Sprint HTC Touch Pro2, I had the phone propped up with the speaker at a 45% angle away from me. It is MUCH LOUDER on the HTC Touch Pro2 than on the HTC Arrive, with the phone in the exact same position. I did not have any tweak's installed at all to make the speaker any louder at all. I just wish that someone would come out with a tweak for making the rear speaker WAY LOUDER!
tiny17 said:
This is simply false information. While I admit that HTC has been lazy with many of their Android phones, and perhaps even some of their Windows Phones, it simply isn't the case with the Arrive. As I will show in my side by side comparison later today is that the speaker is just as loud, and perhaps better than on my Samsung Focus device.
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That probably has something to do with the fact that the WP7 phones use largely the same hardware with the same drivers.
My vibrant blows any WP7 device out of this world when it comes to sound volume, clarity, and quality.
HTC phones are **** for sound.
Sorry, that's just the way it is, and that's just the way it's always been.
It's not false. I have two of the here and I've played with the Arrive in the Sprint store.
The sound quality is ****.
And that's embarassing seeing as how "Every WP7 device is a ZuneHD" (as per Ballmer).
Give me a Zune App for my Vibrant and I'll never look back.
N8ter said:
Sorry, that's just the way it is, and that's just the way it's always been.
It's not false. I have two of the here and I've played with the Arrive in the Sprint store.
The sound quality is ****.
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OK, well I just did some side by side comparison between the HTC Arrive and Samsung Focus. Up to this point, I had not done this thorough of a side by side. Both me and a friend tested this. He honestly has no bias, as he is not into the whole smartphone thing. I have already admitted elsewhere that I would buy the Samsung over the HTC because I like the Samsung formfactor more, but clearly I have had time to form bias.
Either way, in an exact side by side (disabled sound enhancers on the HTC - which can make the volume quieter) and played some songs.
Results: The Focus is ever so slightly louder, but also sounds more stressed (worse quality as my friend described it). My friend quickly decided he liked the sound of the HTC better as it was clearer. My personal opinion is that yes the Focus did sound a little more stressed, and I think this is due to it being slightly more full on the lower sounds, where as the HTC lends its self more to the mids and highs. When I turn on SRS on the HTC, it fills out those lows better (even more than on the Focus), but is actually too much for the external speaker to handle at full volume, and resultantly becomes worse than the Focus.
My conclusion on this is that they must have a fairly similar speaker, and one is just handling sound slightly different than the other. You can max out the HTC speaker without getting stressed sound, where as it seems like the Samsung speaker is being pushed more, which then at full volume is simply too much for the speaker. The Samsung is louder, but the difference is negligible, as I honestly couldn't hear a difference, and when both devices are synced to play the same song (both turned to 25), I can't distinguish between he two devices. It is just one sound.
In the write up I plan as early today, I will go into the sound enhancer at greater depth.
But my point in this quick write up is that if the Samsung is the standard (which you used) then the HTC meets the standard with flying colors.
As a side note: The placement of the HTC speaker is somewhat problematic with how I hold the phone for gaming - in how I balance the handset in my hand. I find myself covering the speaker a little more often than I do on the Samsung. Both have poor placement for that. This is only specific to the some games I play, due to their onscreen buttons. On the HTC I am able to slide the keyboard out to solve the problem, and on the Samsung, there is usually enough play in the grippable area of the device that I can just move my hand into a different position.
To the OP: Check the sound enhancer and make sure those are all disabled.They are excellent for headphones, not so much for the speaker.
While I do agree to a limited extent about the quality of the sound from the Arrive or Touch Pro 2, my Arrive has a ridiculously loud speaker for what it is. I actually wish I could make it quieter than it is at its volume setting of 1.
The speaker is easy to block depending on how you hold it or how it is set on a certain surface, but for the most part it still is loud enough for most environments.
The one thing I really do not like is the lack of the 2nd mic like the TP2 had for Noise Cancellation. Without that 2nd mic people can't seam to hear me for crap compared to the old TP2 Speakerphone. Oh well, at least we got a flash again. lol
Great device otherwise.
