[Sound Eq]

  Audyze 
 
First disable the DSP Pack, preventing player pro from trying to use software decoding of the files.  PlayerPro then direct streams the files to the DSD decoder on the dac.  

so dsp pack should not be used, how bout the eq in player pro

 

[amature101]

  Audyze 
 
First disable the DSP Pack, preventing player pro from trying to use software decoding of the files.  PlayerPro then direct streams the files to the DSD decoder on the dac.  

you mean we should not use dsp pack on v20? Btw what are the setting you used for player pro and what does the word Audyze mean?

 

[dirkpitt45]

I find the v20 minimum volume is too loud for for my JH13s. Even with the balance turned all the way down for both channels. Any suggestions for lowering the volume more?

 

[Army-Firedawg]

I find the v20 minimum volume is too loud for for my JH13s. Even with the balance turned all the way down for both channels. Any suggestions for lowering the volume more?

You can purchase a dampener or inpedance jack that I often have to use with my ciems. Ultimate ears has one u use thats riuggly 10 bucks. Doesn't do a lot but it does help reduce volume some.

 

[eio]

  I find the v20 minimum volume is too loud for for my JH13s. Even with the balance turned all the way down for both channels. Any suggestions for lowering the volume more?

no good solution that i can think of...someone mentioned a volume attenuation convertor in this thread, might help.

 

[ZMan2k2]

I've got both these phones on the way, one is going back for a refund, I still don't know which one.

Keeping in mind, that I'm an audio guy first:

The HTC has a 24/192 AQustic DAC developed by Qualcomm. HTC has their Boomsound software, a headphone correction software that evens out the sound to both sides, and Dolby Audio, which I'll never use. It also outputs 1V of power, which is very respectable, out of the box, meaning I don't have to pull any tricks to get decently loud output without distortion.

The LG has a 9218 ESS Sabre Quad DAC, capable of outputting DSD or SACD or DVD-A quality music. It's a 32/382 DAC chip on paper. I do have to pull tricks to get it to play decently loud, I have to pull off the left earpiece from the headphone cable, plug in, then reconnect the left earpiece. 

They both have identical hardware, the HTC has a non-removeable battery, the LG a removeable battery. Cameras, which I rarely use, are about the same. I've never owned an HTC, I currently have an LG V10 that is developing problems, probably because when I was rooted, I over-clocked it. I do like the second screen, but could just as easily get used to pushing the power button to see the time. 

For me it really comes down to the audio, and from the reviews I've read, they almost sound the same. And Boomsound headphone equalization is a really nice feature.


HELP!?!?!?!

 

[milford30]

  I find the v20 minimum volume is too loud for for my JH13s. Even with the balance turned all the way down for both channels. Any suggestions for lowering the volume more?

 
Turn eq on in your music player and turn down the master volume tab. If you have poweramp that's under Settings -> Audio -> Replay Gain
 
Get poweramp, use direct volume control then change steps to 100 (DVC).
 
Btw don't get impedance jack like others are suggesting, it'll kick the phone into high impedance mode making the lowest volume even lower, unless you get 100ohm+ which would distort the sound.

 

[Dellwolf]

I've got both these phones on the way, one is going back for a refund, I still don't know which one.


Keeping in mind, that I'm an audio guy first:


The HTC has a 24/192 AQustic DAC developed by Qualcomm. HTC has their Boomsound software, a headphone correction software that evens out the sound to both sides, and Dolby Audio, which I'll never use. It also outputs 1V of power, which is very respectable, out of the box, meaning I don't have to pull any tricks to get decently loud output without distortion.


The LG has a 9218 ESS Sabre Quad DAC, capable of outputting DSD or SACD or DVD-A quality music. It's a 32/382 DAC chip on paper. I do have to pull tricks to get it to play decently loud, I have to pull off the left earpiece from the headphone cable, plug in, then reconnect the left earpiece. 


They both have identical hardware, the HTC has a non-removeable battery, the LG a removeable battery. Cameras, which I rarely use, are about the same. I've never owned an HTC, I currently have an LG V10 that is developing problems, probably because when I was rooted, I over-clocked it. I do like the second screen, but could just as easily get used to pushing the power button to see the time. 


For me it really comes down to the audio, and from the reviews I've read, they almost sound the same. And Boomsound headphone equalization is a really nice feature.



HELP!?!?!?!

The camera on the V20 is MUCH better than on the HTC

 

[dirkpitt45]

Turn eq on in your music player and turn down the master volume tab. If you have poweramp that's under Settings -> Audio -> Replay Gain

Get poweramp, use direct volume control then change steps to 100 (DVC).

