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Best Smartphone for audiophile
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Aug 2, 2016 at 1:15 AM Post #3,721 of 7,916
djcarpentier said:
Let us know what you think of the ZTE vs G5 as phone's as well. If they are that close audio wise, the other factors (lte, wifi, call quality, BATTERY) are very important. Many thanks for the info
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I'll gather my thoughts over the next few days for battery life, calling, etc. But initially, ZTE has a better screen to me, G5 has a better camera (front and rear). 
 
guppy_ said:
  Dat music doe!    I kid I kid.
 
Hows the build quality of the axon?  Does it have tap to unlock and sleep?
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I knew I was going to catch hell for that J-Lo song, but truth be told the bass in the beginning is outstanding! It has becomes my benchmark bass track. But yes, embarrassing...the things I do for you guys...
 
Build quality feels like an $800 phone from the other manufacturers who will go unnamed. It feels more solid in the hand than the plastic/metal-clad G5. Absolutely zero complaints about build quality. The buttons feel nice too. The buttons in the front are strange to me, though. They're sort of a mix between the S7 and HTC 10. They're not on-screen, but they're small and tucked away so that they're not as easy to find or hit half the time. Hopefully I get used to them. Yes to the tap to unlock, not sure on sleep. I don't see that option. 
 
-Collin-
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 2:41 AM Post #3,723 of 7,916
seesax said:
I'll gather my thoughts over the next few days for battery life, calling, etc. But initially, ZTE has a better screen to me, G5 has a better camera (front and rear). 


I knew I was going to catch hell for that J-Lo song, but truth be told the bass in the beginning is outstanding! It has becomes my benchmark bass track. But yes, embarrassing...the things I do for you guys...

Build quality feels like an $800 phone from the other manufacturers who will go unnamed. It feels more solid in the hand than the plastic/metal-clad G5. Absolutely zero complaints about build quality. The buttons feel nice too. The buttons in the front are strange to me, though. They're sort of a mix between the S7 and HTC 10. They're not on-screen, but they're small and tucked away so that they're not as easy to find or hit half the time. Hopefully I get used to them. Yes to the tap to unlock, not sure on sleep. I don't see that option. 

-Collin-
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Colin, key question, what music app are you using?

UAPP completely changes the potential of the B&O DAC, it's quite crazy how different the SQ is for with versus without...

Couple of caveats though, must use software volume control (not that much of a problem), more importantly, and badly, it does hit the battery life quite badly, and to be fair, if this is a primary phone, I would say to NOT use UAPP (about the same life as a mojo)...

Makes me wonder, the tuning, was that done with our without the LG in mind, as hi-fi mode using in built software is quite poor.
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 3:02 AM Post #3,724 of 7,916
It seems UAPP is also better on the v10 as well, in hi-fi mode, the detail is better than the other players. I don't feelb the need to boost the audio with EQ, after listening to UAPP for a while, other players sound dull to me.

I hope the internal volume steps get fixed for internal Android, it won't override the stock volume set steps, when you select the higher number of steps.
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 8:12 AM Post #3,725 of 7,916
caipirina said:
  Someone already mentioned a while ago (somwhere on page 173) the Ulefone Vienna, which comes with a NXP Smart Audio PA independent DAC/AMP solution ... has anyone heard more about that? Like a 'real' audiotest? Found that he company posted a video of that phone hooked up to a nice set of speakers (I guess anything hooked up to them would sound impressive) and then the potential buyer shall judge from the YouTube audio if this is an improvement :) 
 
Anyone? Bueller?
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Reviewing the Ulefone Vienna now. Was doing some searching regarding the DAC / Amplifier in Vienna and came upon your post. 
smile.gif

 
Haven't tested with an external speaker set yet, but the built-in loudspeaker is punching way above its weight. Fantastic for a sub-$150 phone. One of the best we've heard in terms of depth and loudness; though keep in mind, this is in comparison to $60-250 mobiles. We haven't done a direct comparison against top brand flagships.
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 9:01 AM Post #3,726 of 7,916
duncan said:
Colin, key question, what music app are you using?

UAPP completely changes the potential of the B&O DAC, it's quite crazy how different the SQ is for with versus without...

Couple of caveats though, must use software volume control (not that much of a problem), more importantly, and badly, it does hit the battery life quite badly, and to be fair, if this is a primary phone, I would say to NOT use UAPP (about the same life as a mojo)...

Makes me wonder, the tuning, was that done with our without the LG in mind, as hi-fi mode using in built software is quite poor.
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Hi Duncan - I'm using Tidal. 
 
I tried UAPP with the G5 and I cannot get it to work reliably. Maybe you have some suggestions, but I have a feeling it is an issue with the FCC certification/US networks. When I use UAPP with Tidal, the DAC frequently disconnects (~10 times per minute) and makes playback impossibly frustrating. This happens while on an LTE connection but not 3G. I cannot figure it out and I have tried three different models of G5 and DACs and each one behaves exactly the same. It continues to puzzle me. 
 
I noticed the Axon 7 getting fairly warm last night during playback and had one really hard crash that required a hard reboot of the phone (it became 100% unresponsive). I know it's very new, so I will keep testing. On the G5, I don't notice any significant battery drain or heading while using the DAC, but if UAPP forces it into the higher gain mode then what you observed makes sense. 
 
-Collin-
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 4:25 PM Post #3,728 of 7,916
duncan said:
Colin, key question, what music app are you using?

UAPP completely changes the potential of the B&O DAC, it's quite crazy how different the SQ is for with versus without...

Couple of caveats though, must use software volume control (not that much of a problem), more importantly, and badly, it does hit the battery life quite badly, and to be fair, if this is a primary phone, I would say to NOT use UAPP (about the same life as a mojo)...

Makes me wonder, the tuning, was that done with our without the LG in mind, as hi-fi mode using in built software is quite poor.
Click to expand...

 
Quick update Duncan: I put the phone in airplane mode and connected to WiFi and tried UAPP again. Holy cow that is loud! I know the hardware volume is locked at max, but even with the software volume at like 25% it is MASSIVELY powerful. I knew this DAC was capable of driving earphones to these levels, but it still irks me that we have to use these workarounds. 
 
Anyway, I'll do some more listening, but this really sounds like the way to go despite the issues. Thanks for the heads-up on this. 
 
-Collin-
 
Aug 2, 2016 at 6:53 PM Post #3,730 of 7,916
seesax said:
   
I'll gather my thoughts over the next few days for battery life, calling, etc. But initially, ZTE has a better screen to me, G5 has a better camera (front and rear). 
 
 
I knew I was going to catch hell for that J-Lo song, but truth be told the bass in the beginning is outstanding! It has becomes my benchmark bass track. But yes, embarrassing...the things I do for you guys...
 
Build quality feels like an $800 phone from the other manufacturers who will go unnamed. It feels more solid in the hand than the plastic/metal-clad G5. Absolutely zero complaints about build quality. The buttons feel nice too. The buttons in the front are strange to me, though. They're sort of a mix between the S7 and HTC 10. They're not on-screen, but they're small and tucked away so that they're not as easy to find or hit half the time. Hopefully I get used to them. Yes to the tap to unlock, not sure on sleep. I don't see that option. 
 
-Collin-
Click to expand...

Sure blame it on Head fi 
rolleyes.gif
  Listened to the song just for the bass and yeah bass is tight! I will give you that.
 
Cool will wait for your hands on !
 
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