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Review of Super Bass portable bluetooth speaker (tvc-mall) with lots of pics!!!

Actually this is a double review where I would like to share with you my latest two portable speakers, one is Hi-Fi Super Bass Bluetooth speaker music player for $14.50 (http://www.tvc-mall.com/details/HI-...ne-Intelligent-Voice-Speaker-Black-MINS-597A/) and the other one is Kaidaer Mini-speaker music player for $8.30 (http://www.tvc-mall.com/details/Cir...e-MP4-MP3-PC-Support-TF-Card-Green-MINS-491F/)
When I started doing my reviews early this year, my main goal was to prove to myself and to others that you can get a high quality product and don't spend a fortune. That was mainly in reference to phone cases and screen protectors. I was skeptical about anything else outside of that, especially something like speakers where even big name companies with products $100+ can't get it right. Recently I had success with quality of stuff I got from tvc-mall.com, so I figured to give it a shot with a few speakers that were dirt cheap and looked cool as hell on a picture and in description. Turned out that I was in for a huge surprise when I got these in this week. I actually been playing with these for a few days just to make sure it wasn't my first impression reaction. Still LOVE it and planning to order more since both of my kids already got their hands on it lol!!!
Let's first start with Hi-Fi Super Bass speaker. When it comes to portable speakers, small is great and this one is about 55mm in height and 60mm in diameter, but also you want it to be heavy thus knowing it has a better driver - and this one at 206 g feels nice in your hand! The construction is very solid, aluminum, with a top firing speaker covered with a grill The bottom of the speaker has a non-slip rubber-ring pad to keep it steady on the surface, comes handy during bass shaking It has a rechargeable battery, 700 mAh, so no need to worry about replaceable batteries, just use mini-usb cable (included) to charge it up and you are ready to go! The speaker is both bluetooth and also has micro-sd card which turns it into a music player. The play controls are at the bottom where you have Play/Pause, +/- for volume up/down when you hold those buttons or Next/Prev track skip when you just press it briefly, and M mode change button to switch between bluetooth and micro-sd card, as well as pairing up function button. There is a guiding voice that tells you when you turn the speaker on, when its bluetooth or card, and when it gets paired up with your phone. In bluetooth, its also a speaker phone and switches seamlessly when you are playing a music from your phone and receive a call - it pauses the music, switches to call, and when you are done goes back to music. The volume control is DUAL, which means you can use either +/- control buttons or a specially designated ring volume control which is located around bottom of the speaker. That volume control is super cool, just turn the dial clockwise/counter-clockwise to raise or lower the sound.
Here is where it gets totally insane - the sound quality. Yes, it has a nice deep bass sound and a very loud overall sound with clean and clear mids/highs. The bass is so good, it will shake in your hands! For a no-name generic speaker - this is very impressive. Another very impressive part is that playing the same song through bluetooth or directly from micro-sd card - doesn't change the sound quality. Due to bandwidth limitation, bt compresses the sound often cutting lows and highs - not in this case. Overall I was very impressed, considering this is $14.50 speaker with so many features, controls, and great sound quality. You can definitely use it both indoors and outdoors because it's loud enough.
Here are the pictures.
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The second speaker is actually brand name, although its probably local HK company which I never heard of, Kaidaer. It's only a speaker with micro-sd card, no bluetooth. But it also offers Line Input to connect any other device or to use 3.5mm cable as antenna since it has built in FM receiver. You also get headphone output for private listening, you get different playback modes and a separate EQ setting buttons, along with Play/Pause button and Skip Next/Prev which doubles as volume up/down when you press and hold it. This one is also rechargeable and mini-usb cable as well as 3.5mm audio cable come with included accessories. The speaker is even smaller than a previous one, being under 2" in height and diameter, about 130g in weight, top firing speaker with a nice mesh grill, solid aluminum design (my youngest dropped it a few times already, still like new!), and a small built in translucent stand with non-slip surface which also transmits light from a blue led inside of the speaker. Although smaller than previous one and also cheaper (at $8 plus change) - it actually LOUDER and has even cleaner mids and crispier highs which actually sound natural rather than exaggerated. OK, I do listen mostly to EDM and Dubstep but I'm comparing it to other high quality sources I'm referencing it against (like Klipsch and UE). According to the description of this product, it has aluminum vibration loud speaker film. Whatever it is - its brilliant and for $8 and 8 different color case choices - I highly recommend it! Turn off the lights in the room, and have a rave party lol!!! (I have it demonstrated in my last picture).
Here are the pictures.
Last but not least, I was also using micro-sd card from tvc-mall (http://www.tvc-mall.com/details/4GB-MicroSD-TF-TransFlash-Memory-Card-with-SD-Adapter-MCARD-401B/), another no-brand product but for $5 this 4GB card with sd adapter and class 4 rating did a good job being used with both of the speakers to host my music. I have no idea if its reliable for long term use in your phone (considering even my trusted Sandisk failed and had to be replaced under warranty), but I'm definitely using it for the music.
A few pics as well.
Bottom line, I was more than impressed with a built quality, functionality, and sound quality for such a small price, and without naming other brands I can tell you these $14 and $8 speakers sounded the same or even better than some $100+ I heard and tested before.

Nice Review!

I have the Kaidaer, but mine has bluetooth. It has a very nice and solid build, and actually feels quite heavy for its size.

Volume adjustment on Super Bass portable bluetooth speaker
Hi
Is it possible to adjust the volume of the lady who tells us when the device is connected to the bluetooth or not? She's quite load.
Thanks!

Torew said:
Hi
Is it possible to adjust the volume of the lady who tells us when the device is connected to the bluetooth or not? She's quite load.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good question I absolutely hate how loud that voice too. Unfortunately, you can't change it. It's the same controller chip with the same voice and volume level they use in a lot of these wireless speakers. I already replied to a number of distributors to get back to those companies with a feedback about loud voice. At the current time, there is no way to adjust it.

Thanks alot, hope you get an answer some day.
vectron said:
Good question I absolutely hate how loud that voice too. Unfortunately, you can't change it. It's the same controller chip with the same voice and volume level they use in a lot of these wireless speakers. I already replied to a number of distributors to get back to those companies with a feedback about loud voice. At the current time, there is no way to adjust it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks again

Can you please compare this to the Xiaomi bluetooth speaker. They look alike, and I really like the controller on Xiaomi one, where you can control it by pressing on the speaker from the different parts, since the controllers are at the bottom, holding the whole speaker...

