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Level 1

65 points

iPod Photo: Poor Sound Quality - Updates

As most of us who have bought the iPod Photo already know, the sound quality IS FLAWED. The distorsion (or background crackling) of high frequency/high output sound (such as piano, high output electric guitar & some deep bass output - however the vocals seem to be fine) is there and something needs to be done about it. Some good examples of where this kind of problem occurs, from what I have found are: Radiohead (most of the OK Computer album), The Hives (the iPod Photo cannot seem to cope with their loud distorted guitar style & very high output), and Incubus (a lot of Morning View). Some people who are still using the tinny, lacklustre stock earbuds, or just don't listen to their music carefully enough, or listen niavely, may still not recognise this.

I refuse to let this issue drop, as I have spent good money on what should be, a technically flawless sound player. I do like this player though (mine is 60GB). The features are good, the photo element is excellent, the 60GB storage is unrivalled, but the main function of the player, to play music, is not good for this one issue. It is so disappointing considering Apple have obviously overlooked this issue (or simply let it slip by thinking nobody would notice), for what is otherwise an excellent piece of equipment.

I record all my music on iTunes, using the MP3 encoder. Some people think the MP3 encoder in iTunes is poor, but it is as good as most. It is all ripped at 224kbps VBR. I use Shure E2c earphones, which are also excellent, and by far the best value for money if you're looking for a warm tone & deep bass in your sound. The step up in price to the Shure E3c might be worth it if you prefer a more detailed, but possibly colder sound.

All that considered, there is absolutely no reason why the sound should be poor on my iPod Photo (when it is fine on the iPod Mini, and using Audio software on my PC), apart from there being a hardware/software glitch. There simply must be. Either that, or something in the sound has been compromised to accomodate the photo elements or colour screen.

I have sent an e-mail to Apple regarding all this, and will hopefully hear from them soon about what is going to be done to resolve this. I will keep this post updated as and when I hear news from them. I also have a case number in motion with their customer services department, and they cannot ignore this anymore.

Something must be done! Redeem yourselves, Apple!

Posted on Apr 10, 2005 10:29 PM

348 replies

MacGee

Level 6

8,564 points

May 10, 2005 9:51 AM in response to MacGee

I started a new thread for this post, because I thought it wasn't strictly relevant, but it may interest some.

MacGee.

May 10, 2005 12:19 PM in response to MacGee

I think it's important to point out that the distortion in question has NOTHING TO DO WITH VOLUME. It also has nothing to do with the level of the bass or any other typical type of crackling or overpowering of headphones, etc. that people sometimes experience by turning up audio devices too loud. The distortion on the iPP has to do (or so it seems) with the headphone circuitry matched with low impedence devices.

A couple of posters back talked about how the worst distortion he got was plugging a cassette adapter through the line out port. His hypothesis was that the maximum distortion was caused by the volume of the line out being set too high.

That sounds like a totally different issue than the one discussed with this thread.

May 10, 2005 3:08 PM in response to Johnny Wood

I can confirm this distortion issue. It is definitely a hardware problem in the Ipod Photo 30 GB. I bought an Ipod last week along with the etymotic ER6i, witch are supposed to be designed for the Ipod. The distortion when listening to piano music is unbearable, the problem is less with the included earbuds, but those sound terrible anyway. When using a headphone amplifier and my grado 225's or the etymotic er6i the distortion is not audible (at least not for me). This also means it is not an encoding issue (I used AAC with 320kps). There really seems to be a crappy amplifier in this model that cannot handle low impedance headphones (the etymotic ER6i have around 16 Ohm). This might not be an issue for you, if you are happy with the sound of the included ear buds, but if you spend a couple of hundred bucks you should expect more.
I returned mine today at they charged me a $35 restocking fee! However I rather have 90% of my money back than listen to this piece of...
I strongly discourage everyone from buying this model! I'm not sure if the 60GB has the same issue but I assume they have identical parts except for the hard drive.

May 11, 2005 1:03 AM in response to Johnny Wood

I was doing some searching around and found something interesting. The 3.5mm jack on the iPod itself is able to transmit both audio AND video signals, assuming I'm reading the input/output specifications correctly. If this is true, then I think it would be reasonable to assume that the interference might be caused by the iPod trying to check if its hook to a video output or some sort of backfeed through the video contact.

I am waiting for my new iPod to be delivered to try and test out my theory. Maybe it can be corrected by shutting off the iPod Photo's video/photo output.

Has anyone else thought of this?

Thanks.

May 11, 2005 8:24 AM in response to Ralph Mueller

Instead of returning the iPod, you could have returned your Etymotic ER6i and got Shure e3c, e4c or e5c which have impedance of 26, 29 and 110 Ohms respectively.

