External HiFi USB-C DAC not working properly - Google Pixel 2 XL Accessories

Hi!
Last week I received the Pixel 2 XL, which seems to me a nearly perfect phone.
The only problem to me is the lack of 3,5mm jack output. Given the poor sound quality of Google's dongle, I decided to buy a HiFi solution, recommended by most audiophile people I know, the Sabre 9018 USB-C DAC by Hifimedy.
And now, there comes the issue. When I plug the USB DAC to the phone, it works flawlessly... for a few seconds. In fact, the sound is quite great for the price. But, after a few seconds or when the song changes, the sound stops. The song keeps playing in the phone, but there is no sound in the headphones, although the red light in the DAC suggests it is still receiving energy from the phone. I've used many apps, like Tidal, Play Music, Poweramp, Spotify, VLC... and it's the same with all of them.
I don't know if there is a way to force sound to keep flowing through the USB port, or if it's an issue caused by oreo's energy management, but neither the DAC's manufacturer nor the Google support know why it happens.
You guys are my last resort. If nobody here can hint a solution to the problem, I will have to battle with the DAC manufacturer to get a refund.
Thanks very much in advance for any help that may come!

Jesugandalf said:
Hi!
Last week I received the Pixel 2 XL, which seems to me a nearly perfect phone.
The only problem to me is the lack of 3,5mm jack output. Given the poor sound quality of Google's dongle, I decided to buy a HiFi solution, recommended by most audiophile people I know, the Sabre 9018 USB-C DAC by Hifimedy.
And now, there comes the issue. When I plug the USB DAC to the phone, it works flawlessly... for a few seconds. In fact, the sound is quite great for the price. But, after a few seconds or when the song changes, the sound stops. The song keeps playing in the phone, but there is no sound in the headphones, although the red light in the DAC suggests it is still receiving energy from the phone. I've used many apps, like Tidal, Play Music, Poweramp, Spotify, VLC... and it's the same with all of them.
I don't know if there is a way to force sound to keep flowing through the USB port, or if it's an issue caused by oreo's energy management, but neither the DAC's manufacturer nor the Google support know why it happens.
You guys are my last resort. If nobody here can hint a solution to the problem, I will have to battle with the DAC manufacturer to get a refund.
Thanks very much in advance for any help that may come!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try to restart the Phone it should Work after it
Try Not to Start the Phone with the DAC in or dont Plug in the If Music is playing
If U want an other Hifi DAC that Supports the Pixel and have a pretty good build quality:
NEXUM AQUA

tessut said:
Try to restart the Phone it should Work after it
Try Not to Start the Phone with the DAC in or dont Plug in the If Music is playing
If U want an other Hifi DAC that Supports the Pixel and have a pretty good build quality:
NEXUM AQUA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your help, but I restarted the phone, resetted it, and the Hifimediy DAC still does not work.
I think I will go for a refund, it seems the DAC isn't compatible with the Pixel 2.
I'll have a look at that Nexum Aqua you pointed out.

