TLDNR: Looking for a USB-C to 3.5mm audio jack adapter that does not have a DAC built in. Or a cheap one with a DAC that makes zero hiss and pops.
Hello everyone,
This is my first post on ASR, I hope it's the right spot for it.
I've been happily using a USB C to 3.5mm jack dongle that, I believe, came with a Xiaomi Mi 8 smartphone some 7 years ago. It's now plugged into the newer Xiaomi Civi 4 Pro phone and still working. It's not aging very well though: it's showing some signs of oxidation at the connectors and producing some crackle with the right twist of the cable. So I started looking for a replacement.
I thought it was straightforward so I went and bought the cheapest adapter (1 buck) on Aliexpress, but to my surprise, it didn't work. After some reading, I discovered an option in the developer settings that needed disabling, something about audio routing through USB. That solved it! It meant this new dongle had a DAC and that my old dongle didn't have one and was just passing an analog signal from the phone's port to the earphones (something called Audio Accessory Mode that's now deprecated) and that my phones supported that. Cool! When I plug the new dongle, I get an unfamiliar system notification telling me sound is playing over USB and offering a bunch of EQ options, Dolby Atmos, etc. Also cool. Only, new annoyance: there is now a good level of audible hiss when idling and an even bigger one when playing anything, at any volume. My humble passive DAC-less dongle + both my old and new phones produced absolutely zero hiss.
I looked on Ali for DAC-less dongles but couldn't find anything relevant. So, I decided to try a better DAC. After more reading, I picked up a GraveAudio DA06 dongle with a CX31993 DAC, no amp. About 5 bucks.
The item arrived, I plugged it in and listened: the constant hiss was gone! But, two new problems: a temporary hiss when plugging the earphones or starting playback, and... tiny, random pops!
I could have lived with the temporary hiss but the pops? Too distracting. How do these dongles sell at all? I'm no audiophile, maybe very picky, but nowhere near knowkedgeable or experienced as you folks here and it seems to me this dongle is just wrong. Perhaps my iems are too sensitive? I'm using the modest KZ Zax. On my phone and dacless dongle, I can't go beyond 50% volume on these, so maybe they are more revealing than the average iems?
Anyway, I am back to the beginning: I need a decent replacement to my humble passive dongle, with no hiss and no pops when idling or playing. I'm not demanding on the sampling and resolution. Just...basics done well.
Please, if you know of a DAC-less dongle, let me know. Alternatively, if you can recommend one with a DAC that's free from these issues I'm willing to consider, even though originally I didn't see myself spending more than a couple of bucks on this. Now it seems my next best bet is a Jcally JM20 but that's more than 10 times my original budget .
One more bit of, maybe, relevant information: I'm getting the Letshuoer S08 planar iems in the mail soon. From what I read, these should be relatively easy to drive. But maybe I'm wrong and this needs to be taken into account for the right dongle? I don't listen at high volumes at all, if that's relevant. I understand that certain dynamics in the music could need more power even at low volumes but I have no idea if the smartphone's analog output is powerful enough for it. On the other hands, I'd rather avoid a dongle so powerful that the first notch in the volume scale is too loud .
Thanks for reading and have a nice day!
PS:
The first dongle I tried had a AB13X DAC. The second had the CX31993 by TTKG.
My phone has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s gen 3 platform.
The KZ Zax iems I use have a 24ohm impedance and 113dB(/mW?) sensitivity.
I'm based in Australia. I shop on Aliexpress as local prices/offerings are just poor value .
Hello everyone,
This is my first post on ASR, I hope it's the right spot for it.
I've been happily using a USB C to 3.5mm jack dongle that, I believe, came with a Xiaomi Mi 8 smartphone some 7 years ago. It's now plugged into the newer Xiaomi Civi 4 Pro phone and still working. It's not aging very well though: it's showing some signs of oxidation at the connectors and producing some crackle with the right twist of the cable. So I started looking for a replacement.
I thought it was straightforward so I went and bought the cheapest adapter (1 buck) on Aliexpress, but to my surprise, it didn't work. After some reading, I discovered an option in the developer settings that needed disabling, something about audio routing through USB. That solved it! It meant this new dongle had a DAC and that my old dongle didn't have one and was just passing an analog signal from the phone's port to the earphones (something called Audio Accessory Mode that's now deprecated) and that my phones supported that. Cool! When I plug the new dongle, I get an unfamiliar system notification telling me sound is playing over USB and offering a bunch of EQ options, Dolby Atmos, etc. Also cool. Only, new annoyance: there is now a good level of audible hiss when idling and an even bigger one when playing anything, at any volume. My humble passive DAC-less dongle + both my old and new phones produced absolutely zero hiss.
I looked on Ali for DAC-less dongles but couldn't find anything relevant. So, I decided to try a better DAC. After more reading, I picked up a GraveAudio DA06 dongle with a CX31993 DAC, no amp. About 5 bucks.
The item arrived, I plugged it in and listened: the constant hiss was gone! But, two new problems: a temporary hiss when plugging the earphones or starting playback, and... tiny, random pops!
I could have lived with the temporary hiss but the pops? Too distracting. How do these dongles sell at all? I'm no audiophile, maybe very picky, but nowhere near knowkedgeable or experienced as you folks here and it seems to me this dongle is just wrong. Perhaps my iems are too sensitive? I'm using the modest KZ Zax. On my phone and dacless dongle, I can't go beyond 50% volume on these, so maybe they are more revealing than the average iems?
Anyway, I am back to the beginning: I need a decent replacement to my humble passive dongle, with no hiss and no pops when idling or playing. I'm not demanding on the sampling and resolution. Just...basics done well.
Please, if you know of a DAC-less dongle, let me know. Alternatively, if you can recommend one with a DAC that's free from these issues I'm willing to consider, even though originally I didn't see myself spending more than a couple of bucks on this. Now it seems my next best bet is a Jcally JM20 but that's more than 10 times my original budget .
One more bit of, maybe, relevant information: I'm getting the Letshuoer S08 planar iems in the mail soon. From what I read, these should be relatively easy to drive. But maybe I'm wrong and this needs to be taken into account for the right dongle? I don't listen at high volumes at all, if that's relevant. I understand that certain dynamics in the music could need more power even at low volumes but I have no idea if the smartphone's analog output is powerful enough for it. On the other hands, I'd rather avoid a dongle so powerful that the first notch in the volume scale is too loud .
Thanks for reading and have a nice day!
PS:
The first dongle I tried had a AB13X DAC. The second had the CX31993 by TTKG.
My phone has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s gen 3 platform.
The KZ Zax iems I use have a 24ohm impedance and 113dB(/mW?) sensitivity.
I'm based in Australia. I shop on Aliexpress as local prices/offerings are just poor value .
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