IT168 Review With the progress of the times, competition in the mobile phone industry has become more and more intense in the past few years from Android phones to the present. In particular, the maturity of the mobile Internet in the past three years has increased the competition among mobile phones. The manufacturers have used all kinds of tricks, from the hardware competition three years ago to the mobile phone system experience to the so-called feelings now. Each brand has its own persistence and persistence in the concept of mobile phones. Among them, vivo mobile phones can It is said that among Android phones, they are the most obsessed with music.
From music phones to Hi-Fi phones, from individually designed players to essential changes in hardware
I believe many people are familiar with music phones. Since then, most of them have From the Sony Ericsson music phone to the Nokia music phone for the young generation, the one that has persisted till now is the vivo music phone under BBK. When talking about vivo, I believe that many people’s first reaction is music phone. But the fact is that at that time, in the era of music mobile phone melee, when Android audio was still in the chaotic era, not to mention mobile phone Hi-Fi, even normal music playback was a blank market. Although there were countless potential users, From a technical perspective at the time, the root cause was that before Android 4.0, the audio architecture of the Android system itself had serious flaws. Forcing SRC (sampling rate conversion) to 48kHz output made Android’s music functions pale and powerless. Therefore, the music phones of that year not only had no When it comes to HI-FI, even the sound output from mobile phones cannot be guaranteed. Therefore, the music mobile phones at that time only competed for cool appearance and personalized player experience, and did not solve the problem of ear enjoyment at all.
▲The sound from Hi-Fi 1.0 to Hi-Fi 2.0 has a slightly different feeling
Looking back now, vivo has driven tens of millions of product sales every year. Including ESS, Texas Instruments, AKM, YAMAHA, Cirrus Logic, Analog Devices, Wolfson and other seven top audio partners in the world and the development of the entire audio chip industry, the audio chip industry that originally had only a few hundred thousand annual production capacity and sales has become Now the blue ocean industry is close to tens of millions, and it has led many manufacturers to pay attention to Android audio and join mobile phone Hi-Fi. Looking back at the time when vivo proposed a mobile phone sound quality revolution and was questioned by other mobile phone product bosses, now other mobile phone manufacturers have also started to Focus on mobile phone audio, and vivo’s persistence over the years also shows that users affirm this aspect of mobile phone audio.
Now vivo has ushered in the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture in the new product vivo X5Max in the front-end time, and the brave thing is that this Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture is actually the Hi-Fi 1.0 architecture and the existing Android audio All models have been overturned and presented with a completely new architecture.
For Android phone audio, it was still called a music phone a few years ago, but the model that really proposed the concept of Hi-Fi phone should be the vivo V1. Through the VRS technology independently developed by vivo, for the first time It solved the SRC problem of the Android system, but it was not a real Hi-Fi phone in terms of data hardware until the release of vivo X1. As the world's first smartphone with a professional Hi-Fi chip embedded in it, vivo X1 uses the CS4398 CS8422 audio decoding chip combination and MTK platform produced by Cirrus Logic, and then truly transitions from a music phone to a Hi-Fi phone.
▲Data reference of Hi-Fi1.0 X1
▲Data reference of Hi-Fi2.0 X5Max
vivo designed on Hi-Fi 2.0 The new secondary power supply system, in addition to the DCDC DC boost in the Hi-Fi 1.0 era, also adds a new LDO secondary power supply, that is, a low-voltage linear regulated power supply, which greatly reduces circuit ripple, making Hi-Fi The current stability of 2.0 has been greatly improved, resulting in a smoother sound and less distortion. If current is compared to water flow, the Hi-Fi 1.0 architecture only pumps out water, solving the problem of no water to drink, while Hi-Fi 2.0 adds a filtration system and a pipeline system to stabilize the water pressure for the pumped water. Making it a truly healthy and convenient high-quality drinking water, the secondary power supply system enables mobile phones with originally weak power supply capabilities to reach the same power supply standards as professional Hi-Fi equipment, giving mobile phone Hi-Fi a good power supply foundation.
▲Hi-Fi 2.0
The second-level amplification means that the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture will be equipped with two operational amplifier chips, using the operational amplifier with the strongest electronic performance. The front-stage op amp is responsible for current-to-voltage conversion, and the op amp with the best taste and strongest driving ability is used as the post-stage op amp, which is responsible for power amplification and driving headphones. The two-stage operational amplifier works together to reduce signal loss during processing and make the sound noise floor cleaner. In addition, and more importantly, it has Hi-Fi 2.0 with two-level amplification. You can choose two op amps with complementary styles to collaboratively modulate the taste of the sound, thereby achieving a more perfect and high-quality sound.
