Develop Bugs

Review of Antec SP Zero wireless speaker w/lots of pics!!!

This is a review of Antec SP Zero bluetooth wireless speaker. http://antecmobileproducts.com/product_detail/174 , and on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Antec-Bluetooth-SP-ZERO-WP/dp/B00GX66FLI/
It looks like Antec, well known in a world of custom gaming PCs, is continuing to expand their A.M.P. line of mobile products with a new addition to the family - SP Zero wireless speaker. After their last year release of SP1, they decided to shrink down the speaker and appropriately named it SP0 (SP Zero). I know what you are going to say, another wireless speaker? don't we have already multiple-dozens of different ones released this year? I do agree, 2013 was saturated with wireless mobile products, but after testing SP Zero for the last couple of days I realized Antec actually came up with something that can make it stand out from the crowd. Here is what I found.
Packaged in a cool looking transparent display box, from a distance you can mistake this little guy for a souvenir or something cute you pick up while on vacation. This actually works to it's advantage since you can place it anywhere in the house without people even suspecting its a wireless speaker. At only 7.9 oz and all around dimensions of approximately 3.5" x 3.5" x 2", it's very lightweight and portable. SP Zero comes in a choice of 7 different color combinations, while my review unit came in white with red grill and handle accents. While the grill shell is actually plastic, the rest of the speaker along the perimeter is covered in thin protective rubbery layer and at the top you have 2 little metal handles. The speaker felt very rugged, and according to Antec is splash and rain resistant. To enhance it's rugged appeal, among included accessories with usb to micro-usb and 3.5mm audio cable you also get a carabiner for attachment to the speaker.
While examining SP Zero further, you will find a set of 3 buttons with volume -/+ and multifunction control in the middle. All 3 buttons are part of that integrated rubbery layer so they are definitely protected from any moisture getting in. Along one of the sides you will find a micro usb connector port for charging the speaker - 750mAh rechargeable internal battery which supports up to 8hr of continues music playback. Next to the charging micro-usb port, you will also find 2x 3.5mm audio ports, where one is labeled as AUX In and the other one as AUX Out. Beside being able to use a wired music source if you can't pair up wirelessly, there is another cool option to daisy chain multiple SP Zero speakers together by using the provided 3.5mm audio cable to link AUX In of one with AUX Out of the other. At the same time, this also enables SP Zero to function as wireless transmitter where you can turn any wired speaker into wireless by simply pairing up with SP Zero and attaching that wired speaker to AUX out port. Very cool bonus!
Regarding the wireless connection, pair up was easy and it was connected to my phone within seconds where it was recognized to be used with both phone and media audio. Using BT3.0, SP Zero supports all the popular A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, and HSP protocols so in addition to streaming music, you can also use it as a speaker phone. I confirmed that to be working good, and the microphone (located at the top between volume- and multi-function button) picked up my voice without any complains from the other side on the phone. After pair up, turning power on and off will be accompanied by a voice confirmation. Also, volume buttons worked as expected fine tuning the level of loudness while you can still adjust it from the phone on top of that. To my surprise, I found a working wireless range to be almost 50ft in an open area. Very impressive for such a small speaker.
But the biggest surprise came from a sound test. I actually found this little guy to be packing a decent bass punch! The front of the speaker with a blinking led is where all your mid and high frequency content going to be delivered. Opposite to that on the back side with a matching speaker grill you will find where all this bass is coming from, probably a dedicated bass port. I mean, we are not talking about a speaker with 10" sub woofer, but for a speaker driver which is about 2"-2.5" it was actually packing some decent sound with a nice bass content. As a matter of fact, Antec mentioned in their spec about their dBs proprietary technology with an enhanced bass sound. I know it will be unfair to analyze SP Zero from audiophile perspective, but these actually have a very warm sound with slightly scooped mid section to form a typical V-shaped sound.
Overall, this is a very unique looking speaker that packs a lot of great functionality and a very good sound quality. Either if you take it with you hiking or keep it outdoors by the pool, or decide to use it during house party - you definitely won't be disappointed with SP Zero.
Here are the pictures.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Thanks for the review.
Question about pairing:
Would it be possible to set up a tasker task to automatically pair my phone to it? Or does the device require me to do something?
Thanks!

Typically with this or any other wireless/bluetooth speakers you just need to pair it up once. After that, every time you turn the power on it will connect automatically. No need to pair it up again or do anything else.

