yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Galaxy Note II General] DocRambone:
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_note_ii-review-824p8.php

"Audio output is perfectly clean, but on the quiet side

The Samsung Galaxy Note II obviously shares many of its music playback-related internals with the Galaxy S III as it managed to aced our audio quality test in a similar manner to its more compact sibling.

The only average volume levels aside, the Galaxy Note II results came out perfect in the first part of our test. When connected to an active external amplifier, the phablet produces excellently clean output with no weak points whatsoever.

Even more impressively, stereo crosstalk is the only thing to get damaged when we plugged in a pair of headphones. On that occasion the Note II produced one of the cleanest outputs we have seen from a mobile device and that includes the recently tested Apple iPhone 5."
[Galaxy Note II General] 30Seconds:
The volume levels are worrying. I figure a large device like this with all it's juice should be able to drive most off the shelf earphones well.

I have the S3 and it is ok, but still the 4S beats it for music playback. And still no Voodoo for the S3.

In any event I've ordered the Note and I suppose if it is not what I hope for it will be easy to sell quickly.
[Galaxy Note II General] msx999:
got mine today

an improvement in sound quality compared with the Note 1 but not very impressed with maximum loudness with earphones (Monster Turbine Coppers)

The Loudspeaker is a massive improvement and is nearly as loud as my macbook pro 15!!
[Galaxy Note II General] hung2900:
That's why we need VooDoo... Hope Supercurio will do that...
[Galaxy Note II General] ama3654:
@gsmarena REVIEW OF THE GALAXY NOTE II

Audio output is perfectly clean, but on the quiet side

The Samsung Galaxy Note II obviously shares many of its music playback-related internals with the Galaxy S III as it managed to aced our audio quality test in a similar manner to its more compact sibling.

The only average volume levels aside, the Galaxy Note II results came out perfect in the first part of our test. When connected to an active external amplifier, the phablet produces excellently clean output with no weak points whatsoever.

Even more impressively, stereo crosstalk is the only thing to get damaged when we plugged in a pair of headphones. On that occasion the Note II produced one of the cleanest outputs we have seen from a mobile device and that includes the recently tested Apple iPhone 5. The higher volume levels of iOS flagship would probably still make it a slightly better option for audiophiles, though.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
Tried one in store yesterday. The audio thru my Westone UM3x was quite decent but i could not assess the output power properly since i don't know the intrinsic loudness of the preloaded tune.

The usual Android background hiss was there and switching back and forth with an S3 running ICS it had the same level. Thus that rumours about Jelly Bean improving the audio engine have not turned out to be fulfilled for the moment.

Overall i'd rate is a 3.5-4 star headphone out (Out of 5) depending on the output power. Still not on par with the iPhone 4/4S (which is the benchmark for handset headphone outs) but it's an step in the right direction. Linearity was pretty damn good ;)
[Galaxy Note II General] @home:
It's early days with my note 2 but I have power-amp installed & so far I'm finding the S3 sounds better, maybe the Note 2 DAC needs running a bit.

Hopefully then It'll be just as good

The FM radio still has the horrid back ground hiss & buzz that is present on the S3. This is a little disappointing.
[Galaxy Note II General] hagba:
Got mine yesterday, sound quality is good but low which is absolutely not to my liking.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
It would help to assess the output power if users quote the headphones they are using. In order to discern which sensivity & impedance are no gos with that handset.
[Galaxy Note II General] Viper2005:
Remember that the UK and European Union have laws that limit the headphone volume (Volume Limit Cap) in music players and mobile phones.. That is why the headphone volume of these EU notes are quieter than the US phones.
[Galaxy Note II General] DubelBoom:
On my sansa clip (R.I.P :() it was possible to change it in the settings.

Can it be done here to?
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
Is anybody using balanced armature iems experiencing low sound pressure levels ?

As for UE regulations it seems that they do not apply to Apple. iPhone 4S can go really really loud. And my old iPhone 3GS cpuld as well.

