[adonissk]

 
hi adonissk
 
I think i got it now. So basically my iPhone 7 with Spotify will be the worst possible combination für the xb10. Man im starting to hate the iPhone..... It seems like you are just screwed, if you want to Play hi res music with with this phone... theyre telling us to go wireless.... then build in apt x HD into it.

I have not found any quality differences between aptX HD and AAC on the XB10. They sound different, if you are paying attention, but one doesn't necessarily sound better than the other. 
I am happy with apple music AAC on the XB10 when on the go. For me AAC + XB10 + balanced Vega sounds great and is very portable. For an audible step up you will need to add significant bulk to your stack. 
Now if you're doing critical listening that's another story. 

 

[loephi]

That is good to hear.
 
I am curios hound it will sound with sbc audio though? Because i definately am going to listen on spotify.

 

[agrosash]

Glad to hear your comparison of AptX HD Flac and AAC, adonissk. I gotta agree, AAC sounds mighty fine here.
 
loephi, I've actually just downloaded Spotify again to test this for you. iPhone 6s+, XB10, UE18 Pro (Balanced Cable). Spotify (free tier, 'high' quality setting) doesn't sound as full as AAC Apple Music, but not bad, and nowhere near SBC. I'd like to challenge the statement that SBC is used altogether. It sounds like the Spotify OGG is transcoded to the AAC format in order to get transported via BT, but I'm in no way an expert on that stuff If you have a chance to get the XB10 via Amazon I'd just order it and try it out. A lot of good is happening inside this device and it's hands down the best BT experience I've had (tried Noble BTS, AT-PHA50BT, Sennheiser MM550 and now the XB10).

 

[loephi]

Hi agrosash

Thank you very much for your investigation. It sounds like the xb10 could really work for me.I am definately going to try find a seller nearby to test them out. A Anstell and kern reseller is in reachable distance from where i live so i will contact him and ask for a hearing session.

Regatds Phil

 

[The Walrus]

What is the output level (in watts) of this device to 25 - 30 ohms and 80 - 85 ohms headphones? 

 

[Traveller]

  What is the output level (in watts) of this device to 25 - 30 ohms and 80 - 85 ohms headphones? 

I give up.
Any chance to turn this into a multiple-choice question ... say, for half the credit?
 

 

[Iron-Buddha]

I'm no electrical engineer, but the spec sheet says:
 
Balanced 1.8vrms/ Unbalanced 0.9vrms
 
You would have to convert it to watts. 
 
I used: http://www.analog.com/designtools/jp/toolbox/dbconvert
 
DISCLAIMER: I HAVE NO IDEA IF THIS IS RIGHT, IF THE WEBSITE MAKES ANY SENSE OR IF I AM USING IT CORRECTLY.
 
1.8 vrms converts into 108mwatts @ 30 ohms and 38mwatts @ 85 ohms.
 
Not sure if this gets full credit or half credit, but I had the same problem recently trying to compare desktop amp power to my AK320.

 

[The Walrus]

  I'm no electrical engineer, but the spec sheet says:
 
Balanced 1.8vrms/ Unbalanced 0.9vrms
 
You would have to convert it to watts. 
 
I used: http://www.analog.com/designtools/jp/toolbox/dbconvert
 
DISCLAIMER: I HAVE NO IDEA IF THIS IS RIGHT, IF THE WEBSITE MAKES ANY SENSE OR IF I AM USING IT CORRECTLY.
 
1.8 vrms converts into 108mwatts @ 30 ohms and 38mwatts @ 85 ohms.
 
Not sure if this gets full credit or half credit, but I had the same problem recently trying to compare desktop amp power to my AK320.

That's strange. I haven't seen one headphone amp that doesn't have the output power in watts in its specs sheet. This makes me wonder; is it just a DAC without a proper amp section? (Like Cozoy)

 

[Iron-Buddha]

Astell and Kern quotes all their output in VRMS, including the add-on DAC for the AK3XX series, so I would assume it's a real amp.  