I can also recommend checking out Fragstore if you're looking for good-quality gaming souvenirs. They offer a wide choice of those, and the delivery is fast.

Review of Bolse 12W Smart NFC Bluetooth wireless speaker w/lots of pics!!!

This is a review of Bolse 12W Smart NFC Bluetooth wireless speaker. http://mybolse.com/product/detail_B00L4IDA04.html - the speaker is already available on Amazon UK, and soon will be available on Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Portable-Bluetooth-Speaker-Function-Playtime/dp/B00L4IDA04/
I have reviewed a lot of wireless speakers, and have been impressed with either their design, or sound quality, or controls, or compact form factor. I can always find something positive and negative about each one, but never have I came across a speaker where I can't even think of one negative comment. But all this changed when I received a review sample of the new Bolse 12W wireless speaker. I'm not hyping it up, but honestly telling you that Bolse came up with a perfect combination of every feature you can think of to include in a portable wireless speaker. And to top it off, they still were able to keep it's pricing under $50. Here is what I found.
The speaker arrived in a nice compact package with a clear description of it's VERY impressive spec. With dimensions of about 7"x3"x2" it looked very compact and easy to handle with one hand, but once you pick it up you do realize a nice 15oz weight to it. This extra weight comes from two quality 6W 40mm drivers packed inside of this little monster. Drivers of such caliber are typically found in over-the-ear headphones. Closer examination of BTS-12 revealed a plastic frame surrounded by front and rear metal mesh grills. Both 40mm drivers are front facing, and rear panel has a bass port functionality. The bottom of the speaker has 4 rubber feet for a non-slip grip with a surface. All the controls are located at the top, and all the ports on the back at the top. Among included accessories there was usb to micro-usb cable, 3.5mm male to male audio cable, a nice velor drawstring storage pouch, and a detailed instruction manual.
Starting with ports on the back, you actually get a physical on/off switch which is very refreshing to see when so many other companies cramp up controls under multi-function buttons. Here, you know for sure when speaker is on and when it off. Another great thing, once you turn it on - there is no annoying guidance voice. Next to the power switch is a standard micro-usb charging port. And speaking of charging, this speaker has a whooping 2000 mAh battery that enables up to 15 hours of playback!!! To use this speaker with non-Bluetooth devices, you have Line In port which you can use with included audio cable. If that wasn't enough, Line OUT port is right next to it which allows daisy chaining of this speaker to another wired or wireless speaker or connecting headphones. One thing you have to realize, this Line OUT port can turn ANY other connected speaker into a wireless speaker. You can consider that as a bonus feature!
The control buttons on the top are equally impressive with touch controls. These are not physical buttons, but a backlit touch buttons, each one assigned to a specific functionality except for a lock button. You get a separate touch button to pick up a call, a dedicated volume up/down buttons, a play/pause button, and skip next/prev buttons. Long press of skip prev locks touch controls so you don't bump them accidentally, and double tap releases the lock. So many other speakers include just a volume up/down and phone control, and that becomes very inconvenient because you have to go back to your phone to play/pause or to skip the track. Here, you have a full remote control of the playback. Also when you receive a call, you can use BTS-12 as a speakerphone.
When it comes to a wireless connection, you have two ways to pair it up with your phone or tablet. Either using direct Bluetooth pair up or NFC area on the speaker (labeled with an icon on the top) worked flawlessly to pair up with my Note 2. Once paired up, it gets connected to both phone and media audio so you can enjoy the sound from this powerhouse speaker 20-25ft away from your phone or tablet. I'm sure you all are curious how does it sounds. Thanks to a total of 12W of combined power between each speaker, it filled up our big family room and I was still able to hear the music 2 rooms down the hall. I actually found the music to be more enjoyable and clear once you take a few steps away from the speaker. That's where you appreciate a clear detailed sound with a punchy bass. As expected from such drivers, the bass didn't have powerful enough sub-bass extension, but I still heard a nice bass punch and a warm deeper layer to make music sound full and enjoyable.
Overall, I was VERY impressed with Bolse BTS-12 speaker and think it represents one of the best values currently available on the market. Everything from touch control panel with a complete playback, volume, and phone controls, the convenient of BT and NFC pair up, an impressive 2000 mAh battery which supports 15hrs of playback to physical on/off switch and both Line In and Out, and being able to keep all this under $50 - this speaker definitely gets my high recommendation!!!
Here are the pictures.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

this is simply great !

shivam2004 said:
this is simply great !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's among the best I tested. Heard Amazon US will have about 30 units for sale toward the end of this week, and more coming next month.

