[TabCam]

Hi there,
 
I have been following this thread with much interest. My requirements were a very good SQ, good battery life, all European 4G bands, at least full HD, memory card, and if possible dual sim. In the end I went for the Axon 7. There were quite a few favourable reviews and one quite negative from the Androidpolice.
 
So far it is a very good experience. SQ wise I rate it higher than my previous iPhone 6s and a lot higher than the Asus Padfone New Infinity. Loudness is on par with these phones. I use difficult to drive MrSpeaker Alpha Primes, so I knew that they would probably just too much but I listen at a few notches below the maximum for most music. Only for correctly recorded music I use the maximum.
 
The phone itself is quite remarkable, quick, beautiful screen, amazing stereo speakers and, at first, decent battery life. Then ZTE released an OTA update and now I have excellent battery life with almost no usage when the phone is idle. It also plays nicely with my Chord Hugo. SQ wise the Hugo is miles higher than all phones and most other DAC’s but I did not expect anything else. I use USB Audio Player PRO which delivers the best sound for both
 
Regarding the negative AndroidPolice review, some remarks. The grainy low light photo’s can easily be remedied by using a manual mode with a low ISO instead of ‘photo’ (auto) mode. Thelow light photos are good enough in that case. Fingerprints are better recognized if you add them yourself instead of during the setup with the setup wizard. You get to see which parts are already recognized when you add them afterwards. When you long press the power button, you cen put the phone in airplane mode or change it to vibrate or be silent as a very fast Do Not Disturb. I only experienced two spontaneous reboots and none since the OTA software update.
 
The only few things that remain is not to leave the camera on as last application as it will unlock very slowly and I can't use it as a dual sim phone except with the SIM/uSD card hack. It also would be nice if ZTE releases a bootloader unlocker.
 
All things considered I am very happy right now. It may be there are better sounding phones but the Axon7 checks almost all boxes and has a nice price to boot.

 

[TabCam]

  So i have been reading the ZTE Axon 7 thread i posted 2 pages and some users say that they notice a difference in the SQ when they enable/disable HiFi through "Sounds & Vibrations" in settings while streaming on Google Play Music. Can someone who maybe owns an A7 check and please confirm this for me? I feel like this phone is perfect for me but i use streaming services exclusively.

I am hearing differences when toggling Dolby ATMOS and standard and super HiFi mode. It is also difficult to gauge as the volume changes which make comparing them notoriously difficult. Unfortunately I use local music exclusively as I almost always listen to FLAC. I have used three audioplayers and all three change when toggling those settings, the standard player, Onkyo's HiFi player and UAPP. I have high hopes that the streaming apps will also use the dac.

 

[dlayman]

Apparently from what others have reported the streaming apps do not use the premium DAC. Personally I dont hold that of high importance. Still, as an overall package, I think this is a very good choice. RF performance problems have been pretty widely reported, but the update seems to have helped this at least somewhat. ZTE is doing some very interesting things at aggressive price points.

 

[Gojira]

Apparently from what others have reported the streaming apps do not use the premium DAC. Personally I dont hold that of high importance. Still, as an overall package, I think this is a very good choice. RF performance problems have been pretty widely reported, but the update seems to have helped this at least somewhat. ZTE is doing some very interesting things at aggressive price points.

ZTE is not even using dedicated audio chips in their budget phones. So I'm not sure I agree with your last point. Another example of a company that is only willing to offer good sound in their flagship devices. Nevertheless I will give them some credit for recognizing how badly Mediatek audio sucks and at least going with Snapdragon SoC audio in some of their budget devices like the Zmax 2 and Zmax Pro.
 