Why is it Samsung caps the headphone out and Apple does not ?
[Galaxy Note II General] VTEChump:
Has anyone tried usb audio out? I thought this feature was added with Jelly Bean?
[Galaxy Note II General] hagba:
Mine is middle east spec and no such regulations there,with the headphone on and at maximum level I can even hear my wife speaking this phone could be all the thing and everything but it's not for music that is for sure, even the equalizer is useless my original Note's was much better,so back to my HD2 with its awesome SRS HD nothing can replace it.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
@hagba

Thanks!. So it's not any UE cap. It's quiet everywhere.

What headphones are yoy using?

Does it go as loud as the Note 1 ?

Thanks again
[Galaxy Note II General] ama3654:
They do now, the iphone 5 volume is significantly lower than 4/4S

---------- Post added at 07:12 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:02 PM ----------

The hiss is there just for a brief moment unfortunately, but after then the audio is very clean and precise, i actually prefer the audio quality of the note 2 compared to iphone 4/4S because i listen to my music on mid-low volume and the versatility of been able to change equalizer settings as i wish, if you like real loud volume then iphone 4/4s is louder but not any cleaner than note 2, another thing very soon you can flash vodoo/siyah/franco and get much better audio quality than any device out there
[Galaxy Note II General] micro17:
Thats not true. Apple also limits the max output of its eu models.

If you want the max output on those devices you have to do a simple tweak in the file system of an jailbroken i- device. (It's just editing a text file)

****ty eu laws... it's my own decision if i want to harm my ears -.-

A law to make the companies adding child security functions would be more helpful... (sorry for being off topic but thats so frustrating)

Gesendet von meinem GT-N7100 mit Tapatalk 2
[Galaxy Note II General] danba:
The standard USB audio is enabled on stock Samsung Galaxy Note II:

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=32389368#post32389368
[Galaxy Note II General] DocRambone:
There is a file default_gain.conf in system/etc:

Modifier "Normal" {
SupportedDevice {
"Headphone"
}
Enable {
{ "Headphone ZC Switch", 0 },
{ "AIF1DAC1 Volume", 96 },
{ "AIF1 Boost Volume", 0 },
{ "DAC1 Volume", 96 },
{ "Left Output Mixer DAC Volume", 7 },
{ "Right Output Mixer DAC Volume", 7 },
{ "Headphone Volume", 50 },
}
Disable {
{ "Headphone ZC Switch", 0 },
{ "AIF1DAC1 Volume", 96 },
{ "AIF1 Boost Volume", 0 },
{ "DAC1 Volume", 96 },
{ "Headphone Volume", 45 },
}
}

maybe a mod can be done to boost the output?
[Galaxy Note II General] azhurvadal:
just wait for voodoo louder from supercurio guys
[Galaxy Note II General] man2003:
Received my Note 2 yesterday, and comparing with Note 1, I'm sure sound is much better... I don't even need to install Equalizer App to increase the sound as I did with Note 1....
[Galaxy Note II General] vincelau:
Got my GN2 for exactly one week now and I must say I'm pleasantly surprised by the SQ

Coming from IPhone 4 I don't notice any drop off in quality - very clean sound with good clarity across all bands. Definitely much much better than my P6800.

Contrary to others observation I find the GN2 drive my IEMs very well and experience HIGHER volume level than ip4. I usually listened at ~80% volume on my ip4 but is now on ~60% with GN2.....

I'm especially pleased with the sound when paired with my XBA-4ip as it sounded a bit too analytical and at times fragmented with iPhone 4 and the GN2 gives it a much balanced signature, wide soundstage, and very strong and solid baseline. Performance with se215 and ue10pro are also good and on par with ip4.

P.s. using stock music player on ip4 and Neutron MP for n7100/p6800

Only thing driving me crazy is that GN2 will drop my headset when I pick you and incoming call... Here is to dream that Sony will make an android version xba4 or xda to deliver a hack for iPhone headsets!
[Galaxy Note II General] freemini:
I don't know what you're saying about low volume. Half is already way too loud for my IEM's. To me and my not so amazing S4's it sounds the same as my 4S. I'll upgrade my headphones soon so we'll see then.
[Galaxy Note II General] eliashadow:
Here is the stock default_gain.conf:

http://www.mediafire.com/?nif3x64hp6binu2

Here is the modified one which i used in my SGSiii (Thanks to @Meltus)i:

http://xdaforums.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=1371803&d=1349238558

Are very similar except some lines.If someone can modified our default_gain.conf will be awsome.

