Choetech’s Wireless Bluetooth Audio Transmitter/Receiver - Device Reviews and Information

Here’s my review on Choetech’s Wireless Bluetooth Audio Transmitter/Receiver
Product link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MDV9ZHC
UPDATE: I just realized they have a PROMO code for $10 OFF to! ENTER this at amazon checkout: B8FC6Z6Q:good:
First off, this wireless bluetooth audio unit is truly a unique device. I love the ability to use it as a receiver and a transmitter! This device is about the size of a Gatorade cap - that’s nice. I can tell you that it also does exactly what it says, and it does it well!
I've used many different Bluetooth audio devices over time including big name devices like the Soundsports by Bose, Jawbone's Big Jambox, and many, many more. As far as it’s ability to respond to your needs, Choetech’s 2-in-1 Wireless Bluetooth Transmitter and Receiver is right up there with the more expensive units. For me to be happy with any Bluetooth device it had better be able to produce one thing - this can be summed up in a word like 'reliability' or 'consistency'. After all, if a Bluetooth device can't be found or can’t connect, what good is it? Choetech's Bluetooth 4.1 drivers are solid. I've had no issues with connectivity.
Secondly, I don't respond well at all to choppy or finicky audio connections. As a wedding DJ, I can say there is simply no room for that type of trouble! I didn't expect anything less than perfect when it came to the build quality of this Bluetooth transmitter. After all, Choetech have always produced some of the best wires and connectors in the game when it comes to devices and accessories.
If they would add an optical in/out port to it, that would be incredible. Maybe on the next one?
Anyways, if this device looks like it'll do the trick, and suit your needs, I'm here to say this is the one. If you're torn between brands, I can tell you Choetech's the way to go! I hope this helps someone! Thanks!

Related

Evo to Ipod Dock Adapter DIY

I would like to be able to connect my Evo to my car so that I can listen to Pandora using the car stereo. Unfortunately my car only has an Ipod dock connector.
Would it be possible to create an adapter that will allow you to connect an HTC Evo to an Ipod dock and output audio?
I have seen something similar being done with a T-Mobile G1.
webnetta.com/2008/12/27/hack-connects-t-mobile-g1-to-ipod-dock/
Is it just as simple as getting a Ipod dock extender cable like this one:
monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10831&cs_id=1083101&p_id=6828
and cutting off the male and of this cable and soldering it to a male end of microusb cable?
Any help would be appreciated.
this is a huge area where android needs improvement.
There's no audio through the Evo USB port. I was searching for the same thing last night. I have a logitech ipod speaker: (can't post links)
I also have this ipod bluetooth adapter:
What I'm thinking about doing is to hardwire the bluetooth adapter to the inside of the speaker. Then get the 5v from the dock and make a cable or adapter to go to the Evo's mini usb port. It's not the best solution, but I do have all of the parts already. If I didn't, headphones would suffice.
find the schematic for the ipod dock and solder a headphone jack to the audio inputs on the connector and you're done. I have done the same thing and it worked just fine for my friend that I did it for.
the thing that sucks about that is you will need an extra cable to charge the phone.
speedracerbubba said:
find the schematic for the ipod dock and solder a headphone jack to the audio inputs on the connector and you're done. I have done the same thing and it worked just fine for my friend that I did it for.
the thing that sucks about that is you will need an extra cable to charge the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hence my bluetooth idea.
I did some digging around a couple weeks ago and came across this
talkandroid.com/guides/ipod-dock-adapter-for-motorola-droidmilestone/
It sucks you need the 3.5 adapter, but better than letting letting a perfectly good dock sit and collect dust.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
I just ordered a couple of these last week. My car has an ipod adapter, and this should let me connect to that and connect the 3mm to my EVO.
It's coming from Hong Kong so may be a bit longer before it's delivered. I'll report back when I get it.
