Muffled / Hollow sounding 6s + speaker?

[motorazr]

I don't see this one on the web yet.. And I'll be visiting the retail store soon, but in contrast to my iPhone 6, the 6s + speaker sounds very hollow until about 3/4 volume.

I thought it was just one album or a bad song to play with (maybe had soft highs), but realized it's all sound from the main speaker. Somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 volume there's a strong improvement in the highs. I put the 6 next to it, and by contrast the clarity is amazing on my 6.

Anyone else out there seeing this?

 

[Steve686]

Why don't you name the specific song so someone can listen to exactly what you are listening to.

I've noticed the new speaker, when compared to my 6Plus, has a noticeable volume increase at full volume, and a lot more sharpness and pop in the high range.

 

[motorazr]

Why don't you name the specific song so someone can listen to exactly what you are listening to.

I've noticed it on things like speaking in YouTube videos - it's a lot of vocal ranges that feel hollow. Postal service / give up was off -- Led Zepplin Remastered... Beats one... Seems to be all over.

 

[motorazr]

I've noticed it on things like speaking in YouTube videos - it's a lot of vocal ranges that feel hollow. Postal service / give up was off -- Led Zepplin Remastered... Beats one... Seems to be all over.

What's weird is at full volume (about 3/4 and up) it's very sharp.

 

[Steve686]

Why don't you record a voice memo, play it back and use that as more of a basis to see how that sounds at mid levels?

 

[motorazr]

Why don't you record a voice memo, play it back and use that as more of a basis to see how that sounds at mid levels?

I might try that. I think Apple has a sound test of some sort for the 6 (maybe 6s too now?) -- that's likely to be more objective. We shall see. This mostly caught me of guard is all.

 

[Rocko9999]

It was tested and the S models are just a hair quieter than the 6. Tested with SPL meter.

 

[Steve686]

It was tested and the S models are just a hair quieter than the 6. Tested with SPL meter.

Not mine.

My 6s+ is actually annoyingly louder when ringtones and alerts sound.

The music may be a little muted in a test, but the speaker definitely has some more volume behind it.

 

[KOTULCN]

My 6s system sounds seem really low even with volume set to max. I notice it when I'm typing the most.

 

[juan_ski]

I don't see this one on the web yet.. And I'll be visiting the retail store soon, but in contrast to my iPhone 6, the 6s + speaker sounds very hollow until about 3/4 volume.

I thought it was just one album or a bad song to play with (maybe had soft highs), but realized it's all sound from the main speaker. Somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 volume there's a strong improvement in the highs. I put the 6 next to it, and by contrast the clarity is amazing on my 6.

Anyone else out there seeing this?

You hit it right on the head! My 6s+ is about 20-25% lower in sound output than my 6 until you hit 3/4 of the way, at which point it drastically improves. I suspected it was my case (UAG) causing the muffled/hollow sound but when tested against a 6+ in the same case there was no issue.

I thought long and hard about swapping it out but everything else on the phone is perfect (seams, buttons, screen, backlight) so I'd rather not risk it.

Looks like 75% will be my new 50% when it comes to volume =\

 

[northernbaldy]

mines terrible, but a different problem
when I get to around 3/4 volume whilst listening to a podcast, it distorts really badly, like something is vibrating inside
I only noticed it this morning, so I'll try a few things first before taking it back, but my old beaten up 5 was waaaaay better

 

[sunking101]

The 6S+ loudspeaker isn't as nice as the 6+. I don't know why they changed it, or the EQ, but they have. It seems to have less lows and more highs. Regarding volume, it is still a quiet phone compared to the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5. Alerts and ringtones are much lower. Still, it's a better sound than those phones - just lower in volume.

 

[d0minick]

Anyone else out there seeing this?

i've noticed this. I use speakerphone a lot and its definitely a step back from my 6. i thought i just got a bad part, and it isnt such a big deal that i was gonna make any stink about it.