IM0001 said:
I actually wish I could make it quieter than it is at its volume setting of 1.
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haha, I'm glad someone else noticed that! I'm in a public setting and so I just want enough sound to know what is going on in my game, and I still feel volume 1 is a little loud.
IM0001 said:
While I do agree to a limited extent about the quality of the sound from the Arrive or Touch Pro 2, my Arrive has a ridiculously loud speaker for what it is. I actually wish I could make it quieter than it is at its volume setting of 1.
The speaker is easy to block depending on how you hold it or how it is set on a certain surface, but for the most part it still is loud enough for most environments.
The one thing I really do not like is the lack of the 2nd mic like the TP2 had for Noise Cancellation. Without that 2nd mic people can't seam to hear me for crap compared to the old TP2 Speakerphone. Oh well, at least we got a flash again. lol
Great device otherwise.
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I haven't used the speakerphone yet, so didn't realize the issue on the second mic. Agreed on the speaker being quite loud enough - hold it to your cheek and you can feel the air moving. And yes, I would like to have a volume lower than 1.
tiny17 said:
To the OP: Check the sound enhancer and make sure those are all disabled.[/B]They are excellent for headphones, not so much for the speaker.
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Sound enhancer does not work without speakers. The only thing that does work is switching it to SRS and Dolby Surround (or nothing), and that has no impact on volume from what I've seen/heard. The EQ/etc. requires headsets, or the options are greyed out.
N8ter said:
Sound enhancer does not work without speakers. The only thing that does work is switching it to SRS and Dolby Surround (or nothing), and that has no impact on volume from what I've seen/heard. The EQ/etc. requires headsets, or the options are greyed out.
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IMO the SRS on the handset speaker makes the frequencies too low and makes the speaker crackle when the volume is maxxed out.
I don't use SRS, and that wasn't my point. My point was that except for changing to Dolby or SRS there isn't anything you can do in Sound Enhancer without a headset, and the Headset-in settings do not apply to the external speakers.
The Sound Enhancer is not the root of the issue. And his phone is not broken.
This has nothing to do with the sound enhancer at all. There have been many complaints about the LOW sound on the Sprint HTC Arrive. If ANYONE can come up with a HACK, PATCH, or PROGRAM for the Sprint HTC Arrive to increase the Volume, PLEASE LET EVERYONE HERE KNOW ABOUT IT.
I know that there are a LOT of BRILLIANT DEVELOPERS here that can come up with something to help us all with this problem.
N8ter said:
That probably has something to do with the fact that the WP7 phones use largely the same hardware with the same drivers.
My vibrant blows any WP7 device out of this world when it comes to sound volume, clarity, and quality.
HTC phones are **** for sound.
Sorry, that's just the way it is, and that's just the way it's always been.
It's not false. I have two of the here and I've played with the Arrive in the Sprint store.
The sound quality is ****.
And that's embarassing seeing as how "Every WP7 device is a ZuneHD" (as per Ballmer).
Give me a Zune App for my Vibrant and I'll never look back.
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Click to collapse
lol ahh still passing off your bs opinions off as facts huh? To an untrained eye your fallacies and evidence laden (;-)) bs might actually seem true. Too bad I've compared my HD7 to a Vibrant side by side and found that the Vibrant has a deeper sound, but not more clarity (at reasonable volume). It doesn't sound much louder and still gets tinny and/or distorted at high volumes. You fail again kid. No smartphone I've ever seen has a much better sound system then the HD7. Some are noticeably better, but none blow it away as you said. You want awesome sound on a smartphone? My Blackberry kills any Android phone =)
My problem is not so much with the speaker but the headphone volume. I have some ripped TV shows that I watch on my phone but I can barely hear the dialogue in the show because the volume maxes out.
Is there any way to increase the volume on the file during Zune transfer or use another program to recode the file with a louder volume? I used to use smartmovie to convert my shows to a compressed .avi and was able to boost the volume by 150% but can't find that option in Zune.
