Rezound gives more details in Beat Audio

[wuhsi]

I was listening to Rezound over and over in order to solve a static noise issue earlier (please see other thread about that issue). Now I want to post something about its general audio quality.

I saw people saying Beat Audio/iBeat (alright, or iCrap) is for rap only, or Beat Audio only makes audio louder, or only amplifies bass sounds.

Not true imo.

Based on my testing, with beat mode on and off, with beat earphone or my other earphone (ultimate ears 700) (I used to have an er-4p, but I gave it to my record engineer friend when he broke his with a deadline to catch), my opinion is, Beat Audio does its job to minimize distortion across the spectrum.

The difference between Beat mode enabled or disabled is significant. And the difference between iBeat earphones and my ultimate ears 700 is not. (iBeat has its advantage in that, the audio output of Rezound is tuned based on this setting Beat Audio + iBeat)

In one line, Beat Audio mode in Rezound gives more detail of music, period.

Is it good enough to live up to the hype? I don't know. Maybe not yet, as least not until HTC releases Beat API so all apps can take advantage of Beat Audio. But, is it better than other non beat phone for now? Of course it is. (my previous phone is Nexus One).

 

[jayochs]

thanks for the writeup; i fully agree. the sound just seems a bit more defined, and it seems to create a bit more of a stereo image than with beats off. i like it, and all i listen to is rock!

 

[SamXp]

I don't know. I was able to use PowerAmp's eq and "StereoX" to essentially replicate the "beats audio" profile.

 

[jayochs]

there's most likely more going on than you can actually hear, but whats going on helps create a better overall sound than a normal equalizer does

 

[vzwuser76]

I don't know. I was able to use PowerAmp's eq and "StereoX" to essentially replicate the "beats audio" profile.

I can get mine close on my PowerAmp as well, but it actually sounds better with the iBeats and Beats processing enabled. I wasn't expecting much out of them but I am impressed. While it does seem to do well with Rap/Hip-hop, I've tried out everything on my phone. Guitars and drums especially seem to benefit. Vocals are pretty good as well. An acoustic guitar really sounds like I'm in the room while they're playing.

So while you can get close with PowerAmp, it takes a lot of tweaking, and even then doesn't appear quite as good. Maybe it's because I usually enhance the bass a bit when listening, I don't know. But it works well for me. I'm acutally looking forward to throwing more music on my Rezound to see how it sounds, and I haven't added anything to the music library on my phone for quite awhile (what's on my Rezound now is what was on my Inc2 previously).

Also, I read yeasterday on here (think it was on the thread about the selling price of the iBeats) that someone posted that the battery drops significantly using Beats processing. I think it has more to do with turning the screen on and off to switch songs. I used the inline remote to switch between songs (only turning on the screen to switch playlists) and started listening to music with the battery at about 20%. After an hour and a half of listening (only turning on the screen at most 5 times) I ended up at 15%. To me a 5% loss in 1.5 hours is pretty good with the phone constantly in use. The screen however (just like on the Tbolt) uses quite a bit of juice when it's in use, so using the inline remote definitely helps.

 

[jayochs]

honestly, i notice hardly any battery drain, and i keep beats on all the time. i didn't think it drained battery that much

 

[SamXp]

It's possible that there is additional Digital Signal Processing going on with Beats. Popular tricks with spatial imaging are used, similar to "StereoX" in the latest PowerAmp. They could also do some digital filtering similar to Alpine's patented "BBE" Bass Enhancement where they went beyond boosting frequencies and actually filtered out some of the lower octaves and then summed them on top of the original signal, often with a delay to increase sustain.
Or they could take the difference between the channels and sum them (R-L)+R or (L-R)+L.

It does sound good, but it won't be long before we discover precisely what it is and other developers replicate the effect.

 

[TxGoat]

They sound better on the phone, but when you plug the Beats into a regular MP3 player, compared to my S4s, the bass was louder, but didn't seem as full. I think I'll keep em just for their novelty. One question I have is will other monster earphones work and can you fabricate a pair of earphones with a monster plug to engage the beats audio or is the programming somehow inside the headphones themselves?

 

[Grung]

Has anyone seen a Beats adapter plug? I assume the plug is what activates Beats. Would like to use Beats with my regular audio system, especially in the car. I see a couple from China on eBay but nothing from Monster or other mainline audio stores.

 

[jayochs]

guys, you don't need beats headphones to enable beats audio.

 

[TxGoat]

guys, you don't need beats headphones to enable beats audio.

I think Dr. Dre has to deem your headphones kosher for it to work with "regular" earphones though....

 

[vzwuser76]

guys, you don't need beats headphones to enable beats audio.

The review on the Sensation XE Engadget did said that when you plug other headphones in, the Beats logo doesn't come up. WHen they reached out to Beats they were told the software assigns them a generic profile. So you don't really get the most out of it.

As far as the plug, it's probably more complicated than that. The plug is a 3.5mm with 4 contacts, just like you see on other headphones with inline controls/mic. More than likely, the software is looking for a certain resistance or impedance value. Where I used to work, some of the intercom systems had a setup where when you pressed the call button, it gave a dead short and the system recognized that as a normal call. When you pressed the emergency button, there was a resistor across the switch, so the system would see 150ohms and recognize that as an emergency call. I'm guessing the same thing is happening here.