Eleo said:
Can you please compare this to the Xiaomi bluetooth speaker. They look alike, and I really like the controller on Xiaomi one, where you can control it by pressing on the speaker from the different parts, since the controllers are at the bottom, holding the whole speaker...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have a link to Xiaomi speaker, and hopefully in English? Never seen one before. I'm afraid I will not be able to get a sample since Xiaomi brand is still not popular outside of China and not too many retailers carry it. Everything I review comes either directly from a vendor or sent to me by a retailer. Xiaomi Pistons 2.1 headphones was an exception because there is a retailers on Amazon US from China which carries it for sale, but I haven't seen their bt speakers. Either way, sounds like that speaker is better than the one I reviewed above?

vectron said:
Do you have a link to Xiaomi speaker, and hopefully in English? Never seen one before. I'm afraid I will not be able to get a sample since Xiaomi brand is still not popular outside of China and not too many retailers carry it. Everything I review comes either directly from a vendor or sent to me by a retailer. Xiaomi Pistons 2.1 headphones was an exception because there is a retailers on Amazon US from China which carries it for sale, but I haven't seen their bt speakers. Either way, sounds like that speaker is better than the one I reviewed above?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
IMHO the designis better, but I don't have any information about the sound quality, which I'm interested in very keenly

Eleo said:
IMHO the designis better, but I don't have any information about the sound quality, which I'm interested in very keenly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have at least a link?

vectron said:
Do you have at least a link?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know whether it will do it, I have a youtube link ("http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmIyb_bFVYI"), and I know that it has the same battery as the phone itself. I have found it in a e-shop either ("http://www.xiaomiworld.com/xiaomi-original-bt-speaker.html").
Old one (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjaZIQ0U7FQ) (http://www.arigbuy.com/high-quality-musical-bluetooth-speaker-dock-station-xiaomi-smartphone.html) (http://vimeo.com/70177241)

Does the first speaker (super bass portable speaker) support aux input?

Love this thing!
swassi said:
Does the first speaker (super bass portable speaker) support aux input?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have pretty much exactly the same speaker, with a matte aluminium finish, got it from DealExtreme.com during a sale, was $10. Mine came with a mini usb to both normal usb and a standard 3.5 jackplug.
Sadly, it appears my cable was DOA, the speaker doesn't charge from it (Had to use a mini usb cable from a camera) and the audio barely transmits. If I put both my phone and the speaker at full volume, I can hear the speaker hissing the music when I put it to my ear. :crying:
The audio is great though! At full volume, mine starts crackling at 60 Hz beats, so I had to dampen those a bit using the equalizer on my phone. The sticker on the bottom says it had a frequency range from 60Hz to 18 KHz, but audio gets a bit distorted at the edges of that spectrum at high volumes. It was loud enough to fill a double classroom with dubstep though
Battery life is pretty good too. I had a project day at school today, had the thing blasting dubstep at full volume while working for 4 hours non-stop, and then some later on the day. It died in my backpack while walking to the station... I guess it would be better with an SD-card though, so I'll try that tomorrow.
All in all, a great machine! Although I guess I'm going to file a complaint with DealExtreme.com for the broken audio cable. I guess they'll just send me a fresh cable, or even a replacement speaker, DX customer service is pretty generous most of the time. :fingers-crossed:
TL;DR:
It's supposed to have AUX support, at least, with my model, but the cable I got was broken, could be an incident.
Good audio, loud, gets a little flaky at low Hz at high volume.
Battery life is good with Bluetooth, SD-Card and AUX untested.
Would recommend. :good:
P.S. If I made any grammar/spelling errors or typo's, please tell me, I'm Dutch, not my first language. (It is a very close second though).
P.S.S Does anyone know in what order the speaker will play songs you put on an SD-Card? Is there a way to arrange them? I'll try it in a few hours, but if someone know more about this, please tell.

Very nice review. Pictures you posted are very nice and descriptive. I bought this kind("Super bass portable speaker", the one you have reviewed 1st) of speaker from amazon.in 4 days ago. But here it is sold under brand name Maxxlite. It is exactly same and is in blue colour. I want to know whether this speaker is Mono or stereo? I am unable to decide. Sometimes I feel it is mono, sometimes stereo. The bluetooth connection to PC shows it as a "BT stereo speaker" in device manager. There is no mention on the box and no manual also. I also searched some of the chinese websites, but some say it is 2.1 channel and some say it is 1 channel. ... ... This sounds really really really good, it was a total surprise for me!

Review of LG Tone Ultra (HBS-800) Bluetooth stereo headset w/lots of pics!!!

