Solve Problems With Too Much Bass On Homepod For Mac
The reason I spend so much time knocking down dumb Apple FUD is because all those click-bait headlines do is drown out the real issues facing the company, now and into the future. I focus on those issues year-round in all of my reviews and editorials. Once a year, though, I try to break out what I think are the most current and most critical. Last year, that included everything from. The year before,. This year, I'm focusing on something bigger.
A reckoning of sorts. Apple has grown enormously over the last decade. That's created cultural and technical debt. And, as we go into 2018, it feels like a lot of that debt is coming due. Extracting signal from noise. I'll keep this one short and bitter-sweet: As a customer, I don't know the status of iPod touch or iPad mini.
I don't know if Mac mini has been abandoned or not. I have no idea if there'll be a next-generation AirPort router. If Apple hadn't gotten a small group of media together last spring, I would have no idea if the last Mac Pro really was the last Mac Pro. These products have not been significantly updated in years yet they're still being sold.
Apple hasn't discontinued any of them but it also hasn't shown any sign of them being continued. Apple typically doesn't talk about future products. It leaves the old product up, unchanged, until a new product comes along to replace it. And that works, when we're talking a year, maybe two at the outside.
When we're talking multiple products over multiple years, it stops working. Apple typically doesn't talk about future products. It leaves the old product up, unchanged, until a new product comes along to replace it. Are these products not being updated because they don't sell or do they not sell because they aren't being updated?
As a customer, I have no idea. And, absent a clear path forward, it makes it hard for me to consider investing in them. Apple has limited resources. It has conflicting priorities. It has to choose between updating the Mac mini and getting the much more popular MacBook Pro out the door. It has to decide between keeping iPod touch current and shipping the make-it-or-break-it iPhone X.
But, if a product is up for sale, Apple has a responsibility to its customers to maintain the value and relevancy of that product. Otherwise, the company famous for its caring just seems like it doesn't care.
Foundations for the future. Apple's and its customers have had a bad end-of-the-year. There have been a number of security problems, including root/blank on macOS and issues with HomeKit on iOS. There have been a number of bugs, including December 2 springboard crashes on iPhone and a problem with captive Wi-Fi portals interfering with LTE access on Apple Watch. To cap it all off, Apple's solution to preventing older iPhones with bad batteries from shutting off made it impossible for customers to tell that they had battery issues at all.
Maybe the timing is just a coincidence. More often than not, though, coincidence is simply a lack of pattern recognition. Some of these, like root/blank are just bone-headed and never should have shipped. Others, like adding the battery controller to the existing list of things that could throttle performance are far more complicated and boil down to communication more than engineering. All of them have shaken trust in Apple's quality assurance program and, for some, in Apple itself.
It's tough to say how it will play out. Previously, any misstep by a company could cause long-lasting damage to their reputation or prospects. Last year, Samsung phones literally exploded — this year it sold more Galaxy phones than ever.
Our attention span is zero. Now, we live in an age of zero attention span and infinite affinity. Last year, Samsung literally had phones exploding in people's hands and, not only did some customers not want them recalled, they wanted the next version as fast as possible. Likewise, Sony, Lenovo, and HP have been caught putting rootkits or executing person-in-the-middle attacks against their own customers in an effort to scratch out a few more licensing or ad dollars off the backs of those customers.
And those customers still can't wait to buy their next laptop. So, I really don't know what we're teaching these companies about how they can treat us anymore.
It's possible some people will change their buying or usage patterns as a result of Apple's missteps. It's also possible that if iPhone X was released next month instead of last, every single one of them — and more — would flock to it just as fast if not faster. But that's our problem. Apple's problem is figuring out not just how to fix all these issues but how to prevent itself from getting into so many of them to begin with.
Ultimately: Scaling. All of the issues I've outlined above are really facets of the same problem: scaling. Once upon a time, Apple made desktop computers. Now, Apple makes computers for your desk, lap, living room, hands, pockets, wrists, and ears. And they're working on more.
They're also working on everything that runs and plays on all those computers, both in terms of software and services. Yet, through it all, Apple has maintained its functional organization and small, focused team-based approach. Our greatest strength is often our greatest weakness. So too, Apple's culture. It's what lets the company do so much but what also causes so much to be left undone.
I'm not one of the people who thinks Apple needs to abandon its past to better serve the future. I don't think Apple needs to or should become IBM or GE. I think Apple can have its culture and scale it too.
But I think it's got to do a much, much better job shoring up its foundations as it keeps building. Apple can have its culture and scale it too — but it has to shore up its foundations. It shouldn't take a come-to-Jesus moment to get us to the next Mac Pro and Pro Display. It shouldn't be three or more years without Mac mini refreshes or Continuity for media.