 

[jikhead]

Can someone go try the Player Pro app and report back? Also download their additional DSP app that can run in conjuction with the player.

 

[sundog1973]

I'm getting the beats icon with all of the headphones/speakers I plug in. It looks like as long as you use the built in music player, the beats "app" kicks in.

 

[TxGoat]

I'm getting the beats icon with all of the headphones/speakers I plug in. It looks like as long as you use the built in music player, the beats "app" kicks in.

lol, I guess that's what we all get for not confirming initial reports from some poster that stated the Beats cues up the "special" beats equalizer. I just plugged in my S4s and I got the beats logo as well. Good find! I say we hunt down the guy that spread false info and E-beat him up!!!



As vzw posted, it's probably looking for a certain specification from the headphones. I'll try different "cheap" headphones to see if I get the same results.

 

[jikhead]

I played with the store display again today and plugged my old $10 Sony earbuds into the phone, Beats turned on with these with no problem and I could hear the difference once it activated.

 

[vzwuser76]

lol, I guess that's what we all get for not confirming initial reports from some poster that stated the Beats cues up the "special" beats equalizer. I just plugged in my S4s and I got the beats logo as well. Good find! I say we hunt down the guy that spread false info and E-beat him up!!!



As vzw posted, it's probably looking for a certain specification from the headphones. I'll try different "cheap" headphones to see if I get the same results.

Here ya go:

HTC Sensation XE with Beats Audio, we go ears-on (video) -- Engadget

Edit: After reading it again, this says that the Beats processing should come up, but for now it's a generic profile unless it's the iBeats or Beats Solos (over the ears). But it did sound like they are working on tailored profiles for more earbuds, so we'll see. So I guess I was spreading the false info. In my defense it was 2 months ago, and I have trouble remembering what I did the day before sometimes.

I think where I got the no Beats icon coming up was on the video review that WorldofJohnboy did. But that may have been when he had it plugged into his desktop.

On a side note, I might try the old earbuds that came with my 3 year old ipod and see if it makes a difference.

 

[jamisles02]

Today was the first day I tried playing the music in my car. I got stock speakers and I was amazed how much of a difference the Beats made, my car was shaking so much I thought a T-Rex was near by. I can only imagine what it would be like with a high-end sound system with a sub-woofer, as when I plugged my phone into my home theater system, it sounded awesome. I too have found that any AUX input will work with Beats as long as I use the HTC music app. I will be interested to see when HTC allows developers for music apps like Google Music, Pandora and iHeartRadio in on utilizing the Beats technology. I was thinking the Beats thing was just hype, but I'm rather impressed, although I'm sure tweaking with an equalizer could produce comparable results.

One thing I have found is that I have a set of ear buds that hang outside the ears and have a more rich sound when Beats is disabled, but they also have no bass in them anyway. Using any set of in-ear buds does produce a great sound with Beats enabled, with the supplied buds working the best. I haven't tried with an ear covering set, as I don't have a set.

 

[Gravytrain]

I wonder if VZW will require me to return headphones with the phone if I swap out for nexus...?

 

[TxGoat]

I wonder if VZW will require me to return headphones with the phone if I swap out for nexus...?

Yes, or they'll charge you for them most likely. Considering they want over $100 for the regular versions, I don't expect Verizon to just give them away. You can always buy better quality for a cheaper price. Klipsch Image S4i In ear headphones headset with 3 button remote In line microphone One button answering iPod compatibility at Vanns.com


I bought my S4s there for under $50. Great set of earphones for the price.

 

[jikhead]

Klipsch actually has an Android specific model now. I believe It's S4a.

 

[TxGoat]

Klipsch actually has an Android specific model now. I believe It's S4a.

Good info. Klipsch S4A in ear headphones headset with in line remote (S 4 A) at Vanns.com

More than a pair of headphones. More than a headphone/headset. The Image S4A is the first set of headphones from Klipsch made specifically for Android smart phones. Combining headphones, a built-in microphone, and an integrated single-button control, the Image S4A lets you listen to all your favorite music with Klipsch quality audio, answer incoming calls, and control your smart phone to navigate play lists or search your phone with voice control.

 

[thornev]

They sound better on the phone, but when you plug the Beats into a regular MP3 player, compared to my S4s, the bass was louder, but didn't seem as full. I think I'll keep em just for their novelty. One question I have is will other monster earphones work and can you fabricate a pair of earphones with a monster plug to engage the beats audio or is the programming somehow inside the headphones themselves?

I put top of the line Shure S510 earphones in and was completely unimpressed with the sound quality. iPod is much better.

 

[thornev]

I'm getting the beats icon with all of the headphones/speakers I plug in. It looks like as long as you use the built in music player, the beats "app" kicks in.

Ah OK. I have to rescind my previous post. I used a different music player and didn't get the beats prompt.

UPDATE: I ran the stock player and didn't get the prompt for Beats. Hmmm. Maybe there's a setting in Settings? I'll have to poke around.

 

[thornev]

I found this over on the HTC forums:

"So here's what is happening with the beats audio. Even though the HTC sensation was the first phone to sample this technology, HTC has actually released the developing API (Source Code) to integrate with new 3rd party apps. In other words, they are still working on it for us. We should see more support in the very near future."