This is a Review of LG Tone Ultra (HBS-800) Bluetooth stereo headset. http://www.lg.com/us/cell-phone-accessories/lg-HBS800
When it comes to wireless headphones, you can group them into 3 popular categories: one with a full size over-ear design heavily promoted by rap stars, the other intended for sport activities with little earbuds connected by a short cable, and the third one with around-the-neck wearing design. For a comfortable everyday use, you can probably cross the first two off your list because they are either too bulky and awkward to wear or hang loose around your neck when not in use. With the last one a lot of companies tried to come up with an ultimate solution, but only one succeeded with a design that has been recognized with multiple awards. LG Tone series took wireless headphone world by storm with their very popular HBS-700 and later follow up with HBS-730. In hope to continue this streak of success, LG introduced a new LG Tone Ultra under model HBS-800. I just had a chance to test, to review, and to compare it to HBS-730. Here is what I found.
LG Tone Ultra arrived in a very nicely packaged box with a clear full size image of the headset on the front and detailed functional description with specifications and additional features on the back. I actually did appreciate the functional description since it served a purpose of a quick start guide. You might ask why would I need one while being quite familiar with HBS-730? HBS-800 was not just a refresh similar to 700 -> 730 but actually a redesign with some significant changes. You still get the same memory flex neck band design, earbuds magnetically attached to the end ports of the neck band, and individual controls for supported functions, but HBS-800 has been refined to the next level with an updated distinct look.
Starting with around-the-neck flex band, now it features a better defined body contoured fit where it stays put even while you move around. Don't expect it to be "glued" to your shoulders as you jump up and down or do decline bench press, but as you quickly turn to the side it moves more in sync with your body. The top has been uncluttered by moving volume buttons down the Call side of the band, and song transport buttons down the Audio Playback side of the band. For a diehard fans of HBS-700/730 these changes probably going to take a little bit of time to get used to, but I found them to be an improvement in ergonomics because now you can control these buttons with your thumbs. The next big visible change was Call and Audio Playback buttons. What used to be a round generic button with a blinking light, which I found to be distracting on a few occasions, now is a beautifully crafted buttons in a shape of a phone handset and play/pause symbols. That really added a touch of class to the headset, and also made it convenient to distinguish button functionality by touch even in a dark. Another big change was an update to where you attach earbuds. Though it's still at the tip of the neck band, now it's completely covered from the top. I found this change to be both a step back and forward at the same time. This change makes it more difficult to "park" earbuds by simply bringing them close to the ends of the neck band like it was with 700/730. Now, you need more effort to make sure they are positioned correctly before attaching them. But the benefit is that design looks cleaner, and you don't have to worry about knocking them down by mistake. That was actually one of the minor issues I had with HBS-730 where half of the time I found earbuds hanging after I accidentally knock them down.
The light indicator also got relocated down to the inner side next to the power switch. I was very happy LG kept the physical power switch considering so many other headphone manufacturers prefer to consolidate multiple controls into multifunction buttons. Here, there is no confusion when headset is on or off which also controls pair up with your phone. To my surprise, closer examination of inner side of headphones revealed another power switch. As it turned out, HBS-800 added a new feature with active Ambient Noise Cancellation (ANC) functionality. Using a basic principle of sampling ambient noise and negating it with an inverse soundwave, this feature was cleverly implemented to work independent of headphone being on or off. This way you don't even need to turn your headset to pair up with your phone, and instead just turn the ANC control on to use HBS-800 as noise canceling earplugs - great for saving the battery. The same with power on, if you don't require ANC feature, which introduces a slight hissing background noise, you can turn it off and enjoy your music with a highest level of signal-to-noise ratio. Also to note, the charging power connector remained a standard micro-usb so you can use any of your phone/tablet charging cable. Or use the included high quality usb to micro-usb cable to charge your headset from any PC or external battery or wall charger. Full charging from zero shouldn't take more than 2 hours, and battery life remained stellar at 10+ hours.
Moving on, pair up with a phone was flawless and headset got connected to the phone and media audio within seconds with an audible confirmation. As with a previous models, HBS-800 supports all the major BT3.0 standards such as HSP, HFP, A2DP, and AVRCP. I also appreciate how turning the headset on tells you the battery status, which also can be accessed later by pressing volume button down. In addition, I tested multi-point connection where I paired up Note 2 and S5 without any issues. I was able to stream audio from my Note 2 while a call to S5 paused it and then resumed playing music after I was done with a call. This becomes very useful, for example, when you are streaming audio or watching video wirelessly connected to your tablet and can also pick up the call from your paired up phone without taking headphones off and manually pausing your tablet activities. Speaking of calls, I actually did some testing being outside in a wind, and everything sounded crystal clear on both ends of the connection.
And speaking of crystal clear, I'm saving the best for last. With a release of Tone Ultra, LG teamed up with JBL using their patented Harmon audio drivers. One thing a lot of people don't realize, you need to treat HBS-800 just like any other in-ear headphones, which means you have to start by selecting a proper eartip from the included selection of S/M/L pairs. The proper eartip fitment will make or break the sound. That is why I see so many people writing their comments about not noticing a sound difference between 730 and 800. Without a tight seal you will not be able to appreciate a new rich warm sound with a deep punchy bass and a clear detailed mids and highs. Don't get me wrong, these are not audiophile quality headphones, but with enhancement of new JBL audio drivers and support of aptX which reduces compression of wireless sound - these actually sound very good! By default HBS-800 is set to bass enhanced mode which can be changed to a more balanced/normal sound or treble enhanced sound. To me, the sound improvement was one of the main changes stepping up to HBS-800 model where I finally was able to enjoy some decent bass! And just like with 700/730 models, the separation of volume and song transport controls (to skip next/prev as well as rewind forward or back) enhanced the listening experience where unlike with some other wireless headsets you no longer have to remember to short or long press volume buttons in order to switch between volume and track control. Google NOW worked flawlessly as well.
Overall, while being a big fan and a long term user of HBS-730, I approached this review a little cautiously trying to figure out if the price premium of HBS-800 will justify choosing it over recently reduced in price HBS-730 model. After a closer look and continuous use over the weekend, I was able to fully justify that. The redesign with an improved ergonomics, including neck band shape and a more logical relocation and change of buttons, the addition of independently controlled ANC (though might not be necessary for some, a bonus for others), and the improvement in sound quality (as long as you choose a correct silicone eartips), made a significant enough improvement in overall decision to move from HBS-730 to HBS-800 which I'm planning to do. Without a doubt YMMV and for some creatures of habit not every change will be welcomed, but hopefully my review will be able to guide you if you are thinking about the upgrade or just looking to purchase your first set of LG Tones. Also, be careful when you are shopping around especially on Amazon where there is a number of look-a-like low quality knock offs.
Here are the pictures.
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Can you post a picture of this under your shirt collar to see how hidden it would be. ..
It's only worthwhile me buying it if it is 100% hidden when buds aren't in use.
---------- Post added at 04:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:20 PM ----------
Work in an professional environment so visible headphones are a big no no...

MSK1 said:
Can you post a picture of this under your shirt collar to see how hidden it would be. ..
It's only worthwhile me buying it if it is 100% hidden when buds aren't in use.
---------- Post added at 04:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:20 PM ----------
Work in an professional environment so visible headphones are a big no no...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here you go, looks very professional:

Thanks. They are visible... but only the last couple of cm's.

Great review, thanks! I wasn't aware there was a new model available. I've been enjoying my HBS-730 for over a year now, and battery life is still great. Depending on price, I may look into an upgrade. You mentioned multipoint connect, does the 730 have this capability as well?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

The Fer-Shiz-Nizzle said:
Great review, thanks! I wasn't aware there was a new model available. I've been enjoying my HBS-730 for over a year now, and battery life is still great. Depending on price, I may look into an upgrade. You mentioned multipoint connect, does the 730 have this capability as well?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't remember if I tested it, but I remember someone replying in my 730 review about having issues with it. On 800 it works flawlessly. Like I said, very useful when you are watching movies or playing music on a tablet while still connected to your phone so you don't miss a call.

vectron said:
Don't remember if I tested it, but I remember someone replying in my 730 review about having issues with it. On 800 it works flawlessly. Like I said, very useful when you are watching movies or playing music on a tablet while still connected to your phone so you don't miss a call.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply. I'm gonna have to pull out the manual and see because I know it doesn't work "out of the box" but I recall reading that in the feature list when I bought it.
Sent from my Evo 3D CDMA using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

User´s Manual
Hi, can you please send me the user´s manual, I buy this Great headphones but in China, I can´t read the manual. jajajaj

User manual
Yerus said:
Hi, can you please send me the user´s manual, I buy this Great headphones but in China, I can´t read the manual. jajajaj
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi. I have the same problem,bought the headset in Korea. It speaks Korean also the manual is in Korean language.Could anyone help to send me English manual or advise me where to downlod from? Thanks a lot.