Siri still shouldn't feel like there's one server on the farm that just can't handle questions and we all hit it randomly a few times a day or week. It shouldn't take HomePod to get AV rock solid. It shouldn't take the worst possible headlines to get Apple to properly explain battery-based throttling. And it absolutely shouldn't take root/blank and other exploits being posted in public to get the security teams engaged and quality assurance overhauled. For a company so good at fusing efficiency cores with performance cores, wide angle with telephoto lenses, local storage with online, SSD with HDD — and making sure it fills the gaps at the bottom left by profound increases at the top — it makes me wonder if a similar approach couldn't work for Apple itself. Continue to let the teams run as fast as they can and work on all the new features that Apple and customers want to see. But slide in other teams behind them that focus exclusively on maintaining and improving what's already there.
These are all growing pains. The problems that come with a company based on focus having to focus on multiple things at the same time.
They're problems of scale. But unless Apple wants to go back to only making one or two products, its the core problem Apple absolutely has to solve in 2018.
Solve Problems With Too Much Bass On Homepod For Mac 2017
The Homepod has a simple silhouette that allows it to blend into any setting. One of the more exciting new categories in audio comes in the form of. After the surprise hit that was the, it seemed that every company was trying to put a speaker in your home. But they didn’t always sound good. The original was like the Echo in that it wasn’t exactly built for listening to music, it was made to be the central hub of your smart home (assuming you installed smart door locks, thermostats, and light bulbs).
But now we’re seeing the transition from helpful kitchen assistant to the center of your home entertainment system. We already looked at the, but there is also the to consider. Unlike the Home Max, the Apple Homepod is pretty small and has a few significant limitations. But does that even matter? Let’s find out in our Apple HomePod review. Who’s it for. Someone who owns Apple hardware (iPhone, iPad, Mac).
Actually, this part is mandatory. It’s usually easier to get the most out of an Apple product if you already have another Apple product. Just look at Airdrop for an example.
But in the case of the Apple Homepod, having another Apple device is basically mandatory. Without a Mac, iPhone, or iPad, the Homepod. Apple Music subscribers. If you’re an Apple Music subscriber, this speaker is perfect for you. You can ask Siri to play everything from that new Miley Cyrus song to jock jams, and it’ll oblige seamlessly. If you’re not an Apple Music subscriber, then keep reading because getting this speaker to do what you want might be an issue. Anyone that doesn’t want Google tracking them, but don’t mind Apple doing it. If you’re not too happy about the fact that Google has a record of everything you ask the Google Home, then the added privacy of the Apple Homepod might just be the deciding factor for you. Of course, it’s only a little better.
They’re still recording you, but your inquiries are assigned a instead of being associated with your account. Also, the legal implications of having something in your home that’s always listening are still being debated. We spoke about this topic extensively in our titled, “Smart Speakers, A New Legal Frontier” so make sure to give that a listen if you’re interested in learning more about the subject. How do you connect to the Apple Homepod? Up top is a touch-sensitive pad for controls that also lights up when you say the hotword. The Apple Homepod is a smart speaker, which means you have to connect it to your WiFi if you want it to work. Once you plug it in you’ll need a device running iOS 8 or higher in order to set it up.
Go into the Home app and simply follow the instructions to get it up and running. If you’re doing this on an iPhone or iPad, the process is seamless and you’ll be done within minutes. But if you’re an Android user or don’t have any device running iOS 8 or newer: then you’re up a creek without a paddle. Unlike Google’s Home Max which doesn’t really care what phone you have, the Apple Homepod requires another Apple device to get it up and running. Once you sign into Apple Music, you’re good to go—just ask it to play a song and it’ll oblige. Which brings us to the second major downside of the Apple Homepod.
It only pulls music from Apple Music service. If you use any other you’re out of luck. Additionally, there’s no 3.5mm input on the device, so you can’t sidestep this by connecting an audio cable. One way around this is to Airplay audio to the speaker, but again: that’s only if you have an iOS device, as Airplay devices.
One cool feature of Airplay 2 is the ability to sync up two Homepods and turn them into left and right channels. Unfortunately, we only had one Homepod available so we weren’t able to test this feature out for ourselves. For playback controls you’ll get the plus or minus signs for volume, and the space between can be tapped for pausing. One good thing about the Apple Homepod is the microphones do a great job at picking up your voice, which is important as that’s the main way to control playback if you’re not within arms reach.
Whether volume was on ten percent or on 100 percent, it usually picked up my voice on the first or second try of saying the hotword. This is great when you compare it to something like the which had trouble picking up my voice when music was playing loudly even if I was standing close to it. If you don’t feel like using your voice, there is a touch-sensitive pad on top of the speaker which lets you pause or play music by tapping the middle, adjust volume by pressing the minus or plus signs, and even access Siri by long-pressing the middle of the pad. The only cable you have to worry about with the Homepod is the power supply cable on the back.
