[Miracle1980]

  I found even my CIEMs were missing some oomph when plugged in to the Note 3 if I wanted to pump up the volume, but that has been the case with most of my phones.

Do you have this ''volume raise mod'' on your note? Do you think that will change something with your CIEMs? I'm still waiting for my Momentum to arrive (i don't think that i will have problems to drive them with the Note3...)
I would like to try this ''volume hack'' but not sure to root my phone at the moment...

 

[AyeVeeN]

Is it normal for iTunes to not allow a direct transfer to the phone / possibly vice versa? It works on my Walkman F807 but not on this. Just received it but I don't want to go through the PITA method of uploading every new song into WMP in order to sync it considering I add new music often and it'll be irritating to find each and every new recently added song to sync.
 
Edit: I haven't done extensive testing, but the Note 3 is higher than my realistic expectations (lower than my what-I-wanted-it-to-be expectations).
 
Compared to my Sony F807, 
 
Note 3: (note I only compared for like 5~10 minutes; no time):
 
- slightly less spacious soundstage + worse imaging (they were about even but within my like 10 minutes of testing this is how I felt)
- more audible distortion (some were from the mp3 files, not sure if others were because of the DAC itself not being able to handle too much "action") 
- hi-hats were slightly more audible
- less depth in bass
- female vocals slightly more recessed (slightly imaging-related)
 
I will be taking the Note 3 to school to do extensive listening and leave the Walkman at home for now because my pockets will be fat with a wallet, an F807, and now a bigass Note 3 in a case so hopefully I can make a decision within a week .
 
I've read this has the Qualcomm WCD9320. I wanted the G2 but there's no removable battery / removable SD so it was a dealbreaker. Plus the Verizon variant looks beyond cheap compared to the normal one. Some people say the G2 have the new Wolfson DAC while other say it has the Qualcomm WCD9320 due to the SoC.

 

[Baroninkjet]

   Some people say the G2 have the new Wolfson DAC while other say it has the Qualcomm WCD9320 due to the SoC.

 
It is Qualcomm. I had one for a week and returned it. Not as good as Wolfson on Samsung to my ears. Amazing phone otherwise though.

 

[AyeVeeN]

   
It is Qualcomm. I had one for a week and returned it. Not as good as Wolfson on Samsung to my ears. Amazing phone otherwise though.

 
The Note 3 has a Qualcomm doesn't it.. or do you mean the S3 (4?)?

 

[Baroninkjet]

   
The Note 3 has a Qualcomm doesn't it.. or do you mean the S3 (4?)?

 
I was speaking of LG G2 w/Qualcomm vs i9300 S3 w/ Wolfson. 

 

[Duncan]

  Is it normal for iTunes to not allow a direct transfer to the phone / possibly vice versa? It works on my Walkman F807 but not on this. Just received it but I don't want to go through the PITA method of uploading every new song into WMP in order to sync it considering I add new music often and it'll be irritating to find each and every new recently added song to sync.
 

You obviously at some point installed Walkman Connect (or whatever it is called) that brings up the little drag and drop window...
 
The only difference between that interface and the Note3 is that you can just drag and drop from within Windows / iOS - the Note3 acts as a USB pendrive...
 
I'm starting to like the headphone out a bit more than my first less than stellar thoughts - to me, it is warmer / friendlier sounding than the headphone out of the Colorfly C3 (so, that takes that out of the picture, and probably going to end up in the FS section here), but not as good as an off-board solution (E17 / E17+E12)...
 
The key part for me though is the screen - makes watching videos a delight, rather than a chore

 

[XxATOLxX]

  It would be cool if somebody could compare the output power of the Note 3 and an iPhone. I mean how many iPhone volume clicks are left when it matches the maximum output of the Note 3. Obviously i assume that any iPhone (even the 5) has a more powerful headphone out.
 
On a side note regarding the 24 bit issue i must confess that it is a moot discussion since Note 3 hardware could do (at best) 12 or 13 bits of resolution with THD, IMD and crosstalk masking any low level sounds beyond that.
 
On real world scenarios the biggest benefit of using 24 bit material is that usually it is better mixed and/or mastered than the 16 bit counterparts. But 24 bits on portable audio powered by batteries is more of marketing gimmick than anything else. IMHO.
 
24 bits are great for audio processing and for $tudio-like listening environments (treated rooms, expensive monitors, amps and all).

 
I have an iPhone 5 next to me. The iPhone has ~1.1-1.5 clicks more volume than the Note at the top. (completely unscientific measurement method).

 

[AyeVeeN]

  You obviously at some point installed Walkman Connect (or whatever it is called) that brings up the little drag and drop window...
 
The only difference between that interface and the Note3 is that you can just drag and drop from within Windows / iOS - the Note3 acts as a USB pendrive...
 
I'm starting to like the headphone out a bit more than my first less than stellar thoughts - to me, it is warmer / friendlier sounding than the headphone out of the Colorfly C3 (so, that takes that out of the picture, and probably going to end up in the FS section here), but not as good as an off-board solution (E17 / E17+E12)...
 