I can't post links yet - go to bestofferbuy.com and search
"3.5mm Male to iPod/iPhone 2G/3G/3GS Female Adapter Cable - Black (95CM-Length)"
It's $2.60 shipped so I bought two. Can't go wrong for 5bucks
oooo ^ good find. picked up two myself.
I've been using one of these in my car for about 6 months now, originally it was to have audio from netbook. It has now been doing me good on the evo.
*correct the link and bingo... Cant post the real link because of my noobness
w w w.cablejive.com/products/Dock-Input-Cable.html
I had the same problem, I think the best solution is to go Bluetooth. This will future proof you for phone changes down the line as well. Long story short, here is the best solution I've found and it works great! Just connect it to your ipod cable and stream over Bluetooth. So far it has worked with everything ipod, iPhone and iPad that I own, especially my custom installed iPhone stereo connector.
Just look up item number 190402178083 on eBay.
Sent from my EVO 4G using XDA App
Step 1: Buy some Sugru or ShapeLock
Step 2: Buy Cheapie $1 headphones
Step 3: Buy iPod female Dock connector and MicroUSB Male end
Step 4: Use Pinout.ru to connect the points appropriately (iPod dock connector pins are pretty small and you must work quickly or your will melt the plastic, do not forget the internal resistors if needed for your application)
Step 5: Wrap it up in Sugru or Shapelock (use hairdryer to smooth it out with your hands)
Step 6: Paint and Enjoy!
Creating custom cables and docks and such is really not that difficult, just need some decent soldering skill and patience.
You could also just buy this:
http://www.cablejive.com/universal-dock-converter
FIPO Bluetooth
I use this in my BMW for streaming over the bluetooth to the stereo. Works great and convient to just start the car and the Evo start playing music/podcast/etc.
FIPO Amazon Sprint search will turn up the 20 dollar adapter.
Childofthehorn said:
Creating custom cables and docks and such is really not that difficult, just need some decent soldering skill and patience.
http://www.cablejive.com/universal-dock-converter
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Some of us do have the necessary skills, but do not want a ugly wire staring us in the face. Also the components themselves tend to get expensive when ripping apart 3 different cords for parts... not to mention when someone tries this and melts something, then you have to go through the hassle of ordering more components. That is the main reason we come here, because someone may already be on the job.
Now..... if your offering to do it, and you have a pricetag and are willing to offer support in case it doesn't work or kills our phones or car stereos, then I am all ears. But definitely thanks for the link.
As far as BT goes, the one poster is kind of right, I think the phone industry is betting on bluetooth, although its been 15 years, and BT performance is still at best Mediocre.
00-Photon said:
I had the same problem, I think the best solution is to go Bluetooth. This will future proof you for phone changes down the line as well. Long story short, here is the best solution I've found and it works great! Just connect it to your ipod cable and stream over Bluetooth. So far it has worked with everything ipod, iPhone and iPad that I own, especially my custom installed iPhone stereo connector.
Just look up item number 190402178083 on eBay.
Sent from my EVO 4G using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
now that is sweet! best solution yet!
What if we took audio out from the HDMI port?
Brutal-Force said:
Also the components themselves tend to get expensive when ripping apart 3 different cords for parts... not to mention when someone tries this and melts something, then you have to go through the hassle of ordering more components.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True, But there are those of us with drive to do something unique and have something that fits our needs exactly. DealExtreme.com is a great place to buy the cables to be ripped up and dollar stores can be a real treasure trove. Craft/ART stores also have a lot of things which can be easily repurposed.
Brutal-Force said:
Now..... if your offering to do it, and you have a pricetag and are willing to offer support in case it doesn't work or kills our phones or car stereos, then I am all ears.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used to be a person who did his kind of work in college, but it is time consuming and repetitive. Plus, this is likely a market of people who are not willing to spend great amounts of money on handmade products. Even if someone charged $30 each it would not be worth the average techies time, but a worthwhile effort for a high school or college student with the drive to learn and perfect.
Brutal-Force said:
As far as BT goes, the one poster is kind of right, I think the phone industry is betting on bluetooth, although its been 15 years, and BT performance is still at best Mediocre.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are correct in MOST scenarios!