Maybe I will try to take pictures of a few important manual pages and posted in here. I actually remember there was a quick start guide, that should be usefull. Just wondering since it's in your native language, why can't you understand it?

Does anyone know if there is a way to change the language on voice in the headset ? I got a pair, but unfortunately it speaks in a language I do not understand..
Much thanks

The sound is very low compared to HBS-730
Hi guys,
I was very excited when they launched the hbs-800, because even use the hbs-730 two years ago.
I'm testing two weeks ago, the sound is much lower, and even using the Viper4android. The bass is almost nonexistent.
You guys had the same feeling?

caiadinho said:
Hi guys,
I was very excited when they launched the hbs-800, because even use the hbs-730 two years ago.
I'm testing two weeks ago, the sound is much lower, and even using the Viper4android. The bass is almost nonexistent.
You guys had the same feeling?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound is as loud as it was before. Keep in mind, you control volume both from headset and from the phone. Regarding bass, sounds like you are not getting a good seal with included eartips. Do you have another eartips to try? That's a secret for a great bass, tight eartip seal!

vectron said:
Sound is as loud as it was before. Keep in mind, you control volume both from headset and from the phone. Regarding bass, sounds like you are not getting a good seal with included eartips. Do you have another eartips to try? That's a secret for a great bass, tight eartip seal!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi buddy,
The first thing I do is test the earbuds, and have also tested it with others. I'm a user of phones from Motorola and LG. I thought my S9-HD spectacular, was disappointed with the S10-HD, and the only good thing in the S11-HD is the charge of 5 min. Bought the HSB-800 model just for finding an upgrade of 730. I read the review of this topic and decided to buy. I very disappointed with this headphone. I have three: S11-HD, HBS-730 and the HBS-800. I'm tired of auditioning, and I can no similar quality with the 730.
You got to see this release?
http://youtu.be/NXFCtom1m9U
http://www.whathifi.com/news/lg-and-harmankardon-unveil-new-premium-bluetooth-headset

caiadinho said:
Hi buddy,
The first thing I do is test the earbuds, and have also tested it with others. I'm a user of phones from Motorola and LG. I thought my S9-HD spectacular, was disappointed with the S10-HD, and the only good thing in the S11-HD is the charge of 5 min. Bought the HSB-800 model just for finding an upgrade of 730. I read the review of this topic and decided to buy. I very disappointed with this headphone. I have three: S11-HD, HBS-730 and the HBS-800. I'm tired of auditioning, and I can no similar quality with the 730.
You got to see this release?
http://youtu.be/NXFCtom1m9U
http://www.whathifi.com/news/lg-and-harmankardon-unveil-new-premium-bluetooth-headset
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, HBS-900 looks very cool! Tried searching for availability, don't see it released yet. Will be on look out!
With 730 vs 800, I honestly prefer 800 sound but for me 730 controls make more sense. Maybe because I'm used to it. For office or more professional place, 800 look slicker with out of sight controls and better hidden earbuds when not in use. But for outdoors when I'm in our backyard or just around the house, 730 work well. But the sound, especially when it comes to bass - 800 wins that one! But I had to use my other eartips to get a better seal for low frequencies.

vectron said:
Hmm, HBS-900 looks very cool! Tried searching for availability, don't see it released yet. Will be on look out!
With 730 vs 800, I honestly prefer 800 sound but for me 730 controls make more sense. Maybe because I'm used to it. For office or more professional place, 800 look slicker with out of sight controls and better hidden earbuds when not in use. But for outdoors when I'm in our backyard or just around the house, 730 work well. But the sound, especially when it comes to bass - 800 wins that one! But I had to use my other eartips to get a better seal for low frequencies.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On ebay you can find. It's the same seller which bought the hbs-800.
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=251596615132&alt=web
Hugs.

caiadinho said:
On ebay you can find. It's the same seller which bought the hbs-800.
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=251596615132&alt=web
Hugs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Uh, so this is international release for now, not in US yet. My LG review samples come from LG US, so I might have to wait until it's available in the States. One thing I'm not too crazy about is that self-retracting wire mechanism. It's a great idea for wires not to hang down, very clean, but that type of mechanism usually doesn't last for too long. I guess, will see...

Connecting the HBS-800 to a PC
I've just got the HBS-800 and testing it out. I have an issue though. Is it possible to connect the HBS-800 to a PC through Bluetooth. Considering the PC as a second device or second handset.?
Thanks.

tel2G said:
I've just got the HBS-800 and testing it out. I have an issue though. Is it possible to connect the HBS-800 to a PC through Bluetooth. Considering the PC as a second device or second handset.?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you asking if you can pair up PC and Smartphone at the same time to a single HBS-800 headset? Since you can pair up HBS-800 with two different smartphones, I don't see why not, as long as your PC has Bluetooth 4.0. Personally I never tried it since I have old laptops.

vectron said:
Are you asking if you can pair up PC and Smartphone at the same time to a single HBS-800 headset? Since you can pair up HBS-800 with two different smartphones, I don't see why not, as long as your PC has Bluetooth 4.0. Personally I never tried it since I have old laptops.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Teah thats right. I've successfully paired the headset with the PC but it was not used as the default output for sound. So after pairing, playing songs or video still used the speaker of the PC, which is not cool

Looking for a dac not to expensive

I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks

Please

nitramus said:
I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure you have not a faulty cable/ nexus 5 connector or bad regulated equalizer on nexus 5?
I ask you cause I m not an audiophile but nexus 5 sound great to my ears, almost like nexus s which feature one of the best DAC on portable devices

nitramus said:
I use my n5 as my mp3 player in my car but the sound sucks. I'm thinking of getting a dac to fix this.
I have a otg cable to plug in my usb key that contains my mp3 library. So first I know i will need a y otg, have some all ready but not sur I have the right one but that is a detail. I dont really care about simultaneously charging my phone.
So what good dac do you suggest. Keep in mind I don't have a lot of money, not to sure what kind of budget yet.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try dragonfly by Audioquest or Cambridge Audio USB DAC. They sound awesome. I prefer the latter one. =)

Thanks for the reply. Everything I get gives me more info to search and get informed.