Related

[Q] Behringer UCA202 DAC - sounds horrible compared to headphone jack/bluetooth

So I found a Behringer UCA202 DAC online for really cheap and thought why not try it just for fun. Everything I've read says having one can help a bit and I figured at the least it would sound the same, but I plugged it into my Nexus 5 via OTG then plugged the AUX cord to my Jeep into the DAC and all bass and pretty much any other level of detail is gone from my music whether it's from Pandora, YouTube HD, or FLAC audio files. Audio sound quality is equal to listening to music over old mono bluetooth, you hear it fine but any highs and lows are removed. Has anyone else used this DAC that could give some suggestions?
Otherwise it's just as I assumed, DACs are pointless on good quality phones and that's why I can't find any DAC threads with the Nexus 5 involved.
herqulees said:
So I found a Behringer UCA202 DAC online for really cheap and thought why not try it just for fun. Everything I've read says having one can help a bit and I figured at the least it would sound the same, but I plugged it into my Nexus 5 via OTG then plugged the AUX cord to my Jeep into the DAC and all bass and pretty much any other level of detail is gone from my music whether it's from Pandora, YouTube HD, or FLAC audio files. Audio sound quality is equal to listening to music over old mono bluetooth, you hear it fine but any highs and lows are removed. Has anyone else used this DAC that could give some suggestions?
Otherwise it's just as I assumed, DACs are pointless on good quality phones and that's why I can't find any DAC threads with the Nexus 5 involved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ummm, it's not a DAC. It's an interface.
theesotericone said:
Ummm, it's not a DAC. It's an interface.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, with a DAC in it. You need a DAC to get audio output through USB, there is no analog audio output through USB/USB OTG...
herqulees said:
Yes, with a DAC in it. You need a DAC to get audio output through USB, there is no analog audio output through USB/USB OTG...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it has a DAC but it's not meant as a stand alone DAC. It's an interface or soundcard. Does your phone have enough juice to even operate the thing? Also for a device that sells for less than 30 bucks what exactly where you expecting? Get a real DAC. You will notice a huge difference. Until then do some more research on what you have and see if your meeting it's power requirements.
This is actually a pretty good review of the unit with lots of technical info.
http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/02/behringer-uca202-review.html
theesotericone said:
Yes it has a DAC but it's not meant as a stand alone DAC. It's an interface or soundcard. Does your phone have enough juice to even operate the thing? Also for a device that sells for less than 30 bucks what exactly where you expecting? Get a real DAC. You will notice a huge difference. Until then do some more research on what you have and see if your meeting it's power requirements.
This is actually a pretty good review of the unit with lots of technical info.
http://nwavguy.blogspot.com/2011/02/behringer-uca202-review.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While I can't see power being an issue I suppose I'll test with my Nexus 7 and laptop. I know it's a cheap DAC but I've read many reviews using this DAC with tablets and phones for car audio, along with the nwavguy in-depth review and testing showing how it's not a multi-hundred dollar unit but still does amazingly well. My issue is it doesn't even sound decent. It sounds like I'm playing rap/hip-hop through an old Nokia on speaker phone, you can hear it clearly but there's no depth.
So I tossed this DAC in a closet after I got bored of trying to make it work right and forgot about it for a year or so till earlier today when I found it while cleaning. My Nexus 5 has been retired and serves no purpose other than a security camera now. I now have a Samsung Galaxy S5 and an RCA Maven Pro tablet. The RCA Maven Pro is an 11.1inch 2-in-1 Android tablet with detachable keyboard for around $120. You'd assume it's horrible thanks to the brand and price but they managed to cut corners in all the right places it seems. Downsides are no GPS, 1GB of RAM, terrible cameras, and a horrible speaker. Other than that it has faithfully replaced my $1200 laptop with zero issues other than adjusting to ditching Windows.
Now back on track when I listen to music I'm either using an aux cord plugged into my work truck or bluetooth when using headphones or in my new car. When doing a side by side comparison bluetooth, to no surprise, shows no difference between my Maven and S5. However when using an aux cord the RCA doesn't put out as much bass and highs are... I guess not as clear? I think audiophiles are insane most of the time so it's hard for me to describe when I do notice a difference. Anyways I plugged the UCA202 into the RCA's USB port (no OTG here, it has a full size USB port) and plugged my Sony MDR-XB950BT headphones in to it with an aux cord (these headphones are 100% passive when wired, no bass boost or other enhancements) and sound quality is just as great as my S5, all bass and highs are restored. Just to further the test I plugged it into my S5 and did the same test with the same results. These are the same FLAC song files from the same network location that my Nexus 5 was playing a year ago.
The whole time the issue was something in my Nexus 5. What it was I don't know and sorry you guys I don't plan on investigating, I just wanted to inform everyone that the Behringer UCA202 is in fact a quality budget DAC since this thread is a top Google result for "Behringer UCA202 Android". If you have a cheap device that you want the audio to be on par with the high end phones this will do it, and for my original purpose of at the same time giving a bit of amplification for a weak head unit without distortion it does that decently too. To finish this off I am NOT an audiophile. Just a human with human hearing that likes songs with bass on car head units that weren't always designed for it (I glued a 80mm CPU fan to the back of the HU in my Jeep ) So take my finer details however you'd like.
the DAC works great for my Nexus 7 2013 model.
maybe otg cable is sh1tty
Sent from my D820 CAF using Tapatalk

