What's your opinion on SQ of Iphone 3GS

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by knugge /img/forum/go_quote.gif Headphone addict I see in your sig. that you have an imod with nice cables and a respected amplifier and also the macbook connected to a D10. Could you elaborate on how these setups compare to the iPhones internal amp. If one is better than the other wich is better and how?

I haven't done extensive AB comparison of my iPhone 3G and 3GS to my iMod with a nice amp, but with the Vcap dock the iMod is going to be more resolving with more depth into the music (microdynamics?) and space/detail. That is when using my best amps like P-51, or Pico, or Predator, etc. The iMod with Vcaps seems to be as resolving as most USB DAC, with a small lead to my Pico, Apogee mini-DAC or PS Audio DAC.

Then there is the power - the iPhone 3G/GS headphone out seems to have enough power for low impedance phones, but can still sound quite nice with HD600 although not very loud with HD600. The iMod with any of those portable amps can drive an HD600 to louder volumes. I was still very surprised at the sound quality the first time I tried my HD600 on the iPhone 3G (not tried with 3GS) but the RS-1 was more powerful with the 3G headphone out. My 5.5G iPod video the last time I tried my HD600 with it (a year ago) was dull and bland sounding, and not very enjoyable.

With a small iMod LOD (no Vcaps) the iPhone 3G/GS gets much closer in sound quality, but the iMod still wins if I am using my top of the line amps (see my big portable DAC/amp review). But, if I'm using the iMod with a mid-level amp like the iBasso D2 or D3, Vivid V1 or Nuforce Icon (and similar) I would pick the iPhone 3G/GS.

As it is, my iPhone 3GS sounds good enough that I stopped carrying my iMod around with me and mostly use it as an extra source around the house, like when I tote a small transportable desktop amp to the back deck or basement to listen. The iMod works particularly well with my ALO amphora (with built-in Vcaps) and I can watch the sun set over the mountains with audio that is very close to my Apogee > Woo WA6, without being connected to the grid at all.

 

[dippyboy_87]

HeadphoneAddict,

can you please give a comparo between the iphone 3G and the 3GS. i'm very confused if they sound the same. if this is the case then i'll go with the 3G as the 3gs is yet not launched in my country. if possible can you also give a comparo b/w the iRiver+D10 setup and the iphones. actually i'm deciding b/w these two setups for my IE8.
thanks.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dippyboy_87 /img/forum/go_quote.gif HeadphoneAddict, can you please give a comparo between the iphone 3G and the 3GS. i'm very confused if they sound the same. if this is the case then i'll go with the 3G as the 3gs is yet not launched in my country. if possible can you also give a comparo b/w the iRiver+D10 setup and the iphones. actually i'm deciding b/w these two setups for my IE8. thanks.

Sorry, I don't have time for that. The 3G/GS sound to me is close enough that I don't care which I use to listen. If my last post wasn't helpful, that's as good as I can do right now.

 

[knugge]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I haven't done extensive AB comparison of my iPhone 3G and 3GS to my iMod with a nice amp, but with the Vcap dock the iMod is going to be more resolving with more depth into the music (microdynamics?) and space/detail. That is when using my best amps like P-51, or Pico, or Predator, etc. The iMod with Vcaps seems to be as resolving as most USB DAC, with a small lead to my Pico, Apogee mini-DAC or PS Audio DAC. Then there is the power - the iPhone 3G/GS headphone out seems to have enough power for low impedance phones, but can still sound quite nice with HD600 although not very loud with HD600. The iMod with any of those portable amps can drive an HD600 to louder volumes. I was still very surprised at the sound quality the first time I tried my HD600 on the iPhone 3G (not tried with 3GS) but the RS-1 was more powerful with the 3G headphone out. My 5.5G iPod video the last time I tried my HD600 with it (a year ago) was dull and bland sounding, and not very enjoyable. With a small iMod LOD (no Vcaps) the iPhone 3G/GS gets much closer in sound quality, but the iMod still wins if I am using my top of the line amps (see my big portable DAC/amp review). But, if I'm using the iMod with a mid-level amp like the iBasso D2 or D3, Vivid V1 or Nuforce Icon (and similar) I would pick the iPhone 3G/GS. As it is, my iPhone 3GS sounds good enough that I stopped carrying my iMod around with me and mostly use it as an extra source around the house, like when I tote a small transportable desktop amp to the back deck or basement to listen. The iMod works particularly well with my ALO amphora (with built-in Vcaps) and I can watch the sun set over the mountains with audio that is very close to my Apogee > Woo WA6, without being connected to the grid at all.

