Any idea what is causing the socket failure? And would something like leaving a jack extension plugged in all the time prevent this? Im thinking of purchasing the dp-x1a but have heard mixed things about them adressing this issue so im a little hesitant.
These sockets cost few cents a piece. All of 3.5mm and 2.5mm sockets are very low cost parts, but you don't often hear massive, routine failures of some Smartphone. Sockets generally take lot of abuse, and don't fail. Think of all the white ear pieces on pretty much everyone in subway. That means phone is in pocket, and headphones plugged in phone's socket, being bent in pockets, taking all kinds of stress, yet rarely fail.
Problem is these particular sockets, that Onkyo managed to find, and decided to use in their top dap. These sockets fail in 2 wats, by slightly bending the headphone plug, socket is bent, and stressed, since the sockets are held on the circuit board only by solder joints, the solder joint breaks, and socket loses contact w circuit board.
Second scenario, and this is Onkyo's exclusive 'contribution', the internal contacts inside the socket are like tiny springs, when headphone plug is inserted, 3 springs make contact with Ground, Left and Right of 3.5mm SE plug. The Balanced socket has 4 springs inside the socket, 2 separate Ground leads.
Onkyo's sockets are so bad, these springs become 'tired', they won't snap into msking contact with headphone plug.
You can easily tell, when socket itself becomes loose from circuit board, the socket moves, if properly soldered it should have no way to move, not bend, it should feel firmly in its place. When it feels loose, one or more solder joints have broken off the circuit board. It may still conduct, because even tho broken off board, the sockets joints are touching the board, and you may have intermittent signal.
In a genius move, Onkyo designed the X1 in a fashionable Al brick, beautifully CNC'd out of solid chunk of Al. Very nice! Except there is no access to circuit board, in order to re touch the solder points, a 3 minute job with, for example, iBasso DX50. DX50 also had socket issues, but iBasso had screwed on back plate. I resoldered my DX50 dockets twice within few months, but I do use daps on the move all day. In the dx50 the sockets, and 3 solder joints are staring right at you, when you unscrew the back panel. Not do with Onkyo. You have to remove the LCD, good luck getting it off in one piece.
But worse, Onkyo X1 sockets don't even need to break loose from board. All you have to do is use the player, enough plugging in, and unplugging does the trick, uduslly one channel fails, the spring inside the socket is too soft, not springy enough, to touch the headphone plug. And there is nothing you can do about it, without removing the screen.
With heat gun, LCD is not difficult to remove, phone repair shops change cracked LCD all the time. Trick is, you need to have a replacement screen ready to put in place. How do you buy a new LCD, if Onkyo won't even acknowledge your emails? As I said, it tricky.
So far only confirmed place services X1, it's in Hong Kong, for $100 they replace Onkyo sockets, and out in real sockets, as in functional, non garbage sockets, $1 is the cost of a socket. Onkyo really outdid itself, when they decided to use these particular sockets. It's like a prank, an $800 prank, cost of X1, when first released.
There are ton of reports of sockets failing after only being used at home, not even in pocket, or pouch. That's how bad these sockets are.
If this was KG or Samsung size manufacturer, X1 would have been recalled long time ago. The Onkyo gets away with it, Japanese customers get no questions asked replacement under warranty. Anyone outside Japan, good luck!
Sorry for typos, using phone
