[jagwap]

Please help me pick up best analytical tuned audiophile phone.

I do not want to drive 600 Ohms cans.
I do not want latest chipset if it means sacrificing sound quality.
I use Sennheiser HD25 II for listening, and they are easy to drive.

I had an LG v20. It had a remarkable sound characteristics but it started bootlooping after I used it with poor quality USB-C cable.

I want an upgrade over v20 but do not want Meridian tuning. My choices are:

1- LG v20 once more. (If so, what variant has objectively the best tuning? Are there any regional variations?)
2- LG v30 on old stock rom. (Should I get v30+, V30s or just V30? I see NTT Docomo variants of this in my local market. I hope sound is the same like other variant.)
3- LG v35 on old stock rom. (AT&T variant. Is it B&O tuned at all?)
3- LG G7 thinq on old stock rom.

All I care about is the sound detail, instrument separation and sound stage. So a phone without an amp but high quality DAC would be the answer. Please help

I had V20 , then G6 then G8, and each are better than the previous one, with the V20 >> G6 being the larger impovement. My V20 had B&O slapped on the back, but I don't know what that added. All of these phones are flat response so it if they did anything to the design it would be layout, PSU decoupling and maybe digital filtering tweaks. But the G6 without it, is better. However the G8 is the best sounding phone I have had. If you like a larger form factor V50 or V60 would be a good idea.

I would wonder what condition a V30 or V35 battery would be in, if stored for several years. If it even powers up.

Why do you not want the Meridian affiliated phone? Meridian know what they are doing, and if you don't like their apodizing digital filter you can turn it off in the settings.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

Hi guys,

I have been happily using a Meizu Pro 5 for years and I think it's the time to improve it with a much better sounding phone....if that's possible, of course. I am almost decided to get a korean LG V50 but I still have doubts since I owned a LG V10 in the past and my experience was not good enough since it was not able to drive properly classical music in most headphones I tried with it. I use mainly AKG K551 cans and the sound was thin and not convincing at all even using the auxiliar or high impedance mode.

Thanks.

 

[artpiggo]

Hi guys,

I have been happily using a Meizu Pro 5 for years and I think it's the time to improve it with a much better sounding phone....if that's possible, of course. I am almost decided to get a korean LG V50 but I still have doubts since I owned a LG V10 in the past and my experience was not good enough since it was not able to drive properly classical music in most headphones I tried with it. I use mainly AKG K551 cans and the sound was thin and not convincing at all even using the auxiliar or high impedance mode.

Thanks.

Vivo would be better option.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

Vivo would be better option.

Thanks artpiggo. Which model in particular?.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

What I need is a smartphone delivering 2V through its headphone jack independently of the headphones impedance I connect to it, really, since most of my headphones are 32 ohms.
And of course with the highest audio quality. A small size would as well be appreciated since I would need to have it in my pocket most times while listening music.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

Ok I have been reading the entire post and it seems for the size the LG G8 is the one I should keep my attention. I understand its sound is identycal to the LG V50. To assure always 2V I would just need to connect a 50+ ohms headphones through a very short cable extensor to the phone jack and when I only unnplug the headphones from the extensor I could still enjoy those 2V when connecting 32 ohms headphones to that same extensor.
Am I right？

Thanks guys.

 

[jagwap]

Ok I have been reading the entire post and it seems for the size the LG G8 is the one I should keep my attention. I understand its sound is identycal to the LG V50. To assure always 2V I would just need to connect a 50+ ohms headphones through a very short cable extensor to the phone jack and when I only unnplug the headphones from the extensor I could still enjoy those 2V when connecting 32 ohms headphones to that same extensor.
Am I right？

Thanks guys.

Yes that will work.

I can solder, so I added 470 ohm resistors in my headphone cable. Then I plug the cable into the phone, without the headphones attached, then connect the headphones.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

Yes that will work.

I can solder, so I added 470 ohm resistors in my headphone cable. Then I plug the cable into the phone, without the headphones attached, then connect the headphones.

I understand the trick, but is not that interfering the sound quality？.

 

[artpiggo]

Thanks artpiggo. Which model in particular?.

Vivo xplay6 or nex S if you need 3.5

X70 pro plus maybe good option but you need to use with adapter that comes with phone. because its HIFI is working for apple music already. Older model doesnt.

If you want high gain, just buy 3.5 F to 3.5 M.

Connect it first, play music then attach earphone. You will get higher volume.

Dont use impedance/more resistance to earphone. It is like buying a city car to drive offroad all its life.

 

[Hermann Uhde]

Thanks artpiggo, but I see I should discard the Vivo options because of its big size and not having a microSD card slot.

 

[chaz_flhr]

Hmm.
The BTR5 throws out 80mW @32r on SE and 240mW@ 32r on balanced out.

The V30 has at least ~ 120 mW @32r on HIM.

Maybe the Ifi Hip Dac is a nice little Dac/Amp to consider, even with a mid-range smartphone.

+1 on the BTR5 balanced

 

[jagwap]

I understand the trick, but is not that interfering the sound quality？.

470 ohms loading a 1 ohm output is not going to be audible. Even in parallel with high impedance sennheisers. Less than 0.02dB

 

[jsmiller58]

Sorry if this has already been asked and answered…. Maybe, given the inexorable march away from headphone jacks, the question of best phone for audiophiles is what phone supports the most high resolution Bluetooth codecs, and which phones best play with dongles for highest quality….

For me I am intrigued by the Pixel 6 Pro, but that is just because I don’t think Samsung supports LDAC…

 

[zeinharis]

Sorry if this has already been asked and answered…. Maybe, given the inexorable march away from headphone jacks, the question of best phone for audiophiles is what phone supports the most high resolution Bluetooth codecs, and which phones best play with dongles for highest quality….

For me I am intrigued by the Pixel 6 Pro, but that is just because I don’t think Samsung supports LDAC…

Haven't got any type C dongles, but here is Rog phone 5's Bluetooths codec list.

 

[jsmiller58]

Haven't got any type C dongles, but here is Rog phone 5's Bluetooths codec list.

Thanks for posting this!

In this case I would probably argue the ROG 5 would not meet MY definition of the ideal audiophile phone solution because it does not support the arguably best current codec - LDAC. Even if you argue that aptx Adaptive is equivalent (or better) it is not widely used and LDAC would be better as a bridge. Even aptX HD as a bridge would be better than not (Adaptive is backwards compatible with HD - but that is not the same thing as provides HD data rates).

Then there is the question of USB DAC support…. Does the phone cripple quality by resampling (Android’s infamous audio stack, for example, though I think that may no longer be a thing)…?

I would also argue that, even in our streaming environment, there may still be the need for ample storage to have local audio. For example, I live in a very rural location and in some areas there is no cellular coverage and thus local audio storage is essential. An SSD card slot would be awesome, but if not that at least 512GB that does not cost an arm and a leg…