[Duncan]

I honestly do not know where this volume issue is with the S7 (mine is Exynos version, and - I'm from Europe - seemingly the 'disaster' scenario)...

Either a) lots of people have inefficient IEMs, or b) there are lots of very nearly deaf people wandering around - I can get mild tinnitus easily with the S7 at max volume...

That is a genuine point, not a sarcastic snipe at anyone.

 

[SeeSax]

You are right. Many people say that htc 10 is superior and in fact some are comparing with dedicated media players like ak and ibasdo. But in terms of phone I prefer s7 due to overall weight, ergonomics and home button to answer call ( I really like this Samsung feature). So I am thinking if s7 is atleast close to htc 10 and if the difference in sound quality is not that high then I go for s7

 
I totally agree. As a phone, I still prefer the S7. This is a good point and I will try to compare them in a better manner for you. 
 

@SeeSax Thank you, very informative answers. Seems to me like choosing the HTC 10 is no brainer when you're in the market for a smartphone with great sound quality. Also, do you happen to have any experiences with the highly praised LG V10?
Cheers,

 
I did own the V10, but I hate large phones so while it had great sound quality, I did not like carrying it. I had no complaints about the sound quality, but since I no longer own it then I can't really do a comparison with the HTC 10. Sorry
 
-Collin-

 

[stuck limo]

I will say this phone pairs well with seen v-moda m-100, XS, ATH-m40x/50x and beats solo 2.

 

[zolom]

Connected the Dragonfly Black (DFB) to my european s7e. UAPP, Poweramp and Neutron sound great.
Mostly I listen to Spotify (highest quality) and was not thrilled by the s7e audio performance via my SE846 IEMs, even started to consider the HTC10. But the Dragonfly had changed all that. Now sound qaulity is acceptable and aove. The volume though has to be set high to overcome DFB android compatibility issues.
Bottom line: the s7e audio with the DFB is good enough to keep this superb phone. Power draw of the DFB is low and it snugly fit in my pocket.

 

[ThomasHK]

Connected the Dragonfly Black (DFB) to my european s7e. UAPP, Poweramp and Neutron sound great.
Mostly I listen to Spotify (highest quality) and was not thrilled by the s7e audio performance via my SE846 IEMs, even started to consider the HTC10. But the Dragonfly had changed all that. Now sound qaulity is acceptable and aove. The volume though has to be set high to overcome DFB android compatibility issues.
Bottom line: the s7e audio with the DFB is good enough to keep this superb phone. Power draw of the DFB is low and it snugly fit in my pocket.

Compared to straight out of the phone, do you find yourself having to put the level even higher with the DFB or is the DFB louder than the headphone jack? 

 

[zolom]

 Currently the DFB does not fully comply with volume control over android  usb audio, therefore you will have to set your phone volume higher. That is with sensive IEMs. I geuss that high impedence earphones will be hard to drive.
UAPP as well as Poweramp (alpha) do not have this issue.
 
The Dragonfly is flashable  and I hope that a future update will resolve this compatibility issue.
Have a look at the follwing link: http://www.head-fi.org/t/805832/new-dragonfly-black-and-red-discussion
 
 
Did not try V4A, because I cannot root my phone.

 

[Duncan]

I don't get this, as for me I only get USB playback via UAPP with the DFR, not any other player, no bad thing - but if that is the only way anyone else is getting playback, mine is plenty loud enough, far louder than through the Jack on the phone.

 

[ThomasHK]

   Currently the DFB does not fully comply with volume control over android  usb audio, therefore you will have to set your phone volume higher. That is with sensive IEMs. I geuss that high impedence earphones will be hard to drive.
UAPP as well as Poweramp (alpha) do not have this issue.
 
The Dragonfly is flashable  and I hope that a future update will resolve this compatibility issue.
Have a look at the follwing link: http://www.head-fi.org/t/805832/new-dragonfly-black-and-red-discussion
 
 
Did not try V4A, because I cannot root my phone.

Thanks man, appeciated.
 
Only thing I want to know for sure is that the DFB on regular apps (not UAPP or Poweramp) is at least as loud as the phone itself. Otherwise it kind of sucks. What's you experience there?

 

[zolom]

On my european s7e, the DFB drives my sensitive earphones (shure se846) very good while using UAPP.
Poweramp alpha sounds well.
For Spotify , I have to set the volume high (level 12,13 out of 15).
While playing Spotify I use "Bass Equaluzer" (app) to add some color to the sound. I would prefer V4A, but cannot root my phone at the moment.
 
All other apps, other players, youtube, are playable (same as for spotify). Alarms, notifications sounds well.
 