The key part for me though is the screen - makes watching videos a delight, rather than a chore

 
No, it is not Walkman Connect. I literally use my Walkman as a USB Drive via Windows Explorer and it lets me drag and drop straight from iTunes. Ever since the first use. Even before rooting. Straight plugged in (I remember this because I transferred like 20gb the first time which took like an hour or two). It runs ICS 4.0.4. (maybe 4.0.1 idk)
 
Yeah I'm starting to like it more and more too. I realized that Viper on my Walkman spoiled me so now the regular Walkman / Note 3 sounds a bit off. In my above post though it was Walkman w/o Viper vs Note 3. Deciding if I should root it or wait. Not even sure if Viper is compatible atm.
 
Also no static w/ my ES3X as far as I can tell atm. Bass does seem to be a bit rolled off though.  Deep house sounds slightly off.
 
And it is way loud for me. Walkman requires me to set it to 6 for an approximate 60~70db (8~9 with Viper on w/ my settings). 1 tick on the Note 3 gets it to louder than how I have it on the Walkman. I dunno if people were talking about the external speakers but it seems quite loud too, least from what I'm used to. Still sounds like crap though.

 

[Tin2003]

I agree that it is difficult to explain why Samsung remains silent on the issue. Usually they were bragging about Wolfson chips long before thier product launches. Until now I managed to find only one claim on the web that Note 3 should feature a Wolfson DAC. Still can't confirm its authenticity.
 
Yesterday I was able to play with the Exinos version of Note 3 at a store. I downloaded Neutron trial and a couple of mp3 320 mbs to it. I can say that the sound quality is very good. Since S3 they have upgraded it immensely. The volume level through the headphone jack is very high. It easily overpowered my Klipsh x10 - something my S3 could never do. If I had known I would have taken my IE8. Interestingly, Neutorn didn't even allow to bump up gain, it brought it down constantly. And if you don't tweak Neutron at all, the sound quality that comes from the stock player is the same. I wonder whether the stock player understands cue files (on my S3 it doesn't), otherwise, if you like your music untweaked like I do there's no point in buying anything else. There is no reason for buying an external amp as well unless you plan on using 600 om headphones - there is plenty of volume for earbuds.
As an owner of a Cowon D2+ I would say that I am more than satisfied with the sound quality of Note 3 (Exinos version that is). Initially, I was going to wait until they announce the type of DAC they are using, but my birthday is coming in a month and I am pretty fed up with my S3, so I am going to buy it anyway (hopefully I can get it for under 700 then LOL). Besides, it fits my bill in every other respect, but this, of course, is for another forum.

 

[Roadtrip]

I have to admit that the Note 3 has a vastly better DAC then the Note 2 – which was already great – at least on a subjective basis. Bass and treble extensions seems to be better, and the soundstage is wider. The downside seems to be that it is still underpowered. It has difficulty driving my UE900’s, which is just ridiculous. Hopefully we will once again get a voodoo mod for this phone; this solved all of my problems with the Note 2.
 
Scientific measurements also seem to be in its favor: http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_3_preview-review-986p5.php
 
I’d be more than happy to answer questions about the device, honestly and objectively. If you guys have questions or ideas about experiments, just throw them out there.

 

[Tin2003]

Roadtrip, are you referring to a Qualcom or Exinos version of Note 3? Because our statements about sound volume seem to be contradicting.

 

[elfary]

   
I have an iPhone 5 next to me. The iPhone has ~1.1-1.5 clicks more volume than the Note at the top. (completely unscientific measurement method).

It might not be very scientific but sure it is useful information.
 
Since iPHone 5 was two clicks below iPhone 4S i guess that assessing the Note 3 as 3.5 clicks less than iPhone 4S might fall close to reality. I will check what output my 4S manages with old recordings at 4 clicks from full throttle...
 
UPDATE - Assessment: with low intrinsic volume recordings the Note 3 would struggle to get really loud with my Shure SE110 and (as expected) would have no problems at any instance with my UM3x or SE530 (which are epic winners volume wise like. Give em a milliwatt and they will rock out the house

 

[Baroninkjet]

  Scientific measurements also seem to be in its favor: http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_3_preview-review-986p5.php
 
 

GSM changed their testing methodology since they reviewed Note 2, and did not retest old devices. Apples and oranges -- new tests show better than old tests.

 

[Levanter]

Neutron is very Good music Player , i play all flat like you , i Dont like play ini music With equilaiser .
Neutron is slighly breiter than Jet Audio plus
These Two Player are My favorite music Player

 
Rudi,
I'm still waiting for your comparison btw Note 3 and AK100 

 

[elfary]

Android flagships have overcome crappy output impedances and noise floor issues. Unfortunately (HTC One aside) output power still an issue unless you get volume squeezers like the aforementioned UM3x or SE530/5.
 
As of today i still deem the iPhone 4S as the smartphone with the best headphone out (quality and quantity wise).