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iPhone 3GS headphone Output Question

post #1 of 16
3/17/10 at 11:40am
Thread Starter 
I have a set of Westone 3s and an iPhone 3GS 32GB.

While it sounds good.. I get better sound from the headphone output on my laptop (A Kobalt/Clevo).

Is this right? From everything I've read, the headphone out on the iPhone, while not earth-shattering, is meant to be very good.

The sound is thin and somewhat sibilant compared to my laptop.

I'm considering getting an amp to go with it, but just wanted to make sure the headphone out on my iPhone wasn't underperforming/faulty.

Thanks
Chez
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post #2 of 16
3/17/10 at 4:23pm
Not sure if serious.....
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post #3 of 16
3/17/10 at 8:19pm
Thread Starter 
Why would I not be serious?

My understanding is that the headphone outputs on most portable devices (including laptops) are not usually that great and that the iPhone has one of the better ones.

I have also read that both are greatly improved by adding a portable amp (like an iBasso, for example).

I just wanted to get a consesus for whether laptop headphone outputs are usually much better than that of an iPhone, as in my case.

I didn't think it was that difficult a question?
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post #4 of 16
3/17/10 at 8:36pm
I use the same setup for portability(3gs and w3's). Personally, I love the sound out of it. Really outstanding for such a simple setup. Maybe you could try turning on airplane mode before listening on your iphone? I've found the output to be a little cleaner and louder when there are no radio signals interfering with the output. Hope it helps.
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post #5 of 16
3/18/10 at 6:33am
Thread Starter 
Thanks aFo. Airplane mode does clean things up a bit. I don't find it any louder, but I have no issues with volume.. it still sounds kind of weak and thin, compared to my laptop.

I wonder if it's the DAC or amp which is mostly affected by the radio signals. I would guess the DAC which would, presumably, mean that even with an amp and line out, the sound would be better with airplane mode on?

I notice in your sig that you have a Macbook and an iPhone. How does the headphone out on your laptop compare to the iPhone?

Thanks
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post #6 of 16
3/22/10 at 11:35am
Thread Starter 
So nobody has an opinion as to whether a laptop headphone out should be of higher/lower/comparable quality to that of an iPhone 3gs?
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post #7 of 16
3/22/10 at 8:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chez View Post
So nobody has an opinion as to whether a laptop headphone out should be of higher/lower/comparable quality to that of an iPhone 3gs?
It's a slightly silly question.
Apples=Oranges

There are some superb sound cards available for laptops
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post #8 of 16
3/22/10 at 9:06pm
Thread Starter 
I'm well aware of that but im talking the basic onboard realtek HD audio on a lot of current laptops.

I've used m-audio cards for many years in desktops for music production, so I know what sound cards are capable of, I just figured a direct comparison between bog-standard, onboard laptop audio and iPhone 3gs might have been easy for someone to make.

Nevermind, I guess.
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post #9 of 16
3/25/10 at 11:25am
Hi Chez,

I can give you an opinion if it helps. I have an iPhone 3G, and a Dell XPS M1330. And I can say that the overall sound balance is similar, but the laptop is very noisy. The sounds is marginally better on the iPhone. If I use my Pico Micro amp on USB with the laptop, that is better than the iPhone.

So I think if you are getting thin and sibilant there may be a problem with the iPhone. I don't know what others have said about the G vs. the GS regarding sound quality.

I am using Sennheiser IE8 IEM's.

Regards,

Jonathan
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post #10 of 16
3/25/10 at 12:38pm
You may have a better impedance match between your laptop and the westones than with the iphone. I know I get great results with my iphone 3gs and JH13s, but there are a lot of variables in getting good sound.
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post #11 of 16
3/26/10 at 6:09am
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys.

Grawk - that's a fair point that i hadn't considered.

jdunham.. Thanks for your impressions. I may have to go down to an Apple store with my W3s and try one there, but I don't know if they'll have lossless or 320k AAC versions of anything I know on their demo models.
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post #12 of 16
3/26/10 at 8:12am
I haven't got a W3 to compare but FWIW my 3GS drives my IE8 very comfortably and the sound isn't at all thin. When I connect my IE8 directly to my laptop (Lenovo X60) the HO is a tad more noisy, but the IE8s do sound more full and the bass has better layering etc...

I don't know the specs of your W3s (sensitivity and impedance etc) but it does sounds like you may benefit from amping
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post #13 of 16
3/26/10 at 8:20am
Thread Starter 
I'm not saying the sound is BAD with the iPhone/W3s.. it's great, but it IS better with the laptop, albeit slightly more noisy, like you described.
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post #14 of 16
3/26/10 at 1:44pm
I have a better sound with W3 and my old Ipod photo than with my Iphone.
So, i'm not surprise.
A lot of new stuff are often overrated (even when firms loook for reduced cost...)
The only good think is than Iphone have a better Line out.
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post #15 of 16
3/26/10 at 6:44pm
Chez, I was wondering the same exact thing yesterday. I use a very simple/cheap setup of an Ipod Video w/rockbox + Fiio + a set of Shure SCL4 IEM's and decided to plug the small amp into an HP DV3510nr laptop using Foobar2k and noticed a significant difference in sound quality. (Meaning a clearer sound with good separation between instruments and depth...stuff like that...I'm a noob)

Before this, I was under the impression that the ipod would give a clearer sound than a laptop with internal sound card, but I guess this is not the case.

Like someone said above though, I'm sure there are many variables that will affect this.
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