Auxiliary Output Issues

I connect my LG G4 to the auxiliary jack in my car stereo (stock stereo in a 2007 Saab 9-3) with a standard 3.5 mm male to male audio cable. The process to get the audio to come through my speakers is rather cumbersome.
I have to follow this procedure:
1. Unplug the audio cable from the aux jack in the car stereo
2. Plug other end of the audio cable into the phone
3. Open Google Music and press play on the music I want to listen to
4. Plug audio cable back into the aux jack on stereo
5. Change stereo from Radio/band to Aux
I have to do this every single time, and if my music happens to reach the end of the album or playlist to where it is no longer playing anything, I have to repeat the above steps. When I had an HTC One M7 and M8 I didn't have to do any of this. I could just connect my phone and press play...no problems.
I really hate having to do this for two reasons. First, if while driving, I decide to listen to music on my phone rather than the radio, it really distracting and unsafe to mess with while driving. Second, I'm afraid with all the plugging/unplugging on my car stereo is going to wear out the aux jack and degrade the audio quality.
Anyone else having this issue with their G4? Any suggestions? I know someone with a G3 and they don't have any issues like this when plugging into their car stereo, although they have a different car, but I don't think it would really matter.
Kevin82485 said:
I connect my LG G4 to the auxiliary jack in my car stereo (stock stereo in a 2007 Saab 9-3) with a standard 3.5 mm male to male audio cable. The process to get the audio to come through my speakers is rather cumbersome.
I have to follow this procedure:
1. Unplug the audio cable from the aux jack in the car stereo
2. Plug other end of the audio cable into the phone
3. Open Google Music and press play on the music I want to listen to
4. Plug audio cable back into the aux jack on stereo
5. Change stereo from Radio/band to Aux
I have to do this every single time, and if my music happens to reach the end of the album or playlist to where it is no longer playing anything, I have to repeat the above steps. When I had an HTC One M7 and M8 I didn't have to do any of this. I could just connect my phone and press play...no problems.
I really hate having to do this for two reasons. First, if while driving, I decide to listen to music on my phone rather than the radio, it really distracting and unsafe to mess with while driving. Second, I'm afraid with all the plugging/unplugging on my car stereo is going to wear out the aux jack and degrade the audio quality.
Anyone else having this issue with their G4? Any suggestions? I know someone with a G3 and they don't have any issues like this when plugging into their car stereo, although they have a different car, but I don't think it would really matter.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do car electronics install for a living... I'm not familiar with how Saab does aux (I don't see many saabs), but in most vehicles there is a 'sense' wire in the aux plug. You will know if it has one because without a cable plugged in, you won't be able to select the aux source. In your case, the residual connection from your phone's fm radio (uses headphone cable as antenna) might be interfering with the 'sense' wire in the aux plug. I would suggest trying a different aux cable, like one with 4 bands instead of 3. They are typically used to carry audio as well as video. If that doesn't work, amazon has these universal Bluetooth receivers that plug into the aux port, which for sure will do what you need it to.
Example of 4 band cable-
http://www.amazon.com/Screen-Screen-3-5mm-Philips-Player/dp/B00D3SXPGC
The Bluetooth reciever would be my choice though-
http://www.amazon.com/Mpow-Bluetooth-Integrated-multi-point-technology/dp/B008AGQMQC
esmenikmatixx said:
I do car electronics install for a living... I'm not familiar with how Saab does aux (I don't see many saabs), but in most vehicles there is a 'sense' wire in the aux plug. You will know if it has one because without a cable plugged in, you won't be able to select the aux source. In your case, the residual connection from your phone's fm radio (uses headphone cable as antenna) might be interfering with the 'sense' wire in the aux plug. I would suggest trying a different aux cable, like one with 4 bands instead of 3. They are typically used to carry audio as well as video. If that doesn't work, amazon has these universal Bluetooth receivers that plug into the aux port, which for sure will do what you need it to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The stereo in the model year range of my Saab is basically the same that GM put in Pontiacs and other makes in the 2007 year range. GM owned Saab at the time. I know someone with a Ponitac G6 (I think that is model, it is definitely a Pontiac) and I remember remarking that he had the same stereo as me. The buttons and interface look nearly identical. If I have the aux cable plugged into the stereo I can select the Aux source, even if I don't have anything else connected. If no cable is plugged into the stereo, I cannot select the Aux source.
What I don't understand is why it worked fine with no weird issues with the HTC One M8, but it doesn't work with the G4. Sounds like a software bug to me.
As far as I know Verizon disables the FM receiver in the G4 just like they did in the HTC One M8 and basically all of their phones. It's still in physically in the phone, so maybe it can still interfere in some way, but if it worked on the M8 I don't understand why the G4 is different in this respect.
I'll try a different cable and/or a 4 band cable though and see if it makes a difference.
I used my G4 in my car (2009 RAV4) without issues. I didn't do anything special, just plugged it in then started playing the podcast app. I don't recall if the sequence mattered at all. I typically plug the cable into the phone first, then start playing the audio.
I believe I have a "sense wire" that esmenikmatixx referred to, as I believe my car will not let me select Aux if nothing is plugged into the car. I have an audio cable that I always leave plugged into the car's port, to reduce wear on the jack.