Hi Vectron. Would you suggest me buying this one or the UE Boom Mini, which costs just 10$ more?
I think this one would be louder and has bluetooth 4.0 and 4''driver.
The UeE has 1,2'' drivers and bluetooth 2.1

nessuno1234 said:
Hi Vectron. Would you suggest me buying this one or the UE Boom Mini, which costs just 10$ more?
I think this one would be louder and has bluetooth 4.0 and 4''driver.
The UeE has 1,2'' drivers and bluetooth 2.1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bolse is definitely better!

This Bolse 12W bluetooth speaker use to be thelove of my life!?
Now she dont work no more?
Only had it a year and I plug it in to charge and eveyrthing seems ok
but then when I try to pair it nothing. Not even any signs of life.
Do you think the battery has died? I cant even see how to open it
up without wrecking the nice steel gauze speaker covers?
Maybe that way Id be able to see if something has come loose?
Anyway would appreciate feedback, let me know if you or anyone else for that matter has experienced same or similar problems and has solutions?
Cheers and thanks in advance

leahcimewol said:
Now she dont work no more?
Only had it a year and I plug it in to charge and eveyrthing seems ok
but then when I try to pair it nothing. Not even any signs of life.
Do you think the battery has died? I cant even see how to open it
up without wrecking the nice steel gauze speaker covers?
Maybe that way Id be able to see if something has come loose?
Anyway would appreciate feedback, let me know if you or anyone else for that matter has experienced same or similar problems and has solutions?
Cheers and thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why not contacting manufacturer, maybe they can help you?

hmm yes might try that, its just sitting gathering dust and taking up space in a drawer!? cheers

Bolse a tiny speaker with a huge sound

Review of Don Scorpio DP-H1 smart BT wireless headphones/receiver w/lots of pics!!!

