johnsmith123 Bonus points if anyone knows if there's a difference in sound quality of a Google Pixel 8 with IEMs versus a designated audio player like a Fiio M7. Not sure if it's a marketing scheme or the sound on the Fiio will actually sound better than a Pixel 8 and a dongle setup?
First off, its the DAC/amp combo that determines the output sound quality, not the phone itself. When you use a dongle or a DAP the dac from the dongle is used, bypassing the internal dac of the phone. Therefore there is no difference between different phones when you use a dongle or other dac/amp. Usb noise does matter though.
There is absolutely a DEFINITE difference between dacs and amps in sound quality, and while there is some snake oil out there, this is not the case for the majority of products out there. However you may not be able to hear this difference if your system is bottlenecked at some point in the sound chain. So its important to buy a "balanced" chain so you are not overspending on a given component.
The 48khz limit of android is indeed something to consider. It was supposed to have been addressed in android 11. I don't know if it was and what the status of this is now. I dont know much about this, research it.
The dongle or dap you buy is gonna have a definite effect on sound quality. However if you are getting a 100$ iem, then it might not make sense to spend 200$ on a dap or potable dac/amp.
However a dap or a battery powered dac/amp has its merits as it will draw less battery from your phone, and it will allow you to attach a usb splitter which means you could attach a usb memory and the dac/amp and listen to music while extending your memory space and phone battery. Though i dont know how much noise this will introduce to the usb interface. The noise will affect sound stage and lushness of sound for capable gear.
I dont know much about the fiio m7, but one look at its price of 180 usd and using a delta sigma sabre chip, i would say you are not getting better sound here, maybe more detailed treble, but no more stage depth or lushness. You are getting more features and comforts. Do research it. My 10$ abigail beat my LG v30 sabre DACed phone output in enjoyment and liveliness. So i tend to go for it over my lg v30.
If your final aim is the 100$ iem mark then i think you should consider some of the 20-50 $ dongles. Some of them are very good and will appreciably improve sound quality. However if you are wanting to jump to the next level up i don't recommend anything in the portable dac/amp market until you hit the cayin ru6 ru7 and then the chord mojo (for sound consolation only).
But do understand that if you get a more expensive dac/amp you need to also have a good enough headphone that can actually "reveal" the improvement. On a 100$ iem you will still hear the difference but it will not be convincing.
Do research a bit specially regarding the dac/amps's output impedance and power output. Make sure it is the right match to the headphones you intend to use with it.
A few pointers:
- more power doesn't mean better
- impedance and drivability is not about volume. You can get high volume on some high impedance headphones but you are getting bad sound and you not realizing it. So impedance handling matters. It shows itself is sound stage, imaging, depth, and lushness.
- steer clear of all "measurement" focused reviews and measurement nuts. Measurements mean abbbsolutely nothing, nada. Except for the frequency response graph, which is very important.
- instead follow reviewers with good ears and a sensible head.
- balanced armature iems are very amp picky so be careful what works with them and what don't.
- any headphone above 24 ohms will definitely benefit from improved drivability of better amps than the one that ships with phones or basic dongles. Headphones with less than 24 ohms are already "driven" fully and wont need amp improvements. (Planar magnetic a different ball game).
- the DAC makes a WORLD of difference and you wont know this until you hear r2r and "chord" dacs. Not snake oil. But also dont fall into the trap of chasing this. Keep to your sound chain budget.
For really good youtube reviewer channels I recommend:
- headphone show
- passion for sound
- wavetheory
- dms
- goldensound
- the honest audiophile (note: he considers slightly trebly as neutral).
- cheap audio man
Steer clear of zReviews or be mislead.