I have downloaded World MP3and had used that to listen to music. With that program, the Rear Speaker works just fine. There is no problem with hearing anything when I use World MP3 to listen to songs. When I use HTC YouTube, or any Variant of YouTube, the same as everything else, Very Low Rear Speaker. As I had said before, I think that it is either Microsoft with the New OS, HTC with their software, or both. I hope that someone can figure this out and HELP! We want and expect that when we get a Good High End Phone, that there will not be any issues with it that could and would be a Deal Breaker. As per the VERY VERY POOR REAR SPEAKER. Actually, from what I9 had observed myself, it doesn't seem as if it's the Rear Speaker. The HTC hardware seems very solid, but the performance of it when used with Windows Phone 7, SUCKS ROYALLY !!!! The layout took a little to get used to. It's different than Windows Mobile 6.5, which is close to using a PC. I really hope that Microsoft and HTC get together with this issue. If it's this bad on this Reputable Manufactured Phone by HTC, what about the other Windows Phone 7 Phones by any and all other Manufacturers. I just hope that this is a small isolated issue, but I'm beginning to feel that it's a much bigger issue that not too many people are complaining about.
Microsoft and ALL of the Manufacturers of Windows Phone 7 phones should take a much better and closer look into this issue. Microsoft, you are spending Billions into Windows Phone 7 between R&D, Advertising, Distribution, & Support. You don't want an issue like this to make you loose ANY MARKET SHARE AT ALL! You need this to be a HUGE HIT. This could throw a wrench into your plans and cost you dearly. Get this issue fixed.
Fix this issue with the MANGO UPDATE. That gives you enough time to get it fixed.
gd761 said:
I watch SlingPlayer all the time. When I watched it on my Sprint HTC Touch Pro2, I had the phone propped up with the speaker at a 45% angle away from me. It is MUCH LOUDER on the HTC Touch Pro2 than on the HTC Arrive, with the phone in the exact same position. I did not have any tweak's installed at all to make the speaker any louder at all. I just wish that someone would come out with a tweak for making the rear speaker WAY LOUDER!
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Click to collapse
I really think it has to do with coding. You can watch previews on flickr, fandango, and through imdb, and flickr and fandango are almost silent at max volume, but imdb (probably pulling previews from the same source) is much louder.
I have found using youtube, that I have to set the volume at 10-15, but with slingplayer, I use it at max volume and it is tolerable, but not as loud as it should be. You might just want to use some headphones.
Games are seriously loud and if they can play the videos that loud, then the other videos should be able to as well.
N8ter said:
That probably has something to do with the fact that the WP7 phones use largely the same hardware with the same drivers.
My vibrant blows any WP7 device out of this world when it comes to sound volume, clarity, and quality.
HTC phones are **** for sound.
Sorry, that's just the way it is, and that's just the way it's always been.
It's not false. I have two of the here and I've played with the Arrive in the Sprint store.
The sound quality is ****.
And that's embarassing seeing as how "Every WP7 device is a ZuneHD" (as per Ballmer).
Give me a Zune App for my Vibrant and I'll never look back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really??? The tp2 had the best speakers of any smartphone I have used for loudness and clarity. I can see the OP being disappointed coming from that phone to the arrive. I had the same adjustment when going from the tp2 to the hd2.
For someone who claimed to be the resident xda vibrant hater, you sure do love that device.
I'm beginning to think that you hate any device you currently use.
I can not wear any headphones while I'm working. I can keep the phone on my desk & watch my SlingBox, but under no circumstances can I use headphones. That would attract too much attention.
tiny17 said:
haha, I'm glad someone else noticed that! I'm in a public setting and so I just want enough sound to know what is going on in my game, and I still feel volume 1 is a little loud.
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I have a slightly different issue with my Arrive. The volume is too low only a certain times. When using earphones while watching video from netflix or any other application, when using the speaker phone.
when playing games the speaker is loud, almost too loud. the speaker phone and ringer are way too low. The alarm is too low.
All of these were very loud on my tp2.
Anyone have an answer for this?