It is more of an issue not with the BT technology itself rather the way it is popularly implemented. BT does have the ability to send out very high quality audio streams and many of which are nearly lossless in quality. The issues are with the device that streams and the device that receives. The chosen connection type between the two devices must be mutual. Problem is that most BT devices streaming A2DP use only SBC coding of varied bit rate and quality.
Now if you have a really well done setup that is very thought out you can have your EVO sending out a pure 320kbps MP3 or AAC or other compatible stream direct with no conversion being done in real time to a BT receiver which is MP3, etc. stream compatible and has an excellent, typically non-chip integrated, DAC with a nice buffered output. Problem is that many BT receiver chips are made to be as cheap as possible, have crappy dacs, and push out very little power (or simply have no buffer at all) to even crappier speakers. When you combine that with real time conversion of MP3 and other formats to SBC at an even lower bit rate, you have an even worse experience.
IMO, the headphone output on the EVO does not sound that good and if you have a car that does accept MP3 320k BT streams and you use an alternative media player like meridian that allows that kind of behavior, then it should be fine for even above average car audio.
Have a Great Listening Experience!
JoeBass said:
I just ordered a couple of these last week. My car has an ipod adapter, and this should let me connect to that and connect the 3mm to my EVO.
It's coming from Hong Kong so may be a bit longer before it's delivered. I'll report back when I get it.
I can't post links yet - go to bestofferbuy.com and search
"3.5mm Male to iPod/iPhone 2G/3G/3GS Female Adapter Cable - Black (95CM-Length)"
It's $2.60 shipped so I bought two. Can't go wrong for 5bucks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great find! Just ordered one for myself
Childofthehorn said:
True, But there are those of us with drive to do something unique and have something that fits our needs exactly. DealExtreme.com is a great place to buy the cables to be ripped up and dollar stores can be a real treasure trove. Craft/ART stores also have a lot of things which can be easily repurposed.
I used to be a person who did his kind of work in college, but it is time consuming and repetitive. Plus, this is likely a market of people who are not willing to spend great amounts of money on handmade products. Even if someone charged $30 each it would not be worth the average techies time, but a worthwhile effort for a high school or college student with the drive to learn and perfect.
You are correct in MOST scenarios!
It is more of an issue not with the BT technology itself rather the way it is popularly implemented. BT does have the ability to send out very high quality audio streams and many of which are nearly lossless in quality. The issues are with the device that streams and the device that receives. The chosen connection type between the two devices must be mutual. Problem is that most BT devices streaming A2DP use only SBC coding of varied bit rate and quality.
Now if you have a really well done setup that is very thought out you can have your EVO sending out a pure 320kbps MP3 or AAC or other compatible stream direct with no conversion being done in real time to a BT receiver which is MP3, etc. stream compatible and has an excellent, typically non-chip integrated, DAC with a nice buffered output. Problem is that many BT receiver chips are made to be as cheap as possible, have crappy dacs, and push out very little power (or simply have no buffer at all) to even crappier speakers. When you combine that with real time conversion of MP3 and other formats to SBC at an even lower bit rate, you have an even worse experience.
IMO, the headphone output on the EVO does not sound that good and if you have a car that does accept MP3 320k BT streams and you use an alternative media player like meridian that allows that kind of behavior, then it should be fine for even above average car audio.
Have a Great Listening Experience!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, that was a mouthfull. Thanks though, it helps a little. I did spend quite a while researching different Bluetooth headsets. But alas, as you have pointed out, although most of what is considered to be high end headsets, still only use bluetooth 2.0. The EVO also doesn't do a very good job at streaming bluetooth. Pandora and Music Player skip horribly. I was not aware that Meridian did a better job. I guess, that might have been another option.
As far as the bluetooth headsets go though, if your looking for A2DP, the selection is still limited, unless you want a dongle type headset, which IMO, you might as well use a wire. The Motorola, Rocketfish and Jabra headsets of top end just don't do as good a job as seating properly, unless you spend 50+ dollars on a custom ear piece.
