At only $10 the Apple DAC would seem to be the deal of the century. How did it ever make it to market at that price considering that Apple likes to overprice everything?
The only issue is that the apple DAC doesn't play nicely with android since android expects the hardware volume to be set at 100% by default and it controls it in software, which the apple dongle doesn't default to. there are workarounds but they're hacky and some cost money. other than that you may have issues with in line controls not working since apple-configured DACs expect the mic and ground to be flipped which most headphones don't do.
@@JessicaFEREM That figures. Apple likes to do things their own way, so if you haven't bought into their more expensive products then I guess you don't deserve to use a cheap DAC.
If I can make a suggestion, the fiio ka13, the qudelix 5k, are both under 100 dollars and they provide a stark difference in sound from each other and from the apple dac.
Good job. It is really important to categorize the chips. Example: *Low cost 5-20uss PCM5102 ES9023 (Sabre) *Medium cost 40-70uss ES9038Q2M CS43131 *More expensive 80-120uss ES9038PRO AK4499EX So it is important to understand. *What type of headphones and what impedance will be used. I see it as necessary if you have a specific headset. A dongle/amplifier/dac starts to be necessary from 32ohm for a phone. In any case, the dac that Qualcom integrates is not bad either, it is very good with 15ohm headphones between 20ohm you can enjoy it quite a bit. *Beyond what a chip with 24bits 192kHz can process, it is already sufficient, it cannot be perceived beyond that. But there is the issue mentioned in the video (sound signature) that some think is related to the amount of information. But many times keep in mind that with a cheap dongle together with a good EQ you can get the same signature as something twice the price, 20 to 40uss for example. even with just a dedicated amplifier it was enough on a sony xperia (qualcom chip)
Same experience for me. I have a number of portable dacs, including the dragonfly cobalt and chord mojo. My ears don’t distinguish much sound quality difference, maybe different sound flavours though. However, the volume they can achieve with hard to drive headphones is essential. But with my Shure SE535 in ears, the Apple dongle is plenty good enough. Thanks for the video.
DAC or AMP is basically a gadget which provides power to drive headphones, iem, earbud. Depending on material of driver structures as ceramic, berylium, planar,...etc, & impedance & sensitivity, you'll need search information about output on 3.5mm or 4.4mm dac/amp. You can see specifications like: 70mw at 16(Ohm) 140mw at 32(Ohm) 1.6vrms 2vrms More Ohm needs more power to drive and less distortion when you push more volume. You can see some earbud or headphone have 300(Ohm), 150(Ohm). The higher sensitivity the more noise you get. Higher sensitivity (above 105db) will make your headphone sounds grainy in the background, its like analog sounding lol. There are two types of Dac/Amp First one is neutral, it just basically drive headphone to perform the correct tune of a brand. Second is coloured, it will buff some certain frequency such as: boost sub-mid (male vocal), volume of bass more quantity or make bass tighter, less muddy, boost high mid(female vocal) more sparkle. About staging, width, height, depth, its all about ability of hardware driver. Dac/amp doesn't affect much on staging. In conclusion, if you are using an easy- to-drive headphone, iem, earbud, just buy a cheap dac/amp dongle, that is enough. Don't fall into rabbit hole guys.
All DAC’s do sound the same. Do a frequency sweep, all modern dac’s have a flat 20hz-20khz. Where is the difference? If the output is flat, it cannot sound significantly different
I have been thinking about this from past few days.. i have kz castor . I used EQ and tone generator to have neutral profile.. when i connect jcally jm 04 pro and HEAR to sine sweep or tones generated i see there are dips and peaks now.. either jcally is not transparent or my phones dac or castor is behaving differently due to power.. i used another iem i have and i heard same dips and peaks with jcally.. so its not the iem.. People say all dacs measure flat.. any place to see graphs ?
What a great track. I heard the screeching over bluetooth on youtube music with the high bitrate enabled. Whislt testing out my Soundpeat Engine4. This is through my pc using Nahmic Custom EQ.