▲Secondary power supply system
So, with this theoretical foundation, vivo uses X5Max to present Hi-Fi 2.0 to us for the first time: using an optimized While designing the new version of ES9018 K2M online, the SABER ES9601, which has the strongest electronic performance and is exclusively customized and supplied by vivo and ESS companies, is used as the preamplifier, which is responsible for current and voltage conversion. This is the key to realizing the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture. , because it contains multiple cores, the theoretical distortion is lower than -122dB, and its performance is almost the strongest among all operational amplifiers. Without it, 2-3 more operational amplifier chips of the same type are needed to implement the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture; and Use TI's top operational amplifier OPA1612, which has the best sound and the strongest drive, as the post-stage operational amplifier, which is responsible for amplifying the analog signal power and driving the headphones. This chip is an upgraded version of OPA2604 and is completely customized for mobile phones. In addition, the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture of vivo X5Max is also equipped with the most luxurious supporting circuits: 8 high-end NPO capacitors and 10 thin film resistors, and an independent clock crystal is added, which reduces the average distortion of vivo X5Max by 10dB, almost equivalent to Compared with the total distortion reduction of all products from vivo X1 to vivo Xplay3S.
▲SABRE ES9601 is used as a preamplifier
▲Second-level amplification to make the sound cleaner
It is understood that the measured objective audio of vivo X5Max The data is 120dB signal-to-noise ratio, 118dB dynamic range, and distortion below -100dB. This indicator has actually surpassed most desktop and brick-type Hi-Fi players, and the objective audio quality is more than twice that of the previous model.
In the Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture, the ideas of front and rear operational amplifiers, dual power supply systems and professional Hi-Fi packages are the same. Under this architecture, vivo no longer focuses on maximizing individual indicators. Rather, it pursues an overall improvement in sound quality. The improvement in sound quality brought about by structural innovation is by no means comparable to simply good indicators. This is also the meaning of Hi-Fi 2.0. I believe that Hi-Fi 2.0 will soon become the Hi-Fi standard for the entire mobile phone. The birth of the guiding standard and benchmark for the Fi industry has also rebuilt the order of mobile phone Hi-Fi, so that future mobile phone Hi-Fi will completely break away from the pure transplantation of Hi-Fi 1.0, but will adopt a more scientific, comprehensive and healthy approach. architecture to improve the Hi-Fi sound quality of mobile phones, thereby truly reaching the Hi-Fi category.
From a simple explanation of the hardware data, this means that Hi-Fi 2.0 has a certain improvement in mobile phone audio. Mobile phones equipped with Hi-Fi 2.0 architecture will have better sound than Hi-Fi 1 .0 or a mobile phone without audio, the sound is cleaner and purer, the vocal details and musical instrument realism are better restored, and it can also handle high-impedance headphones.
Click to view the next page: Personal subjective listening experience sharing about Hi-Fi 2.0
Personal listening experience sharing reference
Looking at Hi-Fi from the hardware data Fi 2.0 does have a good performance on mobile phones. What is the author's actual listening experience? I took X5Max for more than a week to listen to. During the audition process, due to the publicity, I did not choose too much. Instead of using high-end headphones, I chose a pair of mid-to-low-end headphones such as Deepsea's MX985, Sony 1R, vivo's latest official version of XE800 and the standard XE600i for audition.
▲The actual listening experience after putting aside the hardware data
▲Barcarolle and Hotel California
In more than a week, the types of songs listened to There are quite a lot of them. At the same time, I also selected some more classic songs for audition. I will share with you two songs that impressed me deeply, "Barcarolle" and "Hotel California". These two songs are easier to listen to during the audition. It can be concluded that the difference between Hi-Fi2.0 and Hi-Hi1.0 is also obvious compared with other mobile phones.
When listening to "Barcarolle" using the Deepsea MX985, it was already significantly different from other mobile phones. When the Hi-Fi 2.0 mode was turned on, the sound of running water in the prelude was clean and clear, as if it were running water. Right before our eyes, the sound of drums was introduced into the music. The drums were powerful and full of elasticity. When the male voice sang, the details of the sibilance were clear and appropriate. By the middle of the music, the female voice's harmony part was also layered. Clear, soft and delicate, without any ambiguity.