Btw don't get impedance jack like others are suggesting, it'll kick the phone into high impedance mode making the lowest volume even lower, unless you get 100ohm+ which would distort the sound.

Thanks for the suggestion. I have power amp and using the eq works great. But in Google play music there is no eq. Which is annoying because there was on my nexus 5. Apparently it's just disabled for some devices, like the v20. I was hoping for a system setting or something since I enjoy using Google play music.

 

[eio]

   
Turn eq on in your music player and turn down the master volume tab. If you have poweramp that's under Settings -> Audio -> Replay Gain
 
Get poweramp, use direct volume control then change steps to 100 (DVC).
 
Btw don't get impedance jack like others are suggesting, it'll kick the phone into high impedance mode making the lowest volume even lower, unless you get 100ohm+ which would distort the sound.

very low volume hurts sound quality significantly.
volume 1 on V20 means -58db gain, means you are effectively listening to 6bit content.
using a attenuation converter can yield vastly better result, but still not ideal.

 

[milford30]

  very low volume hurts sound quality significantly.
volume 1 on V20 means -58db gain, means you are effectively listening to 6bit content.
using a attenuation converter can yield vastly better result, but still not ideal.

 
Attenuation converter activates high gain mode... which defeats the purpose, if you get 100Ohm+ converter, you get distortion in the lows.

 

[RockStar2005]

   
Attenuation converter activates high gain mode... which defeats the purpose, if you get 100Ohm+ converter, you get distortion in the lows.

 
Hi milford30, 
 
I just purchased this 100 ohm impedance adapter off eBay yesterday, and it just shipped out this morning. You said the "100 Ohm+ ones would cause distortion in the lows". 1) Does that statement apply to headphones too, or just earphones? 2) Should I have gotten the 75 ohm one instead, or is the 100 ohm one still ok??
 
Thank you. 

 

[RockStar2005]

  I've got both these phones on the way, one is going back for a refund, I still don't know which one.

Keeping in mind, that I'm an audio guy first:

The HTC has a 24/192 AQustic DAC developed by Qualcomm. HTC has their Boomsound software, a headphone correction software that evens out the sound to both sides, and Dolby Audio, which I'll never use. It also outputs 1V of power, which is very respectable, out of the box, meaning I don't have to pull any tricks to get decently loud output without distortion.

The LG has a 9218 ESS Sabre Quad DAC, capable of outputting DSD or SACD or DVD-A quality music. It's a 32/382 DAC chip on paper. I do have to pull tricks to get it to play decently loud, I have to pull off the left earpiece from the headphone cable, plug in, then reconnect the left earpiece. 

They both have identical hardware, the HTC has a non-removeable battery, the LG a removeable battery. Cameras, which I rarely use, are about the same. I've never owned an HTC, I currently have an LG V10 that is developing problems, probably because when I was rooted, I over-clocked it. I do like the second screen, but could just as easily get used to pushing the power button to see the time. 

For me it really comes down to the audio, and from the reviews I've read, they almost sound the same. And Boomsound headphone equalization is a really nice feature.


HELP!?!?!?!

 
I tried out the HTC 10 last summer for about a week and am currently trying out the V20 (which just came in yesterday) as well. I understand your dilemma. 
 
You make some great points in your post. The 10's max amp output they say is about equal to the V20's output in Aux/External Device Detected mode, but they both sound great. I saw one site that did some comparison tests that showed that the 10 has a lower noise floor, though it was (of course) disputed in the comments. lol I was told that with an impedance adapter like this one I just bought off eBay (100 ohm one, though 75 ohm one might be better) and is shipping to me now will give you High Impedance Mode (HIM) for even greater amp output.
 
I didn't really extensively test the 10 like I should've last summer because I decided the camera was very good but the Sony Xperia X Performance (my current phone) that came out 2 weeks later's camera was better. But what I didn't know was that unlike my old Xperia Z3, Sony Mobile no longer makes smartphones with top-level battery life. More like the opposite. lol So that is why I'm trying out the V20. 
 
I can't say I'm a fan of phablets though, but the V20 without a case is actually very thin and very light, which I like. The camera seems about the same or possibly slightly better than the 10's, which wasn't the best at details, but the V20's seems to only be best when flash is used. Neither I think can match my X Performance's camera, which even outdid the S7 I used to have's camera with regards to color accuracy. The S7 was a HORRIBLE phone for audio, both sound and call quality-wise. Stay FAR away from that one. lol I also don't like how HTC made the 10 look like a Samsung phone and not an HTC phone. Button on the front? Yuck. lol Moving one of the front stereo speakers to the bottom?? YUCK!! lol I hope they correct that with the 10's successor. The V20's front is really nice and even though only 1 speaker they at least don't have that Home (and/or Power) button on the front. Much better on the side (Sony) or back. 
 