If you want a good dac at reasonable money try fio,get from Amazon
Sent from my Nexus 5

"Sucks" is a subjective term, but I agree with Axel85. If you're currently getting terrible sound, a USB DAC is a costly hail-mary that likely won't solve your problem. USB OTG DACs are great way to salvage an aging phone as a media player or to bypass a damaged the 3.5mm output. Otherwise, they're a way to turn already "great" sound into "exceptional." I can say with complete confidence that, even over bluetooth, the Nexus 5's built-in audio is impressive. If it "sucks" on your setup, then you definitely want to ensure that the problem doesn't lie elsewhere before investing in a DAC. If it is, in fact, the Nexus 5, ship that sucker back to Google, because a DAC definitely won't help. Just be sure there aren't other elements in your setup putting the constraints on your sound reproduction.
Now if you're truly blessed (cursed?) with golden ears and an audiophile's insatiable desire for perfection, then "sucks" probably has a different meaning for you; Otherwise, it's best to rule out everything else before plopping down substantial cash on a USB DAC. On that note, the Nexus' internal DAC crushes any entry-level/ low-end ($30-$50 DAC), so you'd really only want to consider the next step up, and it is a big step in price. Great units from $120-$200 from Fiio or Cambridge Audio. I've heard the Audioengine D3 on a laptop and it was fantastic, the form factor is great, as well, but I haven't investigated whether it plays nicely with lollipop OTG. There are a lot of issues to consider -some are legitimate headaches. Aside from the additional clutter of more cables and another powered device, the effect on your phone's battery is not one to take lightly. You may be able to currently stream pandora all day long, but with your phone acting as a USB host, you have to be conscious of the potential power draw from any USB DAC. A big amplifier can drain that battery quickly without its own power source to supplement. Many DACs are even equipped with their own internal batteries, but regardless, the power question is not something to minimize. Depending on the unit, powered USB hubs and the right cables can provide an easy fix.
But before you go pulling the trigger on a DAC, let me suggest a few things and some troubleshooting steps...
On the software side:
Play with built-in equalizer/AudioFX/DSP (it may do nothing at all with your ROM & kernel). I also highly recommend that you try playing your media through an app called PowerAmp. If that doesn't give you the fidelity boost you're looking for, then give Viper4Android a whirl. It requires a slightly more complicated installation (depending on the ROM), and the tweaking can get advanced, but the results are truly impressive with the right music. "FauxSound" is a custom kernel I'm yet to experiment with because it's (currently) incompatible with CM12.1 CAF, but the reviews in the forums seem overwhelmingly positive. When it comes to sound, perceptible differences vary from person to person.
As to troubleshooting the phone's output:
It should go without saying, but if your factory head unit and speakers and are junk ...if music has never sounded good on your system, a USB DAC isn't the miracle worker you need. Spend the money on a decent head unit and/or upgrade your speakers. An underpowered, factory installed head unit can turn otherwise decent speakers into muffled distortion makers, so take stock of the equipment you're working with and manage expectations. If you're an audiophile, you can likely ignore much of this, but for the sake of anyone else in a similar boat, considering a DAC to improve audio, lets go down the troubleshooting checkbox:
1) First and foremost, check your source files. If you're streaming, make sure it's high quality. You may need to go into the app's advanced settings. For most people's ears, there are diminishing returns above 320kbps MP3 /256AAC vs. the storage requirements. With the right gear and the right source though, "lossless" music can bring out elements you never heard on your favorite tracks: fingers lifting and moving along frets, or a half-note you never caught. If your ROM is capable of natively playing 96000Hz 24-bit FLAC, by all means, give it a go (or any other lossless).
2) Test your 3.5mm headphone connection with decent pair of actual headphones. Still sucks? Spray the jack with compressed air and see if it helps. Try with another set of headphones. Try with a friend's car, try on your home stereo. Then connect to your car and compare. If it's worse, swap out the cable before anything else. Quality matters here. The difference between the the $0.99 cable you buy at the gas station and the $12 cable at BestBuy can be huge. A quality cable means one sheilded for interference with wiring and connectors made of materials that optimize conductivity (often a thin gold plating). Many are even cut specifically to ensure a solid connection through the narrow opening of an aftermarket case/protector. A better connection means better sound.
3) If all is well with the 3.5mm, plug it into your mobile charger. Audio still clean? If not, try another charger. Still sounding crappy? Is this limited to the car or did you hear it on your headphones? How about over bluetooth? If it's only in the car, and sound gets worse on the charger, there might be a ground loop somewhere in the car's electrical system (often this manifests as a high frequency whine that increases as you accelerate, or changes frequency when you turn on the A/C, headlights, etc). This could be as simple as something plugged into the cars cigarette lighter, or a bad connection somewhere in the vehicles electrical system... The problem is the "somewhere" part, and tracing it down can mean pulling fuses all day long.
3) If you connect over bluetooth (not optimal) perform the same tests. If bluetooth degrades audio quality significantly, then your car stereo may be on an older standard that simply can't operate at the bandwidth capabilities for high-bitrate audio. Aside from just not using bluetooth, there's no simple fix for this. If you dont get a drop in audio quality when connecting to another bluetooth device, then your in-car options are limited: connect via 3.5mm out, replace the head unit with a newer one, or install a bluetooth 4.0+ adapter to the car stereo's auxillary inputs. It's worth at least mentioning that, although unlikely, interference from other devices could be an issue. Anything that operates within the same wireless spectrum as bluetooth could be a source of interference. A bluetooth obdii reader, a wireless transmitter from a rear view camera, even other phones in the car that have been paired with the stereo.... Anything on 2.4ghz Normally, there's a preamble before transmission that keeps devices operating on these frequencies from interfering with each other, but if there's a bluetooth device in the vehicle on an early standard, that may not be the case. Also, if there's any USB 3.0 connection (powered hub, thumb drive) in close proximity to bluetooth, get rid of it or buy a shielded extension cable -noise emitted at the connection crushes bluetooth throughput and connection reliability.
Regardless, just make sure that the rest of your system is up to the task before investing in a DAC. Don't get me wrong, they are fantastic with the right gear, but each component of your setup can improve output as much as it can act as a bottleneck on the quality of the sound it reproduces. Make sure the investment is worth it by ensuring your system is ready for it. If not, put your money towards the fundamentals: Head unit + speakers.

mborzill said:
If your ROM is capable of natively playing 96000Hz 24-bit FLAC, by all means, give it a go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you aware of any such ROMs?