The performance of the song "Hotel California" also seemed quite professional. The applause sounded clearly and clearly, the elastic guitar sound seemed to be playing right next to the ears, and the separation between the left and right channels sounded... It is like a professional Hi-Fi equipment output, clear and clean. For the vocal part, the slightly hoarse voice of the lead singer of the Eagles seems to be echoing in a small restaurant. There is an appropriate sense of separation between the various sounding instruments and the vocals. You can feel the rhythm of the scene and the atmosphere of the scene throughout the music, which many mobile phones cannot express.
These two songs can fully reflect the charm of Hi-Fi 2.0, which is basically infinitely close to the feeling of most Hi-Fi equipment, no matter in terms of sound quality, timbre or transparency analysis. , the ratio of instruments and vocals and the weight of the frequency band are quite close to the feeling of entry-level Hi-Fi equipment.
Of course, in order to better reflect the advantages of Hi-Fi 2.0 sound, as one of vivo’s flagship earbuds, XE800 ushered in the latest version of XE800. The new version of XE800 is indeed better than the original old version of XE800. There is a significant improvement. The high frequency is smoother and sweeter, and the low frequency is more powerful than the old version. The overall quality is better than that of Sony 1R, and the Hi-Fi feeling is more obvious.
▲The overall performance of Hi-Fi 2.0, which has the best performance in popular music, is infinitely close to that of Hi-Fi equipment. However, if we want to say a shortcoming, it is that the sound field and low-frequency extension are slightly inferior. Although some The performance of the live concert repertoire is very good, but the performance of symphonic classical music with pure instruments is still a bit different from professional equipment. Although there is no obvious sound of instruments sticking together when listening to the symphony, the overall sense of space is still there. It will be adjusted later for system upgrade and optimization. The biggest advantage of Hi-Fi 2.0 is the performance of vocal details and the separation of vocals and musical instruments. Therefore, it can be said to be the best in pop music, especially in the genre of fever hits. Overall The performance is comparable to professional entry-level Hi-Fi, and there are still some differences compared to other mobile phones.
As for the matching headphones, many netizens on the Internet have questioned that if you want to enjoy good music, you must have good headphones. For the author, I can actually listen to it using the headphones that come standard with the X5Max. To find out the difference between turning on Hi-Fi mode or not, of course it is better to have higher-end headphones to enjoy, because X5Max can push high-impedance headphones, but as far as the author is concerned, it is enough to have similar headphones. The most important thing The price is just right for you, not necessarily professional headphones.
How does it compare to the performance of professional player X5Max?
▲Compared to professional players
Compared to professional portable players, although the X5Max with Hi-Fi2.0 is better than the professional recorder Sony D50 There is still a certain difference, especially in the restoration of real sound. X5Max still inevitably has a slight "MSG" taste, and it still lacks a bit of pure feeling in terms of actual listening experience, but for other players, it shows The sound is still worthy of recognition, especially the atmosphere of the song, as well as the clear layering and elastic low frequency.
▲Of course, the biggest advantage is online music and the advantages of being a mobile phone
Although X5Max is still a little far behind professional equipment, it cannot be denied that Hi-Fi2 .0 is infinitely close to professional equipment. Of course, in terms of size and practicality, X5Max is still like previous music phones, with its own unique appearance and design, and its own personality in player experience. , but we must not forget that compared to heavy players, X5Max is the thinnest mobile phone in the world, and it can also access the Internet and have its own song library, which seems to be more in line with the enjoyment of the public's ears.
▲BEE can customize the sound effects of your choice
Hi-Fi2.0 also has the advantage of sound effect settings. For users with different preferences, they can customize the sound effects they like. sound effects.
▲Music mobile phone, the last thing that persists is a kind of persistence for sound
Summary: As for the sense of hearing, each sound enters each ear, the sense of hearing part is only for reference, and Regardless of the hardware data or the actual listening experience, the author has to admire the persistence of music phones. After so many years of baptism, vivo has persisted, and in actual use, it can really feel the audio quality of the mobile phone. Progress, from simple music phones to the current Hi-Fi phones, during the period of use, just like the author used the IOS system back then, once the ears have enjoyed it for a period of time, if they want to go back to the previous sound effects, they will feel It's hard. For Hi-Fi, the development over the years has to admit the progress of mobile phones in one module. Whether it is portability or practicality, mobile phones have great advantages. At the same time, the Hi-Fi 2.0 equipped on X5Max In terms of high fidelity, both from the data point of view and the actual listening experience, the music can be restored more realistically, so I think playing audio on mobile phones is still reliable, and I believe it will be more reliable in the future.