Smartphone DAC recommentdations

As the title suggests, with the advent of smartphones no longer sporting headphone jacks (Samsung's latest Note models now doing away with them), I'm now on the lookout for a good DAC attachment which will accommodate those Hi-Res files I've been playing through my phone. Sure, I do own wireless headphones which do sound great but with the fact that wired connections are arguably of a better standard, I'm going to be going back to the old fashioned way very soon.

At the moment, I'm kinda leaning towards this iBasso DC-02 adapter. Seemed the predecessor the DC-01 had issues with the more recent Samsung models so I'm hoping the 02 won't have any dramas with the new Note 10+ I'll be picking up soon. Strange that the new models don't come with an adapter either apparently.

I've also seen the Dragonfly Red and Cobalt USB adapters as well but atm, I'm just going to be using this for my headphones. Granted, Bluetooth has been of a convenience but time to go back to wired from now on...

 

OPPO HA-2

 

Chord Mojo

 

I'm in a similar situation. I got a Pixel 3 a few months ago. No more headphone jack. I've been trying to figure out how to best deal with this situation.

I currently have the Google USB-C dongle that came with the Pixel 3, the Apple USB-C dongle that's about $10, and HIDIZS Sonata HD DAC dongle that's about $35. The HIDIZS dongle sounds like ass. Don't buy it. It sounds harsh and sounds even more harsh the louder you play it. I got it because it had more power (60 mW). But what's the use of more power if it sounds worse and worse as you increase the volume? The Apple and Google dongles don't have enough power to drive the headphones I want to use. So they're non-starter right out of the gate.

I've been considering the iBasso dongles. Both the DC01 and DC02. They both reportedly work fine with the Pixel 3. No known compatibility issues.

I got to demo a DC02 a week ago at a meet. Specs say it is 0.9 mV at 32 ohms which works out to about 25 mW. 25 mW isn't a lot but it got my Oppo PM-2 headphones loud enough and still sounded fine at full volume. If it's only 25 mW it's a high quality 25 mW. I still heard dynamics compression going on. So I'd prefer more watts for more headroom. But for a dongle for this sort of use I consider it adequate sound quality.

The iBasso DC01 is a balanced headphone dongle. It requires the use of headphones that are wired for balanced with a 2.5 mm TRRS connector. So any headphones you use with it would need to be specially wired. Its specs say it does 113 mW at 32 ohms. Quite a bit more than the DC02. And would likely give me the headroom I'm looking for when driving the Oppo PM-2 headphones. But would require that I buy balanced cables for every headphone that I want to use with it. My estimate is that it would require that I buy about $300 worth of cables and adapters to use it. So that $79 dongle would end up costing me about $379 total. Suddenly it's not much of a bargain.

I'm very much considering buying the iBasso DC02 so I have a convenient headphone jack for my Pixel 3 and other USB-C devices. It will work well enough for convenience uses where I don't want to bring along a bigger portable amp/DAC.

My thinking with the DC01 is that if it's going to cost me $300 in cables I might as well just get the iFi xDSD for $399 to get more power for my more power hungry headphones. The iFi xDSD won't require me to buy any new cables. And it has some additional features like the ability to link to my phone or Chromebook or tablet or laptop using Bluetooth. Having no wire connected to the device I'm using can be a convenience at times, even though Bluetooth means reduced sound quality. It would be a way to make my Oppo PM-2 headphones "wireless". So that's likely the way I'll go.

What it looks like I'll be doing is an iBasso DC02 dongle and an iFi xDSD to get a portable friendly headphone jack in these new fangled devices that don't include a stock headphone jack.

 

Another vote for the Chord Mojo.

 

Hmm, a few options there. Dunno if I want to actually take an amplifier on the plane but if it's really worth it, heck why not?

 

I dislike this latest smart-phone trend of eliminating the headphone jacks. I detest dongles and I'll take a slightly thicker phone without the stupid dongle any day of the week.

 

Get the LG V30 phone. The DAC is very good.

Ot get tge Mojo... It is a special device.

 

I don't like losing the headphone jack on so many devices either. But it's the future. Ready or not, that future is going to happen to us.

The good side about USB-C dongles is that once you get a reasonably good one it will be useful on other devices as well. Buy it because your phone has no headphone jack, but as a bonus you'll also get to use it on a Chromebook to get a better quality headphone output, on the laptop, on the tablet.

 

I just dislike dongles in principle. To me dongles represent a major step backwards, not forwards. It reminds me of the bad old days when I had to have both an Ethernet dongle, and modem dongle on my early laptops. I was thrilled when they finally started integrating these peripherals into laptops.

Having an audio dongle means that when I connect my phone to my headphone amp at work it becomes super-easy to forget the dongle on those occasions when I have to jump onto a plane. And then I don't have tunes.

 

Firstly, you have to decide which features/sampling rates are important to you.

Secondly, are you thinking of a portable solution, or transportable solution? For me, portable means something small like the Dragonfly you mentioned. Transportable means something larger (say cigarette packet size, or larger) that could fit in a pocket if needed, but is more likely to be tossed in a bag, and used on a table/tray in a plane, train, office, etc.

Thirdly, you have to think about user interface/volume control/etc. Do you have to pull something out of your pocket to see a screen, etc., or are the controls intuitive?