Does anybody know if there is a possibility to adjust headphone stereo balance on the S3? My right ear is less sensitive than my left ear and it is getting worse over the years, so I need to adjust the balance a bit to get the full stereo effect when using headphones. I was watching Avengers and had to hold one side further than the other side to keep the balance to enjoy the effect. I looked at DSPManager and other EQ apps but none has the balance adjustment.
On another note, since I am not keen of in-ear headphones and was looking for a replacement of the stock headphones right after I got the phone. I tried a couple of models but I think that the new Apple headphones for the iPhone5 is great as disposable for its price of $30. That is the only thing better than the Samsung for S3 made by Apple for the iPhone 5. The controls don't work, except stop/play (no forward/backward and volume up/down). BTW, the Apple sales guy was first very enthusiastic when I asked him about the iPhone5 and tried to play down all the problems including wifi and the maps. Then I pulled out my S3 and showed him the widgets and the maps and wanted to try the headphones on it. He was literarily stunned and speechless and his face turned red. I guess that he has never seen anything else than an iPhone in his young age (20 or so), like most of Apple customers. Anyway, I purchased a pair of the headphones and I think that I will keep them.
Thanks
Looks like this topic has been covered for a few years here and no one has ever found a solution.. Kind of crazy. I know PowerAmp has balance adjustment but that won't help you watch the movie :crying:
This is a review of Ultimate Ears UE Boom wireless bluetooth speaker: http://www.ultimateears.com/en-us/boom
I have been around the block testing and reviewing various Android gadgets and accessories. Honestly, there is not much that makes go Wow! The concept of external compact bluetooth speaker is not new, and some of you might be familiar with another similar product which has been dominating this category. I think introduction of UE Boom is going to change this!!! I want to mention this ahead of time, we are talking about Premium Product at a Premium Price. Yes, it will not be everyone's cup of tea in terms of being able to justify $199. But if you are willing to invest money into a high quality product with sound and sex appeal of EU Boom - I guarantee you will get every penny worth.
I have to first start with a package of this speaker, something that became a trend of premium priced products. You might be looking for a minute or two at this black cylinder before you realize it opens in the middle, flips open revealing the speaker itself and accessories in the separate compartments. Just the presentation of this package by itself is super cool and makes a very nice storage box for it. So beside the speaker you get this yellowish-greenish neon color travel wall adapter (rated at 2A) and flat noodle usb to micro-usb cable. In the middle of this cylinder box is the jewel itself, the UE Boom. First impression once you pick it up is the weight of the speaker which is going to tip scale at 536g (1lb 3oz). Yes, we are talking about a cool little cylinder that fits comfortable in your hand and weight over a pound. So what does the weight means? It means quality driver components packed inside of this external speaker unit. With measurement of 180mm x 65mm, it stands 7" tall with 2.5" diameter. The speaker grill goes all the way around, interrupted by a rubber strip with two big "+" and "-" touch controls (for volume up/down). The grill itself is made of some dense interweaving material, described as acoustic skin with plasma coating for water and stain resistance. I have seen YT demo of someone pouring water over it while playing the music, and it didn't even skip the beat. The speaker is intended for indoor/outdoor use, and with water resistance keeping it close to a pool will not be a problem. The speaker itself can be positioned vertically or horizontally, whatever is your preference. The rubber control strip should prevent it from rolling.
Beside volume up/down control, which also could be used simultaneously for UE Boom to announce it's battery capacity percentage, one side of the end cap has a power and bluetooth pair button, and the other side has 3.5mm auxiliary input, micro-usb charging cable, and a detachable loop/tab that will enable your clipping Boom to your backpack or maybe hanging it down from some hook. Speaking of charging, at full charge the speaker is rated for 15 hours of use!!! Once you power it up, you have a pleasant drum tone and it goes into a pair mode (the first time use). Within seconds you are paired up and ready to use it. At that point, better sit down and hit play. This is the most impressive sound I ever heard coming out of such a small speaker system. It fills up the room or any outdoor area with full deep non-distorted sound even at highest volume level. The sound is very crisp and clear, very loud (without distortion as I mentioned), and has enough of bass tone suitable for bigger speaker. Of course, don't expect deep bass of a subwoofer, but for this size it was very impressive. The sound radiates 360 degrees, so no need to turn it or to position it in certain direction. Apparently there is a way you can use 2 EU Boom from the same paired up source to extend this sound to a wider stereo spectrum. For that, you need to use a free app downloaded from Google Play. The app itself is very simple and self explanatory. What is super impressive is when you start it - it goes through a palette of available Boom colors (the speaker comes in different skins) and picks the right one you have. In there you have an option to run double pair up, Setting, and General on-line help with "getting to know" info. In Setting you have a choice to rename your UE Boom, obtain the battery level charge (also you can do that by holding + and - together), alert language, EQ setting (currently only 3 available), enabling alert sound, and also app and fw versions.