I found the volume a lit bit lower than my previous SGSiii and much lower than the modified volume that i was using in my custom rom (sgsiii)

I could do it but i have no free time these days...
[Galaxy Note II General] laztpn0i:
This sounds very promising as I have a pair of IEMs (UE Triple Fi10 to be exact) that I mainly use when listening to music. And though I am not much of an audiophile, I do appreciate clean and balanced clarity across the bands.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
This is all very encouraging since it seems that for in ear monitors (whether dynamic or balaced armatures) there are no volume problems.

For full sized cans (on a desktop scenario) you can always grab a dac of your choice.

Thus it seems that aside for the stereo crosstalk that falls short from iPhones and the fact that output power could be a bit higher it seems that Note 2 is a very competent performer. I'd rate it out of the box as an A-.

A step forward for Samsung that has come a long way since the awful SII.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
BTW if some owner keeps the preloaded tune "Over The Horizon" by Samsung, and could check intrinsic volume of the file or send it to me to run it thru Wavelab to check levels doing some math i could assess what impedances/sensivities are a go no-go with the Note II.

Thanks in advance
[Galaxy Note II General] Decreate:
I am currently using a pair of earsonics sm3 and the note2 sounds great when playing songs via the neutrino media player. To me it seems to sound better than the ipod touch which i have been using for the last few years.
[Galaxy Note II General] jay_993:
Definitely. I got TF10 with custom hand made silver cable as well and I will upgrade to the note 2 when the prices drop down!!!
[Galaxy Note II General] toofank:
got my Note2 today. the sound speaker is amazingily powerfull :) its greaat!
[Galaxy Note II General] DMax99:
Sound quality is definitely better and louder than note 1
[Galaxy Note II General] Patanjali:
Excessively loud headphone levels are not only damaging but can annoy a whole train carriage who have to put up with the resulting tinny ting-ting sounds.

When are phone manufacturers going to provide active noise cancellation (ANC) so one can actually have reasonable volumes? That is why I still use my Sony Walkman nwz-s745 digital player.

Earbuds only reduce outside noise by a set amount (say 26dB), but ANC mixes an anti-phase version of the external sound into what you hear so that it tends to compensate for the loudness of those sounds. That is, one doesn't need to adjust the volume according to how loud the outside sounds are.

However, it is only effective up to about 1.5kHz due to the wavelengths getting close to the separation distance of the mics and speakers. Above that frequency, one is relying upon the native sound isolation of the buds. Fortunately, most of the interfering sound is below that.

In all, just turning on the unit results in an immediate reduction in train noise (track and rattles) and conversations become muffled. I am able to easily listen clearly at substantially lower levels than without ANC.
[Galaxy Note II General] 30Seconds:
Received my Note 2 today and I have had a little bit of time to play with it at work. Thankfully it's been a pleasant experience.

Volume: The headphone jack seems slightly louder than the S3 i9300. It drives my B&W C5's nicely and loudly. We did try some Bose IE2's and it didn't seem quite as loud as we would have liked. I doubt the Note 2 could drive any larger open headphones well.

Sound Quality: A noticeable improvement over the S3. Better soundstage, clarity, dynamics, musicality you name it. I had a few really nice moments with the C5's and some FLAC files hearing some things I hadn't before. One big thing I noticed was how clean the sound was overall, very black background with no cracks or pops like on the S3. If it was just a tiny bit louder this would be a very exciting music player.

So this was a big relief for me, after reading some of the reviews I thought I might have to sell it. But I'm keeping it and gave the S3 to the wife.
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
Interesting to hear reports that the DAC implementation is better here than in the S3, just as it was in the Note Vs S2 last year. I had some expectation that might be the case.

I have had no chance to have a listen yet (got mine yesterday), can only report that my Pico is NOT working with it. Although I kinda expected that, as it doesn't work with the Int S3 either, I'm still pretty gutted (I could use a powered USB hub I guess, but that is just way too unwieldy for me to contemplate). Thinking about getting another USB DAC that plays a bit more nicely with the Exynos-based Samsungs (Ray Samuels Intruder looks interesting).

