[brachiator]

Does anyone know what the frequency response of the iPod (version 3) is, at relatively low to mid volumes?

I was told that unlike headphones, which are supposedly rated for frequency response at full volume range, audio players are rated at full volume output, to the point of distortion, which tends to yield a relatively narrow frequency response range. In contrast, because headphones are rated at
full volume range, not full output, they have a wider range. The idea being that audio players can actually handle a much wider frequency range than their ratings would suggest, assuming 1) the headphones will handle them, and 2) the volume is kept at a comfortably low level.

Can anyone confirm this?

The iPod is rated at 20h-20khz, but if the above is accurate, this is the full blast volume range, and the low/mid volume range should be wider. Does anyone know what the wider range actually is?

Thanks!

[Graymalkin]

Download Audacity and you can find out for yourself. Generate a couple tones at frequencies you want to test and save the file as an AIFF. Hook the iPod up to some nice speakers and see what the results are. Be aware however of the Shannon limit, the highest frequency signal you can even play will be 24KHz because the highest sample rate available on an iPod is 48KHz.

[G4ME]

i know for a fact that it can reporduce practicly any freq lower then 20hz, i was running some sin tones to equalize my tempest sub, and i had a 14hz, 16hz, 18hz, it played it fine.

why do you want to go above 20K you trying to call your dog with a supper tweeter? same for the lowend? listening to organ music and explosions?

[brachiator]

Originally posted by G4ME:
i know for a fact that it can reporduce practicly any freq lower then 20hz, i was running some sin tones to equalize my tempest sub, and i had a 14hz, 16hz, 18hz, it played it fine.

why do you want to go above 20K you trying to call your dog with a supper tweeter? same for the lowend? listening to organ music and explosions?

Organ music and explosions! -- I don't have a dog.

I'm mostly interested in the low end. My new headphones are rated for 5hz, and I'd like to see if that is a tone I could even hear, and if the iPod could play it.

I used Audacity as Graymalkin had suggested, to generate some AIFFs at 5hz, 10hz, 15hz, and 20hz.

I assume that I am listening for an even and consistent tone, not one that pulses? I can hear this with the 20hz file from the iPod to the headphones, also on the 15hz and maybe the 10, but with the 5hz file (and maybe the 10hz) I don't hear anything until I turn up the volume so hight that I get this slow, pulsed on/off tone.

[Graymalkin]

A 5Hz sine wave is going to sound like a very quiet washing machine spin cycle. To hear a 5Hz tone at low volumes is damn near impossible regardless of your speakers, the human ear isn't sensitive enough to pick up low tones at low volume. You find tones like that all over the place in nature and never notice them. Seismic activity routinely exposes you to extremely low tones that your ear and body simply can't pick up because of the extraordinarily low amplitude.

[brachiator]

Originally posted by Graymalkin:
A 5Hz sine wave is going to sound like a very quiet washing machine spin cycle. To hear a 5Hz tone at low volumes is damn near impossible regardless of your speakers, the human ear isn't sensitive enough to pick up low tones at low volume. You find tones like that all over the place in nature and never notice them. Seismic activity routinely exposes you to extremely low tones that your ear and body simply can't pick up because of the extraordinarily low amplitude.

OK, thanks, Graymalkin. I won't worry about it any more then. But Audacity is pretty cool!