Interesting question..I hate carrying my phone everywhere when I’m using a tethered iem ..so I went with an IFI GO BLUE..and I’m very happy with that feeling of great sound without carrying both a phone and dongle 😎
Love using the Apple dongle for my IEMs, I find that even when I forget to set it to full volume on UAPP, it still drives most of my IEMs at about ~80% volume on my Samsung phone. I do however also carry a Fiio BTR15 for a more portable setup, and a Fiio KA13 when I need a bit of power. I forgot to bring my KA13 to a headphone store and missed out on being able to properly demo some headphones as the Apple dongle didn't cut it in terms of power. I haven't tried to sit down and properly compare all my sources (including a Meizu Hifi Pro and a Fiio K7), but there's no obvious difference that'd make me do a double take between any of them when I switch between DAC/AMPs.
I decided to take my Apple DAC to another level... bought the Muse M5 Ultra... its got real Tubes... and its got Bluetooth.. and it sounds amazing with balanced out... whats there not to like...
The Apple dongle DAC kills at it's price. Sure, you're right, it does not drive my Sennheiser 660S2 well but it is perfect when paired with my Beyer DT770 Pro 32 ohm headphones and my Moondrop Starfield IEMs.
@@benjamenYTDeadTheGamer I'd say that depends on what I am using as the source but I do tend to hear distortion creep in when I turn the source up using the Apple dongle. I don't listen at high volumes (around 75db usually) but I'd say I have way more headroom using one of my dedicated headphone amps. They sound fantastic on my Pietus Maximus or my Ragnarok.
I think you needed better DAC's (not necessarily more expensive) for this test to be worth it and to hear some real differences. I had similar experiences at the beginning with portable DAC’s. Is not about the amount of money as much as getting something current and well implemented. Some recommendations for the future: Hidizs SD2: $46 (right now it has a 15% discount in Amazon), very solid performance for the money and only DAC I have with MIC input. Meizu HIFI Pro: $23 (Considered one of the very best dongles for the money, value budget king) TANCHJIM Space Portable: $89 , maybe the best dongle at that price point and very small HiBy FC4: $80 (but many times at $60 with coupon at Amazon), the DAC that converted my kids to the dark side. The difference from their cheap $10 - $15 dongles was just too great to ignore. I almost wasn’t able to get it back.
Hi Bob. I have that If I go link hooked to my tablet. Sounds amazing. I use a douk line level booster to get a little more gain and control of the volume on the tablet.
i did notice the apple dongle is significantly quieter on my android device, but on my iphone i listen at like 10% max volume, so it doesnt make a difference for me.
The problem I came across, it's when im listening with the apple dongle dac, the sound suddenly stops, i have to either unplug and plug or turn the screen on and pause and play music. I haven't figured out how to fix the problem.
Can you connect 2 headphone and okay at the same time with that 2 ports of the portable dongle DAC? By the way, how do Sony ZX707 walkman player compare to these sb DAC, a lot noticeable differences?
It didn't work great on my Chromebook. So far the SoundBlaster 3 is the best of the inexpensive dongles. People say it was made to work best with Apple. I tried Google and Samsung's nothing special a FIIO JA11 is almost as good as the SoundBlaster but the SoundBlaster does a very admirable job hooked to an old school stereo for streaming. The expensive dongles are a snob thing but you do need a good one.
I plan to get Sony MDR-Z1R when I have the money, is iPhone with that dongle is enough or balanced output DAC will make a different? How about Sony walkman ZX707, is it neccessary? If just use the phone and computer build in 3.5mm port most of the time, is getting a headphone like that is a waste of potential?
Do you think that the apple dongle would be able to power Philips Fidelios / Sennheiser 599SE's using a usb-c v3.2 port on a PC? I have a Soundblaster X-fi SE but I'm kinda hoping I can not carry it over to my next build.
Thank you for the review. What do you think about using the Apple dongle against a regular desktop PC? is it better than a traditional motherboard audio jack or it won't make a difference? I have a Sony Mdr-V6 and Audio Technica M40x, and I think that the PC has more than enough volume, but ultimately I was just wandering if the quality of the dongle that would be much better than just the PC.
I have a question, i just bought iem. And i use 3.5mm on android without any dac. Should i get a dac. Its my first time using high quality audio stuff and dont know much.
