[C_Lindbergh]

Is there any BT receiver with QI wireless charging? It's strange that it isn't more common, after all BT audio is mostly about convenience, and wireless charging convenience defined.

 

[gr8soundz]

Is there any BT receiver with QI wireless charging? It's strange that it isn't more common, after all BT audio is mostly about convenience, and wireless charging convenience defined.

https://www.audiolab.co.uk/nano/

 

[C_Lindbergh]

https://www.audiolab.co.uk/nano/

Ah, yes forgot about that one, but it feels so last gen, BT 4.1, 8 hours battery life etc.

 

[tiamor988]

Hi all, new member here. This thread has a wealth of information. I have a bunch of questions but will try to streamline them. My situation is rather simplistic, I just want to put a better bluetooth receiver, pre-Amp and DAC in front of my Audi MMI 3G+ (2015). I found an AMI cable that has USB-C and 3.5mm headphone jack together, so I'm hoping to just keep it in my glove box permanently with power and audio always connected. Post-receiver, I have a Mosconi DSP and Amp powering some classic MB Quart 6.5" speakers, and a JL Sub. Honestly, I'm just trying to feed it a better wireless signal and hopefully take advantage of some of the newer DAC technology to get a better soundstage, etc.

So, I originally ordered the W5, however I'm now realizing that it doesn't seem to support power + use at the same time since the darn USB-C port is on the charging case. So I'm now second guessing that decision as I really just want to use it as a passthrough, and I'm hoping it will never need to be manually charged/unplugged. Let me know if I have that wrong.

My budget is roughly $100, so I'm going to rule out BTR5, 1795, and some of the products in that $150-250 range. Given that size doesn't matter for my use case, here's what I think I'm left with:

W3 - looks like this could power/use at same time. Can anyone confirm it can work that way? And can it auto-power down, or is the battery going to run down every time i power off my car? The price is right.
ES100 - seems like the gold standard as it does everything, including plays nice with car. I get the impression the sound is not the best of the bunch, but not a bad option. Looks like the price dropped to $80 yesterday.
Qudelix - obviously not out yet, but it seems like this thing is really promising. I emailed them to see if there is any update on timeline. Obviously some risk of being an early adopter/bugs/support longevity, etc.
UP2/UP4 - seems like people aren't super satisfied.
BTR3 - price is right, but reviews seem so-so.

I am leaning towards W3 vs waiting a month or two for Qudelix. Thoughts?

Finally, because I'm so naive and this is my first one, I am assuming that:

1.) When i power it via USB-C and hook up headphone jack, my car stereo will NOT be able to render the song info on the display screen, and I'll be using my phone to drive that.
2.) My Apple iPhone X will perform nicely, but if I go to Android I can take advantage of better BT codec support.
3.) And my dumbest question of all - in order to take advantage of the DAC, i don't need my phone plugged in to the USB-C. The DAC is still employed over BT (wireless), correct?

Thank you to anyone who is willing to weigh in

Good news. HiBy W3 just release an update with car mode. It will automatically turn on when charger is connected. But will not turn off when charger is disconnected. It will automatically turn off eventually when nothing is connected.

 

[sinquito]

And do yourself a favor and get one of those balanced cables for HD6XX. It makes a huge difference comparing to stock, opening up the details and you can use it with ES100 or BTR5 Balanced. I use it with W3 today with FIIO 2.5 to SE adaptor and I like what I hear, plenty of volume from W3 on Max and all dynamics and bass is there. If I didn’t get that balanced cable I would sell my HD660S long time ago.

I will give it a thought, any recommendations for the balanced cable?

 

[Barusu Lamperouge]

After a few days of playing with my Hiby W3, it's not bad but feel that it can have better optimizations via app. In terms of power, I don't feel much difference from my rooted Redmi K20 Pro's output but the sound is much more clean and refined. Tried them with T2 and BL03 and felt they sound very neat. Although I have to crank up the volume a bit. I usually prefer listening at low to moderate volumes but was always plagued by some noise. W3 elimiantes that noise. It is a great to have accessory. Just my humble opinions for those who intend to purchase them.

 

[greyforest]

how about fiio q5s？

 

[ClieOS]

how about fiio q5s？

Out of the scope of this discussion.

 

[sinquito]

@ClieOS I remembered that you recommended the Sony MW1 back in the day. That's been my only bluetooth dongle/receiver, do you think that I will hear/see some improvements with the BTR5? I already ordered, but I would like to hear your opinion.

 

[ClieOS]

@ClieOS I remembered that you recommended the Sony MW1 back in the day. That's been my only bluetooth dongle/receiver, do you think that I will hear/see some improvements with the BTR5? I already ordered, but I would like to hear your opinion.

MW1 is definitely one of the best BT adapter of its era. Its SBC 320kbps codec (during a time where SBC 128kbps was the common standard) can actually rival aptX easily. It is unfortunate that Sony never see the potential of it but instead going backward on their future BT adapter design. As far as SQ goes, I reckon MW1 is almost as good as any good BT adapter today - might not quite as good as BTR5, but it isn't actually that far away either.

 

[AlexFL]

I will give it a thought, any recommendations for the balanced cable?

I liked the brown cable, bought it on EBay. It is as thin as IEM, very convenient and sounds much better then stock.

 

[AlexFL]

I have burned in W3 for 48 hours and repeated A\B with iPhone dongle. I definitely prefer the W3 sound. It is so organic, wonderfully balanced with great details across the range. I love the mids it produces comparing to other gear. Definitely a keeper.

 

[JJSEA]

I got a W3 and I like the sound. The problem I have is that it does not work (either for charging or as a DAC) with a USB-C to USB-C cable. It works only with a USB-A to USB-C cable. I have tried several different USB-C to USB-C cables with no success.

Do any similar Bluetooth adapters (e.g. Shanling UP2) work properly with USB-C to USB-C cable? I want one I can use with my iPad Pro both to charge and as a DAC.

 

[ClieOS]

I got a W3 and I like the sound. The problem I have is that it does not work (either for charging or as a DAC) with a USB-C to USB-C cable. It works only with a USB-A to USB-C cable. I have tried several different USB-C to USB-C cables with no success.

Do any similar Bluetooth adapters (e.g. Shanling UP2) work properly with USB-C to USB-C cable? I want one I can use with my iPad Pro both to charge and as a DAC.

UP2 won't work as well. What you need is probably a small USB hub between the iPad Pro and W3

 

[JJSEA]

Thanks. Inspired by your suggestion, I found an easy solution to connect my W3 to my iPad Pro: use a "USB C to USB A 3.0 OTG adapter" (costs about $2) together with a normal USB C to USB A cable. With this both the DAC and charging work.