Thank you for that extensive response. I now feel more confident with my findings about the 3gs sq. Just need to find suitable, isolating phones for it.

The last few lines in your response really made me long for some time without the children a nice wine, good music and time to relax

 

[davidlg16]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I haven't done extensive AB comparison of my iPhone 3G and 3GS to my iMod with a nice amp, but with the Vcap dock the iMod is going to be more resolving with more depth into the music (microdynamics?) and space/detail. That is when using my best amps like P-51, or Pico, or Predator, etc. The iMod with Vcaps seems to be as resolving as most USB DAC, with a small lead to my Pico, Apogee mini-DAC or PS Audio DAC. Then there is the power - the iPhone 3G/GS headphone out seems to have enough power for low impedance phones, but can still sound quite nice with HD600 although not very loud with HD600. The iMod with any of those portable amps can drive an HD600 to louder volumes. I was still very surprised at the sound quality the first time I tried my HD600 on the iPhone 3G (not tried with 3GS) but the RS-1 was more powerful with the 3G headphone out. My 5.5G iPod video the last time I tried my HD600 with it (a year ago) was dull and bland sounding, and not very enjoyable. With a small iMod LOD (no Vcaps) the iPhone 3G/GS gets much closer in sound quality, but the iMod still wins if I am using my top of the line amps (see my big portable DAC/amp review). But, if I'm using the iMod with a mid-level amp like the iBasso D2 or D3, Vivid V1 or Nuforce Icon (and similar) I would pick the iPhone 3G/GS. As it is, my iPhone 3GS sounds good enough that I stopped carrying my iMod around with me and mostly use it as an extra source around the house, like when I tote a small transportable desktop amp to the back deck or basement to listen. The iMod works particularly well with my ALO amphora (with built-in Vcaps) and I can watch the sun set over the mountains with audio that is very close to my Apogee > Woo WA6, without being connected to the grid at all.

Thanks for the comparison

do you think adding p-51 thru LOD to the 3GS would improve SQ by much?
or would that cause GSM buzz?

current setup: 3GS + Westone 3

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidlg16 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the comparison do you think adding p-51 thru LOD to the 3GS would improve SQ by much? or would that cause GSM buzz? current setup: 3GS + Westone 3

I honestly have not felt the need to carry an amp with my iPhone because I treasure the portability without an amp (and can't use an amp with my Mophie Juice Pack Air).

But yes, I do think the LOD > P-51 will be an improvement, however I don't know about GSM buzz with P-51 or by how much it will be improved. I tend to use my P-51 with my iMod>LOD when I can carry around a fanny pack rig or fit it in my coat during the winter.

 

[the chemist]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I honestly have not felt the need to carry an amp with my iPhone because I treasure the portability without an amp (and can't use an amp with my Mophie Juice Pack Air). But yes, I do think the LOD > P-51 will be an improvement, however I don't know about GSM buzz with P-51 or by how much it will be improved. I tend to use my P-51 with my iMod>LOD when I can carry around a fanny pack rig or fit it in my coat during the winter.

This is great to hear! I really appreciate your review, very helpful!

 

[davidlg16]

Quote:

Originally Posted by HeadphoneAddict /img/forum/go_quote.gif I honestly have not felt the need to carry an amp with my iPhone because I treasure the portability without an amp (and can't use an amp with my Mophie Juice Pack Air). But yes, I do think the LOD > P-51 will be an improvement, however I don't know about GSM buzz with P-51 or by how much it will be improved. I tend to use my P-51 with my iMod>LOD when I can carry around a fanny pack rig or fit it in my coat during the winter.