Well, some clarification is necessary... even stock kitkat should *play* a 24/96FLAC, but "Natively" isn't the correct terminology. If that were true 24/96 on the N5, this thread wouldn't exist. The Nexus 5 downsamples significantly, but the better the source, the better the sample. Quality will be great coming from a lossless 24bit/96khz source, but its not gonna be true 24/96 if its coming from the Nexus 5's internal DAC. It'll be downsampled to its hardware and software limitations. I know with kitkat this was 16bit/48khz, but I can't speak to whether or not this ceiling *actually* increased with Lollipop. In theory, the N5's Qualcomm Wolfson wcd9320 DAC supported up to 192khz, and Lollipop bumped support up to 96khz, but if I recall, it's the Snapdragon 800 that isn't capable of 24/96. Without a DAC, and downsampled to 16bit/48khz, you might get an imperceptibly lower noise floor, but other than I doubt you'd hear a difference between lossless sources.
Personally I think it's total overkill to use up that kind of space without having a DAC capable of reproducing it (or freakin golden ears) but if you're going for the most accurate reference track you can find for problem-tracing, have at it. Even Downsampled, that FLAC will sound much better than an encoded mp3.
If there's a ROM with true "native" 24/96khz reproduction on the N5 I certainly don't know about it... Or need it.
As to specific ROMs and compatibility: Cyanogenmod is my go-to. I prefer Viper4Android over AudioFX, but with major tweaking (specific to my headphones). Out of the box, AudioFX is great.
Lollipop, in general, has vastly improved audio performance. Raised sampling resolution from 16 bit PCM to 24bit and sampling rate from 44/48khz to support 96khz (if the phones hardware can support it, else USB DAC). Lower i/o latency gives the closest thing android has seen to real-time audio since the start (which has been a major issue for musicians,DJ, game developers, even VoIP). Floating point sampling is new too, which, in theory, reduces clipping, improves headroom and dynamic range.

Do I need to use a custom ROM with an external DAC like the Fiio E18 or other DAC's? Could I simply purchase any external DAC? If not what do I need to look for when shopping for external DAC's that work with the Nexus 5?
My Nexus 5 is stock currently on 5.1.
Thank you for any advice.

Viper 4 android.

Headphones that get best use of the V20 audio

Title says it all. Post your suggestions and experiences with headphones that maximize the audio potential of this phone.
That quad DAC when wired and APTx when on BT.

CHH2 said:
Title says it all. Post your suggestions and experiences with headphones that maximize the audio potential of this phone.
That quad DAC when wired and APTx when on BT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm listening to my Sennheiser HD 598's right now using the quad DAC (high impedence). It is definitely driving them very well, I get my Audioquest Dragonfly black in tomorrow so I can try A&B comparisons with that vs the internal audio. I've also enjoyed using it with my Backbeat Pros but those do not have aptx.

I'm using my Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 250 Ohm headphones, it's amazing. It's a step up from the V10, including the volume department (especially with high impedance headphones).

I'm currently listening music with the AKG K712s. No doubt an improvement from the V10. The best phone yet that truly brings out the detail in
WAV and FLAC formats. I swear this quad DAC reincarnated my cans

Should be getting my V20 some time today, I hope. I don't have anything truly God-tier, but I'm going to try to do a few comparisons if I can. I've got Shure SE215s on one hand (triple-flange tips) and Samsung earbuds for a baseline, compared to whatever LG's included in the box. In a few weeks, I can add the H3s to that list, but not until they arrive, and they won't arrive until I sign up for them on the 28th, so...
In the world of full-size cans, I don't have a solid baseline, and I'm not looking forward to the idea of spending $20 so I can have a pair of cheap cans I will never listen to again. So instead, all I've got are my Koss ProDJ100s and my V-Moda M100s.
But I'll try to give my thoughts when I can. (Also, posting so I make sure I remember that this thread exists.)
---
I didn't get to really sit down and do heavy listening. Phone arrived pretty late and my fiancee was a little sad so I didn't want to have my headphones blasting for an hour or two straight without being able to hear a word.
Noticing that there is a little more clarity (at least) between the on-off settings. Might be some EQ going on as well, though, which is not what I want. EQ is an easy way to make something sound more "clear" without actually making it clearer. My last car literally had a setting that I used that I considered the "clear" setting, and for everything other than podcasts. The bass was deeper, and yet more articulated, and the highs had sparkle. Every other setting was muddy.
So EQing to a muddy sound, and then having a "hi-fi" EQ that clears up the mud isn't good. Still, like I said, I don't actually know that to be what's going on. It's just a possibility I'm keeping my ears open for.

Audio technica ATH-M50x Have to say, I can't hear a difference at all toggling on and off using Poweramp/Spotify/USB Audio Player Pro or Car with Bose speakers setup. What can be the reason? I was thinking it would sound better (or as good) as V4A. Not close for me. Maybe my phone's defective?

vibrantliker said:
Audio technica ATH-M50x Have to say, I can't hear a difference at all toggling on and off using Poweramp/Spotify/USB Audio Player Pro or Car with Bose speakers setup. What can be the reason? I was thinking it would sound better (or as good) as V4A. Not close for me. Maybe my phone's defective?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure if they fix the issue were the DAC was only able to be used by the stock music player. On the PlayStore there's an app that allows the DAC to work with all music players. I think it's called lgv10fix something like that. You can tell when you turn the DAC when your music skips or mutes for a second.

j0a0a7 said:
Not sure if they fix the issue were the DAC was only able to be used by the stock music player. On the PlayStore there's an app that allows the DAC to work with all music players. I think it's called lgv10fix something like that. You can tell when you turn the DAC when your music skips or mutes for a second.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I found that and installed it but it's the same.

Sony MDR-EX800ST with Tape Mod via External (AUX) Audio Mode with adapter.

vibrantliker said:
Audio technica ATH-M50x Have to say, I can't hear a difference at all toggling on and off using Poweramp/Spotify/USB Audio Player Pro or Car with Bose speakers setup. What can be the reason? I was thinking it would sound better (or as good) as V4A. Not close for me. Maybe my phone's defective?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's probably nothing wrong with it.
Sound is an incredibly subjective topic.

?
Andrew025 said:
There's probably nothing wrong with it.
Sound is an incredibly subjective topic.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So used to V4A nothing comes close.

I prefer PowerAmp Alpha...
Especially with my Sony MDR-100AAP in External Mode.

dragion said:
I prefer PowerAmp Alpha...
Especially with my Sony MDR-100AAP in External Mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's external mode, something on your headphones?

