yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] dedif:
I found a simple solution but that really removes the distortion, There's no need to root the smartphone, you install but equalizer you made a not too deep v like 4db of 1kh, now the sound become extraordinary, plus the its become much more detailed than any other smartphone I know, except the V30 which is almost the best, even I find the V30 too dynamic, but must be said despite a flat sound pixel2 xl is ultra detailed all the instrumental sound very detailed
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
You will need to check a before and after scope tracing before claiming this.

I have done measurements with less than full scale sine waves and there is no reduction in distortion banding.

If you personally like how something sounds, fine, but let's keep this thread objective.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
After some preliminary listening with excellent results, I decided to delve into the aptx bluetooth on the Pixel 2 and have the following to report. The adapter I used was a MEE aptx adapter with my SE 846 low impedance IEMs.

First crosstalk (bleed from one channel to another usually because of the issue of common ground).

Wired:94 dB signal drops to 44dB so about 50dB attached to the SE846 (very low impedance is challenging for the DAC)

Now the Mee BT adapter:

Notice there is nothing in the black channel!

No crosstalk.

Next harmonic distortion-wired first:

THD=.06

THD and noise in a quiet room=5%

Now for the bluetooth:

THD=.097

THD +N =5%

Really too close to call

And finally (and very important) the frequency response comparison.

Remember this is measure in a "dummy" head/ear with a calibrated microphone. Each insertion may change the sound a tiny amount from depth, angle etc. I also used the Dragonfly since the output impedance is so low:

Maybe a dB or 2 at the upper end that could be artifact.

This tells me that the output impedance of the bluetooth DAC/amp is pretty low (<1)

This is what happens if the impedance would be higher. I got a set of AKG N5005 that also came with aptx bluetooth cables.

On the SE846 the curves look like this:

Notice at 1kHz, the signals are the same, but at 4-5 KHz the bluetooth drops signal strength.

That's because the impedance is too high for this particular earphone (it did not change with the AKG earphones)

So, the amp/DAC in this bluetooth adapter is quite good and on par with the current group of USB-C and lightning DACs.

I think that is the reason why the subjective sound and bench tests are so good. The aptx is nice but I did do some testing using SBC and it was not much different.

One last thing, the power out is pretty high (guessing 1 V) so you may have to use lower volume settings. In the developer settings you can unlink bluetooth volumes which will help if the volume is excessive.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Gm7dha:
I've recently purchased an Audiolab P-DAC that uses the Sabre ES9018 DAC supporting up to 24bit 192Khz with a USB-C plug.

It sounds great to my ears over the stock Google DAC. Works perfectly with USB Audio Player Pro and does have hardware audio control (via software, no physical buttons).

I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with this DAC with the Pixel 2 (non XL), has any other information, test data, and can advise on the best option for software and hardware volume levels for minimal distortion.

At the moment I'm thinking high software volume and low hardware volume.

fyi... Im using iBasso IT01 IEM's

Thanks
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] jasenko:
Hi there,

I was wondering if you were able to test the new driver on Android P? I recently installed the beta, and had a first listen with the dongle today. The sound was very acceptable. I have a feeling that they use a completely different driver for this version of the OS.

Would be great to see if I am just imagining things. Or maybe the music I played today was more forgiving.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
I have not installed android P as of yet, but as soon as it is released will redo the testing. Although it is possible they rewrote the driver settings, I highly doubt it. It would take a complete redo of how they handle gain and it appears they were never very concerned with audio on android in general.

I will say that the newer bluetooth settings, codec, sample rates are a big improvement. Matching that up with a high quality BT dongle/receiver yields very nice sound.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
I wonder how much gain are we going to get out of this new

Shure RMCE-USB Earphone Communication Cable with Integrated DAC that just got released.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
Did you get this on Amazon? Kind of weird, their UK website doesn't even list this product. I kind of want to try it. Though I just saw OP's note about the 3 different output levels of the stock Pixel dongle; I'm gonna try to play with a splitter I have and see what happens...

