[applegd]

I just bought IPOD photo 40G about 3 weeks ago. My configuration is IPOD line out port on the DOCK ---> Kimber Kable mini to RCA --> Headroom Maxed-out-home ---> HD650. The sound I am hearing in HD650 is very ""flat and muffled", lost a lot detail even I use apple lossless or .wav file. If I use my SONY portable CD player D-EJ2000 to replace IPOD, I can hear the sound become much better, much more musical.

Is there anyone have same feeling as mine? Just want to know whether this is common feature of IPOD photo.

 

[blessingx]

Flat yes. Muffled no.
With my Etys I can hear a lot of detail. There are better sources of course though. And finding a portable one more musical isn't difficult. All depends on preferences.

 

[lextek]

I think it has a lot to do what bitrate you have your music encoded at. I have the 60gig iPod and have 190AAC and 192VBR. I find the sound excellent. Either with Ety 4Ps or 6is. I have also used it with an SR-71 with 4P/S adapter.

 

[bigshot]

Turn off all EQing in the iPod, and disable the bass boost on your CD. Then encode a track as lossless and put it on the iPod. Compare the lossless file played flat to the CD played flat. You'll find that there is no difference. If you find that you need to use EQ to get your headphones to sound the way you want them to, normalize your audio files down to 80% before loading them on your iPod. Most music nowadays is normalized up to 100% and beyond, which allows very little room for EQ boosts.

See ya
Steve

 

[Rodent]

I read here that several users thought their new photo sounded worse than their 4g ipod, I guess they changed something in the new version.

 

[winged creature]

Actually i found that my 40gig ipod photo sounds better then the 4G ipod, i think its the people with the new 30 gig ones that dont sound as nice. Im not a fan of the sound from the headphone jack on the ipod, the lack of a good eq sucks, so i find i end up using my dell dj and my sony MZ-n10 alot more

 

[appar111]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot Turn off all EQing in the iPod, and disable the bass boost on your CD. Then encode a track as lossless and put it on the iPod. Compare the lossless file played flat to the CD played flat. You'll find that there is no difference. If you find that you need to use EQ to get your headphones to sound the way you want them to, normalize your audio files down to 80% before loading them on your iPod. Most music nowadays is normalized up to 100% and beyond, which allows very little room for EQ boosts. See ya Steve

What's the easiest way on iTunes to normalize the audio files down? And are you talking about normalizing the volume or the gain down? I know what settings will allow me to reduce the volume (highlight the tracks and choose "get info" then simply pull the slider down to where you want), but I'm not sure how to reduce the gain on songs...

 

[bigshot]

I use Peak for the Mac to normalize. I've set up a "droplet" to batch process and just crank them out as I rip. Normalizing the level isn't the same as just turning down the volume in iTunes.

See ya
Steve

 

[blessingx]

I think there's two members on record saying the new 30GB sounds worse, and two (including me not - counting other reviews on the web) who say there is no difference. I'm just tempering the 'new 30GB Photos sound worse' comments before it becomes believed to be universal through repetition (which happens especially in the forum ALL THE TIME).

 

[orkney]

Quote:

Originally Posted by blessingx I think there's two members on record saying the new 30GB sounds worse, and two (including me not - counting other reviews on the web) who say there is no difference. I'm just tempering the 'new 30GB Photos sound worse' comments before it becomes believed to be universal through repetition (which happens especially in the forum ALL THE TIME).

I agree. As I've posted in another "photo Ipod is worse" thread, I have tested 4G, Photo 30 and now photo 40 using Perreaux/HD-650, Perreaux/SR-225, PC-II HD-650 and PC-II SR-225 and via my (very revealing) Quads and can detect NO difference between these units on music from classical to jazz to female vocals to NOFX. Possible some units are defective or that the Ipod sound is not universally appealing -- nothing wrong with that. But a failed expectation w/ respect to SQ is not the same as a meaningful SQ difference between models. It would be interesting, if this concern persists, to set up a more rigorous comparison between units. I too worry that this worry about the Photos may become dogma merely through repetition.

best,


o

 

[bigshot]

The username and the fact that the poster hasn't returned to this thread tend to indicate that he really isn't worrying too much about this. I think it's a troll.

See ya
Steve

 

[Patrickhat2001]

Hold on, hold on! I really doubt the person who started this thread is trying to be a troll. His question is valid and it's only been a little over a day since he started the thread.

Because he is questioning the sound quality of a product he's suddenly trolling?

Just for the record applegd just as you found your D-EJ2000 to sound better than your iPod Photo I too found my D-EJ2000 to sound better than my Nomad Zen so I know where you're coming from. In my case switching to a more lively headphone (the KSC-35s instead of the PortaPros--which I had come to prefer on my D-EJ2000) pretty much cured the problem. Perhaps something similar would work to you. Then again the D-EJ2000 is one fine sounding and musical PCDP and none of the DAPs I've tried (iPod, Zen and Karma) have quite been able to match it in sound quality (although I did eventually go the DAP route due to convenience).

 

[rextrade]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot I use Peak for the Mac to normalize. I've set up a "droplet" to batch process and just crank them out as I rip. Normalizing the level isn't the same as just turning down the volume in iTunes. See ya Steve

Bigshot--how do you do this? I have Peak Epress (but don't really use it). Is this just a matter of decreasing the gain?

 

[appar111]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrickhat2001 Hold on, hold on! I really doubt the person who started this thread is trying to be a troll. His question is valid and it's only been a little over a day since he started the thread. Because he is questioning the sound quality of a product he's suddenly trolling? Just for the record applegd just as you found your D-EJ2000 to sound better than your iPod Photo I too found my D-EJ2000 to sound better than my Nomad Zen so I know where you're coming from. In my case switching to a more lively headphone (the KSC-35s instead of the PortaPros--which I had come to prefer on my D-EJ2000) pretty much cured the problem. Perhaps something similar would work to you. Then again the D-EJ2000 is one fine sounding and musical PCDP and none of the DAPs I've tried (iPod, Zen and Karma) have quite been able to match it in sound quality (although I did eventually go the DAP route due to convenience).

Are you talking about the EJ2000 through the line out or the headphone out?

 

[Patrickhat2001]

Headphone out.