I didn't try the music app in the car, unfortunately. FWIW, Google Music was fine for me with headphones, no weird issues. I have Verizon, but I have since returned my G4, so I can't check anything else for you, sorry.
So I decided to get a bluetooth adapter that plugs into the Aux input on my car stereo and it works great with the exception that the audio volume is ridiculously low. I max out the bluetooth volume on my phone as well as the separate volume on the bluetooth adapter and it is really quiet. Turn up my car stereo you say, but ah, I have to turn my car stereo up to near maximum as well to get a decent volume that could be heard while driving. When I turn the car stereo volume up this loud the speakers become overrun with static and it makes it sound like I'm listening on an FM channel that barely comes in.
I've noticed lower volume over bluetooth on my LG Tone bluetooth earbuds as well. I used these the LG Tone's with my HTC One and had no problems with volume levels. The first time I connected my LG Tones to my LG G4, I had to nearly max out the volume on the Tones (despite having the LG G4 bluetooth volume maxed as well) to hear audio at the same level that I previously did on my HTC One.
So bluetooth is not going to be an answer, the quality is too poor. I dug around on the Play Store and found an app called "Soundabout". The app will allow you to force your audio out through whatever source you want even when the output device is not connected. I set it to force audio through wired headset and it works for the most part. I don't have to do any weird unplugging and re-plugging of audio cable just plug and play. The only thing is that sometimes when I connect the phone and press play on a song you can tell that Soundabout is fighting with the crap software on the phone to force the audio to the wired headset (wired speakers) because the audio will cut in and out and then stop. After pressing play enough times that it wins out, it will finally go through the wired connection. The one downside is that if I'm out of my car and want to listen to something through the speaker on the phone I have to go back into the Soundabout app and change the output to "let the app decide".
So, I'm 100% sure it is something with the software on the phone. There is little doubt. I have no problems with any other phone connected to my car stereo. It's not like I have some aftermarket stereo. This stereo is as stock and basic as you can get. When they designed the audio controls and functionality on this phone they didn't put a lot of thought into it. It's frustrating because otherwise this is a great phone I just hate messing with this stupid audio issue. All I can do is hope it's patched. There are no built-in options on the phone to tweak audio settings.
I can't imagine I'm the only one having problems like this.
LG Customer Support has been predictably unhelpful. I may just return this and get a different phone if I still can.
RedOCtobyr said:
I used my G4 in my car (2009 RAV4) without issues. I didn't do anything special, just plugged it in then started playing the podcast app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same for me. Works fine in my 2008 Subaru. I've run everything from local mp3 files to Audible to iHeartRadio and Pandora through it without a problem. Even the Smart Settings for auto-starting Audible actually work.
Makster said:
Same for me. Works fine in my 2008 Subaru. I've run everything from local mp3 files to Audible to iHeartRadio and Pandora through it without a problem. Even the Smart Settings for auto-starting Audible actually work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I plugged it in with an audio cable to my girlfriend's Mazda and it works fine. Guess I'm S.O.L. Highly unlikely LG would patch this if it's software due to being so isolated. Would be interested to hear from those with a mid to late 2000's GM vehicle since they all have basically the same stereo as Saab. Maybe it is an issue with my stereo, but I don't understand then why other phones work just fine.
Frustrating because there is nothing I can do to fix it other than spend a bunch of money to replace my stereo which I can't afford, or spend an equal amount of a bunch of money to pay off the G4 so that I can get a different phone to then make more payments on, and Verizon absolutely, no exceptions, refuses to exchange it for something like a Galaxy, Note 4, anything different than a G4 because I'm 5 days past the 14 day return period. Guess I only have myself to kick in the ass for not doing sooner, but I wish someone at Verizon was kindhearted enough to make an exception.
Sorry for venting.
Sorry to hear about the issues. Did you try the 4 band cable idea?
RedOCtobyr said:
Sorry to hear about the issues. Did you try the 4 band cable idea?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not yet, but I will. I've been reading on another website that the G3, last year's model, had this exact same problem. There's a thread with tons of people reporting the same problem. Some used a cable like this one which was suggested earlier and it solved their issue. Suppose I should have tried that to begin with. I'm going to try this one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K36XWG0?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00
I'll report back if it worked or not at least so that if others come across this they have a starting point.
I got the 4 pole to 3 pole audio cable today and it doesn't work. I tried flipping the cable around and it still didn't work. I don't know what else to try, anyone have suggestions?
Kevin 82485, late on this thread but I just purchased a 2007 Saab 9-3 and I'm having the same issues with my LG G4. I just downloaded the soundabout app you mentioned, but have you found a better solution than that?
2007 saab 9-5 and LG Aristo on Metro PCS. Same issue as OP. Its definitely a LG issue, wifes Galaxy works without issues, no fiddling with the cable and audio pausing and plugging unplugging plugging and trying to play audio. Good phone, garbage audio coding.