I picked up a LG Q7+ from T-Mobile but it doesn't sound like what I remember of the V30...too bad I don't have both to directly compare.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
Ouch! I put my Pixel 2 dongle in the OnePlus 6, set the audio to about 66% (comfortable level), then unplugged the dongle and plugged a Y splitter into the dongle then connected the dongle back to the phone then plugged in my Audeze iSine 20....so much louder. The variable output voltage is real! Very interesting.

It looks like it's done "on the fly". I don't need to unplug the dongle for the output voltage to change. I know I'm probably pretty late to this discussion, but it's the first time I read about this and the phone has been out for almost a year now. -_-
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Iwin#:
Hey Guys, need help with Pixel 2 XL stock on Android P the external DAC is not getting recognised. Used the GOv2 and aftermarket dongle without any issue in Android 8.1
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] SoonerLater:
I was just about to order the Razer USB-C to 3.5 mm audio converter dongle for my daughter's Pixel 2, when I read this last post. Her phone is running Android P. I need to confirm that the Razer dongle will actually work under Android P before I order.

BTW... Google's own dongle is back-ordered until mid-October (not that anyone cares) and HTC's dongle is out of stock on its own website with no ETA on when it will be available.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
So far all the dongles I've tested work the same on Pie. Unfortunately, still the same lack of gain optimization. The Razor was the worst Dac in testing FYI.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] SoonerLater:
[MENTION=281070]bjrmd[/MENTION],

Thank you for all your hours and hours of testing, analyzing and writing to help the community. While I do not pretend to understand it all, I have learned a lot from this thread. I am grateful.

Since Google's own dongle is back-ordered until mid-October and HTC is out of stock indefinitely,

what would you recommend in the <$30.00 price category

? I mean, if you don't care for the Razer product, what's your favorite in the kiddie end of the pool?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
Probably the generic realtec

The Google Dac is the best at it's price but this is a sister device that is comparable and not overly costly.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
Review of Audiolab USB dongle

Quick specs that I measured:

Max power .92 V

Impedance less than .1 Ohm

Crosstalk unloaded/loaded 70/65dB

Distortion banding with stock Pixel driver and settings (Pie)

With optimized settings (my gain control app):

Optimized Google Dac for comparison:

Neutron driver with the Pdac without resampling:

Freq response with Shure SE 846 attached (good challenge if amp output impedance was high)

FR is totally flat with the variable low impedance SE846!

Summary:

Excellent frequency response with load due to very low impedance (perhaps better than the Dragonfly)

Excellent crosstalk with or without load

Reasonable power

Large size is a negative (3x the size of the stock dongle)

Distortion banding is average.

Distortion does reduce if the Dac digital gain is adjusted to less than full. Whether or not this is even audible I won't say, just FYI.

Resampling (44.1 to 48K) does not seem to be an issue.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Iwin#:
What am I doing wrong? Every DAC I connect doesn't work, system shows notification that the connected device is getting charged
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
All I want is a quality dongle that will give me Dragonfly like voltage without the weight. I get enough volume from the stock dongle with digital audio, but I listen to a lot of vinyl rips that only the Dragonfly can drive loud enough with my Shure 846's. If anyone has discovered such a device please chime in.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
If you are running full stock it's probably a hardware issue on the Pixel.

If it's not perhaps a clean factory flash would work. Before rooting, do your dongle testing.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
I am surprised that you are having difficulty with the se846 in terms of power. You certainly want a low impedance DAC.

If the issue is just with some particular rips, I suspect they were recorded with the gain set too low (which will also reduce their dynamic range). Try ripping them again at closer to full scale. On the other hand, if they were ripped correctly and just have passages that are soft, that could be a problem.

The generic realtec I reviewed does have a bit more power with low impedance. The Pdac is great but large.

BTW, with 1 volt the se846 can reach 130 dB.