As far as the Axon 7 goes it is very expensive at $400. I am wondering what value it offers to justify that. I'll admit the Axon 7 does have an amazing display though. If I had the money that might make it worth it to me. I love that oversaturated AMOLED look and the 538ppi WQHD 1440x2560 resoluation is pretty amazing. Not quite worthy to make it as a prop in a Black Mirror episode but it's headed in that direction. It can't natively display 4k content of course, but I guess if you have some 2k photos/videos it could display them. And with such a high pixel density maybe reading ebooks would be easier on the eyes. Still, for around $200 the Letv x800 has the same WQHD display resolution and its Le HiFi audio which is active all the time. The Letv X900 with its AKG Le Hifi sound and the same WQHD display but in a 6.3" Phablet display can still be found for $330. A Meizu Pro 5 is the same price as the Axon 7. If you don't care about AMOLED all seem to offer more value than the Axon 7. At that price the ZTE has to compete with all of the best phones with Hifi Audio. If Letv can sell a comparable phone for only $200 then I don't see why ZTE can't. It isn't that they can't. It's that they won't. So I'm not that impressed by their "aggressive pricing". Their pricing only looks good if you compare it to non-Chinese companies like Apple, Samsung, LG, Sony, or Motorola but those companies have reputations for quality and innovation that ZTE does not have.

 

[Gojira]

A cheap one, 117usd, is Lenovo x3 lite with the Wolfson chip, I should get it tomorrow.

Please review it when you get it. That phone would definitely interest me. I can't find it here. Where did you find it for that price?

 

[Kyrts]

It is quite unacceptable for a pricey device like Axon 7 to have such ridiculous RF problems with WiFi or Bluetooth or whatever.
 
I mean it is not a 100 Euros or US$ device that 'almost' works ok for that price.
 
Maybe the all metal construction trend has gone too far and many devices suffer from strange problems of bad antenna placement or bad reception or orientation depended reception, all of these are unacceptable for a portable device.
 
It's not even Mediatek chipset in Axon 7 that is supposed to be inferior and used in cheaper devices, however Mediatek equipped Ulefone Vienna which is all plastic does not have such problems, while the Mediatek UMi super / UMi max etc which are metal unibody seem to have all sorts of antenna problems.
 
The way I see it, metal unibody may look good to sell more devices but radiowaves do not like to travel through metal at all, no matter how expensive the specific device might be. The tiny plastic parts on the top and bottom back side look like a joke if device designers think that waves can be instructed to go through these plastic bits regardless of device orientation combined with a random transmitting station direction.

 

[Gojira]

I've been listening more to the Trash Plus 2 on Neutron with the first two bands EQed down and I really have to wonder how it would compare to a Sansa Clip. I wish I still had one to A/B with. I was never as impressed with the Sansa audio as many headfiers but it was my main music player for many years due to price/convenience/size etc. It wasn't so great at the intro price of $50, but later when it dropped below $30 on sale it was also an amazing value especially a redboxed clip+. It wouldn't really surprise me much if some of these $200 or less phones could match or even beat a rockboxed clip+. People seem really impressed with the Letv LeHifi sound. I bet that would beat the Clip. And having listened to some Vivo phones I think they might beat it as well. Even the Trash Plus 2 might have a chance at that level if it weren't so badly factory EQed. If I were king of the world I'd make Bass Boost that can't be turned off a capital crime.

 

[Gojira]

I've never owned a metal backed phone before, but yeah I just noticed that I seem to be getting fewer bars than with my el cheapo plastic backed phone especially when the phone is facing certain directions. Although they aren't quite Faraday cages, EM waves are not great at penetrating solid aluminum, particularly at the higher 1.8+ ghz bands.

 

[LordTao]

  It is quite unacceptable for a pricey device like Axon 7 to have such ridiculous RF problems with WiFi or Bluetooth or whatever.
 
I mean it is not a 100 Euros or US$ device that 'almost' works ok for that price.
 
Maybe the all metal construction trend has gone too far and many devices suffer from strange problems of bad antenna placement or bad reception or orientation depended reception, all of these are unacceptable for a portable device.
 
It's not even Mediatek chipset in Axon 7 that is supposed to be inferior and used in cheaper devices, however Mediatek equipped Ulefone Vienna which is all plastic does not have such problems, while the Mediatek UMi super / UMi max etc which are metal unibody seem to have all sorts of antenna problems.
 