But perhaps its part of a larger issue. We will see soon enough. If apple recalls ill get it fixed, otherwise it doesn't bother me.

 

[slayer1551]

I seem to having the opposite issue. Mine sounds quite a lot louder than my room mates but it also sounds distorted for some sounds like the sent message 'swoosh' and Skype on speaker phone but music and FaceTime isn't distorted at all

His is noticeably quieter than mine at the same audio levels like 50% etc when playing the same audio tracks

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...broken-here-distortion.1921257/#post-21966711

 

[motorazr]

i've noticed this. I use speakerphone a lot and its definitely a step back from my 6. i thought i just got a bad part, and it isnt such a big deal that i was gonna make any stink about it.

But perhaps its part of a larger issue. We will see soon enough. If apple recalls ill get it fixed, otherwise it doesn't bother me.

I agree. Not a big enough issue to upset me.. Just thought I might be crazy.

 

[SLQ03]

I don't see this one on the web yet.. And I'll be visiting the retail store soon, but in contrast to my iPhone 6, the 6s + speaker sounds very hollow until about 3/4 volume.

Anyone else out there seeing this?

My 6 is no doubt louder and clearer than my 6s+ at anything below 3/4 volume. I really noticed the difference when I was receiving alerts from both of my phones. At lower volume, my 6s+ speaker sounds muffled, like it's being partially covered. Otherwise, my phone has no other obvious flaws, so I'll just live with it.

 

[motorazr]

My 6 is no doubt louder and clearer than my 6s+ at anything below 3/4 volume. I really noticed the difference when I was receiving alerts from both of my phones. At lower volume, my 6s+ speaker sounds muffled, like it's being partially covered. Otherwise, my phone has no other obvious flaws, so I'll just live with it.

That's where I'm at. My 6 is perfect with this exception. I feel like it's a bad idea to mess with it at this point.

 

[sunking101]

My 6 is no doubt louder and clearer than my 6s+ at anything below 3/4 volume. I really noticed the difference when I was receiving alerts from both of my phones. At lower volume, my 6s+ speaker sounds muffled, like it's being partially covered. Otherwise, my phone has no other obvious flaws, so I'll just live with it.

The 6+ sounded just as quiet and muffled at low-mid volumes as my 6S+ does. It's definitely how they are as opposed to a fault.
The 6+ sounded better for music though to these ears.

 

[jtwlbz]

6s+ speaker quality definitely worse than 6+.

 

[sunking101]

6s+ speaker quality definitely worse than 6+.

It's the only disappointing area when swapping from a 6+ to a 6S+. I expect it's the same speaker but they're using a different EQ pattern. I feel spoiled by my 6+ speaker and didn't expect it to be any different in the S model considering it's the same form factor.

 

[coney718]

My 6s speaker is definitely quieter than my 6. Its one of the first things I noticed. I sometimes play music when im in the shower and with my 6 I had to trouble hearing the volume over the shower water with my 6s I can barely hear it even at full volume. Not a deal breaker but it is a noticeable difference.

 

[jsickels]

I don't see this one on the web yet.. And I'll be visiting the retail store soon, but in contrast to my iPhone 6, the 6s + speaker sounds very hollow until about 3/4 volume.

I thought it was just one album or a bad song to play with (maybe had soft highs), but realized it's all sound from the main speaker. Somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 volume there's a strong improvement in the highs. I put the 6 next to it, and by contrast the clarity is amazing on my 6.

Anyone else out there seeing this?

Last night I bought the 6S to replace my 4S. I called my sister and I could barely hear her. I just experimented playing the same app on both phones and the 4S is twice as loud with a crisper sound. The audio on the 6S is barely audible. I would advise you to reconsider purchasing this model if you enjoying listening to music, podcasts, etc and cannot haul around portable speakers. Even the phone call volume is so low it is frustrating. Once again, when you are trying to listen to conference calls in the airport, etc, you will have trouble with this model.