There really are a lot of trade-offs in audio performance, but a good set high quality ear buds or headphones are hard to beat. Then comes the Car audio as well as home audio into play. I use mine as a MP3 player both on the go and in the car. My car has a Audio In jack, so I am happy with that.
I ordered a E5 Amplifier to go with mine, it should be here in a week or two. While my headset has finally broken in, I could do with about 10-20% more volume, but I am hoping for a little improved base since it will have the power to push my Vmoda Remix.
Brutal-Force said:
Well, that was a mouthful....
The Motorola, Rocketfish and Jabra headsets of top end just don't do as good a job as seating properly, unless you spend 50+ dollars on a custom ear piece.
There really are a lot of trade-offs in audio performance, but a good set high quality ear buds or headphones are hard to beat.
I ordered a E5 Amplifier to go with mine, it should be here in a week or two. While my headset has finally broken in, I could do with about 10-20% more volume, but I am hoping for a little improved base since it will have the power to push my Vmoda Remix.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, The E5 is a decent beginner set. You may want to look at building a CMoy at some point, make sure to use slightly larger electrolytic caps and good film caps (resistors don't matter as much). If you make one with good parts and socketed chip, you can roll in to your flavor and it will take portable amps that are $100 or more to beat it. As far as kit amps go, its hard to beat a Mini3 for $100 to put together yourself.
I only say this as a person who actually owns a $450 Portable Amp and $575 Custom triple driver In-ear's. Don't even get me started about the stuff that is at home (I have way too much audio crap!)
BTW - you can make your own custom silicone ear pieces by using some Sugru or if you know an audiologist, you can get some of the Westone two part silicone that they normally use for getting impressions. As with everything, be careful and YMMV.
I wish i had the time to work on getting a USB host for the EVO so that we could use external USB DAC's (like the very small alien and grub).
00-Photon said:
I had the same problem, I think the best solution is to go Bluetooth. This will future proof you for phone changes down the line as well. Long story short, here is the best solution I've found and it works great! Just connect it to your ipod cable and stream over Bluetooth. So far it has worked with everything ipod, iPhone and iPad that I own, especially my custom installed iPhone stereo connector.
Just look up item number 190402178083 on eBay.
Sent from my EVO 4G using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just ordered this too. The cable I ordered from Bestofferbuy . c o m was backordered, so I canceled. I agree with you, this should do the trick, saw it on another forum and looks like it will also allow some steering wheel functionality.
I ordered two through amazon, also found it on geek . com. Searching either with "Sprint Anycom Bluetooth A2DP Reciever" will get you there.

[Q] Developing a NFC, Wireless charging dock

Hi to the fantastic team of minds on XDA! I'm currently working through building a wireless charging/streaming dock with NFC for my Nexus 5, although the plan is to extend support to any device that supports Wireless Charging & NFC.
Basic concept is for use in a car, but could also be adapted for other situations easily. Basic operation is drop phone in charging area/cradle, NFC tag is read by phone and either launches the music player OR for me in my case, runs tasker to set volume max, play library on shuffle, launch GPS tracking for work/private mileage etc and the phone would stream audio to a receiver wired into the cars headunit.
NFC/Wireless charging.. piece of cake. Audio streaming... not so fun.
I would really like decent audio quality, not quite audiophile level but certainly at least as good as the 3.5mm line out from the headphone jack. Initially I disliked the idea of bluetooth due to quality however looking around I found some Bluetooth 4 APT-X enabled boards that seemed to fit the bill fairly well as apparently APT-X sounds much better in comparison to A2DP (haven't tried out for myself though). Only problem is the Nexus as well as a lot of other devices don't support APT-X. Other than bluetooth I'm really struggling to find a good quality wireless streaming standard that is fairly plug and play. I found a WiFi option via DTS using DLNA but the details on the receiving hardware are sketchy, it also doesn't seem very transparent (requires input from 3rd party apps etc).
