My experience with different Roms and headphone audio.

[senny22]

Tried some more - RR rom 7.1.2 with beast mode kernel and the Ainur Pandora gives me the best sound. (Better than nuclear I'd say).

Ok, will try that later then thanks.

 

[Luhccas-X10]

There's another ROM in town now!
AOSP stable! Anyone tried it?

Sent from my Axon 7!

 

[JP_93]

Yeah, thanks for the write up!

Another tip for those of us who have been somewhat disappointed by the audio on this device (which after all is selling as a hifi-phone; the meizu pro 5 I had before was way way better...)

Try an audio mod called Ainur Pandora, here on xda. Its not an enhancement or equalizer thing, but rather an audiophile mod, changing audio libs or something (no idea how it works) to use the hardware better. For me it was a big improvement, at bit like changing the mixer paths file that you suggested earlier, but better. I'm starting to feel satisfied with the sound now, the weak point being the treble quality I think, but that is probably inherent in the hardware implementation.

When I had an axon 7 I had issues with crackling/static noises when playing music through the speakers and bluetooth. I'm not sure if it was a hardware or software issue but I got 2 replacement devices and they both had the same issue. In the end I got a refund.

Apart from that the phone was perfect and I'm thinking about trying it again, if I use this mod do you think it could fix the sound?

 

[jw1985]

So I've been on pretty much every rom and so I will share my experience with each of them considering headphone audio quality, sound, and volume. I've used my HD 598 and Momentum in-ears on each Rom with no sound effect on.

Stock marshmallow G (And a room that was based on stock U): well I actually found that the sound on marshmallow is one of the best on both super and standard setting with a clean and flat signal but on the European (G model) the volume is very very low which is a big downside of marshmallow on G model.
TL;DR: Good clean sound, extremely low volume on G model.


Stock nougat, both G and U: here I found the sound on both G and U to be the same which is probably true since the "mixer_paths" were identical. IMO the sound was somewhat muffled with the super setting turned on along with it having a 10k+ boost which made for artificial highs in some music. Changing to standard solved the sound issues but then the sound was once again very low in volume output.
TL;DR: Super: Muddy bass, boosted top frequencys. Standard: Clean sound, low volume.


Lineage OS/Resurrection Remix: once again identical sound and identical "mixer_paths" files. On these Roms the sound is very strong and significantly louder than on any stock Rom. However, I found the sound to be very muffled with alot off boosted bass despite no sound effects being on or installed. I didn't like the like the sound on these Rims at all and couldn't really here any improvement​ over my old Nexus in sound quality since the boosted bass just took over and sort of layer on top of all the other frequencys.
TL;DR: Very loud signal with lack of quality due to very boosted bass.

Nucler Rom: Now we are talking. I feel like this Rom has the best of both Lineage and stock. The sound is just as loud as on Lineage/RR but the boosted bass is no more. I found this Rom to have just as a flat and clean signal as atleast stock nougat and probably as good as stock marshmallow on the U model but with a stronger and louder sound.
TL;DR: Loud volume output with a clean and flat signal.

If I were to recommend a Rom based on headphone audio qualty it would be either Stock marshmallow or Nuclear with Nuclear having a louder volume output and stock marshmallow having the option to use the super setting which I believe is just a tuning from ZTE to make the sound perceived as better with just boosted bass and treble and also a louder volume which is all classic tricks companies use to simulate high quality sound.

Why dont u just use Viper4Andriod? U cant get better sound. Its the best sound mod u can use.

 

[senny22]

Why dont u just use Viper4Andriod? U cant get better sound. Its the best sound mod u can use.

Viper is only a tool to fix frequency responses and such. It does not increase the Fidelity or quality of the music per se.

 

[warBeard_actual]

So I've been on pretty much every rom and so I will share my experience with each of them considering headphone audio quality, sound, and volume. I've used my HD 598 and Momentum in-ears on each Rom with no sound effect on.

Stock marshmallow G (And a room that was based on stock U): well I actually found that the sound on marshmallow is one of the best on both super and standard setting with a clean and flat signal but on the European (G model) the volume is very very low which is a big downside of marshmallow on G model.
TL;DR: Good clean sound, extremely low volume on G model.


Stock nougat, both G and U: here I found the sound on both G and U to be the same which is probably true since the "mixer_paths" were identical. IMO the sound was somewhat muffled with the super setting turned on along with it having a 10k+ boost which made for artificial highs in some music. Changing to standard solved the sound issues but then the sound was once again very low in volume output.
TL;DR: Super: Muddy bass, boosted top frequencys. Standard: Clean sound, low volume.


Lineage OS/Resurrection Remix: once again identical sound and identical "mixer_paths" files. On these Roms the sound is very strong and significantly louder than on any stock Rom. However, I found the sound to be very muffled with alot off boosted bass despite no sound effects being on or installed. I didn't like the like the sound on these Rims at all and couldn't really here any improvement​ over my old Nexus in sound quality since the boosted bass just took over and sort of layer on top of all the other frequencys.
TL;DR: Very loud signal with lack of quality due to very boosted bass.

Nucler Rom: Now we are talking. I feel like this Rom has the best of both Lineage and stock. The sound is just as loud as on Lineage/RR but the boosted bass is no more. I found this Rom to have just as a flat and clean signal as atleast stock nougat and probably as good as stock marshmallow on the U model but with a stronger and louder sound.
TL;DR: Loud volume output with a clean and flat signal.

If I were to recommend a Rom based on headphone audio qualty it would be either Stock marshmallow or Nuclear with Nuclear having a louder volume output and stock marshmallow having the option to use the super setting which I believe is just a tuning from ZTE to make the sound perceived as better with just boosted bass and treble and also a louder volume which is all classic tricks companies use to simulate high quality sound.

