[msknight]

   
This isn't really true across the board any more. More phones now are coming out with high quality DACs and more powerful amps

 
True. Linus Tech Tips reviewed a $400 flagship that ran his Bayer DT 990 Pros.

 

[eldus]

I still use my 5yr old + Rockboxed sansas

 

[HipHopScribe]

  You could tell by seeing how much time they spent talking about their Air Buds and Beats that this is more of an attempt at a headphone money grab than anything else.  "Courage" indeed.
 
I do have some questions.  Have to admit I'm not overly technical so these may be dumb questions.  I own the Bose QC15 and the NAD Viso HP50. I really like the iPhone and don't want to jump ship but also have no interest in getting anywhere near that dongle.  So with that said, both of the sets I listed function using detachable cables. Will it be possible to actually hook them up in some way directly to the lightning port through use of a new cable?  I figure Bose would have to release one specifically for the QC15 due to how the cable connects but what about the NAD cans?

 
http://www.scosche.com/lightning-to-3-5
 
Can't vouch for the quality, but it should do exactly what you're asking

 

[Kammex]

This isn't really true across the board any more. More phones now are coming out with high quality DACs and more powerful amps

I was waiting for someone to say it. Of course there's a few phones who focus on audio quality. LG V series being the most well-known out of them. But like I said, for the most part, smartphone manufacturers focus more on usability and features of a phone, such as waterproofing. You can barely find reviews of headphone output quality. They care about the camera more than the headphone jack even though many people use the headphone jack more than the camera. It's no surprise that Apple have decided that the iPhone 7/Pro will have an upgraded/dual camera and remove the headphone jack.

 

[rtimmel]

This might be too early to answer but is Apple changing the nature of the lightning port audio signal?  Right now it operating as a "line out" - an unamped (or possibly consistently amped) non-equalized signal. A signal that you could run into an external DAC to do all those functions. But in the 7 you can plug headphones into a $9 converter -- which at that price cannot have circuity -- and control volume and equalization through the phone,  So does that mean there will no longer be a line out for an external DAC, and will I have to run everything through the iphone DAC and then into the external DAC? 

 

[H T T]

I'm a big Apple fan. But no headphone jack, no iPhone 7 for me.

 

[franzdom]

  This might be too early to answer but is Apple changing the nature of the lightning port audio signal?  Right now it operating as a "line out" - an unamped (or possibly consistently amped) non-equalized signal. A signal that you could run into an external DAC to do all those functions. But in the 7 you can plug headphones into a $9 converter -- which at that price cannot have circuity -- and control volume and equalization through the phone,  So does that mean there will no longer be a line out for an external DAC, and will I have to run everything through the iphone DAC and then into the external DAC? 

 
I am wondering the same thing but...you can't send analog signals to a DAC with any result. 

 

[franzdom]

I am a big apple fan too and was thinking no more phone for me but it's not that difficult. I have Chord Mojo, I just would need to fully commit to it. I haven't used it much since I got it. Honestly I am having a bit of a time hearing the difference, even with really good IEM's.

 

[Mr Head P Hones]

I will not be getting a iPhone 7. The dealbreaker for me is not being able to listen in charge at the same time.

 

[PL4Y3R 0N3]

Here comes my rant, you don't have to read:

Okay, here's a thought- don't buy an iPhone 7! Look, I know that Apple removing the 3.5mm jack is a money grab and such, but everyone on this forum is smart enough to not buy an iPhone if they use it for money. Get a dap if you really must have an iPhone. It's only a money grab if you give them your money so just stick with your current phone or get a dap with your iPhone. If you don't want to give Apple your money then stop complaining and don't buy an iPhone 7.

Problem solved. Sorry about the rant.

 

[thamasha69]

This might be too early to answer but is Apple changing the nature of the lightning port audio signal?  Right now it operating as a "line out" - an unamped (or possibly consistently amped) non-equalized signal. A signal that you could run into an external DAC to do all those functions. But in the 7 you can plug headphones into a $9 converter -- which at that price cannot have circuity -- and control volume and equalization through the phone,  So does that mean there will no longer be a line out for an external DAC, and will I have to run everything through the iphone DAC and then into the external DAC? 

I was wondering about this too...like what kind of DAC/amp stage could be in that tiny dongle...though lightning to 30 pin adapter apparently has a pretty decent Wolfson.

 

[PL4Y3R 0N3]

I was wondering about this too...like what kind of DAC/amp stage could be in that tiny dongle...though lightning to 30 pin adapter apparently has a pretty decent Wolfson.

Just put up a question on the adapter's page on Apple. Perhaps we will see a reply soon.

