That’s a pretty good option. Some other stand out options are the fiio q5s with a thx module, or the chord mojo since it’s getting so cheap now and it’s still an excellent unit. The ifi xdsd or idsd nano black label are also great.
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Thanks, I’m going to start looking into those right now.
The mojo is about $100 more, do you think the extra cost is worth it. Trying to narrow down the search
I think if you prefer a slightly more colored and enjoyable sound the mojo, xdsd, and idsd nano bl are great. I think the mojo is the most resolving and technically impressive out of the bunch, but I sold my mojo for the xdsd because of the xdsd bass boost feature and the warmer sound then the chord.
If you want just the most transparency but may be a bit harsh, the thx portable and the q5s with the thx module would be good. I personally don’t like something this transparent and harsh on the go because typically you are in less than ideal environments and just want to enjoy the music more then critically listen, but that’s just me.
Also I will add the xduoo xd-05 plus if you want to drive very power hungry headphones without the size and the cost of something like the ifi idsd micro black label
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Looking at the idsd its huge for a portable
Yes lol, the idsd nano black label is much more portable lol. I only take the idsd micro bl out when I want to power pretty power hungry headphones
XD-05 (non-plus) must be cheaper now too.
Looks like a great all-in-one DAP + desktop DAC/headphone amp.
It’s still around the same price, so I would rather take an ifi idsd nano bl unless I needed the power, or just pay the extra 60 for the plus
Honestly didn’t know the V20 was so cheap… It retailed for almost $800.
Yeah, and it’s still a very capable phone
ok the LG DAC/AMP section is unreached… I also thought about getting an LG phone, but my wife destroyed the plans 
after my wife tried the Android route for a few months and got back to the new iP11 - she is used to the apple stuff since years - can´t help her
I have now my old Samsung S8+ and her 6months old S10 in use - each with 15GB data plans so 30GB to play with
the S8+ connected to the ifi xDSD with OTG cable running USB Audio Player Pro with Tidal masters mqa unfold
or
connected via LDAC to ES 100
sometimes I wish I had a DAP like the Hiby R5 - no OTG cables between 2 devices…
but if someone needs a cheap phone, the Samsung S8+ is 2,5 years old and runs like on it´s first day
it won´t get the Adroid 10 update but safety update support goes on
battery life is very good and you can load it wireless what I often use when connected via otg cable 
I briefly tried PowerAmp, UAPP and Neutron when I was still deciding and I can’t say I heard any specific difference made by the player itself regardless of DAC. To me that’s all just nonsense posted online by diehard fans of each player. 
This is also why I could instantly ditch UAPP when its UI turned to design-less garbage, and connecting my DAC was also no longer a problem (solved it in audio_settings.conf at system level, using root permissions). I’m on Neutron now, since it has actual graphical design to its UI and I can understand at a glance what layout elements I’m looking at (not possible with “flat design”, sorry UAPP). Plus it kinda pissed me off that they got rid of several UI organization and function aspects that I used to find intuitive out of the box or because they had been implemented at my proposal. 
I found that with my phone the best sounding player was uapp. I would just use foobar on mobile but it just didn’t sound as good when using an external source. I’m sure it depends on the phone and the external dacs if the apps will make a sound difference
I will say that there was really no sound difference when not using an external dac as long as the app used the internal upgraded dac in the v30+
I got a refurbished V30 to try out. If I can be honest, slightly disappointed in terms the quality of the DAC/AMP. It can definitely drive higher impedance headphones, but tbh, I don’t feel any quality difference between the iPhone 6s, which I was using before. This is just using Spotify, mind…
I will try copying over some FLAC files later and give them a go.
Oh… and V30 is completely incapable of properly driving the Tin P1s, for anyone curious. I don’t know if them being very low-impedance, with low sensitivity, has anything to with it. Might force the phone to low-impedance mode? Not sure how that works.
Still, I mean I payed less than I payed for my used 6s a bit over a year ago… so it’s still a great deal.
So the main issue is that the phone has trouble properly identifying impedance because it adjusts the power output to the load it sees and that can sometimes make it so the phone decides to not properly drive the iem or headphone
Yeah, it makes sense…
Will say one main positive takeaway is the V30 pairs well with the NDH-20, which is my only closed back headphone anyway. 6s did not really drive them properly to my ears.
Drives the Elex pretty well as well, but with the Elex, I felt the 6s was more than capable enough to drive them well enough. Elex gets better with a higher quality DAC/AMP.
Yeah, I noticed a number of people commenting about the V30 in AliExpress impedance adapter reviews so there might be something funky going on with their auto-detection, to where people prefer to move their IEMs to a whole 'nother impedance class to help that algorithm make the right decision.
Yes, that’s what you want to do in order to get the most out of it
Oh, cool. thanks for the tip! Might give it a go, it would be cool to be able to use the P1s on the go.
So I’m using the HartAudio cables with the interconnect setup. So plugged my senn hd 660s to put the phone into high impedance mode, then unplugged from the interconnect while leaving end plugged into the phone, and plugged the P1s into the interconnect and phone stayed in high impedance mode. Works well with the P1s if you can actually get this working, i guess.
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