I tried experimenting with the bass boost on the iPod. First of all my memory of it is not all that detailed, but I kind of remember the settings either being to wimpy or boosting too high of a frequency, so the bass was not smooth, but instead "boomy" to the point where it would sound more like a thud than smooth bass. Again, this is just my vague recollection. But what I do remember vividly is that the bass was bad and everything sounded flattened and the dynamic range was extremely compressed. I guess it was designed for those wimpy "ear-bud" type of headphones.