Man please try to answer me straight forward I have device and want to try lossless audio of Apple Music Apple dac coat 1000 rupees roughly 10 dollar(still expensive for India) or should I buy do7 by audiocular
Is there really a difference between how DACs sound *just sound performance, if volume is equal* compared to the Apple Dongle? Not sound signature just stuff like "better detail retrieval or soundstage or imaging and separation" some people say there are differences but how true is that? Thanks in advance :]
@@ForeverAnalog Thanks for the reply i appreciate it :] im gonna stick with my current dongle dac and then in the future i might try different dacs, i discovered your channel through the fiio k11 r2r review, i just asked the question because it seems like theres other reviewers here on youtube who attribute almost magical improvements in audio quality with expensive dac/amps, like a huuuuuuuge increase in the soundstage and all of that
From iPhone 15 series it's type C, there's no type C to 3.5mm dongle made by Apple.. So, can I use Audiocular D07 with iPhone 15 without any problem ??
Using Apple Dongle with my planar magnetic Hifiman and i need to beef up the volume to around 70-80 percent to achieve my normal listening db comparing to powered amp that only uses 40-50percent. Still workable if you just need something lighter than a dac-amp dangling on your phone 😂
Apple usb-c dongle is really great for low impedance headphones. For high impedance you need additional amplifier or other dongle with more powerfull on board amplifier
Yes. Those Apple and whatever Huawei/Samsung dongles that are thin as a dental floss break really easily. A few days in your pocket while listening and the wire is broken already. My verdict is: absolute garbage. If you want a dongle DAC there are more durable options. E.g. Fiio JA11 which is way less flimsy, supports higher sample rates, has an eq app for phone, etc. Will not recommend yet because I've had it only for a few weeks but is promising. Man, I would have broken 2-3 Apple craps on that same time. And JA11 is dirt cheap too.
The main reason to buy a $50 dongle instead of a $10 one is compatibility. Not only the Apple dongle, many others at that price point perform differently when attaching to various devices. Sound wise, a casual listener cannot hear differences (if they all perform at their best).
Expensive? Tell me you didn't put a 30€ ifi dongle dac and "expensive" in the same sentence. It is a 30€ device from an audio company vs a 10€ from a company who never produced good sounding devices. Of course it will sound a little bit better, but honestly, if you have over 70€ IEM you are already over those dongle dacs. Meze Alba is a 150€ IEM and comes with decent dongle dac, while performing at the price point on their own, and if you go to 300€ IEM... just get a BTR5 at that point.
as someone that bought fiio ft1 yesterday and these are my first "audiophile" headphones i cant imagine paying more than 10 euro for a cable with some "dac" in it, 30 euro is expensive, these things should be 10 times cheaper than they are
@nexor7809 expensive is subjective. There are 10.000$ scisors, and you wait more then a year. Would I buy one if I would have 10k to burn? No. Would people who buy it, order a Rockna Wavedream? Most likely no. So what do you get for the money ? To put it in terms you can understand is like moving from a pen drawing to imahe in a book, to a stereo image, to VR. It is a different experience? And that ia what people burn unlimited amounts of money with this hobby. Some designed their entire home areound the audition room with it's acustic, with personalized speaker and all the rest. You pay 30$ not for good sound buy to understand that "there are more sounds in the song". Does it worth it? It is up to you. But my point is that If burning 30$ just to satisfy a curiosity is expensive you should not invest in audio gear.
@@ForeverAnalog sorry to bother consistently but can review some type C earphones with built-in DACs like OnePlus Bullets or Samsung's AKG Type C. Or some others more recent ones.
@@akash5180 i did volume match using a microphone because it is very hard to do by ear under 1db difference, i also used a hardware switch that instantly switch between the 2 sources into my iem, if there is a difference, my ear is not trained enough or my source data ( youtube compressed audio ) does not hold enough information to make the difference but i doubt it as i cannot hear a difference between mp3 and uncompressed in a online blind test either. so my conclusion is that source difference is less noticeable than eartips differences (which i can hear, especially between wide bore and narrow bore) so i resold my chord mojo :)
You really can't even get the apple dongle dac to work on android... System updates break it .. Youll get it working and it will stop. Its just not worth it. The apple dac also doesn't work if you have harder to drive headphones... And even on less hard to drive ones there will be less overhead= dynamics.. Also the implementation of the chip matters significantly. Thats being said, some have certain characteristics, like the cirrus chip in the 80 dollar dac you have there is able to supply way more power (and more efficiently) than basically any other "mobile" dac chip... If you're going to spend more than 80 bucks or so you probably don't want to be looking for dongle dacs anymore... You want a "normal" form factor.