This is a review of Don Scorpio DP-H1 Smart BT wireless headphones/receiver. http://penonaudio.com/DONSCORPIO-DP-H1 and from Penonaudio in their ebay store: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Donscorpio-...23188290?pt=US_Headphones&hash=item58b6c07542
Every time I post a new review of wireless headphones, it always ends up generating a lot of attention. Wireless headphones give us a freedom of cutting the "umbilical" cord attached to our phones so we can move without worrying about pulling the headphone wires or enjoy outside activities with a phone out of sight. That is a reason why so many wireless headphones I reviewed were geared up toward active lifestyle where a sound quality is not the highest priority. Usually it's not an issue with a bass since most of these headphones are bass-heavy to get you pumping during the workout. The problem comes up with clarity of mids and treble without being able to hear details of vocals and other instruments. Unfortunately, that's where most of these wireless headphones fall short and require some heavy EQing. You can certainly correct a lot of sound problems with EQ, but it also becomes annoying to keep adjusting the sound when you switch to another pair of headphones or want to listen to your phones built-in speaker. That is a reason I'm constantly on look up to discover and to test new wireless headphone options. The new one from Don Scorpio just raised a bar pretty high! Let's take a closer look at what I found.
For those familiar with my Don Scorpio Dolphins review, you already know how much I was impressed with a design and a sound quality of those "fun" headphones. So naturally when I heard they released a new product, it got my attention. This wireless headphone/receiver combo arrived in a nice little package with a clear all around display presentation. Though the box has only Chinese text, I was pleased to find a set of bi-lingual instructions included with accessories. In addition, they also included 4 sets of replaceable eartips and usb to micro-usb charging cable. Of course, the star of this package was DP-H1 unit which consists of two parts. You have a wireless BT4.0 receiver and a set of headphones with a short 0.6m cable. The whole idea of this smart gadget it to be able to use included combo as a wireless headphone set or to unplug included headphones and attach any of your own headphones turning them into wireless. As a bonus, Penonaudio includes a free extension 3.5mm cable ($10 value) which is actually a high quality OFC cable.
The wireless receiver itself is shaped like a pack of gum, only 3" in length. It's made out of plastic and has a very solid build. As I mentioned before, it has a clip on the back to attach to your cloth, if necessary. At the top there is 3.5mm headphone jack to plug in any pair of headphones. On one side you have skip next/prev, play/pause, and a power buttons - those are clearly shaped and easy to id even without looking at it, just by touch. The other side has micro-usb charging port and volume up/down buttons with up button having a little raised bump to id without looking at it as well. On the front side you have a round "call" button with Don Scorpio signature shape and also a little speaker opening. YES, it has a tiny speaker!
When you pair it up, it connects both to your phone and media audio. Bluetooth connection was seamless and you get a guided voice to confirm pair up. I also tested the connection over 30m distance without any problem. When you receive a call and use attached headphones, you push the Call button and speak into the unit (where mic is located) while listening to conversation through headphones. But if the headphones are not plugged in, you just bring it up to your ear and use it like a portable wireless headset where you can hear the other person from that tiny speaker which is actually loud enough when you bring it close to your ear. I never seen such flexibility in any of the devices I've tested before! The sound was very clear on both sides of the connection.
We are typically not as critical when talking on the phone, as long as we can hear the other side loud and clear without interruption or background noise. But when it comes to critical audio listening, just a basic wireless connection is not enough. So how do these sound playing music? First of all let me start by mentioning that Don Scorpio included a set of high quality headphones with an evenly balanced smooth sound. They do look like Don Scorpio Bass Color in-ear headphones, but it's just a resemblance of outer shell. These are not bass heavy at all. Paired up with a receiver, these headphones sound really good with excellent level of clarity and details across entire frequency spectrum, and the bass was not as boomy, but rather had a nice punch with some sub-bass texture support. What is great, I was also able to unplug these headphones and compare how they sound wired when plugged directly into my phone.
You don't get this chance with other wireless headphones where receiver is permanently attached and you have to accept the sound as is. In addition, I was also able to plug in a number of my other hi-fi multi-driver headphones, turning them into wireless headsets and being able to compare how they sound wired versus wireless with DP-H1. To my pleasant surprise, they retained almost an identical sound signature from mid-bass to mid-treble. The only difference I noticed was a lesser quantity in sub-bass and some upper treble roll off when used wirelessly. That was expected considering wireless transmission compresses the sound, but I didn't expect how little the sound going to be degraded, only affected at the bottom of low end and the top of high end. I have tested a few similar BT receivers in the past, and found sound to be butchered where all the details of high frequencies were gone and low end sounded muddy. With DP-H1 the best part of the sound was preserved!
Overall, I was impressed with this wireless receiver, or I should probably call it "transceiver" since it's not just a one way receiver for the audio but also a transmitter which allows you to control playback of your music (play/pause/skip) and to use its mic for phone calls. It has a flexible functionality to turn any attached headphone or a speaker into wireless, or turning a speaker into a speakerphone. You can even use it standalone without headphones to pickup a call and hear the other person thanks to a tiny built in speaker. Included headphones are great, though with a short cable you can use it only plugged into DP-H1 or use an included free extension cable otherwise (only offered from Penonaudio). But the most important feature of DP-H1: it doesn't degrade a sound too much, preserving most of the details when receiving audio wireless from your phone. For under $40, this is definitely a bargain!
Here are the pictures.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Review of Voxoa/BTunes VXB BT4.0 w/apt-X wireless headphone adapter w/lots of pics!!!