Each halving of voltage reduces by 6 dB.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
Thanks for your reply. Yes my vinyl rips are proper with the highest gain possible without distortion, however, I believe I've found my solution. Its the same solution I used on my LG V30 to get more volume. Simply plug a microphone adapter into your Google dongle, and then plug-in phone and you have yourself about 25% more volume output. No noticeable additional noise. I still may spring for this new Shure RMCE usb cable. I'd like to think since it is a Shure product that my 846 cans will work optimally and no additional gimmicks are needed.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Iwin#:
https://xdaforums.com/pixel-2/help/how-to-connect-pixel-2-to-fiio-dac-t3736889

The third post helped in connecting the GOv2+, first power on the DAC then micro USB to DAC and then Type C to Pixel 2XL. But still no luck with the realtec adapter
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Dandroid16:
Thank you for what you're doing here. After browsing just a few review threads on various audio products, it becomes obvious that you can't rely rely on subjective comparisons to provide even a general sense of the quality you're getting from a given product. Specifically for this case, nearly every dongle I looked up had someone telling the world that it sounds "noticeably better" than whatever OEM dongle they were comparing it to. I bought one as a backup to my pixel DAC and while I think it does sound different, I can't say it's noticeably better or worse.

I appreciate the care you put into this and translating it some to us non-experts.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Skirr:
That's an impressive set of measurements, thanks a lot. Based on the status quo, which dongle would you personally recommend for a Android 9 stock setup for driving higher quality IEMs (Nuforce Primo 8)?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
Just wanted to say thanks to [MENTION=281070]bjrmd[/MENTION] for the consistent work and info posted here, and the others who contribute possible adapters. My 2 favorite adapters right now are the Audiolab P-Dac and the EarStudio ES100. I use mainly the Audeze iSine 20 but sometimes use the 1more Dual, which are a hybrid IEM.

I found the Razer to be too "sharp"/sibilant. Is this possibly due to the distortion?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Dandroid16:
[MENTION=281070]bjrmd[/MENTION]

Have you tried and tested this new combo-dac/usb-c dongle?

2 in 1 Hub USB C to 3.5mm headphone... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FC8J3F4?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

I bought one and it does indeed work as advertised with my Pixel 2, which is nice. Can't tell any hard difference in quality compared to the stock dongle Google packaged, but just switching from Google's to the soulsound with the same volume level and Viper profile, the SS seems to be able to get noticeably louder, for what that's worth.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
Would you say that the volume gain is about the same as the stock dongle or more, less?

---------- Post added at 11:58 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:48 PM ----------

BTW, I did go for the Shure RMCE USB cable, but was very disappointed and sent it back. I don't know what audio chip is used in this product but it is no match for the stock Google dongle or Dragonfly. Sound was flat, muddy and had low volume power, and it does not work with the USB Audio Pro app. Missed opportunity!
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Navanod:
Registered an account just to say a big thank you to the OP, bjrmd.

Upgrading from a HTC 10, I was disappointed with the music quality of the Pixel 2 supplied dongle.

Soundstage and clarity dissolved into a muddy mess and everything sounded lifeless.

Simply switching from Poweramp to Neutron, activating hardware DAC gain control and Direct USB access with volume control made a huge difference. The dongle now sounds better than the HTC 10 on Poweramp!

Also did a few layman trial and error tests and confirmed that the dongle output at Super high volumes (eg. Activate direct USB access without activating hardware DAC gain control)

Nearly blasted my ears off twice when the "replace device volume" settings under the "direct USB access" didn't kick in properly.

I suspect it's because I had the autoplay when output attached active. I had to press the volume buttons before the volume of the dongle jumped to match the phone's.

It's not the perfect solution but it's workable for now without having to root the phone.

Alas, I ordered another dongle (Sonata from hidizs) just before I found this thread. According to reviews and a head-fi thread, it works well with Pixel 2 and sounds pretty good right out of the box.