Really liked this comparison video. I also wanted to point out the apple dongle isn't actually a DAC; it's just an adapter that allows the use of the phones internal DAC because phones don't generally have headphone jacks anymore. The analog signal is sent from the internal DAC to pins on the USB/Lightning port, and the dongle simply transforms those pins into a 3.5mm jack. This is the reason for the level difference between your iPhone and the Android phone and really speaks to the higher quality of the iPhone's internal DAC.
apple dongle is not just a adapter. that include DAC chip. Every phone has internal DAC. if you using wired headphones with dongle? external dongle DAC works. using speaker, internal DAC works.
I'm nopt a headphone user but just play most music in the car or PC. Playing WAV tracks on ad android phone sounds poor with or without a dongle DAC (Dragonfly Cobalt or Astell & Kern HC3). Using an iphone 6S however, the sound is better even with no DAC, better with the Cobalt and much better with the A&K HC3. I don't know why the iphone 6S is better than android (Samsung/Oppo) but it really is. The only issue is that the iphone is knackered for anything else but music and has only enough room for 150 tracks. Sounds great though and improves the PC as well. But WHY? I assume the output from Apple iphone is better than adroid?
I think it varies by android phone but some reduce the output power but you can download an app to fix it. I saw this in a similar dongle video on iiWi Reviews
I have an LG G8 android, it has a built in quad DAC and a 3.5mm headphone jack. My brother got a LG V60, which has these same features and also sounds great even with big headphones. These were probably the last android phones to take audio quality seriously. They are really cheap nowadays, so if you don't require the latest specs you could give them a try.
At only $10 the Apple DAC would seem to be the deal of the century. How did it ever make it to market at that price considering that Apple likes to overprice everything?
That’s such a great question!
The only issue is that the apple DAC doesn't play nicely with android since android expects the hardware volume to be set at 100% by default and it controls it in software, which the apple dongle doesn't default to. there are workarounds but they're hacky and some cost money. other than that you may have issues with in line controls not working since apple-configured DACs expect the mic and ground to be flipped which most headphones don't do.
@@JessicaFEREM That figures. Apple likes to do things their own way, so if you haven't bought into their more expensive products then I guess you don't deserve to use a cheap DAC.
@@JessicaFEREM USB Audio Player Pro will use the Apple dongle and unlock the reduced volume and poor sound on Android.
@@davidhaberman3447 yea you can do that but it's an extra hidden cost to use something that should just work
I used an apple dongle as a DAC for quite a while. No headphones. ITX PC>Dongle>Amp>Speakers. It is surprisingly good for $9 CAD.
Awesome thanks for sharing and watching!
Wait so you would plug the dongle to a usb c port then amp then speakers?
@@ghostpimp I used a C to A adapter but .. yes. Its a very good DAC but i got a good deal on a Topping so I use that now.
@@Meerluhow's going with topping dac? Much better? Model thx.
Cirrus Logic DAC chip inside the Apple dongle...Very respectable for $10 and caps out at 24/48 which again for $10 is fantastic!
Agreed! Thanks for watching and sharing!
Can you share the source for the Apple dac specification?
If I can make a suggestion, the fiio ka13, the qudelix 5k, are both under 100 dollars and they provide a stark difference in sound from each other and from the apple dac.
Thanks for the suggestion. I will have to check those out!
Are the the medical weed dispensary guy
BTR7
5k is straight garbage for the price.
Good job. It is really important to categorize the chips.
Example:
*Low cost 5-20uss
PCM5102 ES9023 (Sabre)
*Medium cost 40-70uss
ES9038Q2M CS43131
*More expensive 80-120uss
ES9038PRO AK4499EX
So it is important to understand.
*What type of headphones and what impedance will be used. I see it as necessary if you have a specific headset. A dongle/amplifier/dac starts to be necessary from 32ohm for a phone. In any case, the dac that Qualcom integrates is not bad either, it is very good with 15ohm headphones between 20ohm you can enjoy it quite a bit.
