I recently started a thread asking if the 4 GB Clip had more hiss than the 2 GB version i had before. I couldn’t get any positive response so i tried my uncle’s 2 GB Clip and i must admit i was wrong, the 2 GB Clip has also hiss on several tracks. Nothing dramatical of course, as i do have the same kind of hiss when playing those tracks on my computer or my Vaio Pocket.
However when i compared the 4 GB and the 2 GB versions a few details desappointed me.
First the 2 GB Clip’s oled screen is MUCH better than the 4 GB’s, it’s simply much lighter, and the same goes for the blue ring.
Take a look at this picture below
The second and most important difference was the ouput volume, it’s about 20% more powerful on the 2 GB version. It’s no real big deal as the 4 GB is already very powerful (i recently bought a Sony DAP which sucked so much on this point that i had to sell it 1 week later) and honestly, after comparing both at the same ouput volume i couldn’t convince myself that it affected the 4 GB’s sound quality in any way.
On the positive side, the 4 GB Clip looks much better with its mirror screen and its better looking side buttons, so i’m not regretting at all the upgrade :stuck_out_tongue:
Message Edited by mobbaddict on 10-25-2008 06:05 PM
The brightness drop is caused by the silver reflective finish on the inside of the 4GB clip. It was used, as far as I can tell from the other threads in here, to make the screen blend into the front face seamlessly. One side effect was the reduced brightness. However the latest firmware (1.01.30; check the sticky on the forum) bumped up the brightness a bit, by sending more power to the OLED. I also hear they plan to release a 4GB version without this reflective coating, so this won’t be a problem for new customers. I personally don’t mind the reduced brightness. It’s not worse than a mobile or a laptop screen, anyway, so I don’t think it should be a showstopper for most people.
Regarding the volume: there’s an option in Settings->Volume for switching between High and Normal. The European firmware, for example, defaults to Normal, in order to comply to the laws there, I guess. If the volume sounds lower, perhaps that’s the reason.
Are you sure it’s caused by the silver finish? Even in a dark room you can see a big difference… the 2GB Clip is so bright that it can light the room, whereas the 4GB is much less bright. I have the last firmware on both of course.
As for volume i know about the high/normal setting, both Clips were on high volume when i compared.
Message Edited by mobbaddict on 10-26-2008 09:01 AM
Well, that’s what I’ve read in some other threads. There’s no way for me to check, since I only got the 4GB version.
Also, I dunno about the volume… Are the EQ settings the same? I can’t see a reason for the volume levels to be different; it’s the same chip after all. Maybe the two headphone pairs have slightly different response.