This is a Review of BTunes VXB Bluetooth 4.0 Wireless adapter w/apt-X for full size headphones. http://thebtunes.com and also available on http://www.worthyaudio.com/voxoa/btunes with a Promo price of only $59 ($40 less than on amazon).
Today’s wireless headphones are not only about the convenience of cutting the wire, but also about sound quality. That is why you see so many big name manufacturers expanding their product line with wireless versions of their popular full size wired models, and some manufacturers deciding to leave it up to a user to get their own wireless adapter that attaches to a headphone cord. Whichever solution you prefer, you either have to invest in a new pair of headphones or to make peace with a dongle hanging off your 1.2m headphone cord. Such wireless dongle will cut the umbilical cord to your audio source, but you still have to deal with a hanging wire. As mentioned above, some manufacturers either choose not to design a wireless version or to have one with a price tag of at least $100 more than original model. So how do you cut the wire while retaining a wired sound quality without breaking the bank by buying multiple overpriced headsets? The solution is BTunes VXB wireless adapter module from Voxoa.
When I first heard about BTunes VXB, I wasn’t sure why Voxoa needed crowdsourcing campaign since they already have an established product line with wireless headphones. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense since Kickstarter is not just about being at the mercy of contributors, but also about extra exposure to share your idea with the world. In case of BTunes, it actually ended up being a successful campaign, and now in full production you can get your hands on this device by ordering it on-line for an instant gratification. No waiting for campaign to end and for shipment to start. Just go on their website or Amazon, place your order, and within few days you can take your favorite Audio-Technica ATH-M50x or Sennheiser Momentum 2 or V-Moda M-100 or Beats or any other full size headphones with a single-earcup removable cable and either 2.5mm or 3.5mm connector, and transform it into a wireless headset with BT4.0 and apt-X codec support. Here is more about it.
I always like to start with a packaging description and unboxing experience. Despite arriving in a very compact hard carton box, I found its diagonal side-split cover to be rather unique, opening up like a jewelry box and revealing a foam insert with VXB adapter inside of a cutout. There was no fancy cover art, just a clear message about "pure wireless hifi sound..." and a detailed spec list on the back.
Unboxing.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
With Voxoa/BTunes offering a handful of different VXB models, you have to be aware they are all the same with the only difference being either 3.5mm or 2.5mm connector flavor. Each model is associated with a specific list of headphones, so make sure to check it before placing an order. For example, 3.5mm one is a universal slim connector but it also comes with an extension adapter to accommodate Bose QC15 model. Or 2.5mm will come in two flavors of either shorter or longer versions. But regardless of a selected connector type, the VXB design and functionality is identical, the packaging is identical, and you will get a quality usb to micro-usb charging cable, detailed instructions, and a warranty card with S/N registration card.
In my opinion, the variation between connectors begs a question if perhaps in the future they can come up with a modular design accommodating different connectors you attach per your headphone requirement, including just a regular 3.5mm socket for wired headphones. That could really eliminate a lot of headaches; otherwise it probably makes sense to get two versions of VXB to cover both 3.5mm and 2.5mm earcup sockets.
Accessories (QC15 adapter, micro-usb cable).
At a glance, VXB design looks very similar to single earpiece phone headsets (Better Call Saul!). Literally, if you would add an earbud driver and the over-ear hook, you would be looking at such headset. But cleverly enough you just have the body with the base going to a plug which attaches to an "external" speaker, you headphone of choice. All the electronics and the battery are hosted inside of a compact and a lightweight body of VXB.
The shell of the body is plastic, but feels solid and sturdy in your hand. The tip has a mic pinhole opening and NFC area on the side (you can pair it up easily via NFC). You will also find a pinhole port with led indicator next to the base of headphone plug. On the back you have a rubber flap tightly covering micro-usb charging port, keeping any moisture or other weather elements away, and right above it a large and easy to access multi-function button (MFB) - the only available control.
Design details.
The pair up with a phone was very easy and similar to any other BT Wireless device I have tested in the past. You hold MFB button until you enter pair up mode, and then select your device from the available list in your smartphone. After pair up you will be connected to phone and media audio. Keep in mind, if you are using multiple VXB devices they will show up with the same name. It's not an issue during initial pair up when you are working with one device at a time; and later via NFC or automatic pair-up there are no discrepancies in the connection. Also, I was able to confirm wireless distance in the open space to operate without a problem across 30-35ft.
Once paired up (with a pleasant voice confirmation), operation is very simple - start playing your music or watching your movie or streaming any other media from your wireless source, and your full size headphones will transform into a wireless headset that can play continuously for up to 10 hrs on a single battery charge. Playback control is under MFB with a single click to Play/Pause or to pickup or end the call, pressing it twice will skip to the next song, and long press for a few seconds will re-start the song. I wasn't able to skip to previous song since long press always re-started the currently playing song. Also, while receiving a call, you can reject it by long pressing MFB for a few seconds.
One set of controls I found to be missing was Volume. Typically your wireless device will have dedicated Volume up/down buttons for a sound level adjustment, in addition to using volume buttons on your phone or tablet. Here you are relying purely on volume adjustment from your source which is not the end of the world, but still requires you to get back to your phone or tablet if you are not next to it and want to lower or to raise the volume level. It's not a showstopper, just inconvenience.
Pair up with a phone.
Another important point I would like to bring up is that you can definitely “cut” the wire when using VXB without anything hanging down or getting in your way. I have a few wireless receivers where you plug in the cord and still have to deal with a cable. If your headphones have a permanently attached cable, there is no other way around it (like the original ATH-M50). But if the cable is removable and you have a single earcup 3.5mm or 2.5mm headphone socket, VXB attachment is unobtrusive and gives your headphones a clean wireless look.
Fitment (w/ATH-MSR7).
Solid build and robust pair up are important, but I was more interested in a sound quality. There are plenty of wireless headphones that cost as much or less than VXB adapter itself. In my opinion, the purpose of this wireless dongle is not just to convert your wired headphones into wireless, but to be able to retain the same sound quality between wired and wireless modes of operation. Support of apt-X codec is important for wireless protocol encoding and decoding to reassure accurate reproduction of a sound spectrum (without too much compression), but it's equally as important to have a quality D/A conversion to send analog signal to headphones.
Based on what I heard with 5 of my headphones chosen for this test (Audio Technica ATH-MSR7, V-Moda M-100, SoundMagic HP150, Audio Technica ATH-M50x, and Sennheiser Momentum 2 Wireless), I can say with a confidence that Voxoa/BTunes nailed the wireless HiFi performance. I’m not going into detailed analysis of each headphone since this is not the purpose of this review. Each headphone has its own unique signature based on manufacturer design and driver tuning. Relative to this wired sound tuning, I compared their wireless performance and found the result to be VERY close.
- MSR7 wired vs VXB - identical sound, VXB is a touch more detailed.
- HP150 wired vs VXB - very close in sound, VXB is a touch more detailed and with a little more sub-bass boom.
- M-100 wired vs VXB - identical sound, VXB is a touch more detailed and bass is a bit tighter.
- M50x wired vs VXB - identical sound, VXB is a touch more detailed and bass is a bit tighter.
- M2 wired vs VXB - tighter and less boomy bass with VXB, a little more transparency in a sound.
- M2 wireless vs VXB - very close in sound, though M2 Wireless mids are slightly more forward.
In general, what I'm hearing as a "touch more detailed" is due to a difference attributed to a sound signature of my wired sound source (being a touch warmer) in comparison to VXB audio output (being slightly brighter. But overall results were very close, especially in 3-way comparison of Sennheiser Momentum 2 Wireless against VXB in wired and native wireless modes.
Conclusion.
I love the idea of taking my favorite set of wired headphones and turning them wireless. In the past I have tested a few portable BT receivers where you plug in your headphones, but the audio quality of that wireless connection was dreadful, perhaps since they utilized an old BT standard and no apt-X codec support. That was a bit of a turn off for me, but I’m glad I was able to revisit this topic and to test a product that really nailed the essence of such wireless transformation. There are obvious limitations where you need headphones with a removable single earcup cable and a standard 3.5mm or 2.5mm connector you have clear access to. But in reality this requirement covers a lot of the latest popular headphones where so many manufacturers moved to removable cables and standard connectors. Using VXB wireless adapter is not just a convenience of cutting the wire, but actually being able to retain your wired sound quality while having a freedom of not being “attached” by wire to your audio source.