 

[gorman]

The thread is very long, so I haven't read it all but... regarding the AAC "untouched" through iOS, I wonder. I used to be an iOS user but not anymore, so I can't test it. But I expect that the OS is capable of sending audio cues during music reproduction, for notifications, etc. If it does that, it means that the sound goes through the internal software mixer and *then* is recompressed to AAC for transmission.
 
So I would be surprised if they manage to send straight AAC files from Apple Music, unless playing those back stops all other system sounds from reaching your headphones.

 

[DJ The Rocket]

interested

which would be a better pairing an iphone 7 or galaxy note 7 for better sq

SQ should be the same. The DAC and amp are 100% external.

NO! Sorry Shigzeo, but this advice is objectively wrong. Sounds like you fired off an answer without pausing to think about the question first. The Samsung with aptx will sound a lot better, and I do mean a LOT, like it's not even close.

Even better than the Samsung would be an LG G5, G6, or V20, which all have aptx hd and can push the XB10 to its limit. Hook up to the balanced jack, and you'll be able to feel every penny you spent working for you!

 

[james444]

NO! Sorry Shigzeo, but this advice is objectively wrong. Sounds like you fired off an answer without pausing to think about the question first. The Samsung with aptx will sound a lot better, and I do mean a LOT, like it's not even close.

Even better than the Samsung would be an LG G5, G6, or V20, which all have aptx hd and can push the XB10 to its limit. Hook up to the balanced jack, and you'll be able to feel every penny you spent working for you!

Actually, shigzeo's right, because the CSR / Qualcomm chip supports AAC as well, so iPhone 7 users should get similar SQ to aptX.

 

[The Walrus]

The purpose of this little device is convenience. If you are really interested in sound quality, you should know that you cannot achieve loseless streaming with bluetooth (At least not for now.) 
If your priority is sq, then plug your headphone directly to the source or buy a wired dac/amp.(Unless you have an iPhone 7. Then again, if you want to listen to music on your phone; why did you buy iPhone 7 in the first place?)

 

[DJ The Rocket]

That's strange. I haven't seen one headphone amp that doesn't have the output power in watts in its specs sheet. This makes me wonder; is it just a DAC without a proper amp section? (Like Cozoy)

It's a real amp, and the calculated guesses above are implausibly law enforcement. This thing drives my 250 ohm DT880 okay SE, and drives them well in balanced. It drives full-size planars (LCD2, HE-400) well even on SE. IME it's sadly all too common for companies to fail to list output in watts; the power amp card for Hifiman DAPs is an example i came across yesterday.

Actually, shigzeo's right, because the CSR / Qualcomm chip supports AAC as well, so iPhone 7 users should get similar SQ to aptX.

Well your subjective experience is wildly different than mine, then. I do wish I could be happy with just AAC though. To my ears aptx is much better, and I would love to try aptx HD.

 

[DJ The Rocket]

The purpose of this little device is convenience. If you are really interested in sound quality, you should know that you cannot achieve loseless streaming with bluetooth (At least not for now.)

If your priority is sq, then plug your headphone directly to the source or buy a wired dac/amp.(Unless you have an iPhone 7. Then again, if you want to listen to music on your phone; why did you buy iPhone 7 in the first place?)

This is a strange comment. You don't actually have an XB10, do you?

You say "the purpose of this little device is convenience." That's pretty closed-minded, don't you think? Why is it impossible for its purpose be both quality AND convenience? And since when is lossless the standard for quality? I'm not convinced that anybody can consistently tell the difference between a 320kbps mp3 and a flac; indeed, 256kbps mp3s are transparent to the majority of listeners. Aptx HD claims to meet that standard, a claim i have no trouble believing, considering how close aptx already is. In fact, with the Audeze Sine (my portable headphone), the XB10s balanced signal already sounds better than a wired connection to the majority of smartphone headphone jacks.

Your attack on the iPhone 7 makes even less sense. You (along with me and nearly everyone with a head-fi account) aren't going to be happy with the standard headphone jack on almost any nonspecialist equipment, which means we're using an external DAC. What difference does it make if it gets the signal through a USB OTG cable or a lightning cable?