Audio Quality fo 3.5mm V. Dock

A

ACsGreens

Full Audioholic
Hey All,

I am trying to figure out what the audio quality difference is between using the 3.5mm headphone jack versus the docking method for iPad's, iPhone's, etc. I was using MOG the other day, which I love, and have turned on the high quality streaming option, which on wifi or 4g allows you to stream 320kb over bluetooth or headphone. I was listening on the Studio 60's with Yam rec, and it just did not sound very good. Any thouhts?

AC
 
Last edited:
JohnA

JohnA

Audioholic Chief
If I am not mistaken using the dock connector in either a dock or a cable adapter bypasses the internal headphone amp and provides a better signal.
 
B

bikemig

Audioholic Chief
The 30 pin dock connector is better than the headphone out. For the best quality sound, I'd get a dock like this pure i20 dock: Amazon.com: PURE i-20 30-Pin iPod/iPhone Speaker Dock: MP3 Players & Accessories

That way you bypass the internal dac on the ipod. The HRT istreamer does the same thing: Amazon.com: HRT iStreamer Outboard DAC for iDevices: Electronics

It is future proof in that it would work with the new lightening dock as well since it has a usb input. I'm leaning towards the HRT iStreamer for that reason.
 
macddmac

macddmac

Audioholic General
Stream via AirPlay to the receiver? Works great!
 
A

avengineer

Banned
The 30 pin dock connector is better than the headphone out. For the best quality sound, I'd get a dock like this pure i20 dock....

That way you bypass the internal dac on the ipod. The HRT istreamer does the same thing:...
This implies that using the dock connector always bypasses in internal DAC, which isn't always true. There's a lot on that 30 pin connector, including line level audio, line level inputs, video outputs, USB data and various mode-switching pins. It's possible to get just line level audio out of the connector, which is a little better than the headphone jack, not because the internal headphone amp is poor (it's actually darn good), but because the line out bypasses some additional processing used for headphones, like volume control and EQ for example. In general, the line output function provides no volume control, though there are docks (including a Universal Dock from Apple) that have IR remotes with volume control functions. A simple audio output dock cable will provide a fixed line-level analog output.

The analog line out is quite good. There are small gains to be had via USB data from the dock connector, which means you get the audio data out instead of actual audio, and then need an external DAC. The internal DAC isn't bad, though. When a device that uses USB data as the audio out function states that you can get the iPod function as well as Pandora and Rhapsody etc. out of the device, it's not always a smooth ride. Some generic USB DACs cause a bit of a control struggle for the iPod or iPhone that can be frustrating. The iPhone app might not always recognize there's a USB DAC out there to play to, and you might have to "trick" it into doing that. I have a car stereo with a USB dock cable that has this issue. You can get Pandora to play out of the USB cable, but you have to jump through a couple hoops to do it. It's a problem that you won't run into using the line output on the dock connector, only the USB data output.

Depending on how a device uses the dock connector's switching and sensing pins, you may get a compatibility error message on your iPod/iPhone screen, though in reality things work fine. Generic USB devices sometimes pop the error message because they aren't triggering the switching/sensing pins correctly. Even a line-out only dock connector, when used to also charge the device, can pop up the error message. You can just dismiss the error and get on with life, though.
It is future proof in that it would work with the new lightening dock as well since it has a usb input. I'm leaning towards the HRT iStreamer for that reason.
Theoretically correct, though I'm not sure all the combinations have been tried yet.
 
B

bikemig

Audioholic Chief
@avengineer: Just to be clear, I wasn't implying that using the 30 pin dock connector bypasses the iPod's dac. I was simply pointing out that there are devices that allow you to bypass the iPod's dac.

By the way, I agree that the analog out from the iPod is pretty good and I use it all the time when I travel. That said, I've always been a bit disappointed in the SQ when connecting it to a good music system using just the line out. I think you can do better but I prefer to rely on a computer as a source in this scenario over the iPod.
 
A

avengineer

Banned
@avengineer: Just to be clear, I wasn't implying that using the 30 pin dock connector bypasses the iPod's dac. I was simply pointing out that there are devices that allow you to bypass the iPod's dac.
Sorry, I didn't mean to imply you were wrong, just being detailed. It's a fault.

By the way, I agree that the analog out from the iPod is pretty good and I use it all the time when I travel. That said, I've always been a bit disappointed in the SQ when connecting it to a good music system using just the line out. I think you can do better but I prefer to rely on a computer as a source in this scenario over the iPod.
Agreed, though I've been fairly satisfied with lossless files out of the line out. Where I get a little uncertain is the benefits of a cheapie USB DAC over the internal one...not sure that's worth it, but a good external DAC should always win in SQ.

By the way, ever tried Bluetooth stereo audio? I've found, since it's another form of compression (misusing the term here, but you know...) if your files are low-rate .mp3 or even .AAC files, Bluetooth makes them much worse. Lossless files don't seem to take as much of a hit though. Figures, if you think about it. The lure of wireless audio connections will get some people to jump at it, but it's not the best way to get audio out of your iPod.
 
A

ACsGreens

Full Audioholic
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onewattephend, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.
 
A

avengineer

Banned
onewattephend, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.
I don't feel dumber, I feel educated. I've learned not to pay attention to every post.
 
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