I also found a few posts relating to Chromecast enabled media servers that will allow Play music to cast music to them, but again, can't really find any pre made WiFi enabled DLNA "dumb" servers designed to simply capture an audio stream. Again, not very transparent. Ideally it would work natively and without much 3rd party input.. although this may not be entirely possible so I'm open to all options.
So, what are my options? Also, why with Bluetooth 4 with the max bitrate of 20+mbps do we not have a high bit rate audio streaming profile/protocol?
I did consider the idea of a wired DAC, but the major plus on the cable free design is being able to just drop the phone in and grab it out without fiddling for cables. Also the Nexus 5 doesn't support USB DAC OOTB. I also had difficulty sourcing a DAC that would output acceptable audio (at least as good as the headphone jack) for a good price. Everything I found was either expensively high end or nasty & cheap. All I need is a bare board that gets stuffed into a cable box and works! I bought a cheap $5 DAC off ebay ages ago for testing. Worst mistake ever!!! Horrible sound, but hey it was $5
Thanks for any input!
- Auzeras
If bluetooth sound qualitiy is too bad for you (for me its ok with my JVC radio) i think the aux cable is the only option. But if you have to plug in the cable the "just drop your phone"-concept is gone. I suggest trying to use the USB port for audio out (because aux input isnt a big deal for most of the cars) und charging at the same time. For the dock i think using the brodit docks is ok although these docks are expensive. Alternativly you could try to use a cheaper dock.
For USB audio out i think a cheap DAC like this should be fine, but you need the usb audio recorder pro app (see this thread). Next thing is charging at the same time. Maybe its possible to do it like this with an powered usb hub but you'll have to try that. Overall its more the developing of an USB aux output with the ability of charging but i think its the only option to get the audio qualitiy you want.

Looking for a dac not to expensive

I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks
Please
nitramus said:
I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure you have not a faulty cable/ nexus 5 connector or bad regulated equalizer on nexus 5?
I ask you cause I m not an audiophile but nexus 5 sound great to my ears, almost like nexus s which feature one of the best DAC on portable devices
nitramus said:
I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try dragonfly by Audioquest or Cambridge Audio USB DAC. They sound awesome. I prefer the latter one. =)
Thanks for the reply. Everything I get gives me more info to search and get informed.
If you want a good dac at reasonable money try fio,get from Amazon
Sent from my Nexus 5
"Sucks" is a subjective term, but I agree with Axel85. If you're currently getting terrible sound, a USB DAC is a costly hail-mary that likely won't solve your problem. USB OTG DACs are great way to salvage an aging phone as a media player or to bypass a damaged the 3.5mm output. Otherwise, they're a way to turn already "great" sound into "exceptional." I can say with complete confidence that, even over bluetooth, the Nexus 5's built-in audio is impressive. If it "sucks" on your setup, then you definitely want to ensure that the problem doesn't lie elsewhere before investing in a DAC. If it is, in fact, the Nexus 5, ship that sucker back to Google, because a DAC definitely won't help. Just be sure there aren't other elements in your setup putting the constraints on your sound reproduction.
Now if you're truly blessed (cursed?) with golden ears and an audiophile's insatiable desire for perfection, then "sucks" probably has a different meaning for you; Otherwise, it's best to rule out everything else before plopping down substantial cash on a USB DAC. On that note, the Nexus' internal DAC crushes any entry-level/ low-end ($30-$50 DAC), so you'd really only want to consider the next step up, and it is a big step in price. Great units from $120-$200 from Fiio or Cambridge Audio. I've heard the Audioengine D3 on a laptop and it was fantastic, the form factor is great, as well, but I haven't investigated whether it plays nicely with lollipop OTG. There are a lot of issues to consider -some are legitimate headaches. Aside from the additional clutter of more cables and another powered device, the effect on your phone's battery is not one to take lightly. You may be able to currently stream pandora all day long, but with your phone acting as a USB host, you have to be conscious of the potential power draw from any USB DAC. A big amplifier can drain that battery quickly without its own power source to supplement. Many DACs are even equipped with their own internal batteries, but regardless, the power question is not something to minimize. Depending on the unit, powered USB hubs and the right cables can provide an easy fix.