*Beyond what a chip with 24bits 192kHz can process, it is already sufficient, it cannot be perceived beyond that. But there is the issue mentioned in the video (sound signature) that some think is related to the amount of information. But many times keep in mind that with a cheap dongle together with a good EQ you can get the same signature as something twice the price, 20 to 40uss for example.
even with just a dedicated amplifier it was enough on a sony xperia (qualcom chip)
Thank you for sharing and catching! Great points!
Same experience for me. I have a number of portable dacs, including the dragonfly cobalt and chord mojo. My ears don’t distinguish much sound quality difference, maybe different sound flavours though. However, the volume they can achieve with hard to drive headphones is essential. But with my Shure SE535 in ears, the Apple dongle is plenty good enough. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for watching and sharing your experience!
DAC or AMP is basically a gadget which provides power to drive headphones, iem, earbud. Depending on material of driver structures as ceramic, berylium, planar,...etc, & impedance & sensitivity, you'll need search information about output on 3.5mm or 4.4mm dac/amp. You can see specifications like:
70mw at 16(Ohm)
140mw at 32(Ohm)
1.6vrms 2vrms
More Ohm needs more power to drive and less distortion when you push more volume. You can see some earbud or headphone have 300(Ohm), 150(Ohm). The higher sensitivity the more noise you get. Higher sensitivity (above 105db) will make your headphone sounds grainy in the background, its like analog sounding lol.
There are two types of Dac/Amp
First one is neutral, it just basically drive headphone to perform the correct tune of a brand.
Second is coloured, it will buff some certain frequency such as: boost sub-mid (male vocal), volume of bass more quantity or make bass tighter, less muddy, boost high mid(female vocal) more sparkle. About staging, width, height, depth, its all about ability of hardware driver. Dac/amp doesn't affect much on staging.
In conclusion, if you are using an easy- to-drive headphone, iem, earbud, just buy a cheap dac/amp dongle, that is enough. Don't fall into rabbit hole guys.
Thanks for watching and sharing!
All DAC’s do sound the same. Do a frequency sweep, all modern dac’s have a flat 20hz-20khz. Where is the difference? If the output is flat, it cannot sound significantly different
Thanks for watching!
I have been thinking about this from past few days.. i have kz castor . I used EQ and tone generator to have neutral profile.. when i connect jcally jm 04 pro and HEAR to sine sweep or tones generated i see there are dips and peaks now.. either jcally is not transparent or my phones dac or castor is behaving differently due to power.. i used another iem i have and i heard same dips and peaks with jcally.. so its not the iem..
People say all dacs measure flat.. any place to see graphs ?
What a great track. I heard the screeching over bluetooth on youtube music with the high bitrate enabled. Whislt testing out my Soundpeat Engine4. This is through my pc using Nahmic Custom EQ.
Got the IFI Go Blu and I like the versality and realistic bass boost. Any gripes with any of them is volume limits. All acceptable these days!
Thanks for watching and for sharing!
Interesting question..I hate carrying my phone everywhere when I’m using a tethered iem ..so I went with an IFI GO BLUE..and I’m very happy with that feeling of great sound without carrying both a phone and dongle 😎
That sounds great. Thank you for sharing!
The only issue, there, is that BT cannot handle hi-res.
@@gwine9087 True..but the question is ..does it sound good to you ..especially when using IEM’s 😊
Have a great weekend
Love using the Apple dongle for my IEMs, I find that even when I forget to set it to full volume on UAPP, it still drives most of my IEMs at about ~80% volume on my Samsung phone. I do however also carry a Fiio BTR15 for a more portable setup, and a Fiio KA13 when I need a bit of power. I forgot to bring my KA13 to a headphone store and missed out on being able to properly demo some headphones as the Apple dongle didn't cut it in terms of power. I haven't tried to sit down and properly compare all my sources (including a Meizu Hifi Pro and a Fiio K7), but there's no obvious difference that'd make me do a double take between any of them when I switch between DAC/AMPs.
Awesome! Thanks for watching and sharing!
I decided to take my Apple DAC to another level... bought the Muse M5 Ultra... its got real Tubes... and its got Bluetooth.. and it sounds amazing with balanced out... whats there not to like...
Awesome! Thanks for watching and sharing!
My iPhone 6 Plus has a 3.5 headphone jack and doesn’t need a Dac. I use it as a stand alone music player.
They are cheap to buy.