For audio playback it supports A2DP bt audio profile, in addition to direct 3.5mm cable input, and it can also pickup calls working as a speaker phone. It's minimalistic design didn't include call pick up button, which would have been a nice feature. Also, very common to other premium bt speakers - is lack of any audio playback controls. If you want to pause the sound, you have to go back to remote use with a phone. It's not a show stopper since I was able to use my portable external bluetooth receiver unit connected to 3.5mm port of UE Boom and paired up instead of the speaker itself. That allowed me to play/pause and skip the track. Also today after playing with MetaWatch smart watch - I also discovered that I can control phone audio right from my watch without even a need for bt remote receiver. Also another comment, for such a price I was surprised they didn't include 3.5mm audio cable piece. Although not intended for most of the uses, I think it would have been a nice accessory to include.
But in general all I can say is the second you hear the full loud sound of this speaker, your jaw drops. Yes, its an expensive accessory and will not be everyone's cup of tea because of the price. I also hope that after awhile (since it was just introduced), the price will drop making it more affordable. But even at $199 - you are paying for a high quality design and premium quality top notch sound, something you would expect from Ultimate Ears! My recommendation - if you can afford it, get it! Just in time for the summer, for your outdoor party - you will not be disappointed!. And with 2 year warranty, you know UE truly believes in it's quality.
Here are some pictures:
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How does it sound compared to the Big Jambox. I love my BJB but would love something to use near the pool.
earled said:
How does it sound compared to the Big Jambox. I love my BJB but would love something to use near the pool.
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I knew this question would come up I don't have any Jawbone products, but have done a lot of search and reading on the net and watched a number of YT reviews, everybody confirms that UE Boom blows jawbone out of the water, not to mention that you can't even keep jawbone anywhere near the water This speaker definitely has Ultimate Ears sound quality.
vectron said:
I knew this question would come up I don't have any Jawbone products, but have done a lot of search and reading on the net and watched a number of YT reviews, everybody confirms that UE Boom blows jawbone out of the water, not to mention that you can't even keep jawbone anywhere near the water This speaker definitely has Ultimate Ears sound quality.
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Thanks. The lack of waterproofness(word?) is my biggest gripe with the BJB. Might have to get one cor the outside. I'mm very happy with my JamBox sound quality.
earled said:
Thanks. The lack of waterproofness(word?) is my biggest gripe with the BJB. Might have to get one cor the outside. I'mm very happy with my JamBox sound quality.
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Well, waterproof and water resistant are two different things. I'm sure if you drop Boom into a pool of water where its going to be submerged for awhile - it will damage it. But if you are outside and get splattered by water, Boom can take it like a champ. I have two little kids and outside they constantly run around with water guns or splatter in our above the ground pool. I wouldn't have to worry about speaker getting wet in this situation or of it starts raining before I get a chance to bring it inside.
I was trying to get a review sample from JB, but their replies take forever and I'm still waiting to hear back from them on confirmation. In a meantime, I can only judge the comparison by listening to other people reviews (lots of the professional reviews are on-line now with a recent introduction of Boom).
... EDIT... never mind about 40% coupon, it was just my misunderstanding
Thanks a lot for the info. I have 2 boys myself. They would almost rather run around squirting me and mom than swim in the pool. :laugh:
vectron said:
I knew this question would come up I don't have any Jawbone products, but have done a lot of search and reading on the net and watched a number of YT reviews, everybody confirms that UE Boom blows jawbone out of the water, not to mention that you can't even keep jawbone anywhere near the water This speaker definitely has Ultimate Ears sound quality.