For the most part, the build quality of this speaker is great. It’s covered entirely by a plush fabric that hides most, if not all, of the plastic that the speaker is surely made out of.
I have basically nothing negative to say about the way this speaker is put together. And although I do find the minimal design to be absolutely gorgeous when it’s sitting on my counter-top or bedside table, I did find the placement of the touch-sensitive screen on top of the speaker to be more inconvenient than it was helpful. As would say, let me explain. The fabric surrounding the speaker is padded and easy to move from one place to another, assuming you don’t mind unplugging it to do it. Every time you say “Hey Siri,” the Siri graphic appears on the touch-sensitive display letting you know that it heard you and is now listening for your next command. It’s useful when you’re standing next to it, but if you’re across the room it’s almost impossible to tell if the speaker heard you.
More than once I ended up repeating the hotword at the same time that Siri was answering my question just because I didn’t realize it heard me. In contrast, the Google Home Max has four lights embedded in the fabric on the front of the speaker that light up to let you know it’s listening. The Amazon Echo does something similar with its ring of light. The Apple Homepod basically asks you to trust that it’s working (which is a good metaphor for Apple products in general actually).
To be fair, more often than not the microphone picks up my voice perfectly fine—but a slight visual cue would be nice. But how does it sound? This is where things get interesting. Like the Google Home Max, the Homepod also has microphones inside that self-adjust the EQ depending on how close it is to a wall or other objects so that the sound stays relatively constant throughout using it.
If you place a speaker near a corner, the low end gets a nice boost from bouncing around. The microphones can hear that this is the case, and then tone down the bass notes to maintain a reliable sound. As was the case with the Google Home Max, I can’t really prove that it’s doing this. But I can say that whether the speaker was in a corner on my counter or in the middle of a room, I couldn’t hear any meaningful differences between the two.
The Apple Homepod isn’t a large speaker, so its low end isn’t going to be overwhelming like it is with the Google Home Max. It also doesn’t get as loud as the Google Home Max, but both of these traits work to its advantage. There’s still a strong enough bass where it’s easy enough to follow the bassline all throughout the song Let It Happen by Tame Impala, but it isn’t strong enough that it gets in the way of any of the vocals or other instruments in the lower mids. Bass kicks easily pulse along underneath the synths and keeps the rhythm easily felt, but it definitely isn’t as powerful as something like the Google Home Max. Not to make it seem like the Home Max is a bass-hungry monster, but the Homepod definitely seems like it’s holding back at times in order to put equal emphasis on other elements besides just bass.
Vocals in the song Send Me a Peach by The Blasting Company has plenty of clarity and the backing bass vocals never mask what’s going on. When it comes to highs, the Homepod also shows a good amount of control. Highs definitely seem underemphasized a bit in order to avoid harshness, but there’s also a slight push in a few narrow bands so that cymbals can still be made out even if they’re lacking in prominence.
A good example of this are all of the cymbals crashes in the song Step Out by Jose Gonzalez which can be plainly heard all throughout the chorus, even if they sound almost muffled when compared to, say a good pair of open-back headphones. The fabric surrounding the speaker is padded and easy to move from one place to another, assuming you don’t mind unplugging it to do it. The only cable you have to worry about with the Homepod is the power supply cable on the back. The touchpad is made of a glossy plastic that might not a good wiping down every now and then. For playback controls you’ll get the plus or minus signs for volume, and the space between can be tapped for pausing.
Up top is a touch-sensitive pad for controls that also lights up when you say the hotword. The HomePod has a simple silhouette that allows it to blend into any setting. Final Thoughts and competitors When it comes down to it, I have no problem saying that the Apple Homepod is the best sounding smart speaker I’ve heard. And yes, that includes the.
The doesn’t have the same bass-heavy response that manufacturers tend to be leaning towards, but I personally like that. By keeping things tastefully focused on sound quality and not mass-appeal tuning, music is much clearer-sounding. The Home Max has a more “consumer friendly” sound with a bigger bass response that I think more people will enjoy, plus the Google Assistant is light years ahead of Siri.
When it comes down to it, the Homepod has far too many limitations to recommend to most people. It’s actually impossible to recommend to anyone who doesn’t have at least one device in the Apple ecosystem, and unless you’re a subscriber to Apple Music it will never work as seamlessly as you’d want it to. If you’re already neck-deep in the Apple ecosystem, you might like this speaker. But it’s still worth looking into the Google Home Max or even something like the before you make your final choice. The still provides good sound, has a trustworthy ecosystem backing it up and promises support for all the major voice assistants. It isn’t exactly a smart speaker, but it’s close enough.
But heck, if you’re already in the Apple ecosystem: none of this matters anyway. You’re just going to buy the Homepod anyway, right?