iPad Pro Are the M4 speakers that bad?

[smorrissey]

I've seen a video and read a couple of comments regarding this issue. Some people is a downgrade, muffled, muddy sound.

Are they that bad? i was willing to buy a new one but i'm not interested in a downgrade from my old ipad pro 10.5.

Minute 1:05, the guy says that they sound the same but they obviously don't.

 

[Rafterman]

I don't hear a problem at all, compared to the M2.

 

[richard371]

13” sounds better. I had both. the mbp always sounds the best with it 6 speakers but look how thick it is.

 

[Shirasaki]

Thinner iPad means less room for a powerful speaker. Apple can’t beat physics.

 

[Shirasaki]

13” sounds better. I had both. the mbp always sounds the best with it 6 speakers but look how thick it is.

Yeah but iPad can’t be that thick just for speaker either.

 

[axantas]

The sound is not muffled. I compared my old 11” M1 with the new 11” M4.
My standard song for checks “That’s the way it is” from Phil Collins. The M4 simply lacks a bit of the basses from the M1. No complaints about the rest of the sound from my side. It sounds great. And as it was already mentioned: It is all about physics.

 

[alecgold]

It doesn’t sound bad, but it’s not an audiophile’s system. It’s a thin iPad, so if you want better sound, invest in cans or in decent speakers

 

[smorrissey]

I know it doesn't but my question is more regarding the downgrade side. My speakers of my old 10.5 are fantastic and apparently this new one is definitely a downgrade which is sad...

Having said that i have not too many options i skipped the M2 11inches because of the LCD screen in comparison to the 13 mini led one.

Almost two years later screen is not a problem but sound is...sigh...

 

[Lobwedgephil]

I know it doesn't but my question is more regarding the downgrade side. My speakers of my old 10.5 are fantastic and apparently this new one is definitely a downgrade which is sad...

Having said that i have not too many options i skipped the M2 11inches because of the LCD screen in comparison to the 13 mini led one.

Almost two years later screen is not a problem but sound is...sigh...

Just try it yourself, probably not much difference from what you are coming from. My 13 inch a bit softer, but a little clearer.

 

[DarkSorrow82]

The sound on my M4 iPad Pro 13in sounds good to me.

 

[asleep]

Some people is a downgrade, muffled, muddy sound. Are they that bad?

Minute 1:05, the guy says that they sound the same but they obviously don't.

Not muffled, not muddy at all. My steady state listening, the volume is higher on the scale than before but at 100% it measures 1db less than prior model. So I think it’s more a volume scaling thing. Spoken voice is quite good for me.

Doesn’t have as much of the mid bass hump everybody puts into handheld devices. I actually personally dislike that mid bass hump that’s so ubiquitous in all kinds of speakers, but side-by-side most people will prefer the bumped bass.

Internal iPhone and iPad speakers are not what you want to be listening to for quality sound. If it’s important to you, get some IEM or headphones or earbuds or external speakers.

 

[Isengardtom]

They M1’s were slightly better, but these are still very good speakers.

 

[Shirasaki]

My speakers of my old 10.5 are fantastic and apparently this new one is definitely a downgrade which is sad...

Also there have been multiple generations between your 10.5” iPad Pro and today’s M4 iPad Pro, meaning age can also affect the hearing and perceived sound quality. There is a chance the downgrade you hear is because you are getting older, not necessarily just because M4 iPad Pro becomes thinner thus having a tinier speaker by design.

 

[Webcat86]

Honestly I never understood complaints about computer speakers. They work. You will have no problem listening to entertainment nor having video calls.

In that sense, they're sufficient. But they will never be great. Anyone who wants a really good listening experience and audio quality unavoidably needs to use headphones or a dedicated speaker. There is no way around this, and a 2mm thicker iPad will not change it.

 

[RobinNL]

They sound better than my old 2018 pro. Definitely more “spatial”, noticed it straight away watching a movie.

 

[NARadyk]

No. They’re perfectly fine and for those doing serious media consumption, I would assume they are more often than not using some kind of earphone/headphone anyway.

 

[MayaUser]

Thinner iPad means less room for a powerful speaker. Apple can’t beat physics.

you always can "beat physics" if in the first place in a thicker device you place bad speakers...look at thick gaming windows laptops vs thinner Mbp , you can say apple "beat physics compared to windows" ...so we dont know if this is the limit of how good speakers can be in that envelope or Apple deliberated left some room to improve for the next gen

 

[Jackbequickly]

My 13" sounds great!

 

[Surfsalot]

My 13" sounds great!

Do you use the iPad more than your iMac?

 

[Jackbequickly]

Do you use the iPad more than your iMac?

Absolutely! My iPad is, by far, my most used Apple product. If something happened to my iPad, it would be replaced the same day.

 

[colinw123]

For me there is a clear lack of detail in the mids and highs on the new m4 iPads. i have done a lot of comparisons with my M1 11" and its night and day the difference, you can notice it straight away.
I have both sizes and the 11" is worse.

 

[ZombiePete]

They’re fine. There’s a little less bass, but yesterday I was playing some songs loudly for my teenager and I thought it sounded pretty good. Obviously better to use a good pair of headphones but the speakers are perfectly functional.

 

[Zimmy68]

No, not bad, but definitely a step down from the last version.

 

[mario-64]

Coming from a M1 IPP they are definitely weaker in volume and lack fullness & punch. There are consequences to going thinner. Can't get around physics.

 

[jazz1]

Coming from a M1 IPP they are definitely weaker in volume and lack fullness & punch. There are consequences to going thinner. Can't get around physics.

I agree. But I rarely use the built-in speakers and rely on headphones. Too bad though, my M1 did have fuller sounding speakers.