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Wow, I find it hard to believe the this UE Boom will "blow Jawbone out of the water"!! It may be very similar in sound quality and loudness to the original Jawbone Jambox, because the Boom and OG Jambox are similar in size. The Big Jambox is about twice as big as the Boom. I could be totally wrong though, and this Boom may destroy the Big Jambox. I have a Big Jambox and absolutely LOVE IT!! I am very impressed with the sound quality and how loud this speaker gets! Hopefully an XDA member who has the Big Jambox will get a Boom and let us know how the 2 compare.
Either way, OP, thanks for sharing the info with us! If Best Buy does carry these in the future then I'll probably go ahead buy one myself! Not sure that I'll keep it, but that way I can at least compare the Boom and Big Jambox side by side at my house. I'll let you all know if I get a Boom. If anyone here has them both, please let us know how the 2 compare.
SwiftKey'ed from my White Sprint Note 2 using XDA Premium
Awesome review as always Vectron. I've been looking for a bluetooth portable speaker and I was about 99% sold on the jbl flip. For the money ($99) most reviews say it blows away most other comparable devices which cost 2 and 3 times as much. Now I'll have to look into this product to see if it's worth the extra $.
Sent from my SCH-I605 using xda premium
Shoot, I might end up going to Verizon store myself just to pick up Jawbone for comparison this weekend. Now, I'm really curious myself. I read reviews from zdnet and cnet and other places and they're showing arsenal of their portable speakers in the background saying this one sounds the best.
I can only judge relative to what I hear, not as a/b comparison. I'm also thinking that UE guys had to think hard to come up with a price point to justify their advantage over the competition which cost less. Also, competition is a little dated now. This unit has 15hr battery, and water splatter protection, and covers a range of 50 feet. But I'm surprised there is no Call Button. I really wish instead of talking battery percentage they would implement a programmable feature for "+" and "-" buttons pushed together to either mute the sound if music is playing or pickup the call when it's incoming. It should be handled through BT protocol and everything is under app control to assign different functionality - so why not? I will make sure to suggest it to them with my feedback.
But other then that, I'm very impressed!!!
That's for bringing The Boom Vectron. Your reviews have become a valuable source when making a purchase decision. Keep up the good work Mr. Gadget hero.
All - I have the Big Jambox and compared it side by side with the UE Boom.
My perspective - while for its size the UE Boom sounded very good, the BJB was clearly better sounding and larger. Obviously the amount of portability you want/need can impact your decision as on this point they are very different, but if the BJB's form factor works for you and you are basing the decision primarily on sound, I think you will find the BJB to be a better choice,
Best buy does carry this product now. Just found it there by surprise this weekend. They didn't have a display model out or anything so I almost missed it. So far the sound is great and it does get really loud for a small speaker. I can compare the sound to a Bose SoundLink and it is comparable to it IMO. I don't know about the Jawbone Big Jambox so can't give any input on that one.
stanglifemike said:
Wow, I find it hard to believe the this UE Boom will "blow Jawbone out if the water"!! It may be very similar in sound quality and loudness to the original Jawbone Jambox, because the Boom and OG Jambox are similar in size. The Big Jambox is about twice as big as the Boom. I could be totally wrong though, and this Boom may destroy the Big Jambox. I have a Big Jambox and absolutely LOVE IT!! I am very impressed with the sound quality and how loud this speaker gets! Hopefully an XDA member who has the Big Jambox will get a Boom and let us know how the 2 compare.
Either way, OP, thanks for sharing the info with us! If Best Buy does carry these in the future then I'll probably go ahead buy one myself! Not sure that I'll keep it, but that way I can at least compare the Boom and Big Jambox side by side at my house. I'll let you all know if I get a Boom. If anyone here has them both, please let us know how the 2 compare.
SwiftKey'ed from my White Sprint Note 2 using XDA Premium
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lirong said:
All - I have the Big Jambox and compared it side by side with the UE Boom.
