[sela]

I recently bought new IEMs (Soundmagic E80), and realized they suck when connected to my LG G4, and sound really great with a better setup, so I decided I need a DAC/amp for my G4 phone.
 
What I'm looking for is:
Portable: need to be small enough to carry in my pocket with my phone.
Self powered: I just don't trust my phone to provide enough power through USB-otg, so it should have its own battery.
Sound quality: the most important thing. The best sound I can get for my budget, with good clarity and detail, and preferably close to neutral sound signature.
Budget: I would like to spend around 100$ on this, but I could go a bit higher if justified.
 
Any recommendations?

 

[sela]

After some further research, it looks like Fiio E17k or E18 are the most relevant choices.
 
I get the impression that both are significantly better than the Q1 which is only 30$ cheaper. All other DAC/Amp options I've seen either lack battery, are too big to carry around in my pocket, or are much more expensive (such as Oppo HA-2, at 300$), and I'm not sure I'm ready to pay 300$ for now.
 
It seems like the E18 have better support for android (not sure how it would effect me), but its an older model, and according to some the E17k sounds a bit better.
 
Are there any other options I'm missing? What about choosing between the E17k and E18?

 

[sela]

No-one responded to my post, but I'm writing a follow-up anyway.
 
While still deliberating which DAC/amp to buy, my phone died unexpectedly. It was no longer under warranty, so I decided to buy another phone instead of trying to fix it. 
 
I got a used "like new" LG V10 phone for 330$, and couldn't be happier. I didn't do any comparison with any DACs, but I believe it may be as good as a portable DAC/amp that would cost as much as this phone did, and I don't have to carry two devices with me. It sounds amazing with the Soundmagic E80s (it automatically switches to high impedance mode with them), and could even drive my Hifiman HE400 successfully.