Headphone Dongle issue

Using the dongle it came with and the headphones I was using with my gen 1 Pixel I hear nothing.
Do I need to activate something to get the USB to output audio?
Thanks
I didn't do anything special. Maybe your dongle is defective
jawmail1 said:
I didn't do anything special. Maybe your dongle is defective
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First insert the notification appeared regarding charging, transfer files etc. which is odd
remove reinsert nothing
remove reinsert and it worked
bizarre
parakleet said:
First insert the notification appeared regarding charging, transfer files etc. which is odd
remove reinsert nothing
remove reinsert and it worked
bizarre
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi parakleet. Can you comment on the audio quality from the Dongle? I found something pretty interesting on the PhoneArena review in regards to the sound output (voltage) between the Pixel 2 and 2XL.
Headphone quality is very similar between the 3.5 on the pixel and usb-c adapter on the 2xl. There is a subtle difference, just can pin it down yet.
On the 2xl, there is a significant delay when plugging it in before it switched over from the speakers.
Jooosty said:
Hi parakleet. Can you comment on the audio quality from the Dongle? I found something pretty interesting on the PhoneArena review in regards to the sound output (voltage) between the Pixel 2 and 2XL.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The quality is actually improved in the sound of my car between my original Pixel Xl and the Pixel 2XL through the dongle. The bass is deeper and overall sound is louder and punchier when compared to the jack going directly from the phone in the old device. You're not going to lose any "volume" using the dongle. It works just fine, and it's also nice and lightweight.
Thank you exactly what I wanted to hear
Sent from my Pixel XL using XDA-Developers Legacy app
The dongle seemed to get warm during a phone call.
Super sensitive
Picks up the mic and all ambient nose so much stronger.
Moving papers clicking keyboard etc
That's the biggest difference.
Audio quality through speakers is about the same
Mine doesn't work at all. Just continues to plays music through the speakers.
---------- Post added at 07:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:29 PM ----------
Interesting. it appears the dongle may be a DAC. on chat with CS, and it works, or is supposed to, with other type-c devices.
On my Pixel 2, after getting no sound through the dongle to my wired headphones, I started trying all kinds of stuff. Eventually what worked was this: a song must be playing, not paused; unplug dongle/headphones from USB-C port on Pixel 2, then replug it back into the port, and sound magically emanates from headphones. But I have to skip backwards to beginning of song since I have now missed the beginning of the song. However, at end of song, sound once again stops, even though the next song in the list has started playing (I can see the elapsed time of the next song moving along). So I have to unplug the dongle again, then replug back in, to get sound out in headphones. This is a terrible solution in the first place, since plugging that dongle in and out as often as I use my headphones seems like it would quickly loosen the USB-C port or something. But having to do it after every single song? Come on.
tomworthjr said:
On my Pixel 2, after getting no sound through the dongle to my wired headphones, I started trying all kinds of stuff. Eventually what worked was this: a song must be playing, not paused; unplug dongle/headphones from USB-C port on Pixel 2, then replug it back into the port, and sound magically emanates from headphones. But I have to skip backwards to beginning of song since I have now missed the beginning of the song. However, at end of song, sound once again stops, even though the next song in the list has started playing (I can see the elapsed time of the next song moving along). So I have to unplug the dongle again, then replug back in, to get sound out in headphones. This is a terrible solution in the first place, since plugging that dongle in and out as often as I use my headphones seems like it would quickly loosen the USB-C port or something. But having to do it after every single song? Come on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No issue for me. Only thing I notice is that if something is already playing and I plug in the adapter the delay is a few seconds but after that it's fine. Audio quality is good too.
I had to uninstall Precise Volume - which circumvented the switching process - so try disabling/removing eq apps.