All Hi Res iem or headphones will do the job, but it's up to your ears to know what is best, as all headphones/iem all have their own sound stage, for me I use the Sony list in my sig.

I was actually considering getting a pair of the A-T 50x's but those Senn's look nice too. (I'm a big fan of over the ear.)

vibrantliker said:
What's external mode, something on your headphones?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By plugging in the detachable headphone cable into the LG V20's headphone jack first before connecting the cable to the headphones, causes the Hi-Fi DAC to go into "An External Audio Device Is Connected" mode which produces a higher output compared to "Normal" mode.

dragion said:
By plugging in the detachable headphone cable into the LG V20's headphone jack first before connecting the cable to the headphones, causes the Hi-Fi DAC to go into "An External Audio Device Is Connected" mode which produces a higher output compared to "Normal" mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did not know that and will try it.

So excited to use my Custom Art Harmony 8 Pro, custom headphones with these. The V10 did a good job, I bet the v20 will be better!

For reference, here's the playlist I used to compare. I didn't want to spend all day doing tests, so this is mostly stuff I can listen to while I work, but trying to hit as many different sound signatures as I could. I don't have any classical in my collection, though probably I could have used some. I listened to most of the playlist (skipped around a little getting details) on my laptop for a little while before picking up the phone. Probably going to do some listening with the S4 mini I've got on loan from my wife, too. Would have been nice to compare the Note7, but it's already back in T-Mobile's hot little hands. Played using the
Acoustic Guitar
Leo Kottke (FLAC)
Vaseline Machine Gun
Watermelon
The Fisherman
Earl Klugh (MP3 320)
Alice in Wonderland
Moon River
Autumn Leaves (VBR V0)
Country/Folk
The New Lost City Ramblers (MP3 320)
Talking Hard Luck
Don't Let Your Deal Go Down
Old Fish Song
Charlie Daniels Band (MP3 320)
The Devil Went Down To Georgia
Uneasy Rider
Anais Mitchell (M4A VBR)
Epic, Part I
Hey, Little Songbird
Epic, Part II
Pop
The Killers (MP3 VBR, not V0)
Mr. Brightside
When You Were Young
Sia (FLAC)
Chandelier
Eye Of The Needle
Elastic Heart
Electronic
Super Eurobeat Presents: Initial D Special Stage Non-Stop Mega Mix (FLAC)
Killing My Love
Running In The 90s
Grand Prix
Kavinsky (MP3 320)
Night Call
Night Runner (OGG VBR)
After Hours
Nuclear Countdown
Hip-Hop/Trip-Hop
KA (MP3 320)
Just
Wax Tailor (FLAC)
Exordium
From the Dark
As for my thoughts:
First, I was surprised that as far as I can tell, LG hasn't included any headphones. That seems weird. I'm glad now that I have a million bajillion of the things lying around because if I just bought this off the shelf, it would be a long wait for LG to send me my "only" wired headset option. At least a few weeks. Disappointing, but not a deal-breaker by any means.
Started with the Samsung headset, Hi-Fi DAC off. It's not super comfortable, not at all isolating. I'm still listening to the last couple tracks and I can easily hear myself typing with the volume at around... well, in the Hi-Fi volume it would be 45. I should note that it goes much higher (I believe the highest is 65 or 75) but 45 is where I would typically listen to music. Louder than that started to strain my ears a little. Louder is generally better for detecting little things in a song, but I don't want to suffer, and I certainly don't want to suffer for the time it takes to listen to a 90 minute playlist 4 times at painful volume.
(Incidentally, someone above complained that it wasn't as good as V4A--I haven't listened to V4A in a long time, but my recollection was that it does 2 things: EQ and boost. All their stuff comes down to highly advanced adaptive EQ and a volume boost. Essentially an Instagram filter for your audio. That's all you really can do with a software solution, so I don't blame V4A's team, but what we're looking for with a hi-fi hardware DAC is closer to putting your glasses on if you're near-sighted: increased clarity without changing or coloring the sound any more than necessary, including volume changes. That's what your choice of headphones and your EQ settings are for, not your DAC.)
Moved to the Shures next. The SE215 has a slightly bassy sound, IMO, much better for dance music than e.g. the Koss cans. Not quite basshead cans. I was impressed by performance, and volume. I felt "comfortable" for the first half of the playlist before checking the volume and discovering it wasn't at 45, where I'd wanted it--I had it at 30! Turned it up to 45, and I was at a point where it wasn't quite uncomfortably loud. Which is to say, these things can push power to a pair of headphones no problem.
Equally surprised that the Koss cans didn't have an equivalent bump in volume from what I'm used to (which is maxed out on the Note7, and remember that I'm nowhere near maxed out on the V20). Oh, sure, I could have turned them up, but I didn't. Clarity was as-expected. Much better, I think, than the SE215s.
What I'm looking for here is silence and separation. On the country tunes, in particular, you end up with a mandolin, banjo, and guitar all fighting for 'space' on the recording, so I was listening to make sure I could make out guitar chords from banjo rolls from mandolin... whatever mandolin players do. I'm sure they're very important musicians. The other part I listened to carefully was the intro to Chandelier; There's an etremely isolated snare in the beginning, and it should fade to nothing, not fade to sort-of-nothing. I didn't get that with the Shures as much as I wanted, but I did get it with the Koss headphones.
V-Modas don't do much to change my opinion. The bass is defined, clear, not boomy. I'd say the V20 seems to have a fairly balanced sound signature, which makes sense because that more-or-less matches what I've heard about the B&O sound signature. If the V20 DAC was developed with their input, that would make a lot of sense.
So in the end, I'd agree with kms108:
kms108 said:
All Hi Res iem or headphones will do the job, but it's up to your ears to know what is best, as all headphones/iem all have their own sound stage, for me I use the Sony list in my sig.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

TheJesus said:
I'm using my Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 250 Ohm headphones, it's amazing. It's a step up from the V10, including the volume department (especially with high impedance headphones).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't wait to try my beyer's. Have exact same ones and custom one pros. Cop's are a more fun sounding headphone and a burning can push it. The 770's and cop's can put out mind rattling bass, and by that I mean rattle your chest, with the right content and amp. Can't wait to hear the sound signature of the 9218 with my assorted cabled gear.

Headphones for pixel 2

Anyone use headphones, not ear buds? Thinking of good Bluetooth headphones that work with the Pixel 2.

