[Bananaheadlin]

For people that already have them, how does the headphone out compare to the likes of the iPhone, iPod Touch, DAPs, other phones etc?

 

[Duncan]

Okay, I'm around for most of the day, so I will try and answer any questions... 
 
Quote:

For people that already have them, how does the headphone out compare to the likes of the iPhone, iPod Touch, DAPs, other phones etc?

 
Lots of drive / power, deep, rich tone (the iPhone 5S sounds quite thin and brittle by contrast) BUT, the headphone out can clip at maximum volume - albeit most people wouldn't want to drive their 'phones that hard (so you would need to use an app like Poweramp / Neutron to lower preamp gain slightly if you like LOUD music) - Tonally, provisionally - I would like to say that the M8 is warm, lush, slightly darker sounding than either the Note 3, and - for that matter the CEntrance M8 (I noticed the irony that if using USBAPP, I will be going One M8 to CEntrance M8 - now just need to find some "M8" 'phones!!)
 

  Can anyone comment on how loud the minimum volume is?, I know the max volume is loud, which is great on public transport and such but I often listen to music at home and in quiet environments where I find the lowest volume setting more than sufficient, how does the minimum volume compare to the likes of other phones you have?

 
Noise floor on the IE800 (120dbm/w) is very good (ink black to these ears) - but - should be noted my preamp point above applies here, even at lowest volumes one of the bespoke players mentioned (and I'm sure many more) will have preamp / gain controls so even if lowest volume is too high, you can lower it further in-app. - Not sure (only using stock, and Onkyo app) on iPhone if there are players on IOS with gain control.

 

[elfary]

The output power comparison is with a non european 5s?

I uncapped via ifile my european 5s and i find hard to imagine a phone that it's more powerful. And this does not clip even at full throttle (which uncapped means slightly louder than an iPad Air).


I don't trust anyone who smiles before 9 am

 

[Duncan]

elfary,
 
No, this is a non-jailbroken EU 5S, so for those in other markets my point may well be moot - but for EU buyers who don't jailbreak / root - might be an interesting point

 

[Duncan]

That the M8 clips slightly at maximum volume is annoying (but whoever would want to listen that loudly wouldn't probably care too much anyway!!) - but, knocking the volume back a step or two, playback quality is very clean...
 
Whilst not volume matched accurately (only by ears, so take this with the grain of salt it deserves) the tonal quality is very good, sounding slightly sweeter, deeper and more accurate than the Note 3 (which in my non-scientific test actually introduces distortion in the midrange compared to the M8), by that - VERY good - this is using Neutron on both phones, with a 24/48 FLAC file (so down converted to 16/48 on both devices)...
 
The iPhone 5S has the better soundstage of the three, but again not by a country mile, and has the largest dynamic range but has the highest tendency to sound shrill when higher up the volume scale...
 
What does any of this prove? - To me, the Note 3 is at the back of the pack - that midrange distortion / crackle is annoying now I've heard it...  Then, between the M8 and 5S, well - too early, and too new for concrete fact, however at this early stage, if you like clean, clear and airy sound (and don't push the volume into the shrillness zone) the 5S would be the phone to get, whereas the M8 is better for an engaging, intimate (jazz based if we say genres) listen, due to the warmth on the headphone out - but, they really need to sort out the clipping issues at high volume (hopefully a firmware fix!)...
 
Re the earlier point of maximum volume - in terms of sheer power the M8 bests the (EU) 5S, but in terms of usable volume / headroom, if you have warm[er] sounding cans, the 5S is the better unit IMO...
 
Basically, you cannot really go too far wrong with the 5S or the M8, but the Note 3 is showing weaknesses...  All irrelevant if using an offboard DAC, and - for point of reference, all three using stock firmware.

 

[elfary]

elfary,
 
No, this is a non-jailbroken EU 5S, so for those in other markets my point may well be moot - but for EU buyers who don't jailbreak / root - might be an interesting point

That's amazing news.

So the european HTC One is not capped as the european iPhone 5s (and i talk about the second eu cap that can not be bypassed from the volume limit menu).

