Reduce background noise on MP3's through phone?

Makhaira · 6 Sep 2015 at 21:14

It's not an issue when I'm out and about, but in a quiet room the background hiss on MP3's played through my phone is very noticeable. I realise it's because I'm using something that is a far cry from audiophile material, but what would be the best way to remove this?

Do I want a portable headphone amp? A dedicated MP3 player? What are my options?

Cheers!

Oh, I've tried both Soundmagic E10s and Sennheiser CX300 II's, so I'm confident that it's not just a case of knackered headphones.

rids57 · 6 Sep 2015 at 21:51

What bit rate are the MP3s? You should be looking at 256kbps as a minimum.

Have you listened to the files on another system?

Normally phones have a fairly low noise floor and low impedance output, so it's possible that there is something wrong with your phone.

Makhaira · 6 Sep 2015 at 22:08

320cbr. I might try the same files on another device with the same headphones then and see what the result is.

rids57 · 6 Sep 2015 at 22:53

320 cbr is very difficult to differentiate from lossless so it's not that.

Rroff · 6 Sep 2015 at 22:57

Can you hear the hissing when nothing is playing?

A headphone amp would likely just amplify the hissing depending on what the source of it is.

Marsman · 6 Sep 2015 at 23:47

What phone is it?

If it's a good phone, the sound quality output should be fine. If it's a cheap budget phone though, then that might explain it. I got a similar thing my old Huawei G300. There was a kind of faint noise that sounded like a Spectum or C64 loading when playing music using headphones. Could only hear it though when the volume was low.

Makhaira · 7 Sep 2015 at 03:07

Hissing is only when a file plays, if the phone is idle then there is utter silence. I also have the volume low which I guess won't help?

Hotwired · 7 Sep 2015 at 03:28

If it's the phone generating the noise then you're stuffed.

Andre · 7 Sep 2015 at 08:47

If you are using Android, try the app Neutron Music Player and make sure Audiophile is selected in the options - probably the best sounding music app available, and if you get hiss whilst this is playing the files, then you need a new phone

Andre · 8 Sep 2015 at 12:16

Makhaira said:
Hissing is only when a file plays, if the phone is idle then there is utter silence. I also have the volume low which I guess won't help?

Did you try any of the things suggested? Might help someone else having the same problem if something suggested produced a solution

Marine-RX179 · 8 Sep 2015 at 12:39

May be get one of those portable bluetooth receiver thingy, such as Sony SBH20/SBH52 for example, so you would play music via bluetooth rather than phsically connecting your earphones to the phone?

(Though it comes at the cost of your phone battery lasting for not as long, if your typically don't enable bluetooth for your phone).

Makhaira · 8 Sep 2015 at 19:49

Sorry guys, I've tried all of those and have just finished flashing a ROM to the phone to try and different build.

Short version - it's a hardware issue, I'm stuffed.

Longer version - Some googling turns up the fact that I'm not the only one to have experienced this, and it seems to be a hardware issue. This is borne out by the fact that despite trying the apps suggested in this thread, different earphones, etc, it remains. I don't really want to replace my headphones either for the sake of one device.

Marsman · 8 Sep 2015 at 22:15

If you don't mind using an MP3 player for music rather than your phone, then a Sansa Clip is a good budget option if you are not looking to spend a great deal.