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Anyone using a Android phone with a DAC here?

jonnoshore said:
I've just got myself a new HTC One phone and have been reading and wondered if anyone uses an HTC One for mobile music ...

And if a decent DAC can be linked with this.

I've found this thread, but was wondering about PFMers..

http://www.head-fi.org/t/595071/android-phones-and-usb-dacs
Click to expand...

The capability is limited to certain phones and certain DACs, I'm not sure about the HTC One. The android device must have 'USB host' capabilities, my Samsung Note tablet has this (as do most other Samsung devices), whereas my HTC Sensation does not.

I did get my FiiO E10 working with my tablet...albeit briefly, still confused as to why it's stopped, but from various threads it appears that the self powered E7/17 are the most compatible.

This is where the additional 64Gb slot on my Samsung comes in very useful, I don't believe the main HTC One offers SD expansion. The 'USB Host' does also support external storage, but it needs to be FAT32 format, however with only one USB slot connecting a DAC and an HD might be problematic...
 
From what I found, it's doable on the HTC One - it has a hardware support for OTG. Not sure if it's doable with the stock ROM / stock kernel, though. And even if it is, most vendors don't include snd-usb-audio kernel module, so no joy without some decent work.

I'm myself still waiting for a decently-priced upgrade for Neo Freerunner, which can output full 500mA over its USB port (which can be DIYed into a full size USB A socket).
 
Just ripped a CD with .wav files to my HTC One to compare to my Avondale Audio Modified Naim CD3 through my home Active Naim HiFi. The Naim AACD3 is better on dynamics but it was not as large a gap as I was expecting... looking into getting a USB lead now to see how the HTC compares with my External Micromega MyDAC DAC... Blown away by the audio quality of the phone To be honest...

>>Will be looking into getting a OTG cable asap based on this!!!
 
No not doing this, but spurred me into thinking "will this work with an iPhone 4S?"

On researching the above option further, I found out that an iPad with camera connection kit can work very well with many USB DACs... so owning an iPad I will give this a go.
 
Jonno, I can't comment on the HTC but having recently bought a Nexus 4 I was asking myself the same question. I assumed that I would hear an improvement by using an external DAC. But I have to question this due to the comments online that DACs all sound the same etc. Even on here, this is a hotly debated topic, and there are some who have gone back to the built in DAC on eg Apple products. At the moment my gear is in storage so I cannot compare, but would be very interested in your conclusion.
 
I took a different route.

I got a couple of Arcam rBlinks, and pair the iPads or the phone up via BlueTooth/APT-X.

It works pretty well. Windows 7 is a bit quirky and required a dongle though.
 
Yes, I use my US based ATT Samsung Galaxy S3 with a Fiio E17. The stock rom will not work though as it has compatibility issues due to the stock firmware. I recently flashed a new rom (Task650) and now it will output to the Fiio. However, when I play hi-resolution recordings, I believe there is some transcoding going on because the proper bitrate is not being reported by the Fiio. As far as your HTC goes, you'll have to research compatibility. Not sure how much difference you'll notice in quality though - of course depends on the source material. I bought the Fiio because my headphones needed more power (HiFiMan HE-400) to run properly.
 
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