Awesome. Thanks for sharing!
Those sennheisser headphones kickass.. Ive had mine for a couple years.. Got my mom a pair. They're incredible.
Awesome! Thanks for watching!
The Apple dongle DAC kills at it's price. Sure, you're right, it does not drive my Sennheiser 660S2 well but it is perfect when paired with my Beyer DT770 Pro 32 ohm headphones and my Moondrop Starfield IEMs.
I’d love to try some moon drop IEMs soon!
How loud would you say your 660S2s get?
@@benjamenYTDeadTheGamer I'd say that depends on what I am using as the source but I do tend to hear distortion creep in when I turn the source up using the Apple dongle. I don't listen at high volumes (around 75db usually) but I'd say I have way more headroom using one of my dedicated headphone amps. They sound fantastic on my Pietus Maximus or my Ragnarok.
I think you needed better DAC's (not necessarily more expensive) for this test to be worth it and to hear some real differences. I had similar experiences at the beginning with portable DAC’s. Is not about the amount of money as much as getting something current and well implemented.
Some recommendations for the future:
Hidizs SD2: $46 (right now it has a 15% discount in Amazon), very solid performance for the money and only DAC I have with MIC input.
Meizu HIFI Pro: $23 (Considered one of the very best dongles for the money, value budget king)
TANCHJIM Space Portable: $89 , maybe the best dongle at that price point and very small
HiBy FC4: $80 (but many times at $60 with coupon at Amazon), the DAC that converted my kids to the dark side. The difference from their cheap $10 - $15 dongles was just too great to ignore. I almost wasn’t able to get it back.
Awesome I’ll check those out thank you!
Hi Bob. I have that If I go link hooked to my tablet. Sounds amazing. I use a douk line level booster to get a little more gain and control of the volume on the tablet.
Awesome. Thank you for sharing!
i did notice the apple dongle is significantly quieter on my android device, but on my iphone i listen at like 10% max volume, so it doesnt make a difference for me.
The problem I came across, it's when im listening with the apple dongle dac, the sound suddenly stops, i have to either unplug and plug or turn the screen on and pause and play music. I haven't figured out how to fix the problem.
Very strange, sorry to hear you are having that problem!
Great advice 👍
Thanks for watching!
Which one of those accept mic input?
Can you connect 2 headphone and okay at the same time with that 2 ports of the portable dongle DAC? By the way, how do Sony ZX707 walkman player compare to these sb DAC, a lot noticeable differences?
It didn't work great on my Chromebook. So far the SoundBlaster 3 is the best of the inexpensive dongles. People say it was made to work best with Apple. I tried Google and Samsung's nothing special a FIIO JA11 is almost as good as the SoundBlaster but the SoundBlaster does a very admirable job hooked to an old school stereo for streaming. The expensive dongles are a snob thing but you do need a good one.
I plan to get Sony MDR-Z1R when I have the money, is iPhone with that dongle is enough or balanced output DAC will make a different? How about Sony walkman ZX707, is it neccessary? If just use the phone and computer build in 3.5mm port most of the time, is getting a headphone like that is a waste of potential?
Do you think that the apple dongle would be able to power Philips Fidelios / Sennheiser 599SE's using a usb-c v3.2 port on a PC? I have a Soundblaster X-fi SE but I'm kinda hoping I can not carry it over to my next build.
I didn’t use with a PC sorry.
Currently there is epz tp35 with same Dac chips as simgot have.
But its 55/60$
And its sounds great.
Awesome! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for the review. What do you think about using the Apple dongle against a regular desktop PC? is it better than a traditional motherboard audio jack or it won't make a difference? I have a Sony Mdr-V6 and Audio Technica M40x, and I think that the PC has more than enough volume, but ultimately I was just wandering if the quality of the dongle that would be much better than just the PC.
I have a question, i just bought iem. And i use 3.5mm on android without any dac. Should i get a dac. Its my first time using high quality audio stuff and dont know much.
I would spend some time with the IEMs first and learn what you like or don’t like. Then research for a DAC to fit your needs.
Man please try to answer me straight forward I have device and want to try lossless audio of Apple Music Apple dac coat 1000 rupees roughly 10 dollar(still expensive for India) or should I buy do7 by audiocular
I'm not familiar with the Audiocular DO7 so I can't speak to how it compares against the Apple dongle, sorry!