Making Apple's 3.5mm EarPods (partially) work with the LG V20 workaround

The only set of 3.5mm wired earbuds I have ever tried on my H910 LG V20 that haven't worked, are the Apple EarPods that I purchased a few days ago. Wired earbuds are so cheap nowadays you don't need to worry about getting a decent pair for close to nothing; however, I like to be able to connect whatever I have at my disposal at any given time (people might still have some spare EarPods laying around somewhere). My earbuds were on their way out, so I decided to go to Best Buy to look for another pair. The Apple EarPods were on sale for $7 (I wouldn't pay more than that), so I picked up a pair. I remember back when I was using the iPhone 6s, these EarPods came with it and they had a really good bass.
When connecting these EarPods to my V20 directly as they are, they sound distorted, the volume is almost at mute, etc. When pressing the Microphone button though, they sound pretty good. I tried a 3.5mm TRS headphone jack extension and the EarPods work great; I'm not sure if there's something different with the Microphone part that the 3.5mm TRS jack extension fixes by ignoring/bypassing that specific section (the EarPods have a TRRS audio plug, while the extension I used is TRS); however, it makes the EarPods function well for listening to music at least.
SKIP ALL MY B.S. AND GO TO THE WORKAROUND:
1. Get a 3.5mm TRS headphone jack extension/adapter to use with the EarPods (who knows, maybe a TRRS extension will also work)
or
2. Press down the microphone button temporarily with tape (I don't think the EarPod's Mic or volume buttons work with this phone anyway)
.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