But before you go pulling the trigger on a DAC, let me suggest a few things and some troubleshooting steps...
On the software side:
Play with built-in equalizer/AudioFX/DSP (it may do nothing at all with your ROM & kernel). I also highly recommend that you try playing your media through an app called PowerAmp. If that doesn't give you the fidelity boost you're looking for, then give Viper4Android a whirl. It requires a slightly more complicated installation (depending on the ROM), and the tweaking can get advanced, but the results are truly impressive with the right music. "FauxSound" is a custom kernel I'm yet to experiment with because it's (currently) incompatible with CM12.1 CAF, but the reviews in the forums seem overwhelmingly positive. When it comes to sound, perceptible differences vary from person to person.
As to troubleshooting the phone's output:
It should go without saying, but if your factory head unit and speakers and are junk ...if music has never sounded good on your system, a USB DAC isn't the miracle worker you need. Spend the money on a decent head unit and/or upgrade your speakers. An underpowered, factory installed head unit can turn otherwise decent speakers into muffled distortion makers, so take stock of the equipment you're working with and manage expectations. If you're an audiophile, you can likely ignore much of this, but for the sake of anyone else in a similar boat, considering a DAC to improve audio, lets go down the troubleshooting checkbox:
1) First and foremost, check your source files. If you're streaming, make sure it's high quality. You may need to go into the app's advanced settings. For most people's ears, there are diminishing returns above 320kbps MP3 /256AAC vs. the storage requirements. With the right gear and the right source though, "lossless" music can bring out elements you never heard on your favorite tracks: fingers lifting and moving along frets, or a half-note you never caught. If your ROM is capable of natively playing 96000Hz 24-bit FLAC, by all means, give it a go (or any other lossless).
2) Test your 3.5mm headphone connection with decent pair of actual headphones. Still sucks? Spray the jack with compressed air and see if it helps. Try with another set of headphones. Try with a friend's car, try on your home stereo. Then connect to your car and compare. If it's worse, swap out the cable before anything else. Quality matters here. The difference between the the $0.99 cable you buy at the gas station and the $12 cable at BestBuy can be huge. A quality cable means one sheilded for interference with wiring and connectors made of materials that optimize conductivity (often a thin gold plating). Many are even cut specifically to ensure a solid connection through the narrow opening of an aftermarket case/protector. A better connection means better sound.
3) If all is well with the 3.5mm, plug it into your mobile charger. Audio still clean? If not, try another charger. Still sounding crappy? Is this limited to the car or did you hear it on your headphones? How about over bluetooth? If it's only in the car, and sound gets worse on the charger, there might be a ground loop somewhere in the car's electrical system (often this manifests as a high frequency whine that increases as you accelerate, or changes frequency when you turn on the A/C, headlights, etc). This could be as simple as something plugged into the cars cigarette lighter, or a bad connection somewhere in the vehicles electrical system... The problem is the "somewhere" part, and tracing it down can mean pulling fuses all day long.
3) If you connect over bluetooth (not optimal) perform the same tests. If bluetooth degrades audio quality significantly, then your car stereo may be on an older standard that simply can't operate at the bandwidth capabilities for high-bitrate audio. Aside from just not using bluetooth, there's no simple fix for this. If you dont get a drop in audio quality when connecting to another bluetooth device, then your in-car options are limited: connect via 3.5mm out, replace the head unit with a newer one, or install a bluetooth 4.0+ adapter to the car stereo's auxillary inputs. It's worth at least mentioning that, although unlikely, interference from other devices could be an issue. Anything that operates within the same wireless spectrum as bluetooth could be a source of interference. A bluetooth obdii reader, a wireless transmitter from a rear view camera, even other phones in the car that have been paired with the stereo.... Anything on 2.4ghz Normally, there's a preamble before transmission that keeps devices operating on these frequencies from interfering with each other, but if there's a bluetooth device in the vehicle on an early standard, that may not be the case. Also, if there's any USB 3.0 connection (powered hub, thumb drive) in close proximity to bluetooth, get rid of it or buy a shielded extension cable -noise emitted at the connection crushes bluetooth throughput and connection reliability.