I used to own the HTC One M8 about 2-3 years ago, and I LOVED it! The camera was not THE best, but it was pretty good most of the time. The 10's is def better. Size-wise I'd rather have the 10 (plus features like "Auto Answer Calls" where you can pick up the phone WITHOUT having to swipe the screen to take a call is great. Just put it up to your ear and it takes it.  LOVE it! The V20 doesn't have it though.) The V20 has the second screen which I like and more importantly the amp is a bit stronger and yeah needs "tricks" to enable the Aux/External Device Detected and/or HIM modes, but it still beats carrying around a portable external amp like the FiiO A3 or A5 (amp only), though I'm so used to carrying around my Oppo HA-2 amp/DAC that it's not as big a deal to me anymore, though I'd still prefer not to have to. With the 10 I may still need that, but with the V20 at max volume, or if I can get HIM with that adapter, I wouldn't need to. I have some Hi-Res albums that were remastered at lower volumes, and so I need that higher amp output to make them shine. With DVC on in Poweramp, I could achieve it on the V20, though this option causes some distortion in Sony and esp HTC phones, which puts the 10 at a disadvantage as w/o DVC, the volume goes down a slight but noticeable bit. I think I had that issue with the One M8 and so had to turn off DVC, but it's POSSIBLE it may have been fixed on the 10. My Z3 didn't have an issue with DVC, but I noticed recently that my X Performance DID actually, so it had to be disabled. Since the V20 doesn't, I can leave it on, which yes gives it a volume advantage over the 10. 
 
So I guess after running through all these points, if audio is your priority, then I guess the V20 wins. Though I prefer the size of the 10 and certain features like Auto Answer Calls, I too prioritize audio above about everything else, with battery life (which I believe the V20 is better at over the 10, and def my XP) and camera being a close second. And since the camera on the V20 MAY be better or at least about equal to the 10's, then I guess the V20 is the better choice. It can get slightly louder (see that link above) in what I'm guessing is Aux/EDD mode, and even louder if that adapter works, and also it can utilize DVC w/o distortion (if you'd like to test out the 10 to see if it actually has the same issue as the One M8 did, then please do so and post your findings here), then volume-wise it owns. I find that at least some if not all music will never sound as good if you can't reach a certain volume level, so this point IS actually pretty crucial. 
 
HTC IMO really f'd up this year. They should've used last Thursday's special event to announce the 10's successor instead of releasing this U Ultra phone which I'd never buy b/c even though I think it does have it, I don't know for sure if it has as good a DAC as the 10's, and plus it's also a phablet AND only has a 3000 mAh battery where the V20 has a 3200 one. Not a big difference, but still enough of a difference to me. My XP's battery is only 2700 mAh (5" screen), and its battery life is again awful. lol And the worst thing is the U Ultra doesn't even come out 'til March, which means of course they will delay the 10's successor to summer at the EARLIEST! What they should've done was keep this U Ultra crap for summer, and announced the 10's successor. But they DIDN'T! By the time March/April comes around, LG and Samsung will have newer phones with better processors (835 vs. 821) coming out, and HTC will prob get hosed once again. And by summer many ppl who WOULD'VE bought the 10's successor (assuming it's actually better than the 10 in every way) will have probably already bought the new G6 or S8 and not be looking anymore. I really love Sony Mobile and maybe more now HTC (b/c HTC IMO cares much more for its U.S. customers like me than Sony Mobile does), but the ppl who runs those companies, despite making the best phones, are really stupid a lot of the time. LG went from having the worst audio 3 years ago to having the best now it seems, but I don't like that they are forcing me to buy a phablet which won't be fun to stick into my jean pockets in the summer when it gets warm and I no longer can just stick it in my inside jacket pockets lol, plus although it too has double-tap to wake/sleep, no Automatically Answer Calls option to enjoy. But I'm like 95% sure right now I'm gonna keep it and sell my XP and Oppo HA-2 too. The V20 is TREMENDOUS in what it offers overall, but esp in audio. 

 

[eio]

   
Attenuation converter activates high gain mode... which defeats the purpose, if you get 100Ohm+ converter, you get distortion in the lows.

not necessarily.
and even it does for a certain design, it's still vastly better than 6bit music.

 

[ZMan2k2]

Thank you for the detailed response. I also watched a youtube vid showing the V20 besting the 10 in various tasks. I'm 90% sure I'm going with the V20, but I'm still hesitating a bit.