My perspective - while for its size the UE Boom sounded very good, the BJB was clearly better sounding and larger. Obviously the amount of portability you want/need can impact your decision as on this point they are very different, but if the BJB's form factor works for you and you are basing the decision primarily on sound, I think you will find the BJB to be a better choice,
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Awesome! Thank you for your input and comparison!! That's exactly what I had expected, as I found it VERY hard to believe that the Boom was louder an sounded better (much less that it could "blow the Big Jambox out of the water", lol!). I figured that the Boom was more like the original Jawbone Jambox, and not the Jawbone Big Jambox! The original Jambox and the Boom are very similar in size and price. Now that you have compared the two, I won't have to purchase the Boom just to compare it to the Big Jambox! Again, thank you very much for your comparison!!
The Big Jambox isn't too large for me to make the portability impractical. On the contrary actually. I often take my Big Jambox outside with me in the evenings. I spend a good part of my time at home sitting outside. The weather is nice and I don't smoke inside the house, so I like to sit outside and smoke while I drink beer. I use the Big Jambox for listening to music and for playing games on my phone or tablet. I even use it for a speaker phone occasionally and love that it's capable of that! Callers in the other end never know I'm not talking directly in to the phone unless I tell them I'm using my Big Jambox, and then they are shocked at how clear the sound quality is.
Bgrover said:
Best buy does carry this product now. Just found it there by surprise this weekend. They didn't have a display model out or anything so I almost missed it. So far the sound is great and it does get really loud for a small speaker. I can compare the sound to a Bose SoundLink and it is comparable to it IMO. I don't know about the Jawbone Big Jambox so can't give any input on that one.
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Thanks for the info!! If it wasn't for LIRONG then I would definitely be purchasing one of these from Best Buy. Thanks to his comparison though, I no longer need to!
Sent from my White Sprint Note 2 using Xparent Skyblue Tapatalk 2
True, I can't comment on comparison to Big JamBox. But I absolutely love UE Boom. I had it setup this weekend: phone at home, Boom on a hook hanging of outside, and I'm in our above-the-ground pool with MetaWatch under water controlling music. Sounds is not just loud, but also very rich and deep. Started to drizzle, we got out of the pool, and only later I realized while I was bringing stuff into the house - the speaker was still hanging on the hook. I'm still hoping to get around to check out Jambox, but I'm afraid my opinion might be on a biased side For sure, Big Jambox sounds like it will be louder because of the size of the speaker/driver/amp so if that's your priority, then its a perfect choice! For something very small and compact (Boom is small round cylinder, smaller than original jambox) and rugged with splash protection when you go to the beach, I think Boom is a great choice.
BUT still, I wish either Boom or Jambox would have play/pause/skip track controls. Why wouldn't they add it to these bt speakers?!? The protocol supports it. It's just a matter of 3 extra buttons. I have no idea why it's not part of the design...
Glad it was helpful.
I agree with all of the above...The Boom was a very nice speaker, especially for its size, and if you need more portability its a great choice.
I happen to like the look and form factor of the BJB better, and for use around the yard, etc. I think its a better choice.
these sound awesome
Haven't messed with many of the bigger bt units, but I can imagine this sounds pretty good. I have the small UE boombox and it's pretty impressive for it's size/price. Super crisp and clear even when played really loud, but to be honest, and I'm embarrassed to admit it, the Beats Pill is probably the best portable bt speaker I've heard. And this is coming from a Beats headphones hater. It sounds much better than the boombox and jambox imo, and when I played with the bjb, aside from the volume, I felt like the Pill sounded better. Flame away lol
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lhkjohn said:
Haven't messed with many of the bigger bt units, but I can imagine this sounds pretty good. I have the small UE boombox and it's pretty impressive for it's size/price. Super crisp and clear even when played really loud, but to be honest, and I'm embarrassed to admit it, the Beats Pill is probably the best portable bt speaker I've heard. And this is coming from a Beats headphones hater. It sounds much better than the boombox and jambox imo, and when I played with the bjb, aside from the volume, I felt like the Pill sounded better. Flame away lol
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
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flame? why? is beats an apple product lol... i was wondering how this stacks up vs the pill.. thanks for the input.. I think imma go w a dock over these
Note Duece
lhkjohn said:
Haven't messed with many of the bigger bt units, but I can imagine this sounds pretty good. I have the small UE boombox and it's pretty impressive for it's size/price. Super crisp and clear even when played really loud, but to be honest, and I'm embarrassed to admit it, the Beats Pill is probably the best portable bt speaker I've heard. And this is coming from a Beats headphones hater. It sounds much better than the boombox and jambox imo, and when I played with the bjb, aside from the volume, I felt like the Pill sounded better. Flame away lol
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
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Never tried the Pill. I read a bunch of mixed reviews on it, including a couple that cited frequent bluetooth connection issues, so based on all the research I knocked them off my list.
