Nexus 5 Audio/Sound (DAC) Quality

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costcutter

Senior Member
Jul 22, 2011
93
35
Hi,

Could someone give some feedback on the sound quality of the Nexus 5, any idea what sort of DAC the phone is using? Is it using something similar to the LG G2 as that has the same chipset.

Thanks
 

Spl4tt

Senior Member
I think the Snapdragon 800 uses the same awesome audiochip feom qualcom as the other Snapdragon 600 devices. But we have to test this out..
I'll test it with my ciem as soon as it arrives

Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
 

irhut

Member
Sep 9, 2007
45
5
I am no audio expert but I was listening to music last night on headphones and was very impressed with the quality of sound. It was just about loud enough which was my main worry. Bass was very good too. I was not using stock music player as I use a Synology media server and was therefore using DS audio. I just need to get a decent graphic equaliser installed as I can't find one on the phone. Any suggestions?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
 
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Spl4tt

Senior Member
I am no audio expert but I was listening to music last night on headphones and was very impressed with the quality of sound. It was just about loud enough which was my main worry. Bass was very good too. I was not using stock music player as I use a Synology media server and was therefore using DS audio. I just need to get a decent graphic equaliser installed as I can't find one on the phone. Any suggestions?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

You need to use DS audio? Else you could use the jetaudio player or neutron.
If you need a systemwide one, what about dsp manager from cyanogen? I think they'll soon got a ROM up for the N5.
 

bl4ckdr4g00n

Senior Member
Jul 1, 2010
99
5
If the SoC is Snapdragon 800 then it already has WCD9320 integrated, which is a very good DAC.
Hence WCD9320 is 100% confirmed, unless LG is crazy and stupid, and they solder another DAC on the board.

Actually, the amplifier matters more, and affects a large portion of sound quality.
If that was true shouldnt that be in the specs of the nexus 5. Theres no mention of the dac on the spec sheet so i wouldnt be so confident.
 

lolwatpear

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2011
314
46
If the SoC is Snapdragon 800 then it already has WCD9320 integrated, which is a very good DAC.
Hence WCD9320 is 100% confirmed, unless LG is crazy and stupid, and they solder another DAC on the board.

Actually, the amplifier matters more, and affects a large portion of sound quality.

does the nexus 5 have a good amplifier though?

anyone able to compare this to the htc one?
 

spilksch

Member
May 14, 2008
10
2
I am no audio expert but I was listening to music last night on headphones and was very impressed with the quality of sound. It was just about loud enough which was my main worry. Bass was very good too. I was not using stock music player as I use a Synology media server and was therefore using DS audio. I just need to get a decent graphic equaliser installed as I can't find one on the phone. Any suggestions?

Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Viper4Android is the way to go!
 
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noobdeagle

Senior Member
Apr 5, 2010
687
88
Adelaide, SA
according to the service manual for the nexus 5 the DAC is indeed the WCD9320. so same as in the G2.

from listening to it its better than the nexus 4 but not as good as the woflsons in the S3 but still very decent.
 
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ricecake2000

Senior Member
Jun 2, 2012
502
63
Listen to some city and color and you will enjoy the speakers and any headphones you plug in :).



Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app
 

imeem

Senior Member
Sep 27, 2011
715
67
does the N5 support audio thru usb OTG so we can use external DAC/AMP? I've read sumwhere mention usb OTG in kit kat. However, this doesn't mean the nexus 5 support USB OTG nativly (like the N4).
 

Davies_90

Senior Member
May 24, 2013
258
37
Huddersfield
Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
I am somewhat underwhelmed with the audio quality on the N5,unlike most I knew that the two grills on the bottom of the phone only one of which is a loud speaker,However the audio is IMO piss poor.via headphones its outstanding paired with my seneizer cx300II's (spelling) via the loudspeaker its very quiet and tinny,not to mentions the grills are VERY easily muffled. Just my two cents.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
 

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  • 3
    Load of crap. MP3 decoding is a strict standard. Every MP3 decoder outputs the same data. If it doesn't, it's a broken decoder. Any difference in sound is DSP ****ery outside the decoding process.

    Longer version: Both Google Play Music app via the hardware decoder and PowerAMP via the software decoder produce the same uncompressed output data. Said decoded data is supposed to go to the audio chip for output. As such, both players on the same device are supposed to sound exactly the same with the equalizer disabled. I'm pretty sure that they do (with EQ off), and there's placebo effect in play. If they do indeed sound different (record from line-out and do a spectrum to confirm), one or both are using an equalizer with different settings.

    I've played this "sounds different" game before and actually recorded and compared spectrums from different audio players in the past on the Gnex and N4. They're were always the same. It's a placebo effect that even I suffered from. And I'd wager that the ADC on an Xonar is competent enough to discern things (if you can hear a difference, you can be damn well sure an ADC does), so the recording device ain't to blame.

    As far as audio placebo goes, do check out Head-Fi to see how powerful and deluding it can be.
    3
    I've come from a HTC Sensation xe and am so disappointed with the headphones sound quality, it just hasn't got the depth that a good amp provides. I've tried power amp and equalizer to no noticeable effect. Have another week to play but looks like switching to HTC One and RMA the nexus, especially as htc gets KitKat in the early new year.

    What headphones are you using? I have jays one + and Behringer active monitor speakers and sound quality is outstanding.
    It's slightly flattened but in right places. Not too much bass, accurate mid and high tones.
    If you are using something like beats headphones you can blame yourself for piss poor choice of equipment.

    Phone speaker is poor but headphone output is amazing... And I have used various headphones (audiotechnica, sennheiser, bayerdynamic, all on year closed headphones for monitoring and studio use)

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
    2
    I am no audio expert but I was listening to music last night on headphones and was very impressed with the quality of sound. It was just about loud enough which was my main worry. Bass was very good too. I was not using stock music player as I use a Synology media server and was therefore using DS audio. I just need to get a decent graphic equaliser installed as I can't find one on the phone. Any suggestions?

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

    Viper4Android is the way to go!
    1
    ITT a lot of audiophile bull****.
    1
    it's WCD9320. The same one as in G2
    Just keep in mind that if the Soc is Snapdragon S4, regardless the generation, there is always a very good DAC inside .

    http://images.anandtech.com/doci/7205/LGG2-9955.jpg
    Please someone knows what is the nexus 5 DAC?