Very interesting. All I can say is that it would appear your ears are quite off from what just about every real life test has proven.

The audio on this device is one of the best, if not the best, you will find.

As proven here.

https://youtu.be/dTsg7EyYKFM

 

[cfbruck]

Very interesting. All I can say is that it would appear your ears are quite off from what just about every real life test has proven.

The audio on this device is one of the best, if not the best, you will find.

As proven here.

https://youtu.be/dTsg7EyYKFM

Well, they mostly talk about the power output of the amplifier?

We have to be realistic here, compared to ordinary phones, this device has great audio.

When someone is critical it is probably because they are hoping that it can replace stand alone daps and dacs, like audioquest dragonfly and chord mojo and so on. Some phoned actually come close to doing that, like meizu pro 5 or lg v20. The axon 7 for me isn't quite in that category

 

[Gases]

Ok, will try that later then thanks.

Did you ever get to try it? I'm on RR 5.8.3 and I'm curious to see if there's any improvement on the sound with that mod.

That being said, I actually kind of like the bass boost you're hearing because I'm using a pair of Superlux HD668B headphones, which are pretty neutral but kind of weak on the bass department. I noticed that with RR, they get a boost on the sub-bass without it bleeding too much into the other frequencies. The highs also shine quite a bit, but they don't get sibilant or fatiguing like they did on my previous phone (Honor 5x).

 

[senny22]

Very interesting. All I can say is that it would appear your ears are quite off from what just about every real life test has proven.

The audio on this device is one of the best, if not the best, you will find.

As proven here.

I didn't find a difference with the Pandora mod but with his Nero mod I actually found the audio to sound better. You can't use viper or anything like that with Nero though.

 

[Gases]

I didn't find a difference with the Pandora mod but with his Nero mod I actually found the audio to sound better. You can't use viper or anything like that with Nero though.

Awesome, I'll give it a try. I don't really find Viper necessary with this phone, so it's not a problem for me.

 

[bhazard451]

Very interesting. All I can say is that it would appear your ears are quite off from what just about every real life test has proven.

The audio on this device is one of the best, if not the best, you will find.

As proven here.

https://youtu.be/dTsg7EyYKFM

This test happened before the 7.0 changes to Audio. Nougat stock does NOT have the same behavior or sound as Marshmallow stock, and I can prove it via ARTA and Vibro Veritas measurements.

So the Op is in fact very close. Super is actually worse on Nougat, where it is audibly the better option on Marshmallow. I actually don't like the changes and I hope they fix it. Claims that Super is now meant for higher ohm line out are false, as there is no official claim to that. It makes no sense, nor were there any measurements to truly show that.

 

[Gases]

I installed the Nero sound mod and I can't hear a huge difference... however, I didn't compare the sounds side by side. It still sounds amazing, and I feel like it's a little bit louder (I can leave the volume lower and still hear just as much detail).

 

[senny22]

I installed the Nero sound mod and I can't hear a huge difference... however, I didn't compare the sounds side by side. It still sounds amazing, and I feel like it's a little bit louder (I can leave the volume lower and still hear just as much detail).

Ok, the improvement I heard was tiny as well but I guess it doesn't hurt to use the mod.

 

[senny22]

This test happened before the 7.0 changes to Audio. Nougat stock does NOT have the same behavior or sound as Marshmallow stock, and I can prove it via ARTA and Vibro Veritas measurements.

So the Op is in fact very close. Super is actually worse on Nougat, where it is audibly the better option on Marshmallow. I actually don't like the changes and I hope they fix it. Claims that Super is now meant for higher ohm line out are false, as there is no official claim to that. It makes no sense, nor were there any measurements to truly show that.

What exactly are the differences between Marshmallow and Nougat?

 

[czarodziej]

How is the audio in Oreo Stock? I am planning to install A2017X_O_B04_SL!M8 with Ainur.

 

[Lightwolf25]

senny22! I need you, I pay you

After reading your post regarding the axon 7 a2017g audio quality through headphones, your the guy with sharp hearing I am looking for and need. I am willing you pay you either through any online transfers (BTC or Bank) in advance if you agree to help me out.

My story,
I once had a axon 7 a2017G bought off eBay second hand and that had the best amazing sound quality and I can't remember what software it was then I had to sell the phone due to loss in money income. Since then I have been searching for that phone but no luck finding it so I just thought all axon 7 a2017 models will have the same audio quality and went to purchase one off second, that one came bootloader unlocked and upon testing the audio quality through headphones it sounded unpleasant with much noise and just as you said increased treble or bass. I thought the owner of the phone had done something with the firmware as it shows sign on modified so I tried to flash a axon 7 stock and ended up bricking it, somehow managed to get it back on stock running then sold it. The first axon 7 I sold, I had photos of it for auction site so I looked at the back label sticker and it stated axon a2017G and that's the model I should be looking for so I purchased one off overseas to the UK a 2017G model and it arrived but updated to Oreo latest, the audio quality again was terrible so I flashed marshmallow Android 6 and went to update to follow ups going up to Oreo, I stopped at nougat as I don't like Oreo. Somehow I started to feel stressed from listening music on this device, music meant a lifefull meaning but now something is wrong and not there ( I am extreme audiophile). I then reverted back to marshmallow and audio quality was so good and I started to feel very happy since a long time. I then searched up why this happened and seen your post here about the truth.

Now the reason why the axon 7 a2017G my first phone had the best audio quality probably it was flashed with stock rom from xda via twrp hence it wasn't getting any updates for years.

Senny22 Please reply me if you are willing to help me out on some audio testing on phones and matching it according to one specific device (w880i). I will pay you. Thanks