I tried the new Bose, the Big Jambox, the UE Boom and the JBL Charge. The JBL Charge and UE Boom were both nice form factors and decent sound and volume. The Bose and BJB both (in my opinion) clearly sound better. I was mixed between the two...both sound good but very different sounds. Ultimately I liked the form factor, longer battery and ability for web updates on the BJB.
In the end I think it comes down to price (although the gap isnt that big) and how much portability you need. I think Bose and BJB are very portable - certainly around the house and yard, throw in a car, throw in a suitcase. But if you want something really portable that you can put in a knapsack, briefcase, etc. and carry around all day, then you are likely to be better off with the JBL or UE.
Btw, I have been using our Boom for 2 weeks since the last charge. Not everyday or hours in a row, but I probably accumulated close to 3-4 hours. The battery is still at 90%. Probably rounded off since it reports in increments of 10, but still pretty good.
I wish I can find some time to compare it to other speakers. Thus can't chime into discussion above, but I do really appreciate all the replies!!!
Also, hope that maybe after initial introduction and considering you can pair up two Boom into a stereo config - they will offer some discount if you buy a pair of these.
Regarding last comment about traveling, Boom is very compact and heavy duty built. Definitely no worries throwing it in a packed suitcase.
I'm not gonna write a long review for this, because it's hard to explain sound in text. So if you want slightly more in depth, here is my video unboxing + review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAC-e-4jCN8
But here's the short text version:
It's awesome. Why? Well if you care at all about how speakers sound, and have experience in small speakers at around the 1 1/2" size, then you'd know that this thing is a freakin enomaly. It sounds, way, bigger than anything in it's size. Let's compare it to a Sony MBS-100, a couple years old, yes, but it was still a $130 product, and Sony is pretty good at making small speakers sound good. The Modre destroys it in terms of both volume, and sound quality, and up until I got the Modre, I thought the Sony sounded pretty darn good. To kind of explain how it sounds better, it basically sounds like a bigger speaker, providing much higher audible frequency response than any other speaker in this size I've heard. The mid frequencies aren't way overblown like some speakers in this category either, which provides a real pleasurable audio experience. Basically what I'm trying to say, it sounds damn good.
Battery life is good to say the least. It's rated for 7 hours at 50% volume. I gave up testing at 25 hours, at 80% volume, using the 3.5mm audio jack. The testing material was about half and half movies and music. I can't imagine bluetooth being a huge draw compared to the amp powering the pint sized monster, so I'm sure it would last 7 hours with bluetooth on. I haven't tested bluetooth battery life though, so take that as you will.
Sound and battery life are really the main things I care about in a bluetooth speaker, so that's really all I'll cover. Yes, it's small, easy enough to fit in a jacket pocket. Yes, it works fine for bluetooth phone calls. Yes, the range is good enough to walk 20-30 feet away with no issues. But honestly, it's the sound quality that steals the show here.
Here's my final point. It's $25 from Amazon at the time of this writing. Honestly, at that price, I wasn't expecting much, but to my pleasant surprise, I've found the best speaker in this size I've ever heard. Who'd a thunk.
Thanks for reading.
Holy crap, you weren't kidding on this thing. Thanks !
Sounds pretty awesome for a bluetooth speaker that small (judging from the sound coming out of my Dunu DN1000).