Best cheap USB-C headphone dongles?

[Rja4000]

Adding this to this old thread, but maybe worth to know:

The absolute best USB dongle is the E1DA #9039S.

I measured it at 125dB SINAD.
Archimago also reviewed it and got similar results.

Note that you need a balanced headphones cable: it shouldn't be used with an unbalanced cable.

It's not cheap at above 150€.
But there is absolutely no reason to spend more.

 

[ShadowBoxer]

The absolute best USB dongle is the E1DA #9039S.

Not clear why anyone would choose that @$139 vs the Qudelix 5k @ $100 (SINAD notwithstanding) when PEQ will have a much larger impact on SQ.

And neither of those qualify as cheap as the OP intended.

 

[staticV3]

Since Hi-Max CB1200AU and Grave Audio DA06 (CX31993) have been recommended in this thread I wanted to ask if someone (maybe @mc.god since you own both) could please make a comment about the ADC (line-in) quality since I plan to use the dongle mainly for phone calls which should be of fairly good quality.

That would be appreciated .

If it helps, I did a few Mic in tests of various dongles here:

Recommendation for a USB Audio-interface DAC/ADC for ADC performance

using USB DAC/ADC/Audio Interface with a Raspberry Pi 4B - as a BirdNET Pi (it detects and automatically identifies birds by their song/calls) I am using a Clippy EM272 Microphone via TRS-TTRS converter...

www.audiosciencereview.com

The Lifeme and Mblu are both CX31993 dongles.

 

[mattsrs]

Money not being an object,

Not clear why anyone would choose that @$139 vs the Qudelix 5k @ $100 (SINAD notwithstanding) when PEQ will have a much larger impact on SQ.

And neither of those qualify as cheap as the OP intended.

money not being an object, what is the absolute best usb dongle dac/amp? would it be that Qudelix 5k? or Topping G5?

 

[gabo4au]

Money not being an object,


money not being an object, what is the absolute best usb dongle dac/amp? would it be that Qudelix 5k? or Topping G5?

Thread title,

Best cheap USB-C headphone dongles?

 

[Rja4000]

Not clear why anyone would choose that @$139 vs the Qudelix 5k @ $100 (SINAD notwithstanding) when PEQ will have a much larger impact on SQ.

And neither of those qualify as cheap as the OP intended.

Well, I have little use of a PEQ on an USB dongle DAC, since my Android smartphone does that perfectly.

 

[Rja4000]

Money not being an object,


money not being an object, what is the absolute best usb dongle dac/amp? would it be that Qudelix 5k? or Topping G5?

Topping G5 is not exactly a dongle...
I have one and I love it, but it's the size of my smartphone (and heavier).

The E1DA I listed above outperforms the G5 in terms of raw measurements (for what it does).
But of course the G5 does more.

 

[mattsrs]

Topping G5 is not exactly a dongle...
I have one and I love it, but it's the size of my smartphone (and heavier).

The E1DA I listed above outperforms the G5 in terms of raw measurements (for what it does).
But of course the G5 does more.

Thanks! Going to get an E1DA

 

[Rja4000]

Thanks! Going to get an E1DA

Remember it's balanced output only.

 

[mattsrs]

Remember it's balanced output only.

Yea going to get balanced cables for my headphones

 

[ShadowBoxer]

Well, I have little use of a PEQ on an USB dongle DAC, since my Android smartphone does that perfectly.

So, the 40% higher cost buys what exactly? (other than balanced only)

 

[Somafunk]

Thanks! Going to get an E1DA

2.5mm balanced output leaves it rather outdated

 

[mc.god]

Since Hi-Max CB1200AU and Grave Audio DA06 (CX31993) have been recommended in this thread I wanted to ask if someone (maybe @mc.god since you own both) could please make a comment about the ADC (line-in) quality since I plan to use the dongle mainly for phone calls which should be of fairly good quality.

That would be appreciated .

Sorry I cannot help since i'm not currently using both, CB1200 is attached to my full size HP with their specific peq, but i almost never use them, and CX Pro is on standby for when i'll have to change my phone, supposedly losing the audio jack given the actual trend. Never tested the ADC part

 

[lombax8000]

Where can

Here are the WalkPlay-enabled devices I have found so far (in no particular order, and sorry for the off-topic IEMs & cable!):

Device	WalkPlay "MODEL"	Category
JCally JM20-Pro	T39510B01	Dongle
Hi-Max	Hi-MAX	Dongle
TTGK TT39518F01-Pro	TT39518F01-PRO	Module
Moondrop Quark2	Quark2	IEM
Moondrop Echo-A	ECHO-A	Dongle
BGVP C01	C01	Dongle
Hi-Pro CS43198 (same id as JCally JM20-Pro)	T39510B01	Dongle
Keysion KSHF-01 CS43198	KSHF-01(EQ)	Dongle
EPZ G20 DAT412BHM-TT	EPZ G20	IEM
EPZ TP13	EPZ TP13	Dongle
Kinera Celest Ruyi Pro	CDE-1	IEM Cable
FHG SoundFlex Fusion Series Px - DAT412BHM-TT	FHG SoundFlex Fusion Series Px	IEM

I have attached a CSV file with a few additional fields from the WalkPlay API product list.

