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iPhone 3Gs vs iPod 7th Gen

post #1 of 6
1/22/10 at 7:29am
Thread Starter 
I know this has been discussed at length in the past, so sorry if this is annoying to anyone. However, I have spent hours reading loooong threads and I would like to skip to the chase at this point.

For those of you that own both, is the sound identical, or can you hear sq differences? If there are some differences, please notate your opinion here. Thanks folks!
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post #2 of 6
1/22/10 at 12:42pm
I own both and listening them through their HP outs with my Shure SE420s i have a tough time to tell which device is playing. Playing Apple Lossless files and AAC 320 Kbs.

I'd say they have the same sound signature (Same DAC?) with the 3Gs amp being a tad more powerful.

Overall as for music goes and taking into account price, storage, sound quality, UI,accesories and reliability the 2009 iPod Classic is not only a winner but the best DAP to surface last year.

Just my 2 cents
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post #3 of 6
1/22/10 at 1:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by elfary View Post
I own both and listening them through their HP outs with my Shure SE420s i have a tough time to tell which device is playing. Playing Apple Lossless files and AAC 320 Kbs.

I'd say they have the same sound signature (Same DAC?) with the 3Gs amp being a tad more powerful.

Overall as for music goes and taking into account price, storage, sound quality, UI,accesories and reliability the 2009 iPod Classic is not only a winner but the best DAP to surface last year.

Just my 2 cents
Best DAP is arguable, being that I own the P3 and the classic, I can honestly say that the ipod's SQ is decent at best compared to it.

As far as reliability, this is my second one after having to send it to warranty for boot failures. Let's not forget how easily it gets scratched.

If we compare the storage capacity / $ of a typical player on the market (sansa,creative,cowon), the ipod is actually one of the more expensive players.

UI is personal preference (Ive grown accustomed to it), although the ipod does have accessories count in the thousands.

The majority of the ipod's market value is based on media hype and logo. Apple products are generally expensive because their marketing is supposed to be "trendy".
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post #4 of 6
2/1/10 at 6:05am
Thread Starter 
So Asianfi, are you saying you own both the iPhone 3Gs, as well as the iPod 7th gen? If so, are you saying that the iphone's SQ is clearly superior?

Does anyone else that owns both want to jump in on this thread? All feedback is welcome and appreciated.
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post #5 of 6
2/5/10 at 6:42am
Thread Starter 
Ok, so I bought myself an iPod 7th gen. I now own the Ipod 5th, (just sold my 6th), own the 7th, as well as iPhone 3Gs.

With that said, I have had the opportunity to do a fair amount of A/B testing between the devices. I do not have a portable or external amp, so everything I am listening to is based on the Head Phone Out Jack.

If I had to compare these devices to one another, and rated the best device as a 10, here is how I would stack them up, thus far. I still plan to do some more testing with additional genres.

#1 - iPhone 3Gs (10)
#2 - iPod 7th gen (8)
#3 - iPod 5th gen (6)
#4 - iPod 6th gen (3)

IPhone: (Deep bass, with impact and slam in bottom LFE, excellent stereo panning, good upper detail while not harsh or strident. Overall, very well balanced.)

7th Gen: (Overall a good sounding device with good bass, but not able to deliver the same level of impact, or quite as deep, but still tight thumping bass, with a great balance of lows, mids and highs. Panning/stereo not bad, but not nearly as effective as iphone)

5th Gen: (Sweet sounding in the mids, a bit lush, too lush really, because the mids are smeared. The highs aren't bad, but not as detailed as 7th gen, does not pan like iphone, and the bass is sloppy and weak by comparison.)

6th Gen: (Thin, tinny sounding. Overall low SQ. Has numerous weaknesses but no strengths to bring to the table.)
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post #6 of 6
2/5/10 at 7:34pm
Nice comparison. I'll remember that when I'm looking for a new DAP
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