Anyways, will hopefully get a couple of hours tomorrow to really have a good listening session. Encouraged by the reports of more volume that the S3, should help drive my Edition 8/T5p/ATH-W3000ANV a bit better straight from the headphone jack.
[Galaxy Note II General] danba:
So, in regard to standard USB audio, the behaviour of the Galaxy Note 2 is likely identical to the behaviour of the Galaxy S3.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
As an iPhone 4S owner i'll be really looking forward to your first impressions sound wise (specially on the volume area)

On a showroom listening thru my westone um3x and shure se420 i liked what got into my ears. But just with the preloaded tune i can't draw any conclusion on the output power since i don't know the RMS of the preloaded Over The Horizon tune ;)

It's good to be anywhere!
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
I'm thinking so, yes.

Now trying to find out if the Leckterton UHA-6S.MKII works with the International S3, if so I will grab one of those.
[Galaxy Note II General] KarimSalloum:
For me im enjoying it more than S3 for sure. It has great sound quality this note2.
[Galaxy Note II General] risa2000:
short white noise following system sounds

I have just received my Galaxy Note 2 and being complete newbie to Android and Samsung and Note 2 I would like to clarify one point. When listening to the provided headphones I notice, every system sound (starting action, touching return button, etc.) has something like 1-2 seconds noise *after the sound*, then the it is completely silent. There is < -- boing! -- > < 1-2 sec. noise > < silence ->...

I read some remarks in this thread how the sound is great (also read the sound benchmark someone has pointed out) and it seems my Note has some sound problem as I would not definitely called this behavior good.

Or is it the Android "hiss" someone already mentioned? It is hard to say if the noise is present also when playing music or video, because of the sound level of the material is higher, but I wonder what might be the cause of it and if it is really a defect or "feature".
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
Welcome to the Android hiss! For people with good hearing and sensitive iems it's unmistakable.

Every Android handset that i've ever tried (either with my UM3x or SE420) hisses whenever the amp section is engaged. It's quite easy to pick up just hittin' the pause button while playing music...2 seconds pass by, amp shuts down hiss goes away.

I read that Jelly Bean had taken care of it but i certainly have heard it from the Note 2 that i tried. It was not too bad but it was there.

For music it has been reported that you can get rid of it by using Neutron which uses his own audio engine instead of the standard Android engine.

Anyway on the Note 2 and S3 is not a deal breaker as it is on the HTC One X.

---------- Post added at 12:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:51 PM ----------

BTW does stock player play gapless ?

I also read that Jelly Bean featured chained playback that allows for gapless.

Is it really happening ? Or it won't till some developer writes an specific app for JB?

I have not heard a Pink Floyd album with gaps since i was a Zune user back in 2008. And i certainly have no plans to move to Android till pure gapless (not fakes that uses quick crossfading) is achieved on stock players.
[Galaxy Note II General] richlum:
This video provides a good description of the noise in the Android sound engine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhDwA75loYY
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
My gosh thanks for the link.

Finally somebody recorded the Android hiss noise.

Unfortunately i've been using iPhones for 3 years thus i pick up Android hiss pretty fast being used to blackness.
[Galaxy Note II General] 30Seconds:
Well the sound is certainly better than the S3, in comparison the Note 2 has a much quieter background. The Note 2 is probably the first Android device I have used that can rival the IPhone, and there have been a few times over the past couple of days when I have actually stopped myself in my tracks to listen. It's really good, and it's the only reason I haven't sold it.

But wow, there are a couple of major and disappointing issues. The first is the volume levels, it can barely drive everyday use earphones like the MIE2. It runs my IEM's just fine, but nothing else.

And the other show stopping problem is that with Jelly Bean you can no longer use apps like Headset Button Controller or the Klipsch Control app to adjust volume. The long button press on headphones has now been taken over by the ridiculous Google voice search. Right now there is no real way to adjust volume on Jelly Bean short of taking the phone out of your pocket.

These little inconsistencies with Android are really frustrating, and I am starting to miss my IPhone at times. Going to give it a while longer maybe they will fix the headphone volume issue soon.
[Galaxy Note II General] risa2000:
Great! Thanks for the video and the responses. Guy who made the video should get some praise for very educational approach. I am glad my ears are not playing me. Unfortunately I am coming from iPod Touch, so I can hardly be happy about the improvements over Galaxy S2. But well, I guess, if it would be only problem I have with GN2 I would take it over iPod Touch any day :).