USB audio messed up after Oreo update?

Hello everyone! Been a while since I last posted here, so it's good to be back!
Now, on to the problem at hand. Let me start by saying that I listen to a lot of music and much of it on my phone, mostly during my commute. I'm also not quite an audiophile, but I do like my sound when it's high quality, so I mostly use my pair of Audio Technica MSR7 (or a pair of Beyerdynamic Byron IEMs) and I also have a Fiio Q1 USB DAC/Amp because, well, the quality of the onboard audio on the OnePlus is, like most devices, quite bad.
This combo worked perfectly as long as I was using Nougat. However, since the first Oreo beta I installed it's been acting up. It works, but it puts out a popping sound every now and then. Other times it does it every minute or so, others it does it a couple of times per second, so it's quite annoying. The sound it makes is the same as when you plug in your headphones to the phone's 3.5mm jack, that pop, crackle, spark sound, whatever. It doesn't stop working and I think the quality is otherwise unaffected (or maybe it's introduced a bit of noise, but I can't be sure because my frustration with the thing makes me focus on the annoying sound), it's just really really annoying.
So far I haven't been able to narrow down what may be causing it. It does the same whether I'm listening to music through Spotify or if I play FLAC through PowerAmp or if I play a video or whatever. The only time it reliably acts up is after a reboot. For the first couple of minutes it happens a lot more, then it quiets down, so maybe it's related to CPU stress or IO operations? I doubt both, but dunno.
Worth mentioning is that I think the USB-otg connection is compromised generally. If I connect a thumb drive the connection usually drops out after a while when copying files. Still, not as consistent as the sound thing by a long shot. Also, the same Fiio DAC/Amp works perfectly from a PC, so that's not it, and the phone's built in jack also works perfectly, as bad as it may be.
Any ideas? Thanks in advance guys!

Headphone Sound Quality ?

