Sony PHA-1EU USB DAC High Resolution Audio Portable Headphone Amplifier

Early impressions (10-15 hours playback, variety of sources and material) are that if you expect this little device to transform your digital listening, in my experience it won't. Volume is improved, depth and body of music marginally better, but if you have already got decent headphones we are getting into "wine-tasting territory" with all suggested improvements subjective.I am using an iphone 6 plus and use both Tidal and Apple Music with a pair of Sony MDR1ABT Headphones. I cannot really differentiate between the quality of the 256 kbps and 1411 kbps high-fidelity material throught the DAC which may be something to do with the respective qualities and claims of the music service providors who knows. So I plugged the headphones directly into the phone with the same conclusions. Audiophiles might argue that I should base my conclusions having sampled high-res music, but I am not willing to do so for the moment - I want to listen to music I listen to without re-purchasing albums again, CD quality is absolutely fine... Apple Lossless in my case..... and am playing around with this and the NWA25 to see if the High-Res resolution is really for me first. Some argue High-Res frequencies are the above the range of human hearing.Find it a pain to have to charge the DAC separately, also Sony and Apple could at least have come up with a right-angled lightning connector to make the thing a little more comfortable to use surely? No lead supplied for iphones (as you might expect with Sony) - so buy one here http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00SMVNXKI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00. The rubber straps don't really work with an iphone 6 plus, I have an NWA25 on order without headphones from abroad which it may make be more suited to and then I will do the same tests with the same material with that. Will I send it back? Probably not, it is good enough to keep, Apple Music at 256 kbps through the DAC sounds great, and all improvements at this end - assuming decent headphones/speakers - are marginal - that's my experience to date. If you want to try the Tidal hi-fi fidelity test I found it useful to realise just how difficult it was to differentiate between lo-fidelity and hi-fidelity but note you will not be able to download it on a portable device, you need to use a PC/MAC.Update: Patrick McCann was rightfully vocal on the comments section about using a better quality player than the iPhone 6 plus and initial impressions with the Sony NWA25 are very good, using the supplied walkman cable (WM Port?) rather than the lightning to USB connection. Please note that I am trying to get to an excellent standard of playback using Lossless material so have DSEE HX turned on. I simply am not prepared to pay for high-res albums, vastly overpriced and a limited range, so far so good and a substantial improvement on the iPhone 6+, alas I lose the functionality and ease of use of Apple Music.“Slow” from Seasons of the Soul by Rumer (for example) has a transformed soundstage, more body, depth, warmth and detail, I’ll take a week or so of fairly intensive listening but the NWA25 has set this DAC alight, starting to enjoy it.

I bought this to improve the sound from my (then) iPhone 7. First problem was that while it comes with leads for other phones, it doesn't have one for iPhones, just telling you to use your charging cable. After buying a few short cables, that was sorted.It then took a few weeks of running in, and the main problem seemed to be a lot of noise from the cable slots, with the USB end not being especially stable. It's also a problem with the design, that the cables sit at the bottom of the amp and phone, so they rest on those when it's in your pocket and are easily knocked about.One final gripe about the design, is that while it looks pretty slim in itself, when you strap it to your phone you won't be able to get it into the front pocket of your jeans, so I've tended to leave it at home unless I'm wearing a suit for work or combats for leisure.But the redeeming feature is the sound. Suddenly loads more depth and detail and importantly for me, volume, compared to the iPhone on it's own. Paired with a decent set of headphone, it has transformed the music I am listening to.A minor gripe at that stage was that the iPhone didn't always recognise that it was plugged into an amp - it seems to default to thinking that it's being charged, and will drop sending the output if you leave it too long between playing something. It's quite common to find that you needed to switch the Sony on and off to get it to reengage, and if you switch on the Sony before you open iTunes you have no chance.Up to that point it would have got a 4 star review...but then I changed my phone to an iPhone XS and it's all gone wrong, and specifically the previous minor gripe has become a major one and it's a recurring issue to get it to just play music without having a hissy fit and stopping. The sound, when it's behaving, is still great, but there seem to be problems with the interface every single day: the dropping of the audio output happens very frequently and not just between periods of playback, and sometimes the phone will refuse to send any audio no matter how many times you try to get it to reengage, or, weirdly, will only start again if you turn the lightning cable round. The screen seems much more sensitive to the rubber straps than previously, and will quite often pause the music as you walk along. It's also developed a fault where the phone will reboot itself, and you have to wait for that to finish before you can go back to playing music.This is certainly down to the phone and not the Sony, but regardless of fault, less than a year after buying it I am seriously considering replacing it, simply because it is now painful to use. I honestly can't remember a single day in the last few months when I haven't had a problem of one kind or another.It's a shame, but if I was looking to buy a new DAC and I had an iPhone, I would give the Sony a wide berth