Is there really a difference between how DACs sound *just sound performance, if volume is equal* compared to the Apple Dongle? Not sound signature just stuff like "better detail retrieval or soundstage or imaging and separation" some people say there are differences but how true is that? Thanks in advance :]
I've heard sound differences between DACs, yes. I wouldn't say they are night and day but subtle ones. Thanks for watching!
@@ForeverAnalog Thanks for the reply i appreciate it :] im gonna stick with my current dongle dac and then in the future i might try different dacs, i discovered your channel through the fiio k11 r2r review, i just asked the question because it seems like theres other reviewers here on youtube who attribute almost magical improvements in audio quality with expensive dac/amps, like a huuuuuuuge increase in the soundstage and all of that
From iPhone 15 series it's type C, there's no type C to 3.5mm dongle made by Apple..
So, can I use Audiocular D07 with iPhone 15 without any problem ??
There is one made by Apple
Using Apple Dongle with my planar magnetic Hifiman and i need to beef up the volume to around 70-80 percent to achieve my normal listening db comparing to powered amp that only uses 40-50percent. Still workable if you just need something lighter than a dac-amp dangling on your phone 😂
Thanks for watching and sharing!
Great input.
Thanks for watching!
Apple usb-c dongle is really great for low impedance headphones. For high impedance you need additional amplifier or other dongle with more powerfull on board amplifier
Great point thank you!
Yes. Those Apple and whatever Huawei/Samsung dongles that are thin as a dental floss break really easily. A few days in your pocket while listening and the wire is broken already. My verdict is: absolute garbage. If you want a dongle DAC there are more durable options. E.g. Fiio JA11 which is way less flimsy, supports higher sample rates, has an eq app for phone, etc. Will not recommend yet because I've had it only for a few weeks but is promising. Man, I would have broken 2-3 Apple craps on that same time. And JA11 is dirt cheap too.
The main reason to buy a $50 dongle instead of a $10 one is compatibility. Not only the Apple dongle, many others at that price point perform differently when attaching to various devices. Sound wise, a casual listener cannot hear differences (if they all perform at their best).
Great point, thank you!
Please try with Shure se846 pro.
Expensive? Tell me you didn't put a 30€ ifi dongle dac and "expensive" in the same sentence. It is a 30€ device from an audio company vs a 10€ from a company who never produced good sounding devices. Of course it will sound a little bit better, but honestly, if you have over 70€ IEM you are already over those dongle dacs. Meze Alba is a 150€ IEM and comes with decent dongle dac, while performing at the price point on their own, and if you go to 300€ IEM... just get a BTR5 at that point.
Thank you for watching and providing feedback based on your experience!
as someone that bought fiio ft1 yesterday and these are my first "audiophile" headphones i cant imagine paying more than 10 euro for a cable with some "dac" in it, 30 euro is expensive, these things should be 10 times cheaper than they are
@nexor7809 expensive is subjective. There are 10.000$ scisors, and you wait more then a year. Would I buy one if I would have 10k to burn? No. Would people who buy it, order a Rockna Wavedream? Most likely no. So what do you get for the money ? To put it in terms you can understand is like moving from a pen drawing to imahe in a book, to a stereo image, to VR. It is a different experience? And that ia what people burn unlimited amounts of money with this hobby. Some designed their entire home areound the audition room with it's acustic, with personalized speaker and all the rest. You pay 30$ not for good sound buy to understand that "there are more sounds in the song". Does it worth it? It is up to you. But my point is that If burning 30$ just to satisfy a curiosity is expensive you should not invest in audio gear.
i could not hear much of a difference between my apple dongle and my chord mojo ( there is one but it is a minuscule difference) with em6L
Thanks for sharing!
And to say .. mojo is a wallet heavy dac amp! Haha😅
Thank you Sir
Thanks for watching!
Unfortunately, no matter how good the Apple dongle is, it does not play well with Android.
Very true. Thanks for the reminder!
This Apple DAC doesn't really work with Android
Yeah I think you have to download an app to get the proper power
@ForeverAnalog that's a 10 dollar app on top of a 10 dollar accessory
@ yeah I hear ya that’s why I mentioned in the video this might not be reasonable for android users. Thanks for watching!