Regardless, just make sure that the rest of your system is up to the task before investing in a DAC. Don't get me wrong, they are fantastic with the right gear, but each component of your setup can improve output as much as it can act as a bottleneck on the quality of the sound it reproduces. Make sure the investment is worth it by ensuring your system is ready for it. If not, put your money towards the fundamentals: Head unit + speakers.
mborzill said:
If your ROM is capable of natively playing 96000Hz 24-bit FLAC, by all means, give it a go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you aware of any such ROMs?
Well, some clarification is necessary... even stock kitkat should *play* a 24/96FLAC, but "Natively" isn't the correct terminology. If that were true 24/96 on the N5, this thread wouldn't exist. The Nexus 5 downsamples significantly, but the better the source, the better the sample. Quality will be great coming from a lossless 24bit/96khz source, but its not gonna be true 24/96 if its coming from the Nexus 5's internal DAC. It'll be downsampled to its hardware and software limitations. I know with kitkat this was 16bit/48khz, but I can't speak to whether or not this ceiling *actually* increased with Lollipop. In theory, the N5's Qualcomm Wolfson wcd9320 DAC supported up to 192khz, and Lollipop bumped support up to 96khz, but if I recall, it's the Snapdragon 800 that isn't capable of 24/96. Without a DAC, and downsampled to 16bit/48khz, you might get an imperceptibly lower noise floor, but other than I doubt you'd hear a difference between lossless sources.
Personally I think it's total overkill to use up that kind of space without having a DAC capable of reproducing it (or freakin golden ears) but if you're going for the most accurate reference track you can find for problem-tracing, have at it. Even Downsampled, that FLAC will sound much better than an encoded mp3.
If there's a ROM with true "native" 24/96khz reproduction on the N5 I certainly don't know about it... Or need it.
As to specific ROMs and compatibility: Cyanogenmod is my go-to. I prefer Viper4Android over AudioFX, but with major tweaking (specific to my headphones). Out of the box, AudioFX is great.
Lollipop, in general, has vastly improved audio performance. Raised sampling resolution from 16 bit PCM to 24bit and sampling rate from 44/48khz to support 96khz (if the phones hardware can support it, else USB DAC). Lower i/o latency gives the closest thing android has seen to real-time audio since the start (which has been a major issue for musicians,DJ, game developers, even VoIP). Floating point sampling is new too, which, in theory, reduces clipping, improves headroom and dynamic range.
Do I need to use a custom ROM with an external DAC like the Fiio E18 or other DAC's? Could I simply purchase any external DAC? If not what do I need to look for when shopping for external DAC's that work with the Nexus 5?
My Nexus 5 is stock currently on 5.1.
Thank you for any advice.
Viper 4 android.

Review: Mpow Streambot Bluetooth 4.0 Receiver,with Gesture-sensing

Great little piece of hardware to give those users who are missing the audio BT link on there older cars.
I currently use this with my 2008 toyota and android device running spotify.
Hardware is of a slim design with great build quality. The cords provided are of adequate length to make all connections. I had no issues connecting multiple devices to unit and getting BT to pair.
I love how this unit comes with an included noise cancellation piece which prevents the ground humming to sound across speakers. Many similar units sold on Amazon do not come with that very important piece. Audio quality was top notch.
The wave gestures is a cool innovation but I did not have the best experience with it. At times when waving hand I would be taking my eye off road to make sure I was waving directly in front and other times it was changing songs accidently with movements occurring in car.