Hi guys,
I've been reading contradicting opinions on sound quality from headphones output for this device (adapter actually). How would you rate it in terms of loudness and overall sound quality? Also, do you find it inconvenient to use in any way?
Thanks,
g
gimche said:
Hi guys,
I've been reading contradicting opinions on sound quality from headphones output for this device (adapter actually). How would you rate it in terms of loudness and overall sound quality? Also, do you find it inconvenient to use in any way?
Thanks,
g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont believe thats contradicting opinions... i tested 3 or 4 handsfree (xiaomi noise cancellation usb-c, sony mdr nc-31 em and other cheapest) and i did a comparation with xperia (z3 and z5) and sound is more natural on xiaomi; loud is it enough (if u dont like ,u can root and increase manual the volume until u can damage ur ears)...is a very good phone about sound
Thanks 7tky. What I meant by contradicting, is that some reviewers claim that sound from wired headphones is awesome, and some claim it's crap. That's why I wanted to hear opinions from people that actually own and use this phone.
gimche said:
Thanks 7tky. What I meant by contradicting, is that some reviewers claim that sound from wired headphones is awesome, and some claim it's crap. That's why I wanted to hear opinions from people that actually own and use this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd say sound from this phone is pretty damn good, and GSMarena's tests confirm that. The phone can power pretty big headphones too. It powers Sennheiser HD6XX's pretty well and those are 300ohm cans. Obviously not close to as clear as a dedicated DAP/Amp combo but still impressive that it can power such headphones to near uncomfortable volume. Also according to a review that I can't seem to find anymore, the phone outputs analag signal from the USB-C port so the dongle doesn't have a DAC and Amp in it. All it is doing is turning the USB-C port into a 3.5mm jack which probably explains the capability to power my Sennheiser's.
Yup, I looked into this myself. I had a DAC and AMP combo for my old Moto Nexus 6 (I wasn't happy with the sound quality of the jack). This phone is surprisingly nice. I ended up buying a few extra USB C headphone adapters straight from Google (the official ones for the the Pixels were $9 when I got them). I haven't needed my DAC and AMP since switching.
And from what I've seen the DAC is internal on this phone (as opposed to the Pixel 2 which needs the DAC to be in the dongle). Idk if that allows the port to send more power straight to the headphones or not. But I'm happy.
I thought I would get annoyed by the dongle, but I ended up just ordering a few of the Google ones and keeping them on my headphones.
Plus, Viper4Android works fine for me for some additional tuning of audio (I'm using AOSP ROMs though, not MIUI, not sure if it works in MIUI).
Keep in mind I just use some Klipsch earbuds (R6, X11, and AS-5i), nothing that requires a crazy amount of power to run.
Hope this helps.
Ok, I bought the phone and tested it for a while now, so thought I might share my experience here...
With global rom phone came with (unfortunately, I don't know the version), sound quality was great, but volume was low. Further, it had a weird bug - when I was listening to music and notification cut trough, volume would jump much higher. I could easily recreate the bug by playing music, then going to sound settings and touching slider for ringtone/notification volume, then back to music. Volume would jump higher every time. Some googling reviled that lots of people experienced similar volume jumping bugs.
OTA update (again, I don't know to which miui version) fixed this, but volume was still relatively low. When I say this, I'm comparing it to my previous devices. I'm not trying to fry my ears, though it's always nice to have the option as some music is simply mastered to much lower volume, especially older stuff.
Now I'm on lineage and volume bust is just what miui was missing - few notches higher. I listen modern pumped-up stuff 2 or 3 steps below max, and crank it up to max for very low volume old stuff. Perfect balance for me.
I guess tweaking the correct config file would adjust volume limit on miui. If anyone knows how to do that, please share, it would be much appreciated.
If someone's curious about it, I'm using zero audio carbo tenore earphones.
My audioquest Dragonfly usb DAC stopped working after a MIUI upgrade on my mix 2 since the summer. That is, the phone recognises the DAC but the sound quality light stays red (instead of say, indigo) to indicate no signal.. Updating to MIUI 10 made no difference. I've confirmed it works with the 2S running Android 8 opr 1.70623.032 - My Mix 2 has opr 1.70623.027 and he meeting if that's a difference or if anyone has similar issues of a USB digital audio converter not working on their Mix 2?
paul_mcbride said:
if anyone has similar issues of a USB digital audio converter not working on their Mix 2?
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I'm interested in answer to this question too. Have you tried messing with developer options? Is the problem miui related ; did someone test on linage / aosp based roms?
...anyone tried this thing?
bleached45 said:
Yup, I looked into this myself. I had a DAC and AMP combo for my old Moto Nexus 6 (I wasn't happy with the sound quality of the jack). This phone is surprisingly nice. I ended up buying a few extra USB C headphone adapters straight from Google (the official ones for the the Pixels were $9 when I got them). I haven't needed my DAC and AMP since switching.
And from what I've seen the DAC is internal on this phone (as opposed to the Pixel 2 which needs the DAC to be in the dongle). Idk if that allows the port to send more power straight to the headphones or not. But I'm happy.
I thought I would get annoyed by the dongle, but I ended up just ordering a few of the Google ones and keeping them on my headphones.
Plus, Viper4Android works fine for me for some additional tuning of audio (I'm using AOSP ROMs though, not MIUI, not sure if it works in MIUI).
Keep in mind I just use some Klipsch earbuds (R6, X11, and AS-5i), nothing that requires a crazy amount of power to run.
Hope this helps.
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Is the google dongle more sturdy? i have a Brainwavz HM5 which have a thick cable and the flimsy cable in the dongle supplied with the mi mix 2s feels like it will break any second from the weight of the cable on my HM5.
i skipped the original adapter and buy a new adapter(it's a dac hidizs sonata hd )
and use with my earphones is 1more triple driver.
no comment for that, oh i just forgot that, 1 word - perfect :v

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