@@ForeverAnalog sorry to bother consistently but can review some type C earphones with built-in DACs like OnePlus Bullets or Samsung's AKG Type C. Or some others more recent ones.
I did compare apple dongle to chord mojo and i also could not hear a difference
Thanks for sharing!
What really
@@akash5180 i did volume match using a microphone because it is very hard to do by ear under 1db difference, i also used a hardware switch that instantly switch between the 2 sources into my iem, if there is a difference, my ear is not trained enough or my source data ( youtube compressed audio ) does not hold enough information to make the difference but i doubt it as i cannot hear a difference between mp3 and uncompressed in a online blind test either. so my conclusion is that source difference is less noticeable than eartips differences (which i can hear, especially between wide bore and narrow bore) so i resold my chord mojo :)
$9 just an adapter, not a DAC? Lightning to 3.5mm
There is a tiny DAC inside. If your iPhone doesn’t have 3.5 mm jack there is no DAC in your phone.
You really can't even get the apple dongle dac to work on android... System updates break it .. Youll get it working and it will stop. Its just not worth it.
The apple dac also doesn't work if you have harder to drive headphones... And even on less hard to drive ones there will be less overhead= dynamics..
Also the implementation of the chip matters significantly. Thats being said, some have certain characteristics, like the cirrus chip in the 80 dollar dac you have there is able to supply way more power (and more efficiently) than basically any other "mobile" dac chip...
If you're going to spend more than 80 bucks or so you probably don't want to be looking for dongle dacs anymore... You want a "normal" form factor.
Rather take fiio ja11 its almost same price like apple dongle, and quality is much better
Awesome. I need to check that one out!
Really liked this comparison video. I also wanted to point out the apple dongle isn't actually a DAC; it's just an adapter that allows the use of the phones internal DAC because phones don't generally have headphone jacks anymore. The analog signal is sent from the internal DAC to pins on the USB/Lightning port, and the dongle simply transforms those pins into a 3.5mm jack. This is the reason for the level difference between your iPhone and the Android phone and really speaks to the higher quality of the iPhone's internal DAC.
Thanks for watching and for sharing!
apple dongle is not just a adapter. that include DAC chip. Every phone has internal DAC. if you using wired headphones with dongle? external dongle DAC works. using speaker, internal DAC works.
It IS a DAC. Stop spearing false info!
I have The apple dongle and the ifi. The dongle sound better on my iPhone. . Lol. but the ifi pushes more power.
I’ve only owned one DAC ($250 or so), and it sounds worse than just plugging into the device(s) haha
I use a $8 aliexpress dongle dac on android and pc. It's loud enough for my needs lol. edit: I basically only listen to IEMs now
Thanks for sharing! What’s your favorite IEM right now?
I'm nopt a headphone user but just play most music in the car or PC. Playing WAV tracks on ad android phone sounds poor with or without a dongle DAC (Dragonfly Cobalt or Astell & Kern HC3). Using an iphone 6S however, the sound is better even with no DAC, better with the Cobalt and much better with the A&K HC3. I don't know why the iphone 6S is better than android (Samsung/Oppo) but it really is. The only issue is that the iphone is knackered for anything else but music and has only enough room for 150 tracks. Sounds great though and improves the PC as well. But WHY? I assume the output from Apple iphone is better than adroid?
I think it varies by android phone but some reduce the output power but you can download an app to fix it. I saw this in a similar dongle video on iiWi Reviews
I have an LG G8 android, it has a built in quad DAC and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
My brother got a LG V60, which has these same features and also sounds great even with big headphones.
These were probably the last android phones to take audio quality seriously.
They are really cheap nowadays, so if you don't require the latest specs you could give them a try.
Looks like a temu willy nelson.
on the road again...
@@ForeverAnalog You look like your about 43. Hope you're not 34.
People forget that Apple can afford to hire the best engineers in the world compared to these smaller niche audio companies.
ALL DACS SOUND THE SAME
Lol.....Not even close.
No offence, but definitely noob choices. If you want a big difference from the apple dac, you gotta spend a lot more. 200ish. Get the new Onix dongle.
None taken! I pointed out in the video that results might differ if you spend more 😊. Thanks for watching!
Were you listening to it at the highest possible audio quality?
Yeah via Tidal