[ubs28]

What's the output impedence?

 

[shotgunshane]

Ken Rockwell has measured at 3.18. Slightly disappointing but still lower than Pono and AK240.

 

[gratefulbreen]

Just got a response from Ken Rockwell asking him to review the iPhone 6s (Plus):

"My 6s+ arrived Friday.

I’m working on it.

Best part is you can play directly from it to an AirPort Express, and feed that to the DAC or your choice, so the phone itself doesn’t matter
Thanks!

Ken

Sent from Mac Pro"

 

[ubs28]

Ken Rockwell has measured at 3.18. Slightly disappointing but still lower than Pono and AK240.

Isn't that number for the previous iPhone 6 plus rather than the iPhone 6S plus?

The iPad Air 2 has an output impedance below 1 ohm so I will be very disappointed if the 3 ohm is correct.

 

[shotgunshane]

Just got a response from Ken Rockwell asking him to review the iPhone 6s (Plus):

"My 6s+ arrived Friday.

I’m working on it.

Best part is you can play directly from it to an AirPort Express, and feed that to the DAC or your choice, so the phone itself doesn’t matter
Thanks!

Ken

Sent from Mac Pro"

Isn't that number for the previous iPhone 6 plus rather than the iPhone 6S plus?

The iPad Air 2 has an output impedance below 1 ohm so I will be very disappointed if the 3 ohm is correct.

You guys are right. A friend had emailed me about it. Seems we both mistook it for the S model. Good to know he has one and measurements are coming soon. I'm pretty sure it's over 1 but hopefully it's under 3.

 

[vwinter]

You guys are right. A friend had emailed me about it. Seems we both mistook it for the S model. Good to know he has one and measurements are coming soon. I'm pretty sure it's over 1 but hopefully it's under 3.

Not exactly a hard mistake to make =)

1 < 6S < 3 are my sentiments exactly.

 

[elfary]

Just got a response from Ken Rockwell asking him to review the iPhone 6s (Plus):

"My 6s+ arrived Friday.

I’m working on it.

Best part is you can play directly from it to an AirPort Express, and feed that to the DAC or your choice, so the phone itself doesn’t matter
Thanks!

Ken

Sent from Mac

+

 

 

 

Just got a response from Ken Rockwell asking him to review the iPhone 6s (Plus):

"My 6s+ arrived Friday.

I’m working on it.

Best part is you can play directly from it to an AirPort Express, and feed that to the DAC or your choice, so the phone itself doesn’t matter
Thanks!

Ken

Sent from Mac Pro"

oops. If Ken begins downplaying the importance of the headphone out he has praised so much in the past...
 
I wonder if he is gonna bring an AirPort Express into a plane or commute.
 
In any case the EMI noise issue invites to rule out the 6s for critical iem listening.

 

[a_recording]

I had an email exchange with Ken some time ago so he should be aware of the noise that I've picked up on my recorders.
 
As for me, today is the last day that I have to return the iPhone 6S. I'm really of a strong mind to return it today because there are a few things besides the buzzing that I don't really like about it. But at the same time I feel like nothing will get resolved if users do not continue reporting on this issue.
 
I was told that since I reported the issue to Apple via support within my return window, I'll be welcome to return it afterwards if they can't offer a resolution. At this point I don't really hold out much hope; right now I'm back on the 5S and the 6S is in the box.

 

[ubs28]

I managed to demo the iPhone 6S plus today. The soundstage is a little bit bigger than my iPhone 5S. 
 
I suppose the iPhone 6S can't play high quality recordings like the iPhone 6 also (unless the internal DAC is bypassed with the lightning port)? 

 

[Whitigir]

http://www.whathifi.com/apple/iphone-6/review

New review on iPhone 6s sound quality. Mainly better bass respond and better clarity....hell, the iPhone 6 was plenty of clarity and solution, bass was in the warmer side....and this one has even more clarity and bass respond ? Wow....iPhone 6S plus or LG V10 ?

Also another more in depth audio performance measurements and all the phone techs

http://www.kenrockwell.com/apple/iphone-6-plus.htm

He said it frequency respond is FLAT....even better than some dedicated Audiophile DAPs....

Low impedance load is perfectly fine!

Harmonic ...just like a tube amplifier ?

Sound quality better than some outboard DAC ?