Thank you very much for the fast response

 

[superpiper]

After listening to the unamped 3GS (vs my 5.5g iPod with mini^3)
I've begun a lot more detail in the music, For example, I'm now finding that lyrics I couldn't understand previously, I can now hear and understand ( Jeff Buckley-Grace).
Small musical cues are really coming forward, in particular piano and guitar riffs. In fact, spacial separation of the instruments is much much better.
I'm also now picking up on the recording room acoustics! (Dire straits- communique)

in general, the whole musical picture seems a lot more focused, but without being over- controlled.
I hooked it up to my Old Technics AA stereo today, and it's a much "nicer" presentation than the CD player of the other pods.

I'm very intrested how the seniors here rate this as a source, I'd bet it's up there with the best.

 

[eron]

My personal take on the SQ of the following players I own:

iPod Touch 2G < 4G iPod < iPhone 3GS

Has anyone figured out how to diymod the 3GS yet?

 

[feverfive]

Al I can say after owning various Apple iPods is that the iPhone 3G S, as mentioned by others, is vastly superior to the 1st gen iPhone & 1st gen. touch. I also have a Sept. 2009 160GB iPod Classic, and feel that & the 3G S are very comparable. I do feel, however, like the iPhone 3G S has a litle bit more driving power than the Classic...perhaps a tiny bit more dynamics, but I have to strain to hear any difference. Of course, YMMV... I listen via the hp out on both w/ Audio Technica ATH-ESW9a portables & Klipsch Image S4 IEMs. I still kick around the idea of buying a portable amp, but haven't pulled the trigger b/c I'm doubting ~$500 investment on amp + LOD is gonna net me a "worthwhile" sound improvement.

 

[outlawdon]

I recently got an Iphone 3GS and a Grado SR80i.

To me, there's plenty of power to run the Grado's and I'm usually at 60-70% of max volume. Don't think I need an amp at all. I'm stoked with the combo!

Pandora Mobile+SR80i sound amazing on the Iphone. Very balanced in the highs/mids and super tight, accurate bass. I'm not an experienced audiophile in terms of having tested out lots of equipment, but I know what sounds good and what doesn't, with being a guitar player and with a wide diverse taste in music from dance to alternative to adult contemporary to rock to metal.

Bottom line....the SQ is excellent in my opinion! I find myself staying up later at night than I should just to listen to more music.

 

[welchie]

Ok I just got the 16 gig 3gs and wow what a gadget. I'm waiting for a toilet paper app to come out for it, LOL. Anyway I did a side by side comparison with my 80 gig 5.5 gen iMod connected to an RSA P-51 amp with an ALO Super iMod LOD cable using my Westone UM3x iems. I played the "wedding" song, Johann Pachelbel Canon in D as a Classical test. It was very difficult to tell between the two music players. The 5.5 was slightly better though. I then played Pete Townshend's ALittle is Enough as a Rock selection. Both sounded well, but the 5.5 rig puleed significantly out front with detail, pop, and soundstage. Bottom line here is the 3gs passes the sq test amazingly well. It truelly wins in keeping good sq very portable and integrated with our current don't leave home without it companion.

 Chris 

 

[qusp]

Quote:

My personal take on the SQ of the following players I own:

iPod Touch 2G < 4G iPod < iPhone 3GS

Has anyone figured out how to diymod the 3GS yet?

no need to, it really doesnt have much in the way of significant and bad quality SMD components in the signal path. curious how you have the touch 2g and iphone 3gs separated by the ipod 4g,IMO  not only is the 4g ipod pretty average unless amped via line out and modded, but the 3gs and touch 2g use the same dac, pretty much identical devices actually aprt from the GSM component/aerial

 

[ASilva]

I really like the sound of mine. I actually prefer it to the sound coming from the iPod 5G, it seems more natural