Thanks for sharing this, I may personally try this out one day.
I've got a pair of lightning earpods, which would probably be more of a hurdle or more trouble than it's worth to try and get working.
I was shocked to see that you got the pair for only $7! After reading that I was going go out and consider picking up a pair but I see that Best Buy has raised their prices back to $20.
Related but sort of off topic... had a hard time finding a decent wired earbud with a microphone... as bluetooth earbuds struggle to keep up with all day office use in conference calls. So I was looking at the Sony MDRXB55AP's... but I've seen enough reviews where users had one side stop working after a month or so that it made me hesitant. So I thought about the original Apple Earpods and read your thread.

ssnova said:
Thanks for sharing this, I may personally try this out one day.
I've got a pair of lightning earpods, which would probably be more of a hurdle or more trouble than it's worth to try and get working.
I was shocked to see that you got the pair for only $7! After reading that I was going go out and consider picking up a pair but I see that Best Buy has raised their prices back to $20.
Related but sort of off topic... had a hard time finding a decent wired earbud with a microphone... as bluetooth earbuds struggle to keep up with all day office use in conference calls. So I was looking at the Sony MDRXB55AP's... but I've seen enough reviews where users had one side stop working after a month or so that it made me hesitant. So I thought about the original Apple Earpods and read your thread.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Although I don't use my V20 anymore, I still use those same 3.5mm earpods on my PC, and the microphone sounds amazing when recording audio. I don't know what is it about these wired earbuds, but in terms of headphone and mic quality, they're on par with apple's first gen bluetooth airpods. Originally they wouldn't work very well with my PC either since the earpods are a 2-in-1 (headphone and microphone), so neither the headphone or mic inputs on my PC would recognize them as an actual headset; mic wouldn't work. I finally decided to purchase a "usb-c female to usb male adapter," and an "apple usb-c to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter," so I could connect the 3.5mm jack to those 2; now my PC recognizes the apple earpods as a "USB Headset," and the microphone works great. I've been using these earpods everyday for almost a year now with no issues whatsoever since I don't have speakers on my computer.
After I purchased my earpods for $7, I bought another pair from eBay for $10.99 since they went up in price again; I never though I would pay more than $7 for these, but they're durable and I got them to work with my PC so why not. The ones from Ebay didn't come with the original packaging; rather a generic transparent plastic box but I can confirm mine were original. Fakes have lower quality audio and the mic sounds pretty bad, so I know the spares are good. Both adapters were around $6 each so I paid a little bit over $20 with the earpods included. I just typed "authentic oem apple iphone ear pods" on eBay and purchased the $10.99 ones.

Merazomo said:
Although I don't use my V20 anymore, I still use those same 3.5mm earpods on my PC, and the microphone sounds amazing when recording audio. I don't know what is it about these wired earbuds, but in terms of headphone and mic quality, they're on par with apple's first gen bluetooth airpods. Originally they wouldn't work very well with my PC either since the earpods are a 2-in-1 (headphone and microphone), so neither the headphone or mic inputs on my PC would recognize them as an actual headset; mic wouldn't work. I finally decided to purchase a "usb-c female to usb male adapter," and an "apple usb-c to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter," so I could connect the 3.5mm jack to those 2; now my PC recognizes the apple earpods as a "USB Headset," and the microphone works great. I've been using these earpods everyday for almost a year now with no issues whatsoever since I don't have speakers on my computer.
After I purchased my earpods for $7, I bought another pair from eBay for $10.99 since they went up in price again; I never though I would pay more than $7 for these, but they're durable and I got them to work with my PC so why not. The ones from Ebay didn't come with the original packaging; rather a generic transparent plastic box but I can confirm mine were original. Fakes have lower quality audio and the mic sounds pretty bad, so I know the spares are good. Both adapters were around $6 each so I paid a little bit over $20 with the earpods included. I just typed "authentic oem apple iphone ear pods" on eBay and purchased the $10.99 ones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I went to search for some oem apple wired earpods and see that they are currently about $15 on Amazon. That's a nifty work around you did to get the Apple earpods to work on your pc. I would probably have to consider that as well, especially since my older machine does not have the combined jack.
I recently put on my lightning wired earpods, as it had been a long time. They work good, except they tend to fall out easily for my ears, only issue I have with them, and that's particular to my ears.