Cheap and cheerful, but they work well. It has quite possibly the "best" Chinese accented voice guide for pairing in the world.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B073JFHVW6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Bose Quietcomfort 35 works great with my Pixel 2.

With the support of high def bluetooth codec from Oreo, I would go for something that has APT-X support at least. LDAC would be even better but the choices are limited for now.
I use my good old SBH-80 (APT-X), and MDR-1000X (LDAC).

For high quality, you might consider Astell & Kern XB10 aptX HD bluetooth converter for wired headphones. Despite it being bluetooth, sounds better with Pixel 2 than any wired phone connection I have ever had.

PARADOX-SEV said:
Bose Quietcomfort 35 works great with my Pixel 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After seeing all the praise on the web, I bought QC35 II. This is something I'd not suggest, except if you plan to use it ONLY for listening to music, as the bluetooth lag is terrible. Around 0.5 sec lag makes games unplayable, and videos unwatchable. I think it's a shame that Bose couldn't implement aptX LL, especially considering the price of this piece of.... wonder.
Also a QC35 II for sale here, perfectly new, only tested once.

Using the Cowin E7, they fluctuate between $39 on sale and around $70 when not on Amazon. Last a very long time, very comfy good sound. I started using them instead of ear-muffs in the freezing weather

I just bought the i.tech H2 which supports aptx-HD and LDAC, they cost about $105. They sound awesome with my Pixel 2.http://www.itechdynamic.com/list_of_products/prostereoh2/

IVBela said:
After seeing all the praise on the web, I bought QC35 II. This is something I'd not suggest, except if you plan to use it ONLY for listening to music, as the bluetooth lag is terrible. Around 0.5 sec lag makes games unplayable, and videos unwatchable. I think it's a shame that Bose couldn't implement aptX LL, especially considering the price of this piece of.... wonder.
Also a QC35 II for sale here, perfectly new, only tested once.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
$200 and I'm risking it

The QC35 II is probably great for airplane duty with 20 hours of battery life and Bose legendary noise cancelling technology. My only reservation would be that it doesn't include a higher bit rate Bluetooth codec. LDAC does make a difference.

caifaz said:
$200 and I'm risking it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Luckily it was from an eBay seller, so I could send it back. Felt like ****, first time in my life had I send back something like that.
In the meantime I tried Sony's newest LDAC headphones in a store, but lag was quite the same. So for me it seems currently there is no viable alternative for wired headsets, at least through Bluetooth.

Get the ear-studio from radsone with aptxhd and a pair of Sennheiser hd25. This combo sounds way way better than any bluetooth headphones out there. It even sounds far better than most consumer head phones with cable connection.
Edit: some links.
https://sv-se.sennheiser.com/hd25
https://www.ear-studio.com/

I bought 2 of these (one for me and one for the wife)
Bluedio T2s Bluetooth Headphones On Ear with Mic, 57mm Driver Rotary Folding Wireless Headset, Wired and Wireless headphones for Cell Phone/ TV/ PC, 40 Hours Play Time (Black) https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00Q2VIW9M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_FMCGAb4RDD9P8
I bought the black one and blue for my wife. Blue looks better in my opinion.
Great sound for the price!

IVBela said:
Luckily it was from an eBay seller, so I could send it back. Felt like ****, first time in my life had I send back something like that.
In the meantime I tried Sony's newest LDAC headphones in a store, but lag was quite the same. So for me it seems currently there is no viable alternative for wired headsets, at least through Bluetooth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have tried my new i.tech H2 earbuds in several modes, aptx, aptx-HD, and LDAC. LDAC sounds better to me than aptx-HD by quite a margin, I'm very impressed, the DAC in those headphones is excellent. I just needed to get some good rubber eartip replacements, they make a big difference also.
Lag is another issue. I experimented with the three codecs and came to the conclusion that LDAC and aptx-HD were about the same for that. The lag is still much less than SBC but if you are sensitive to it like I am then it is still noticeable. I did find that after I sideloaded the February security patch the lag seemed less...maybe it's just a headfake, I don't know. These earbuds sound so good that I can live with a little bit of lag, without a headphone jack, the other options are a bit of a hassle.

Matterhorn said:
Lag is another issue. I experimented with the three codecs and came to the conclusion that LDAC and aptx-HD were about the same for that. The lag is still much less than SBC but if you are sensitive to it like I am then it is still noticeable. I did find that after I sideloaded the February security patch the lag seemed less...maybe it's just a headfake, I don't know. These earbuds sound so good that I can live with a little bit of lag, without a headphone jack, the other options are a bit of a hassle.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sound was pristine with both headphones, I was amazed by the noise cancellation too. But the lag is not a compromise I can live with.
There are more and more quality games on Android I'd love to try, some with amazing sounds. But when the sound comes half second after you jump, shoot, or even just click....... you can imagine. Hard to believe I don't see much more people finding this unacceptable. Or they just still have the jack, I don't know.

IVBela said:
Luckily it was from an eBay seller, so I could send it back. Felt like ****, first time in my life had I send back something like that.
In the meantime I tried Sony's newest LDAC headphones in a store, but lag was quite the same. So for me it seems currently there is no viable alternative for wired headsets, at least through Bluetooth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can confirm that my headphones using LDAC or aptx-HD still have a bit of lag. I am quite sensitive to lag while watching TV on my phone. I find it minimal though, maybe with gaming it is more obvious or maybe the headphones make a difference. I'll check another pair of headphones I have with standard aptx and compare the lag to my new ones.

Got myself a pair of JBL E55BTs for 100EUR. Sound is decent and lag is barely noticeable to the point I start doubting it's there at all.

This morning I did a test with two of my new bluetooth headsets, the i.tech M2 and the Meizu EP52. The M2 sounds better and can play aptx, aptx-HD and LDAC. LDAC sounds the best but after testing lag carefully from the same source, aptx has the least amount of lag by quite a margin. Then I tried the EP52, the best codec they support is aptx so I compared them with the M2 in aptx mode. I was surprised and disappointed to discover that the EP52 had practically no lag at all and the M2, which sounds better, still had some lag using aptx. The moral to the story is that aptx seems to have the least lag and that lag time is headphone specific.
For those that aren't aware of it, with the Pixel 2 you can force the codec by going to settings-system-developer options and scroll down to the bluetooth codec area. The M2 defaults to LDAC, I needed to manually switch it to aptx in the menu. The EP52 defaults to aptx since that is the best codec that it supports.
To activate developer options go to settings-system-about phone-then tap on build number multiple times until it grants you developer status. You will then find develper options under settings-system.