The way I see it, metal unibody may look good to sell more devices but radiowaves do not like to travel through metal at all, no matter how expensive the specific device might be. The tiny plastic parts on the top and bottom back side look like a joke if device designers think that waves can be instructed to go through these plastic bits regardless of device orientation combined with a random transmitting station direction.

 
I have an Axon 7 and they patched the RF problems.  I didn't get a chance to see how bad it was, since I just got my phone, but I have had no problems with it.

 

[Pastapipo]

  ZTE is not even using dedicated audio chips in their budget phones. So I'm not sure I agree with your last point. Another example of a company that is only willing to offer good sound in their flagship devices. Nevertheless I will give them some credit for recognizing how badly Mediatek audio sucks and at least going with Snapdragon SoC audio in some of their budget devices like the Zmax 2 and Zmax Pro.
 
As far as the Axon 7 goes it is very expensive at $400.

 
While I agree on your first point, I disagree on your second point where I think $400 is a very suitable price for a flagship device.
It houses a WQHD Amoled screen as you pointed out, but furtermore: A Dac chip, Corning Gorilla Glass 4, Snapdragon 820, 64gb of expandable storage + 4gb ram in a well designed aluminium uni body.
And don't forget all the licensing fees they actually pay to make the phone globally available.
 
That for $400 is great value in my book.

 

[TabCam]

  It is quite unacceptable for a pricey device like Axon 7 to have such ridiculous RF problems with WiFi or Bluetooth or whatever.
 
I mean it is not a 100 Euros or US$ device that 'almost' works ok for that price.
 
Maybe the all metal construction trend has gone too far and many devices suffer from strange problems of bad antenna placement or bad reception or orientation depended reception, all of these are unacceptable for a portable device.
 
It's not even Mediatek chipset in Axon 7 that is supposed to be inferior and used in cheaper devices, however Mediatek equipped Ulefone Vienna which is all plastic does not have such problems, while the Mediatek UMi super / UMi max etc which are metal unibody seem to have all sorts of antenna problems.
 
The way I see it, metal unibody may look good to sell more devices but radiowaves do not like to travel through metal at all, no matter how expensive the specific device might be. The tiny plastic parts on the top and bottom back side look like a joke if device designers think that waves can be instructed to go through these plastic bits regardless of device orientation combined with a random transmitting station direction.

In my experience so far, which is about three weeks, I have no such issues. I connect to all networks, at home and at work. I aways get a bluetooth carkit connection. I did experience WiFi problems when I set the 'Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep' to 'Only when plugged in'. It was just reconnecting manually to fix it, so it was setting related. I tried it before the update to limit battery usage. I reset it before the OTA update and have not experienced any connection problems since the OTA update.

 

[nelly]

  Well I obviously think we can safely cross the Flash Plus 2 off the list of "HiFi Audio" budget phones, but what is left?
Ulefone Vienna, Umi Max, PPTV King 7, Bluboo Maya Max, and the ~ $200 LeTV phones. Any others? I'd suggest an honorable mention for any neutrally balanced Snapdragon SoC phones like the Lenovo A6010 (aka A6000 Shot). Snapdragon 410 phones are getting a bit long in the tooth these days but that seems like a version that Qualcomm did a particularly good job with in terms of audio. Some of the later versions don't sound as loud to me. Someone mentioned that their ZTE Zmax 2 had loud volume and sounded pretty good and that has a Snapdragon 400 SoC. I haven't heard the Xiaomi Redmi 3, but it's another bang-for-buck Chinese phone with some flavor of Snapdragon SoC audio.

 
I have the Bluboo Maya Max in the mail so will be able to give a review of it when I get it, I wouldn't consider myself as having audiophile ears tho and the only device I can compare it to is my Ipod touch and most my music collection is 'only' 320kbps. Would appreciate it if anyone can tell me how I can test the audio (beside the ear test) on it when I get it so I can see if the audio on it is the real deal or not. 