 

[phase0]

I was wondering for anyone that's into Android if they could make a short list of Android phones to check out? I know there's a thread out there somewhere for Android phones and audio quality. Right now I see the options as:
 
1) keep your existing phone and forget about upgrading (however I doubt Apple will reverse this decision)
2) is kind of 1b, wait for full bandwidth bluetooth audio that is uncompressed and upgrade with BT adapters or some new headphones in the next two years
3) buy a new iPhone that is not a 7 (6, 6S, SE)
4) switch to android
5) buy the iPhone 7, route it to some other dac/amp
6) buy the iPhone 7, learn to live with the dongle
 
I'm not sure how I feel about all this yet. I like to use my existing UE triple.fi 10s, I use it for phone calls to keep the phone away from my skull. Then I also use them to listen to music on my DAP. Now that compatibility is broken if I go iPhone 7. I tend to think the people really worried about this are niche/minority and won't get acknowledged. I'm not really a big fan of google. I think their mission is to get access to as much data as possible to run analytics for advertising and marketing. I'm not entirely thrilled about Android. Still faced with the choices I'm considering the next phone might be Android to quit using Apple in protest. That said a lot of Android users I talk to say iOS is still better as an overall experience. Right now I think I'll stay in the wait-and-see camp.

 

[PL4Y3R 0N3]

I was wondering for anyone that's into Android if they could make a short list of Android phones to check out? I know there's a thread out there somewhere for Android phones and audio quality. Right now I see the options as:

1) keep your existing phone and forget about upgrading (however I doubt Apple will reverse this decision)
2) is kind of 1b, wait for full bandwidth bluetooth audio that is uncompressed and upgrade with BT adapters or some new headphones in the next two years
3) buy a new iPhone that is not a 7 (6, 6S, SE)
4) switch to android
5) buy the iPhone 7, route it to some other dac/amp
6) buy the iPhone 7, learn to live with the dongle

I'm not sure how I feel about all this yet. I like to use my existing UE triple.fi 10s, I use it for phone calls to keep the phone away from my skull. Then I also use them to listen to music on my DAP. Now that compatibility is broken if I go iPhone 7. I tend to think the people really worried about this are niche/minority and won't get acknowledged. I'm not really a big fan of google. I think their mission is to get access to as much data as possible to run analytics for advertising and marketing. I'm not entirely thrilled about Android. Still faced with the choices I'm considering the next phone might be Android to quit using Apple in protest. That said a lot of Android users I talk to say iOS is still better as an overall experience. Right now I think I'll stay in the wait-and-see camp.

Top of my list right now would be the Galaxy s7. I know that I'm staying with Apple for phones but as far as phones go the s7 is a great overall phone. Hardware wise it has the 6s beat, but the 6s is still iOS. The 6s is a really good phone (I'm biased, using it to type this) and I plan on keeping it for a good while.
If you have your music off your phone, I think current Bluetooth audio is good enough for anything now, but getting Bluetooth headphones just to use with your iPhone when talking on the phone is probably a bit rediculous. My advice, get a 6s and wait if you need a new phone now and want to stay with Apple. It is a beastly phone specs wise so I see no reason to upgrade right now. The only thing the seven would offer really is water resistance and the 6s is pretty water resistant as it is.

 

[HipHopScribe]

  I was wondering for anyone that's into Android if they could make a short list of Android phones to check out? I know there's a thread out there somewhere for Android phones and audio quality. Right now I see the options as:
 
1) keep your existing phone and forget about upgrading (however I doubt Apple will reverse this decision)
2) is kind of 1b, wait for full bandwidth bluetooth audio that is uncompressed and upgrade with BT adapters or some new headphones in the next two years
3) buy a new iPhone that is not a 7 (6, 6S, SE)
4) switch to android
5) buy the iPhone 7, route it to some other dac/amp
6) buy the iPhone 7, learn to live with the dongle
 
I'm not sure how I feel about all this yet. I like to use my existing UE triple.fi 10s, I use it for phone calls to keep the phone away from my skull. Then I also use them to listen to music on my DAP. Now that compatibility is broken if I go iPhone 7. I tend to think the people really worried about this are niche/minority and won't get acknowledged. I'm not really a big fan of google. I think their mission is to get access to as much data as possible to run analytics for advertising and marketing. I'm not entirely thrilled about Android. Still faced with the choices I'm considering the next phone might be Android to quit using Apple in protest. That said a lot of Android users I talk to say iOS is still better as an overall experience. Right now I think I'll stay in the wait-and-see camp.

 
I'd say keep an eye on the new LG V20 with the latest ESS Sabre mobile DAC. I have the V10 and the sound quality is a step above any other phone I've heard. The HTC 10 and ZTE Axon 7 also seem well regarded, though I haven't heard them myself.