May 11, 2005 3:11 PM in response to Johnny Wood

Johnny Wood -

What is the status of your issue? I recently bought the 30gb photo. ripped using EAC/LAME and 192 AAC with sony EX81. I am experiencing the same exact problem. I cannot return the item since its past 10 days. I am considering sending it to apple but that seems futile as they are denying the problem.

May 11, 2005 9:10 PM in response to Johnny Wood

This is proof of a flaw. I recieved a newly bought iPod Photo 30g as a gift not two weeks ago. After the first day the buttons failed on it, and I sent it into apple to be replaced. Now, the audio quality on this iPod was normal, but when my replacement came the audio quality was just plain bad. You don't need a technical or well-trained ear to hear this. It just sounds terrible. Countless headphones, audio file tests on multiple computers and portable players, and basic knowledge of audio equipment all suggest there is simply a problem with this iPod Photo's hardware. It seems clear that plenty of other people are having the exact same problem.

Why, apple, would you replace my broken iPod with a broken iPod? Are you trying to get back at the world for being good guys for so long?

May 12, 2005 10:35 AM in response to Kris Erhardt

Kris Erhardt -

I was thinking exactly the same thing; the problem is almost certainly caused by the video/photo output of the iPp because this distortion issue seems to only be present in iPod photos and not any other iPod model. Also, as has already discovered, the sound quality distortion is an issue with the headphone jack only (line-out on dock sounds fine.)

Hopefully, if the issue is a result of the inclusion of the video/photo output then a FW release will be released that will include an option to turn it off. I never use my iPp to output onto a TV anyway...

DenZ

Level 2

250 points

May 12, 2005 1:53 PM in response to Johnny Wood

I also thought the defect might have sprung up because of the 3.5mm jack transmits both video and audio..

However, I've heard that the distortion can also be clearly heard through the line out..

May 12, 2005 5:17 PM in response to Johnny Wood

Out of all the ipod photos sold,hundred thousand or so.We all know about this apple site and the forums, why is there only 100 customers complaining about sound? sure your product may have bad sound, maybe the majority of ipod photo owners think their ipods sound just fine.I guess i'm wondering where is all the out cry against apple.Mine sounds fine for what it is worth.

Sandylp

Level 3

665 points

May 12, 2005 6:47 PM in response to Kenneth Bott

I just got my 60GB iPod yesterday, and after reading this forum, have been listening intently; but all sounds good to me, too.

May 12, 2005 11:25 PM in response to Sandylp

I too am having this problem.
I got my ipod photo almost exactly 2 months ago. I had problems with the album art either not downloading to my ipod or dissapearing so the technician at the apple store said to download the newest ipod software. I did and now the sound quality is terrible. Before it had issues with some songs at very high volumes but now it's almost ALL songs at med to high volume. I'm taking my photo back tomorrow.
I don't know what the apple policy is but I got a regular ipod as a gift and upgraded to the photo. If they will refund the total value of this thing, it's going back, I don't want a replacement. If they don't refund my money, Maybe I should get a regular ipod. I dunno but I am extremely upset.

May 13, 2005 7:09 AM in response to Kenneth Bott

Mine sounds great also. I probably shouldn't keep reading this thread because I am becomming paranoid and I keep trying to find something wrong. I have the 40GB iPP.

Chris

May 16, 2005 2:48 AM in response to Michael Williams1

Two remarks :

1/ Is it possible that the 1.1 FW responsible ? What FW is installed in the flaw iPods ?

2/ I heard someone telling that the dock-line connector may also be concerned with the problem; is it really the case ?

3/ My personal 60 GB iPod photo (1.0 FW) sounds good ; This thread alert me and I compare 20 GB G2 with it on some piano tracks :

I simply noticed a negligible difference in striking of the notes (but did I dreamt or simply unconsciously wanted to even convince me, I don't know): on the 20 the suddenness of struck is larger than on the 60; I especially noticed it by the emotional difference when listening the track. But no distortion at all, but I listen with a 60 ohms impedance Koss headphones KSC 55.

May 16, 2005 11:31 AM in response to Sergio from Paris

Hi all.

I haven't read all the posts in what is becoming a very long topic, but would like to say that I have very good hearing. I notice sound quality issues on some of my tracks, but I have found that this is to do with the quality of the AAC recording. On older cds featuring live concerts of which I have a fair number, the problem is on the cd. Now with a modern (2005) cd (recorded in a studio) ripped in 128 AAC on my 60Gb it sounds great. You can hear the hard disk spinning for a couple of seconds if the intro is quiet but there is no static. With non apple headphones, it sounds even better. Thus, some of you may have defective iPods in which case you should return them as the problems you are reporting are unacceptable. Alternatively, the problem is the cd recording. I don't think that there is a problem with the sound quality per se.

iPod Photo: Poor Sound Quality - Updates