When placed in my 2008 Toyota, there is a good spot on the lower part of the dash by key hole but when I moved knee it would invoke song change. My personal preference would be the hard buttons to push to change songs. It all comes down to personal preference and the available location to place in car.
I also love how it has a 1 and 2 amp port on cigarette lighter adapter. Others I have tested only had 1amp port.
One of the ports is used to connect this unit. I wish this unit was hard corded to power adapter and two USB ports were available.
I also came across a promotional code for those that might be interested.
Promotion for MBR11 on Amazon
Code: PSEYW3TS
Discount: $6 off
Validity: until 07/23/2016
Mpow-Streambot-Bluetooth-Gesture-sensing-Hands-free

USB-C Headphone Adapter

Anyone have on they can recommend? Do they all work or are there certain things to look out for?
BJozi said:
Anyone have on they can recommend? Do they all work or are there certain things to look out for?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As with many things created, there are worse and better ones. Usually, the more expensive the better. Look for one with these specs: 384khz-32bit. You may not have music which can utilize that spec but generally, this cable will be of higher quality than cables spec'd with lower values such as 192khz-24bit. If you're shopping on "Nozama", your best bet is to look at the star ratings and how many people rate the cable. The more 5 and 4 star ratings, and more importantly, the less 1 star ratings, the higher the chances of the product being a great item. But I'm sure you already knew that. Let me know which cable you go with, I'm looking for one as well.
There are many different ones to choose from, not only for quality of sound but also some may have a more neutral works signature, others may be more warm, etc...
There is a good thread at head-fi.org on this. But for starters, what kind of headphones will you be plugging into the dongle? And what is your music source?
I have pretty expensive iem so I splurged on a pretty good dongle. I mean it really depends.
Thanks both of you for the tips. I went and got the one Google sells during the week.
I tend to use my Sony WH-1000XM3 most of the time. I just wanted something for occasional use of a pair of Blon BL03 I received earlier this year. It's more for convenience and to have the ability to use either when I want to.
As far as audiophile listening goes, I don't think either are to high up there.
I had to buy the original for it to work in my car and also the external mic. Google is pulling an Apple...
AS gar as i know only the ones following the usb-c standart with an integrated da converter work. Most really cheap Chinese ones are Just cable adapter. Because huwawei etc integrated the da into their phones. Which ist actually Not usb-c compliant.
I find the stock Google one to be terrible and does not output enough volume. There are definitely better options but they are far more than 10 bucks.
Don't waste your money for others
The Tempotec Sonata HD Pro is super high quality for the price, if you can live with its form-factor. Because this dongle is a small metal box and not an inline cable adapter, I wouldn't use it while walking around or working out. For desktop / bedside / airplane kind of use it is great. It's available from Amazon for < $40 and probably from other sellers as well.
If you need to use the headphones while your phone is in your pocket and you're walking around, one of the best inline dongles is actually Apple's USB-C Audio Adapter. Note that the Apple dongle has a fairly low maximum volume when used on Android phones, so if you buy one make sure you can return it. Review here: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...pple-vs-google-usb-c-headphone-adapters.5541/
In addition to the Pixel 5-only dongle problem, I have a second requirement. My Samsung S7 has, of course, a 3.5 mm socket - no dongle needed. Which means, and this one matters, I can use an external bettery pack to keep the phone going and still usable at the end of the day.
Does any P5 dongle meet this requirement, too?
I looked at the Tempotec review and discussion. There's a comment about a microUSB socket on the dongle. I'm waiting for my application for access to Head-fi to come through.
In the meantime, does anyone know of a dongle that also allows charging the P5 while a headphone dongle is attached?
I am using this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B097ZMZGDQ
It allows me to charge the device while listening to music. I use it to connect to a boombox that supplies power to the device. The boombox is not a Hi-Fi device so I don't need a fancy external DAC. This one sounds fine on the boombox. Great for any old device that doesn't have Bluetooth.
The Apple one is best bang for buck and audio quality if you like a nice flat freq response.

Categories

Resources