Sound quality of Rockbox (Sansa Fuze 2)

[PetrSvetrKilometr]

Hello all,
I have recently installed Rockbox on my Sansa Fuze 2 and I have to thank to all the contributors - great job! Lots of useful features, and just few things I would like another way (maybe I will try to mention or suggest them elsewhere). Nevertheless, there was one, quite crucial, thing that surprised me the bad way: I find the sound worse than that of the original firmware.

Well, it is a very subjective matter, definitely, and maybe I am just fooled by some illusion. It appears to me that the sound of the original firmware is somehow cleaner, more dynamic. To get the same “power” of music, I think I have to play the Rockbox much louder – where my ears stop feeling comfortably – perhaps because of the trebles. Maybe there is something added to the sound that makes it sound differently, somehow flatter, dirty. Or maybe the original firmware has some hidden effects applied? Of course, I could play with the equalizer, but that is a long term task, and what I am comparing here is the basic, unmodified default sound.

I am just curious – is there anybody who feels it the same way?

(I am thinking about recording the output from both the players back to the computer and comparing them (and the original) visually in some kind of sound editing tool… Haven’t you anybody done anything like that?)

[saratoga]

Tests on other units suggest that theres no difference (and indeed I would not expect one), but if you want to be sure run RMAA on your player.  If it gets weird results then maybe we can come up with a fix.

[PetrSvetrKilometr]

I suppose you mean "Right Mark Audio Analyzer" - http://audio.rightmark.org/products/rmaa.shtml. Good, I will try to play with that; it looks interesting.

[Chronon]

Yes, that's the one.