 

[dc-k]

   
I have the Bluboo Maya Max in the mail so will be able to give a review of it when I get it, I wouldn't consider myself as having audiophile ears tho and the only device I can compare it to is my Ipod touch and most my music collection is 'only' 320kbps. Would appreciate it if anyone can tell me how I can test the audio (beside the ear test) on it when I get it so I can see if the audio on it is the real deal or not. 

I take a more pragmatic than purist view of these things but there are a few basics which I'm sure others will expand on:

1. stick with music you are familiar with, but try to use a variety of styles (female vocal, orchaestral, jazz, it doesn't matter as long as you say)
2. tell us about the sources (file type, bit rates etc, any amplification, make/model of headphones or IEMs)
3. try to keep volume at the same level between devices
4. tell us about any equaliser use
5. check headfi fora for more detailed discussion on all these 

above all...

1. remember this IS subjective and your views are perfectly valid whether you regard yourself as audiophile or not

 

[Gojira]

   
While I agree on your first point, I disagree on your second point where I think $400 is a very suitable price for a flagship device.
It houses a WQHD Amoled screen as you pointed out, but furtermore: A Dac chip, Corning Gorilla Glass 4, Snapdragon 820, 64gb of expandable storage + 4gb ram in a well designed aluminium uni body.
And don't forget all the licensing fees they actually pay to make the phone globally available.
 
That for $400 is great value in my book.

The Letv x800 has nearly the same specs aside from the AMOLED display and sells for half that price. How much more expensive could an AMOLED WQHD panel be compared to an IPS LCD WQHD panel? $50 more? $100 more? Take your pick. Either way $400 could be seen as overpriced in comparison and that is just one example. Letv isn't generally very price competitive. If anything they seem to want to compete with Apple more than other Chinese manufacturers. The Meizu Pro 5 and the Vivo X5 Pro are both the same price. The Meizu MX4 Pro has been discontinued I guess but it seems that pricing when it was available was more like $289 to $330. Admittedlly the specs are quite a bit lower on that phone but not because it was a budget phone. It is just old and at the time those specs were comparatively high and expensive for Meizu. I'm only comparing phones that are *known* to be among the best sounding ones and it seems to mostly lose in terms of price. Calling it a 'great value' doens't seem at all justified to me. I think they could sell it for $300 or less and still make a fat profit. I wouldn't go so far as to call it gouging but I don't think calling the pricing aggressive or high value is justified when it isn't cheaper than *any* of their close competitors. The only way to make it look like a good value is to compare it with Apple, Samsung, LG, Sony, Motorola etc. IOW non-Chinese manufcacturers which are obviously going to be more expensive and for good reason.

 

[Gojira]

   
I have the Bluboo Maya Max in the mail so will be able to give a review of it when I get it, I wouldn't consider myself as having audiophile ears tho and the only device I can compare it to is my Ipod touch and most my music collection is 'only' 320kbps. Would appreciate it if anyone can tell me how I can test the audio (beside the ear test) on it when I get it so I can see if the audio on it is the real deal or not. 

I think we would all appreciate whatever you are willing to do in the way of a review. Don't get intimidated by the idea of some kind of major review. You can just post your impressions of the sound and whether you personally like the sound. It's essentially subjective and it's only your ears that we care about. A comparison with the Touch would be great if you have the time and also the more details you can give about the nature of the sound the better. I think you should just choose your favorite music to listen to rather than trying to listen to a wide range of genres. Although listening to at least a few different types of music would be a good idea. Presumably if you are here you have read at least a few product reviews. Just take note of some of the sound quality adjectives thrown around in such reviews and decide for yourself whether any apply. Warm/cold/detailed/muddy/clear/sparkly etc. Also pay attention to the tonal balance and whether it sounds natural/neutral or EQ boosted or altered in some way. Hopefully you already have headphones or IEMs that are popular here, but definitely specify what you are listening with.