iPod GROSS AUDIO DISTORTION BETWEEN iMAC & iPOD

[AFMRPCUSER]

Greetings:

Well, I'm not certain if this Topic should be here however, I could not find a forum that pertained to this situation. I am experiencing distortion problems with MP3 files. This is occurring when I transfer CD tracks from my iMAC to my iPOD. Some of the tracks are grossly distorted others are distorted on the low end of the audio spectrum. This situation acts as though the audio is driven in Amplitude to the point that it's clipping. Is it possible that I need some application for transferring these files other than itunes? I read the CD, transfer it into the itunes file base; and then I transfer it to the iPOD. Any comments or suggestions will be most appreciated.

 

[Killyp]

Sounds as though you're using the built-in iPod EQ. Have you checked to see whether it's set to 'off'?

Also, what headphones are you using? Have you tried others?

 

[AFMRPCUSER]

Audio Distortion

Well: I am not running the EQ on the iPOD. And, I have tried all three of my headphones. A Sennheiser A Over the Ear Bose and On Ear Bose all with the same results. I have experienced this with my PC stuff as well. I have a Creative Labs ZEN and I load it with a PC in fact I have loaded it with three different PC's I own and I sometimes experience this effect. It's quite puzzling to me as I have worked in the Electronics field in both analog and digital and I know what is happening as far as the clipping but I cannot get into any of the gear to make measurements and determine just where the distortion is being introduced. Hmmm I just thought I would post it here and see if someone had experienced this with their system. TNX for the remarks, I will continue to monitor this thread to see if someone has suggestions.
Ciao,

 

[lostless]

Its the ipod. The new classic i got sounds horrible. Clips way more than it should in my car. And thats coming from the line out and not the headphone jack. Apples quality in sound reproduction and amplification has gone WAY downhill. ( I guess people just dont care anymore) For the best sounding iPod, I recommend the good old 5G ipod (video). Best sounding ipod, hands down.
I also got a new Ipod touch. Seems as though that particular ipod has fixed the issue. Still not as good as the 5G, but a lot better than the classic. If you have a nano, I have no experience with those.

 

[synagence]

For years now i've run all my audio files through MP3GAIN and AACGAIN (depending on format obviously).

Most modern CD's and files downloaded from all the online music sites offer files which have been encoded and set to play very load (modern music is highly compressed in an audio way not a filesize way) and this can clip very easily.

Using these tools alters the internal metadata of the file and sets the playback volume lower which means i can use things like EQ without ANY distortion.

 

[AFMRPCUSER]

Well thanks for the Confirmation

It's not nice to know, but I have thought all along that the distortion was within the iPOD. Not to mention that all the DA/AD conversions don't help in eliminating the bit noise. Those square wave pulses begin to get a bit rounded off after all the pre-emphasis and compression techniques . I am so used to being able to put a scope on things that it aggravates me when I cannot probe out the trouble. Thank you for your comments. OH! one other issue I am using a old iPOD a 2gb model that was given to me. The audio files that were in it when I first turned it on were very clean. It appears that I must resort to a software package that will allow me to tailor the metadata forcing the gain down .

Ciao,

Its the ipod. The new classic i got sounds horrible. Clips way more than it should in my car. And thats coming from the line out and not the headphone jack. Apples quality in sound reproduction and amplification has gone WAY downhill. ( I guess people just dont care anymore) For the best sounding iPod, I recommend the good old 5G ipod (video). Best sounding ipod, hands down.
I also got a new Ipod touch. Seems as though that particular ipod has fixed the issue. Still not as good as the 5G, but a lot better than the classic. If you have a nano, I have no experience with those.