[TheMarchingMule]

It's a recent addition in the Sound Settings, and when I tried it...

Oh...my...gawd.

The instrumental seperation is like in a total different galaxy; you can pick out the seperate instruments so darn easily now. They sound like they've been given true life and more accuracy; the treble sparkles (in a good way), the bass actually goes beyond deeper than what I ever thought it was capable while being super-tight (on low volumes at least; it gets boomy as you crank up the volume too much), and...just wow.

Now, my ears could simply be tricked, but this is darn good tricking, if anything.

Please try it out and get back to this thread on it.

And for the record, I tried this out on:

iPod - KSC75

and atm: iPod - PA2V2 - K701

Both show incredible differences w/ this EQ on, but imo the KSC75 wowed me the most.

 

[benton]

Haha, I discovered the same thing and it blew me away too. After listening to it with EQ and crossfeed and then no EQ or crossfeed the diffrence was clear. I also said HOLY

 

[Febs]

I was actually the one who tested the patch for this for safetydan, the Rockbox developer who implemented the feature. (He doesn't have a 5G.) At the time I tested it, the low and high shelf bands were functioning, but the three peaking filters were not active. I haven't tried a recent build, so I don't know if this has been corrected yet. Regardless, even with just the low and high shelf filters, this is a great addition to Rockbox's functionality on the 5G. The hardware EQ doesn't have nearly as much flexibility as the software EQ, but the hardware EQ can be used causing without any playback skipping.

 

[greenleaves]

Update (9-18-06): Just installed the 9-18-06 CVS build. The UI was almost ground to a halt when the software EQ was enable. Looks like the current RB is in great flux...

I had some good experience with the 9-16-06 build. I did not hear any MP3 skipping. No precut was needed, however the user interface was less responsive than before. Further optimization is needed. Overall, the best vocal experience I've ever had out of Rockbox. It's so real, and upfront...

(Note that: the Sotware EQ has more settings to choose from than the current hardware EQ implementation.)

Update (8-19-06): I tried the RB (8-19-06) build with Hardware Equalizer turned on for a few MP3 files, the skipping problem was gone (known for Software Equalizer) even when the Channel customerization and Crossfeed were turned on. The sound was just fantastic! Excellent job...

To benefit the full potential of EQs (the combination of Channel customerization, Crossfeed, and Equalizer settings), the best is to use the lossless FLAC or WavePack as encoder for music files. FLAC is by far the most efficient codec, and WavePack comes close in iPOD 5G. They give the best sound quality out of your music files.

Here is one of my favorite Software EQ settings by Ron Kerlin over on Xin's Cool Talk website:

Channels: Custom
Stereo Width (Channel Separation): 55% - 85%
Software Equalizer: Enabled
Crossfeed: Enabled

Crossfeed Settings: Direct Gain: -.5 db, CrossGain: -3.5 db, HiFreq. Attn: -6.0 db, HF Cutoff: 775 Hz

Equalizer Setting: (For software EQ only)
(Adapted, but modified from binaural recordist, Ron Cole's "BioPhonic" EQ setting.)

LS: 7.5 db 30hz 3.5Q
PK: .1 db 220hz 4.5Q
PK: 6.4 db 2500hz 3.0Q
PK: 1.4 db 7500hz 3.1Q
HS: 6.0 db 18,010hz 3.0Q

This one, strange as it appears, creates a very speakerlike sound.

** Some tips for using Crossfeed:

Volume control is crucial: I usually turn up the volume a little in order to hit some sweet spot. When the volume is too low, music can be dry and dull.

Quality of music encoding matters: While Crossfeed exhibits a more focused and upfront soundstage, it also exposes artifacts in some lesser quality encoding as well. I use FLAC and Wavepack for most of my music encoding.

Mastering of recording: Crossfeed may not work well for some mastering versions even for the same album or songs. It's a matter of taste anyway.

It's great to see the hardware EQ implementation in the coming. Big thumbs up to our Rockbox developers.

 

[FaBoLoUsRmX]

What day did they add the hardware eq to the cvs? im using a custom build from the 8-1 cvs i believe... and i would love to try this feature out.

 

[Febs]

August 14.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

What exactly was tapped into to come up with this day-and-night difference (imo)?

 

[Febs]

Apparently the Wolfson WM8758 has a hardware EQ feature. That's all I know. I'm not sure what was involved in enabling it.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

Well, it sounds damn better with it...Gosh, if the iMod is better than Rockbox + this...I'm not saying it is, but I want somebody to properly compare the two:

iMod vs. 5G Rockbox w/ Hardware EQ enabled (line-out)

 

[Sebastianbf]

Total noob question but... How do I configure this hardware eq setting and what does everything in there means?

 

[TheMarchingMule]

You go into Sound Settings, and it's on the bottom of the list.

I'm still darn amazed by it.

 

[Sebastianbf]

WOW! I still can't believe the difference that this hardware eq makes. The non-hardware eq quality sounds kind of crappy comparing with enabled eq. AMAZING, REALLY!

 

[TheMarchingMule]

EQ my duck, I think what we're hearing is the full potential of the chip

 

[fierce_freak]

This is probably a dumb question, but if one never EQs this will have no impact, correct?

 

[TheMarchingMule]

I never stuck with EQ'ing until now...and I don't think you can call this EQ. Try it...it's like a whole new world.

...Please, nobody sing the Aladdin song