Anyone using their iPhone/iPad as their source?

I know the iPhone and iPads don't have the best DAC, but is anyone using them as your source with headphones or home system? Have you used the lightning to 30 pin connector to get line out?

 

Only as an airplay source, not as a direct connection

 

I have used various iphones for line-out to a portable amp with etymotics ER4, or for foxl speakers; or digital out to dac/amp for headphone or office system when I don't want to hear computer noise. Also used it straight headphone out to etymotic hf5. I have always been pretty happy with it in those circumstances.

 

Not a widely used source in my system but I use my iPhone seated in my iPod dock with a line out jack.

 

An iPhone 6 feeding an iFi iDSD Micro using Onkyo's HF Player sounds very good.

 

Would that have happened to be an iPhone 5 or 6?

With the 5 though 6, it looks like the only way to get line out is with the lightning to 30pin adapter, which has a dac in it. The 4S and older did not need an adapter.

 

It is lineout through the 5. You are correct you need the apple lightning to 30 pin adapter. We got into this in a thread starting here and that thread also gets you to some options regarding digital out via the camera connector kit if you don't buy an apple ready dac.

 

I bought a Focal BluTooth dongle for my integrated amp. I gotta say, Spotify sounds more than adequate...

 

Are you using a 30 pin adapter?

 

I have a 1st gen iPad and I think the dac is quite good. A nice warm sound.

 

No. Lightning Camera Connection kit straight into the Micro. The 30 pin adapter has a tiny DAC to provide the analog out. In my experience, sound quality of the 30 pin adapter DAC is meh.

 

Hmm. I wasn't aware of this method. Very nice.

 

Very cool. Can you use the native music app?

 

Yep, just the phone and some Audio Technica's. Sounds fine to me.

 

Yes. I recommend Onkyo's HF Player app. It will enable sample rates higher than 48khz and DSD.

 

I use an ipod classic plugged into a Nuforce Icon ido in my headphone rig. Love it.

 

Yeah, plugged into the car streaming Spotify at 320k, maybe Tidal in the future. Mmmm…I suppose the connection is digital? The head unit will control the iPhone so it must be Made For iPhone.

 

I have my ipad connected to my Arcam irDAC running spotify 320k. Love it.

 

Most of my weekend listening is from my iPad 3 with an audio cable that plugs into the dock connector, with the other end RCA phono jacks plugged into a Sherwood receiver. Most of the time, I listen through CAD headphones, 320 kbps streaming music from Spotify and Songza.

 

I use an iPod Classic with a Pure I-20 dock. The dock bypass the iPod DAC and let's you use any DAC you want. I really enjoy it.

 

Yup. I have grown tired of the BS the AK100ii has. Great sound. Crap software.

 

That is interesting, I guess the input of that dac is usb male? Is that standard or was it an option? I don't think I have seen any other portable dacs do that. It sure works well with the camera kit cord. By the way for the OP there is more information on how you can connect dacs to iPhones after ios7 here.

 

Yes. That's standard. The Micro supports USB3. Not sure why iFi chose to use a USB-A connector for the unit.

 

In the car, yes. At home, rarely. Mainly due to lack of storage on new models.