Spoiler: About CDSP

One comment about the CDSP: it's a KTmicro-based chip... Instead of spoofing the Moondrop FreeDSP/CDSP protocol, it may be possible to r/w the PEQ settings directly from the chip registers. This method would also give access to all the chip settings: DAC/ADC PEQ settings with multiple filter types, internal gain, DRC settings. I haven't spent much time with the CDSP, but looking at the register values, they appear to be identical to the KT02H20 used on the JA11, JM12, TinHifi C2, etc. I thought the CDSP was using a KT0210, but it's probably incorrect, it looks like a KT02H20 or KT0211L [EDIT] KT0211L (balanced/differential) instead.

I got this from a quick look at an unopen CDSP that was laying around: the DAC ADC PEQ filters are in the 0x1A-0x23 addresses range (5 filters, same as KT02H20) and the ADC DAC filters are in 0x26-0x2F addresses range (5 filters as well, same as KT02H20). Default Freq. settings for the DAC PEQ are: 1kHz, 2kHz, 5kHz, 8kHz, 10kHz; gains 0; Q 0.707.

where or how can I open this list? I'm interested in the EPZ G20. Thank you

 

[CedarX]

Where can

where or how can I open this list? I'm interested in the EPZ G20. Thank you

I’m not sure what you mean by “opening the list”. It was just a recap. table I did at the time. Since then, I came across a few more, plus some that are built around TTGK modules but are not WalkPlay-compatible (they have their own app—though fairly easy to hack). There are also modules/IEMs that are similar to TTGK’s—also using a SpaceTouch USB-bridge/DSP chip.
About the EPZ G20: it appears to be a decent IEM and IMHO, with WalkPlay EQ support, it can be tailored into something great!
As long as the comfort & ergonomics work for you (and the price!), then go ahead and try it!

 

[benasocj]

Does anyone have both, the Grave Audio DA06 (CX31993) with a blue cable and the one with a transparent cable? Because I noticed that the 3.5 mm TRRS connector is slightly different and thus, the color not being the only difference. I would appreciate if someone could share if there are any differences in quality, perhaps even besides the different TRRS connector.

Both versions can be seen on AliExpress by the way in the "color" section.

 

[villagera]

What can you guys recommend for a budget dongle around the price of the FiiO JA11 that has <0.5Ω output impedance and more than 5 bands of PEQ (doesn’t matter if it’s modded or stock)?

I’m currently eyeing the Moondrop Echo A, since you can get a customizable 8-band PEQ with the Walkman at roughly the same price as the JA11, though sadly cant find the output impedance.

 

[mc.god]

Does anyone have both, the Grave Audio DA06 (CX31993) with a blue cable and the one with a transparent cable? Because I noticed that the 3.5 mm TRRS connector is slightly different and thus, the color not being the only difference. I would appreciate if someone could share if there are any differences in quality, perhaps even besides the different TRRS connector.

Both versions can be seen on AliExpress by the way in the "color" section.

I have the blue Grave DA06 and a different CX dongle (this one) so not exactly what you are asking. I used both too few to say something about quality and durability differences, they have different TRRS connector and the black one feels like "smoother" when plugging-unplugging, DA06 feels more "raw". Also the black one cable feels a bit stiffer and sturdier.

 

[fws]

I've just got JCAlly JM7 Max and can confirm it has an awful/fairly strong volume fade-in at the start of playback. It kicks in after 3 seconds of silence, keep it paused for just 2 seconds and it will resume normally, but 3 seconds and it will resume with fade-in. That is just example, as some players will sustain the signal during pause, so fade-in will occur only after a stop. It might be ok for some when it comes to music listening, but I would say it is not recommended for PC use (unless someone is ok with use of an app to keep it on).

Does anyone have both, the Grave Audio DA06 (CX31993) with a blue cable and the one with a transparent cable? Because I noticed that the 3.5 mm TRRS connector is slightly different and thus, the color not being the only difference. I would appreciate if someone could share if there are any differences in quality, perhaps even besides the different TRRS connector.

I have both variants, I've read some posts about differences between the colours and different era batches of the dongle which for many years been widely known as CX-Pro CX31993 (because of the print on the USB C shell, the GA DA06 is a recent designation, and doesn't seem to extend to other models seemingly from the same factory - be it with older models like ES-Pro ES9318 or newer ones like Hi-Max CB1200AU and Hi-Pro CS43198), however I can't hear any difference in sound, so imo it is just about colour and the shape of 3.5mm input shell. I actually have 2 gold ones (they are now indeed marked as "transparent", they used to be "gold" before which is imo more accurate), and I recall in one of them I had to move it a bit to pick up the connection when I was testing, but honestly those dongles are known to occasionally come out faulty out of the box.

 

[SlowLife]

JCALLY X Crinacle AP6 = 199CNY
CX31993 + SGM8262 x2