I think that without UAPP, the DFB will not be well with harder to drive earphones.
 
Edit:
 
Be aware that sound experince is Subjective and dependant on the quality level of earphones used.
 
Best equalizer  I had found so far for my s7 and Spotify which does not degrade sound quality and volume levels as other do
http://www.coocent.net/bass-eq.html

 

[skywalker99]

I honestly do not know where this volume issue is with the S7 (mine is Exynos version, and - I'm from Europe - seemingly the 'disaster' scenario)...

Either a) lots of people have inefficient IEMs, or b) there are lots of very nearly deaf people wandering around - I can get mild tinnitus easily with the S7 at max volume...

That is a genuine point, not a sarcastic snipe at anyone.

s7 needs its volume cranked up all the way up to 90%-100% to get the right volume. That's a fact! This is way higher than other phones taht I used in the past. That's why people are complaining I imagine. I've used soundmagic e10/e50, msr7, fidelio x2. So not inefficient headphones at all. S7 european version.

 

[west0ne]

 
s7 needs its volume cranked up all the way up to 90%-100% to get the right volume. That's a fact! This is way higher than other phones taht I used in the past. That's why people are complaining I imagine. I've used soundmagic e10/e50, msr7, fidelio x2. So not inefficient headphones at all. S7 european version.

I mainly use E10s with my EU S7 when I'm on the move and once the volume goes part way into the warning zone (probably around 80% of max) on the slider I find them too loud for prolonged listening with almost everything other than classical music. For classical I just don't find the S7 quality or volume to be sufficient so use an external DAC/Amp. For some of the more modern (loud) recordings I find that leaving the volume slider at the top of the green section is more than enough.
 
With the earbuds that came with the S7 I have to have the volume higher because I can't get a good seal, unlike the E10s.

 

[skywalker99]

  I mainly use E10s with my EU S7 when I'm on the move and once the volume goes part way into the warning zone (probably around 80% of max) on the slider I find them too loud for prolonged listening with almost everything other than classical music. For classical I just don't find the S7 quality or volume to be sufficient so use an external DAC/Amp. For some of the more modern (loud) recordings I find that leaving the volume slider at the top of the green section is more than enough.
 
With the earbuds that came with the S7 I have to have the volume higher because I can't get a good seal, unlike the E10s.

Yeah, it's a bit better with earphones e.g. e10/e50. I go with around 70%-80% when there is little ambient sound or 90% when it's loud around. Still high.

 

[psikey]

With my SE846's I'm just over 55% most of the time and never higher than 75% or its too loud. That's with a Exynos standard S7.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[pbirkett]

Just to add my 2p to the debate... I've not read this thread, however, my old Z3 headphone socket died, so I went back to the M8, but now finally upgraded to the S7E Exynos after much research, and considering also the HTC 10 (eventually ruled out because of concerns with battery life, wasn't sold on the looks, and it just didn't seem to really beat the S7 in any area other than audio). 
 
All I can say is the S7E has surpassed my expectations when it comes to sound quality. OK the speaker ain't great but not as bad as I thought it would be. Headphones, though, got to say, really happy so far. At least as good as my M8 was. I have the upsampling turned on in the options, but I've only use Play Music so far, not even power amp. The quality I am hearing is excellent for what it is. Maybe not quite as loud, but its plenty loud enough, never seem to go for max volume on anything. Personally, I am very happy with it. The rest of the phone is just awesome. Screen, battery, camera, just fantastic. Even touchwiz is bearable especially if you go for Vanilla themes and dump the more pointless samsung apps.

 

[krelianx]

  Just to add my 2p to the debate... I've not read this thread, however, my old Z3 headphone socket died, so I went back to the M8, but now finally upgraded to the S7E Exynos after much research, and considering also the HTC 10 (eventually ruled out because of concerns with battery life, wasn't sold on the looks, and it just didn't seem to really beat the S7 in any area other than audio). 
 
All I can say is the S7E has surpassed my expectations when it comes to sound quality. OK the speaker ain't great but not as bad as I thought it would be. Headphones, though, got to say, really happy so far. At least as good as my M8 was. I have the upsampling turned on in the options, but I've only use Play Music so far, not even power amp. The quality I am hearing is excellent for what it is. Maybe not quite as loud, but its plenty loud enough, never seem to go for max volume on anything. Personally, I am very happy with it. The rest of the phone is just awesome. Screen, battery, camera, just fantastic. Even touchwiz is bearable especially if you go for Vanilla themes and dump the more pointless samsung apps.

I have both the m8 and the Snapdragon S7 and can't agree with this. The soundstage is narrower, the volume lower, the bass is bloated, the whole thing feels muddles and non-transparent.