[garage_logician]

My phone just got the update to Jelly Bean so now I am wondering, are there any amps that will work with my phone and digital out?  My understanding is that Jelly Bean has the needed drivers and the digital out enabled, but it depends on the device.  Is that so?  Are there any amp/dacs that will work with my phone?   I wish FiiO would get the E18 to market already.  
-gl

 

[neurofone]

USB digital out isn't working on the Galaxy Nexus yet, even with Jelly Bean. Google is trying to implement their own version of USB digital audio out for specialized docks that won't work with standard USB DACs that we are all used to here.  That said, the Galaxy SIII and a few tablets do recognized standard USB DACs, and there are kernel developers working on getting their Galaxy Nexus kernels to allow this feature, but it hasn't happened yet as far as I've found.  So best you can do right now is just buy a portable amp (no DAC), and use the headphone out.  That's what I do, and the sound is pretty good.  You can improve the sound quality if you root your phone and flash a custom kernel called "Franco".  That kernel developer included some audio tweak settings in the kernel settings that you can play with.  Feel free to PM me if you need more details.  I just subscribed to head-fi and was about to post a picture of my Galaxy Nexus rig as it currently stands in one of the photo gallery threads.

 

[jakebake]

I was just going to ask the same thing as I got the update today as well. This is very disappointing to hear  
would like to see your nexus rig
any info on the best site to show how to root the phone?

 

[neurofone]

Yeah it is disappointing.  Hopefully a talented kernel developer will figure it out.
 
Here's my rig as it stands now:
Galaxy Nexus with 64GB external flash storage -> Pico Slim amp -> HIFIMAN RE-262 IEMs
 
Once you root it, you can use an OTG USB cable to connect a flash drive so you have tons of storage for lossless files (it's a shame the GNexus doesn't have a micro-SD slot).  You can use an app like PowerAmp to play lossless files.
 
 
http://imgur.com/zHJIh
http://imgur.com/7EpbS
 
The easiest way to root your Galaxy Nexus is to use the Nexus Toolkit, a free Windows software you can download here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1392310
 
Just install the toolkit, and follow the steps to root the phone. Just note that the rooting process requires you to unlock the bootloader, which will wipe your phone's apps and data.  Fortunately, the Toolkit lets you perform a backup of your apps and data first, and then you can restore them after the rooting is complete.
 
If you get stuck, that XDA thread is a good place to post questions.
 
Once you're rooted, you can flash custom ROMs and custom kernels.  Personally, I just keep the stock ROM because it does everything I need it to do.  However, I did flash a custom kernel (Franco Kernel) that give me some audio enhancements. He has an app that downloads the kernel, keeps it up to date, and lets you alter the settings I'm speaking of (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.franco.kernel&hl=en).

 

[seeteeyou]

.