Hopefully it'll sound even better on Neutron?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
[MENTION=281070]bjrmd[/MENTION] an updated Google dongle is out supposedly. $12.

https://www.androidpolice.com/2018/...s-lower-latency-longer-playback-pixel-phones/

"²Adapter now provides 38% more playback time and has a 53% improvement on plug-in latency than previously available Pixel 2 headphone adapter."
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
Thanks, I ordered one to test it out.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
Awesome. I ordered one to, to listen to and see. :P

This note on the store page is kind of weirding me out.

"Compatibility

Works best on Pixel and other devices running Android P or higher."

I know P has some new audio DSP stuff...I'm wondering if they are taking advantage of that with the dongle somehow. Anyhow, I have a OnePlus 6 on Oreo and a Pixel 2 on Pie I can listen to and see if I hear anything. If you have an Oreo & Pie device it would be interesting to see if there's a measured difference. :good:

On another note, I ended up returning the Audiolab...it sounded good but after using the EarStudio ES100 I couldn't get past the feeling that I was straining the USB-C on my phone lol. Plus it felt like the battery drain was MUCH higher with the Audiolab.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
I received and played around with this new Google dongle and I have to say, it's a bit disappointing. It is ever so slightly smaller than the original Pixel 2 stock which is good, but it will not at this point, or unless there is a trick someone can suggest, work with USB Pro audio player. Tried several times switching back and forth with stock dongle. Also, I don't have the means to measure, but gain/volume appears much lower compared to original stock using my SE846's. I guess for now I'll stick with my original stock dongle and Dragonfly combo.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
So far I haven't detected a difference in output level between the V1 and V2 dongle I received yesterday (with a OnePlus 6). Both are plenty loud. I'll have more headphones to test with when I get back to work tomorrow. Have you tried other apps? Haven't had any issues with Spotify yet.

Here's my short write-up on it so far: https://www.reddit.com/r/GooglePixe..._to_35mm_dongle_v2_versus_v1_preliminary_info
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
It seemingly works fine for streaming services. I tried Deezer and Google Play but not USB Audio Pro. I haven't tried Neutron or Poweramp. And yes, for me using SE846's the output is about 20% lower on V2.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] philpoe:
Cheap Realtek DACs

Looking at the results for the Realtek USB DAC, I clicked the link to see the item on ebay.

Looking at the Basevs logo on the DAC, I recalled seeing it on Amazon.

It's available for less there. A 2-pack is available for $19.99. Given that the new Google Dongle is $12, some people may be interested.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07B47SWJ4/

Additionally, I kept reading about Airsfish dongles, which claim to have a Realtek chip, and may behave the same as the Basevs.

They have a 2-pack for a similar price, but poor reviews. People not minding a gamble may want to try their single item for $5.90

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G2PNMRB/

Another one seen is CONMDEX, a little less expensive for a 2-pack at $16.90

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07GN8X5RL
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] jickbahtech:
Early testing between the original Pixel dongle and the new dongle, the new dongle seems to be a slightly poorer performer on my G7 and OP6. I also can't get the new dongle amp to trigger a higher impedance mode, but none of my gear is over 100ohm.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] cstark27:
[MENTION=7927794]mistemuse[/MENTION] do you use a splitter? I just tested the Y-Splitter trick and while it did get more volume like before, it definitely wasn't as loud as the V1 dongle. Straight to the V1 and V2 dongle still seems like the same volume to me on 24ohm headphones..Maybe I just don't have the ear for that small of a difference. Oh well, conclusive results hopefully come soon. :D
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] jickbahtech:
I did a direct line and split with my sennhesier 599's. The v1 pixel dongle was fiddly it wouldn't always trigger, but I could usually get it to shift to a higher amp output. The v2 dongle on my G7 doesn't seem to change. The v2 dongle on my OP6 running the pie beta gets quieter when I use the y adapter.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
No I haven't but will order one soon. I did try the extension cable trick that worked great for the LG V30 and it worked as well for my Pixel2XL, but after 10-15 minutes it starts to cut-out so I abandoned that idea. As far as the lower volume on the V2, I played a track that was mastered really low at full volume on V1, and then switch to V2. That is where you really notice the output difference.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] MrMeeseeks:
Anyone else notice audio skipping with v2 when locking/unlocking? It doesn't happen every time but I don't remember this behaviour with the original.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] SubZeroNexii:
I want to order this (https://www.hidizs.net/products/dac-cable) for my mi mix 2s.