Even if via jailbreak my 5s is no longer capped i don't feel comfortable having to jb to get massive output power so the M8 is even more tempting now...


I don't trust anyone who smiles before 9 am

 

[AustinValentine]

   
Tonally, provisionally - I would like to say that the M8 is warm, lush, slightly darker sounding than either the Note 3, and - for that matter the CEntrance M8 (I noticed the irony that if using USBAPP, I will be going One M8 to CEntrance M8 - now just need to find some "M8" 'phones!!)

 
M8 to M8 to V-Moda M-80s, of course.

 

[dbdynsty25]

M8 to M8 to V-Moda M-80s, of course.

Yeah the V-MODA headphone line are all fantastic w the M8. I prefer the M100s but the XS is a close second depending on the genre I'm listening to. From an IEM standpoint...both the GR07 BEs and the new Audio Technica IM50 sing with the M8. So impressed with the sound on this thing.

 

[ricthaman]

I pre-ordered mine here in the Netherlands this week. It will ship by april 4th, so reading this all just makes me very curious. I can't wait to plug in my W4's....

 

[Duncan]

This phone is one helluva lot of fun, the Prodigy have never sounded so good (from a portable device at least) - drives the IE800s with some real gusto

 

[Bananaheadlin]

I just ordered my HTC M8 through AT&T today too, cant wait for it to arrive! The sad thing is it won't arrive until late next week, so I'll have some waiting to do.. 

 
Duncan, from what you said (and as I never have had an iPhone, just an iTouch 3rd gen), is the M8 good enough to be used as a portable player without connecting a DAC to it in your opinion? Or would you still suggest a standalone player like the iPods or other DAPs (big difference)? My JH16 is arriving in a week too, don't know if I should upgrade my source player or not.. 

 

[GasMaskMan]

How is it from simply a phone standpoint? Was thinking of getting one later this year, but the non-removable battery is keeping me away.

 

[Duncan]

  I just ordered my HTC M8 through AT&T today too, cant wait for it to arrive! The sad thing is it won't arrive until late next week, so I'll have some waiting to do.. 

 
Duncan, from what you said (and as I never have had an iPhone, just an iTouch 3rd gen), is the M8 good enough to be used as a portable player without connecting a DAC to it in your opinion? Or would you still suggest a standalone player like the iPods or other DAPs (big difference)? My JH16 is arriving in a week too, don't know if I should upgrade my source player or not.. 

Bananaheadlin,
 
Too early for an absolute answer, but definitely eclipses the Note 3 imo, which was the reason for getting the CEntrance...  I do not know, as I do not own any high end BA IEMs whether it'll sound good with the JH16, I have a feeling that you might still prefer an external DAC overall, but for casual to semi-serious listening, so long as not pushing maximum volume you'll skip the clipping (1-2 taps below max is enough), and won't suffer the grain of the Note 3
 
Most people who get high end DAPs still get external DACs / amps, so - damned either way! lol
 

  How is it from simply a phone standpoint? Was thinking of getting one later this year, but the non-removable battery is keeping me away.

 
Good enough fine infact - no dropped calls or otherwise whilst playing around with it, and earpiece / mic sound fine, but Apple, for that regard are still where my money lies - they just do the telephony (which is the reason for having a phone afterall) just right... (SQ, battery life [which is no problem on the M8] and form factor)

 

[Aerosheet]

I thought that pretty much any Android device could get good sound quality with software implementations? I've seen and tried a few Android media players that actually maximized the device sound volume (for headphones, specifically). One of them, the one I like most, is a popular music app called Poweramp. It has several advanced features that normally could only be found in PC software. Overall, once I tried it, it seriously brought unbelievable improved sound quality out of my Android device, which is a Nexus 5. So in this case, are they talking about the sound quality of the HTC M8 regardless of what software is used (performance of hardware), or are they just talking about the sound quality without any extra software implementations?

 

[dbdynsty25]

So in this case, are they talking about the sound quality of the HTC M8 regardless of what software is used (performance of hardware), or are they just talking about the sound quality without any extra software implementations?

 
Performance of the hardware.  Basically destroys my N5 with all kinds of different software.