Enjoy it

 

[vwinter]

http://www.whathifi.com/apple/iphone-6/review

New review on iPhone 6s sound quality. Mainly better bass respond and better clarity....hell, the iPhone 6 was plenty of clarity and solution, bass was in the warmer side....and this one has even more clarity and bass respond ? Wow....iPhone 6S plus or LG V10 ?

Also another more in depth audio performance measurements and all the phone techs

http://www.kenrockwell.com/apple/iphone-6-plus.htm

He said it frequency respond is FLAT....even better than some dedicated Audiophile DAPs....

Low impedance load is perfectly fine!

Harmonic ...just like a tube amplifier ?

Sound quality better than some outboard DAC ?

Enjoy it

Unrelated but,
I like the whathifi mobile site layout and usability a lot. All one one page, grouped and collapsed by section, easy to get right to what you want to see.


[rule]

Holy crap that was insulting.

Called AppleCare-
Supervisor apparently said that because you can't hear it with the included Apple earphones, which are made for the iPhone, naturally, that the engineers couldn't do anything about this "issue" and that this is an "issue" that would need to be taken up with the earphone manufacturer...

And ask them to do what... make worse earphones?

This is insulting on many levels.

1. It's insulting to the consumer's intelligence in that if you put a headphone out on a device, it is not "intended" to be used with includes earphones.

2. It's insulting to Apple as a company because a response was given by an employee with fundamental lack of understanding of the issue.

3. It's insulting to the manufacturers of the earphones in question with the implication that this is an issue with their product. Not to mention a potential waste of their time (and mine) if I was to take up that avenue.

What a sad response.

 

[a_recording]

Holy crap that was insulting.

Called AppleCare-
Supervisor apparently said that because you can't hear it with the included Apple earphones, which are made for the iPhone, naturally, that the engineers couldn't do anything about this "issue" and that this is an "issue" that would need to be taken up with the earphone manufacturer...

 
Wait, really? So, the 'Made for iPhone' certification process is also meaningless? That's just a stupid response.
 
I ended up returning my 6S on Friday (not just because of the buzzing). I really doubt at this point that Apple is going to openly acknowledge an issue that's only a problem for a tiny minority of users. Maybe they will introduce some revision quietly in the future. But I can't imagine them telling any particular user: "you can swap this phone for this one that works fine", since they would have to offer that for every user. Similar to the TSMC / Samsung case. 

 

[vwinter]

Wait, really? So, the 'Made for iPhone' certification process is also meaningless? That's just a stupid response.

I ended up returning my 6S on Friday (not just because of the buzzing). I really doubt at this point that Apple is going to openly acknowledge an issue that's only a problem for a tiny minority of users. Maybe they will introduce some revision quietly in the future. But I can't imagine them telling any particular user: "you can swap this phone for this one that works fine", since they would have to offer that for every user. Similar to the TSMC / Samsung case. 

Yea, the second person I spoke with was much more understanding and empathetic that it would be bothersome to her too and that I should try to get it replaced in store and see if it's an issue on the replacement. I don't doubt it will continue to be an issue, at least on current models with current software, but the initial dismissive attitude of the first supervisor and lack of understanding and logical comprehension was something I expect from calling GameStop, not Apple.

In any case, I agree with a_rec in that this will likely be quietly dealt with over time, if not the next iPhone (i.e. Someone got smacked upside the head for the oversight, but no real harm done, so no panic). I'll be staying with the iPhone because it does sound good to me under most circumstances, reminds me of a mix of the 4S and 5S sound which is what I wanted, and my general being married to the ecosystem and it being time for me to upgrade.

Still curious about the output impedance.

For what it's worth, my gf can hear it clearly with the Heaven V, even while any non-overly loud music is playing. She thought i was being ridiculous when I explained why I was on the phone with Apple for half an hour, but she gets it now.

 

[obsidyen]

Could this buzzing be caused by the chipset? It's a fact that the Samsung chipset drains more battery and heats more. Maybe iPhone 6s' with Samsung chipset make a buzzing sound whereas 6s' with TMSC chipset do not?

 

[clee290]

Could this buzzing be caused by the chipset? It's a fact that the Samsung chipset drains more battery and heats more. Maybe iPhone 6s' with Samsung chipset make a buzzing sound whereas 6s' with TMSC chipset do not?

It's possible, but would be quite hard to test. For one, people don't have the same hearing. And two, people generally don't have the same gear. From this thread, this issue seems pretty gear-dependant, as people have been able to hear EMI noises with some stuff but not with others.