help another newbie?

[totalnoobsry]

help pls

using qobuz w/

Android galaxy s22
have grado sr80x (wired) and various Bluetooth headphones.

what do I need to do/get (dac, apps, switching settings, etc.) to have the best hi res audio possible? thank you so much!

I'm also considering a switch to tidal given ui, depth of rap library and autoplay preferences. I get a cheap student discount w them so not paying full price... let me know if it's crazy to consider making the change, just looking for the best sound (hi res) possible with my gear. thx again

 

[PurpleAngel]

Maybe learn all the sound/audio setting of the Galaxy s22.
Plug the Grado sr80x directly into the Galaxy s22 and install Tidal.
It's what I would do.

Edit, oops, no headphone jack, then get a USB headphone amplifier dongle.

 

[earmonger]

Since the S22 doesn't have a headphone jack, you should get the $9 Apple dongle, which is a DAC with excellent measurements. It is not an amp but the Grados are easy to drive.

https://www.apple.com/shop/product/MU7E2AM/A/usb-c-to-35-mm-headphone-jack-adapter

Plug the Grados into that. A wired connection with the Grados will probably sound better than random Bluetooth IEMs.

Choose between Qobuz and Tidal depending on their catalogs. If Tidal has more of what you want, it's hi-res enough.

Player apps are for files you own, not streaming, so you don't need them.

 

[rennyprowess]

A wired earphones would be better than the bluetooth earphones. I would plug the Grados directly into your S22. Tidal would do just fine (espacially since you have your student discount) and it's high-res enough. Don't think you will need any other apps if you're only streaming audio.

On that note, I never knew Tidal had a student discount. I'm on Spotify now, but I might just switch over.

 

[totalnoobsry]

A wired earphones would be better than the bluetooth earphones. I would plug the Grados directly into your S22. Tidal would do just fine (espacially since you have your student discount) and it's high-res enough. Don't think you will need any other apps if you're only streaming audio.

On that note, I never knew Tidal had a student discount. I'm on Spotify now, but I might just switch over.

thx! I graduated last year so trying to extend the discount for as long as I can.

would the quality be better if I downloaded instead?

 

[rennyprowess]

thx! I graduated last year so trying to extend the discount for as long as I can.

would the quality be better if I downloaded instead?

Congrats on graduating! It would probably be better, but I feel the difference using downloaded songs compared to the highest settings on Tidal would be extremely negligible. 90% of people probably wouldn't hear the difference.

 

[earmonger]

would the quality be better if I downloaded instead?

Our ears and brains have limitations. So do transducers: your headphones.

Engineers can measure higher resolution, and some small segment of people may be able to detect the difference between 320 kbps mp3 and lossless, maybe even between lossless CD quality and 16-bit or 24-bit hi-res, in a super quiet environment with top quality playback. You're a student, young, so your ears are at their best; maybe you're one of the few.

But you've got entry-level, open-back Grados -- nice headphones but not laboratory-experiment grade, and the open backs let in outside noise. For your setup, hi-res streaming is probably indistinguishable from lossless downloads. If you poke around music blogs or Mediafire you can probably find FLAC (lossless) downloads to compare to what you're hearing on Tidal. But you'd have to precisely match loudness and do a blind test to see whether you find any difference, and it would be extremely subtle at most.

Upgrading your headphones would give you an immediate, audible improvement to your sound. All the other stuff would make a much slighter difference -- if any.

 

[totalnoobsry]

42 years old so no spring chicken

you got some good headphone recommendations? I appreciate it!

 

[jmwant]

Does it have to be headphones? There are lots of good iems too. The S12 pro is a very enjoyable IEM at its price, for a USB DAC for $50 the Moondrop Dawn Pro is a good option. Hiby music and UAPP are lossless music player apps, both can play from Tidal and Qobuz. I prefer Uapp, it's not free though.

Dawn Pro:
https://hifigo.com/collections/portable-1/products/moondrop-dawn-pro

 

[FuzzyLuck5550]

How do you like to listen to music? Do you want it on the go, or a dedicated desktop set-up? How do you feel about wires? Would wiring a rectangular DAC/amp to your phone and then your wired headphones to your DAC/amp make sense to you, or would you not use it?

The way I set my gear up is to have (1) a dedicated desktop DAC/amp, (2) a DAP (digital audio player, basically a souped up iPod), and (3) a Bluetooth DAC/amp that I can stream from my phone to depending on whether I am (1) at home at my computer, (2) moving around the house or traveling heavy, or (3) traveling light.

You have a nice set of cans; my first recommendation would be to get a source. If you don't mind having a wire connected to your phone, and then connecting to your headphone, get something like the Moondrop Dawn Pro listed above. If you want no wires between phone and the DAC/amp (which you would plug your Grados into), get a FiiO BTR5 or Qudelix 5K. Again, this answer depends on how you like to listen to your music.

 

[earmonger]

You have a nice set of cans; my first recommendation would be to get a source.

Gotta disagree on this. Improving the headphones is much better bang for buck.

@totalnoobsry , to get suggestions -- and you will get a lot! -- you should:

Set a budget.
Tell Head-Fi what kinds of music you listen to.
Think about whether you want open-back like the Grados or want to try closed-back (more isolation, but generally less spacious soundstage), or would be interested in IEMs instead, or want to go wireless.

After many years with Grado SR325, I have lately moved up to Audio-Technica ATH-R70X open-back, about $350, which are supremely comfortable and transparent sounding, and Beyerdynamic DT 700 Pro X closed-back, about $250, which are a little punchier and less spacious but still sound natural and unexaggerated. The ATH-R70X benefit from an amp, and I have the VE Megatron DAC/Amp, only $56 and about the size of a cigarette pack. I use Tidal and Qobuz and my own files on computer and phone. I also have assorted IEMs but since I mostly listen at home, the ATH-R70X get the most use.

I don't feel like I have to pursue the nth degree of high-res specs that instruments can measure but I probably can't hear. Maybe I'm satisfied too easily, but I see no need to stack up outboard equipment or to do kilobuck upgrades.

​

 

[FuzzyLuck5550]

You can spend $100 to upgrade your source to a BTR5 or Qudelix 5K and improve the sound quality of the Grados you already have, or move up the headphone chain and buy a $250 headphone with no improved source.

I know which is bigger bang for the buck for me; YMMV.