M3 MacBook Pro speakers compared to M2 and M1

[konstantin1122]

I am wondering about what the differences between the speakers on the new M3 16" MacBook Pro and the other MacBook Pro models are.

I haven't observed M1 MacBooks but I personally have had the M2 16" MacBook Pro for a short time before exchanging it for the M3 16" MacBook Pro. What I noticed is that the speakers on the M3 16" MacBook Pro seem to have less lower-end (bass) and sound somewhat quieter overall compared to the M2 16" MacBook Pro which sounded way too muddy to me (with too much low end), especially during calls. On the other hand, I've tested another M3 16" MacBook Pro at the local tech store and it sounded very similar to the M2 16" MacBook Pro that I had previously. So either they are differences between the same models or my perception in another listening environment tricked me into thinking so.

I've found out that some people attribute this to differences in the speaker EQ tuning of the different M generations that are causing this. I am curious if someone has found any hardware difference in the speakers though.

 

[mdhaus72]

I upgraded to a 16" M3 Max from a 16" M1 Max. I have not noticed a difference in the speaker sets.

 

[macduke]

I upgraded from a 16" Intel MBP 2019 to the 14" M3 Max, so that's all I have to go by, and I didn't have them both at the same time to compare directly, and mostly used my AirPods Pro for listening TBH. But I was surprised with how much sound the 14" could clearly pump out. My wife came in and thought I was listening to the HomePod mini when I had it cranked up to the max. Less punchy than that, but more punchy than I'd expect out of a 14" machine. I agree that where I think it beats the older 16" Intel is in clarity. The old one was more bass heavy? Least that's how I remember it. It honestly didn't sound as far off from my 27" 5K iMac as I expected, but I think this weekend I will do a listening test while I still have this before I sell it. Would do it now but it's late and I don't want to wake up the house!