Now I wonder, why the sound benchmark published at GSMarena shows so low distortion (the only problem they acknowledge is problem with crosstalk). Either they generate the sound differently, or measure it in the setup which does not apply to "normal" headphones usage.
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
Supercurio has been very critical of their test methodologies. Taking that into account with how my ears don't agree with how different phones audio compares in relation to what their results tell you, I don't trust their results anymore.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
Tried a Note 2 in store and it sounded very promising both driving Se420 and my UM3x.

Certainly i concur it's the first smartphone non Apple with an output impedance of 2 ohms. A big step forward for Samsung.

The output is gonna be a problem unless you use balances armature iems. This and that bereable yet present Android hiss are my only qualms.

Have you guys tried Neutron to get rid of the Android hiss?

I've been told by a trusty aficionado that Neutron propietary audio engine does not cause the hiss that Android audio engine brings whenever the amp is engaged.

You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
No stock players do gapless, you'll need Neutron or PowerAMP for that.
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
Gsmarena tests are useful for assessing output impedance and output power. They measure devices at max volume thus distortion and crosstalk are not relevant since sound pressure level is not matched between devices. E.g. On gsmarena an iPhone can show more imd than a note but iphone is putting out a far higher spl than the note and if volumes were matched iphone would show less IMD. So yes gsmarena can be mislesding but the fr graphic is an output impedance detector if you know how read it.

Supercurio knows more about programming and selling than about audio. I can recall when told me that Galaxy Nexus was better than iphone/ipad and then i discovered that it had 13 ohms of output impedance. But he sells the stuff very so well that people even thought that a Galaxy S was better than an iPhone when the S had more than 10 ohms of output impedance and a crosstalk of -50 with a 300 ohms load vs a z of 2 ohms and -83 dbs of crosstalk with a 33 ohm load for the iPhone 3GS. That's quite an achievement from a sales pov.

As they say in Spain: in the blind men country the one-eyed man is the king.

Still looking forward for yout subjective impressions on the Note 2!

You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother
[Galaxy Note II General] Livebyte:
Well, well.

Its a giant leap from a N7000 to N7100.

Kudos Samsung
[Galaxy Note II General] elfary:
You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
Confirm E7 working with the Note 2 via USB audio.
[Galaxy Note II General] Roybenz:
Does it lift the sond very much compared to just using the note 2?

Using Denon D600....
[Galaxy Note II General] duowing:
Have any of you tried the Perseus kernel yet by AndreiLux? I believe his Note II kernel has the voodoo sound ports the same as the SIII. Gokhanmoral ported what he was able to of Voodoo sound over into his S3 kernel and then AndreiLux also ported it into his, and it looks like it's listed for the Note II. It features headphone volume boosting along with oversampling as well as actual hardware equalizer tuning. With it I was able to get much louder and better sound out of my S3. It's over in Original Android Development for the Note II.
[Galaxy Note II General] Roybenz:
I was thinking about getting a FiiO E7 for my note 2. Will the sound get much better? Using spotify with extreme quality sync, and denon d600

25ohm

Thanks
[Galaxy Note II General] Jules Winnfield:
Can you tell us more?

I'm looking for something like this Fiio to get a louder sound on my note 2.
[Galaxy Note II General] 30Seconds:
Alright this is starting to drive me nuts: How can we adjust volume easily while listening to music on the Note 2?

I guess everyone knows by now that the headphone button long press is now used by Google voice search and none of the headphone apps (JAYS Headset Control, Klipsch Control, Headset Button Control etc.) work any more.

The best I have been able to do is set 4 clicks to set volume down one increment. As there is no 5 click setting I have to take the phone out of my pocket to get the volume up. Or I could give up the functionality of 2 or 3 clicks and use one of those settings for volume which I am not going to do.

So do any of our esteemed members have a solution for this? I know the external amp users are not going to face this, but the rest of us seem to be stuck. I actually went and checked out an IPhone yesterday lol, help me!
[Galaxy Note II General] NZtechfreak:
Quick note to say that the RSA "Intruder" USB DAC/amp is working with the Note 2 via USB audio.