Fourthly, what sort of headphones/IEMs does the device have to drive? As Ham Sandwich has pointed out, no point getting something cute and dainty if it won't drive your power-hungry 600 ohm cans! This also has a bearing on battery life, of course, so if you want a lot of hours of uninterrupted listening, you need efficient cans.

The Dragonflies are small, convenient, meant to have good sound-quality, but are limited to 24/96 (despite using chips that support higher rates and DSD). The Chord Mojo is very highly regarded and extremely popular, but is prone to scratching (without a cover), and resets to headphone use following a power cycle (which can be a bind if you want to use it in a Hi-Fi system). iFi makes some excellent small headphone amps that are more like a traditional amp (obvious volume control). While there are others, I would be looking at the Mojo or iFi for a transportable solution. Probably one of the Dragonflies or Meridian Explorer for a portable solution. I'm sure Ham Sandwich can name another hundred excellent products for your consideration!

 

Currently, I own a pair of Sennheiser PXC-550's. I do own a set of Momentum True Wireless earbuds too, but of course, they're wireless. The PXC-550 set is excellent though and that's pretty much the reason why I want to pick up a DAC just so I can enjoy my music to its fullest. I think I'm going to settle on the Chord Mojo in the end, so thanks for all the suggestions.

I use Bluetooth in the truck stereos at work but now, I don't wish to stream music as much anymore. Of course, the True Wireless earbuds will suit me fine on the way to work and back, and in the Gym too.

 

Dragonfly Red. Sounds great.

 

If you want to take advantage of a better amp and DAC you'll need to get some true passive headphones. The Sennheiser PXC-550 are active headphones. Meaning they have their own integrated amp. The PXC-550 do have a passive mode. Passive mode is enabled when you plug in a wired cable *AND* the battery gets drained to zero. If there is any battery charge the headphones will stay in active mode even if you plug in a wired headphone cable. When the headphones are in active mode you're listening to the amp built into the headphones and not getting any benefit of the amp in the $500 Chord Mojo.

You'll need to find some reasonably good passive headphones to go along with the Mojo or other improved DAC and amp.

 

Ah, cheers for that. Guess I may as well pick up that iBasso unit then, for the meantime.

 

I'm a Dragonfly Red user and very satisfied. However, the Chord Mojo seems like the recommended device with my setup. I'm lucky enough to have a set of Shure 846's that I acquired for about a third of retail.
The Onyko HF player with ehe HD upgrade works great with the Dragonfly Red and Shure 846's. The Chord Mojo is at least $350. I plan on keeping my Dragonfly Red as its ultra portable.

I can use some advice on whether to purchase this or not.

Thanks in advance ...

 

You're welcome, mate (in advance. ). WOW, those Shure headphones must be so damn good for that price. Lucky that you managed to pick them up for a fraction. You've gotten me tempted with those alone now, lol. Yeah, I looked at the Dragonflies and while they appear great, I definitely want to take advantage of those 24/192 Hi-Res files I have at my consumption.

 

Start looking for good closed wired headphones that are portable friendly (not delicate and not power hungry). There's a lot of headphones in that category. Find one you like then start looking for a suitable and good portable amp/DAC to drive them. It's best to first find a headphone you like then look for what to drive them with rather than the other way around.

I'd suggest joining Drop (was known as Massdrop) and looking at the headphones they have and what they may have in the future. They have some good closed headphones. For example, right now they've got a Beyerdynamic DT 177X Go for around $450 plus shipping. I think they may ship to Australia. And they've got other closed headphones. You can find some good deals there and some exclusive Massdrop versions of headphones.

 

The Chord Mojo is good. It's in a class that I consider more of a transportable than a portable. It's not really designed to be used while you're walking around. It's more for transportable use where you take it to a coffee shop and once you're there you take it out, plug it in, and enjoy good tunes and good sound while everyone else in the coffee shop gets jealous as they realize they're only listening to Apple wireless earbuds. The Mojo has some quirks. It is heavy for its size. The user interface is weird. The way the ports and controls are located and used doesn't make it really suitable for putting in your pocket while you're walking around.

I don't know how well the Mojo works with IEMs. Some amps ramp up the volume too quickly to be useful with IEMs. Some have hiss that is apparent when using IEMs. Some have channel balance problems at low volume knob settings at volumes you'd be using with IEMs. So check reviews to see how well it works with IEMs.

 

I did just buy an iBasso DC02 dongle thing today. I'll see how it goes once I get it.

Reviews do say it can have some compatibility issues with Samsung phones. I don't have a Samsung phone so that's not an issue for me. It also has a companion app that manages how it does volume on Android devices. I'll have to explore what the purpose of that is and if it's something that is necessary if using an app like USB Audio Player Pro to handle playback.

 

Unless one really needs the stylus, I think the LG G and V series phones are good options to get the headphone jack with a solid smartphone. Honestly, any flagship smartphone from the last two years is going to be pretty good. You could even get a Note 9 super cheap and not have to deal with dongles.

 

I actually currently own a Note 9. Seeing as my phone is under a plan, I'll have to send this back in order to receive the new 10+. I'm baffled why they didn't bother to include a dongle with the new model!

 

I just don’t like the big phones and the elimination of the headphone jacks, as well. My iPhone SE is the perfect size IMO. Works great, too.

 

I've just gone and taken the plunge into ordering a DC01 model. Apparently, the issues don't affect every Samsung phone so fingers crossed! Also decided to go with the 01 due to the the balanced cable where the 02 was unbalanced.

 

Does Android still upsample everything to the internal DAC's top resolution?