What do you guys think about it?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] mistemuse:
I have this, and using with my Pixel 2 XL, and it is now my number one dongle. I must have tried at least 7-8 different USB dongles since using this phone. It is clear, crisp, flat sounding and even has enough output to drive my lower mastered vinyl rips on my SE846's. I now have a mate to go with my Dragonfly, but with half the weight and much less of a power hog. Well done Hidizs.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] SubZeroNexii:
Thanks for the reply. If you say it's this good I'll probably buy one. I'm pretty sure you can't find anything better at that price.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] g0at1:
Were you able to test it already?
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
I just got it last night and looked at just a couple of things before getting on a flight.

The output impedance is about 6 ohms, much higher than the old one. Definitely a problem for multi transducer iem's.

Interestingly, the alsa parameters are much different and it supports both recording and playback at 44 and 48 k sample rates. The original only supported 48k playback.

Will give it a through evaluation in about a week.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] Navanod:
I just received this in the mail after reading about this on another forum. Worked right out of the box with Pixel 2 XL.

Compared to the stock Pixel 2 dongle, it's better built and better sounding IMHO. More soundstage, even better clarity/details and more "lively" (warmer than Pixel's?) subjectively.

And that's compared to the optimal Pixel dongle after jumping through hoops using Neutron MP to workaround the gain issue. Yes, for a bundled dongle, the Pixel 2's sounds pretty good with the proper gain settings. But it's extremely annoying to be playing music and reading social media on the train, and playing a video on FB, only to have the video play through the phone's speaker while music continue on the headphone.

Not sure what the output impedance is but it definitely has more power as well. The Hidizs volume via hardware gain + direct USB Access (for an apple to apple comparison) at 20-25% gain is able to match the stock dongle's 60-70%. I'm now running it at around 50% on device volume without direct USB Access to get the same volume.

For $29USD with free shipping, there's no reason to live with the stock dongle's pain. Just remember to flash it to V2.0 and then "Pure Music D" firmware for best performance.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] bjrmd:
Test of the New Google DAC:

Impedance 6 ohms

Max voltage just under 1 V but .3 volt with low impedance headset

Crosstalk no load 70 dB

Crosstalk with load (SE846) about 40 dB:

Distortion banding Optimized (max android volume, cut the digital DAC gain to adjust voltage)

Not optimized (pure stock):

They are now the same!!

If you read my posts from the initial Pixel 2 tests, the OS set the digital gain to max, thereby creating distortion banding at lower volume settings. This apparently has been fixed in Pie. I also checked the old G dongle and HTC adapter and the new behavior is proper with no difference in banding using my gain control app (which is now not really needed unless monitoring Spl).

Back to the new G dongle vs old one:

Output voltage a bit less with line out but only .3 V with low impedance headphones (tested 16 ohm)

Higher output impedance (not good with low impedance multi driver IEM's)

Crosstalk not as good with low impedance IEM

Distortion banding about the same

The gain optimization in Pie is really a nice development. The Dragonfly Red still won't put out full voltage in stock mode but my app still can take care of that.

Edit--I did some further tests and unfortunately the gain optimization only seems to work with line in mode, not with a "forced" headset scenario.
[Google Pixel 2 XL Guides, News, & Discussion] danzel:
Yep Google DAC v1 is still better: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...attle-of-google-pixel-headphone-dongles.4863/