Connecting wired headphones to the newer iPhones

[leftside]

I have the new iPhone 8 Plus and am using the supplied connector to connect the headphones to the iPhone. I have a pair of nice Shure SE846 headphones and Toxic cables that are joined by a cheap connector cable. The sound quality is just as good as when connecting directly to my older iPhone 6, but am wondering if I'm missing out on something by using the cheap connector supplied by Apple? Perhaps the connector is so short that it doesn't really matter? Or perhaps cables don't really matter?

[Bikutoru]

31 minutes ago, leftside said:

"if I'm missing out on something by ..."

 

If it sounds good, why would you be missing out? But that quote probably feeds the foundation of this forum. It is impossible to know when to be happy when lots of people praise this cable or that LPS and without them we are lost. At some point we still need to find time to listen to music with what we've got and be content.

If you really feel you are missing on something, then an external dac with CCK is in order. In my opinion it is not really an in pocket solution, but more of a desktop setup. The dac that many find, and I concur, excellent for this purpose is Chord Mojo.

[lucretius]

1 hour ago, Bikutoru said:

 

If it sounds good, why would you be missing out? But that quote probably feeds the foundation of this forum. It is impossible to know when to be happy when lots of people praise this cable or that LPS and without them we are lost. At some point we still need to find time to listen to music with what we've got and be content.

If you really feel you are missing on something, then an external dac with CCK is in order. In my opinion it is not really an in pocket solution, but more of a desktop setup. The dac that many find, and I concur, excellent for this purpose is Chord Mojo.

 

The Audioquest Dragon, red or black, with CCK would be an "in pocket" solution.

[Bikutoru]

18 minutes ago, lucretius said:

 

The Audioquest Dragon, red or black, with CCK would be an "in pocket" solution.

Many use Mojo with CCK in pocket too. It is not the size of Mojo vs. Dragonfly to me, it is the cabling that I do not find to be comfortable with. While I'm moving I do not really need a better sound the iPhone already provides.

[leftside]

The Mojo or Dragonfly are at the top of my list right now, but I'm also waiting to see how large and the sound quality of the new McIntosh unit.

 

There is a lot of talk on here in regard to cables. I was wondering what the thoughts were around the cable connector supplied by Apple to connect wired headphones to the iPhone?

[kirkmc]

15 hours ago, leftside said:

I have the new iPhone 8 Plus and am using the supplied connector to connect the headphones to the iPhone. I have a pair of nice Shure SE846 headphones and Toxic cables that are joined by a cheap connector cable. The sound quality is just as good as when connecting directly to my older iPhone 6, but am wondering if I'm missing out on something by using the cheap connector supplied by Apple? Perhaps the connector is so short that it doesn't really matter? Or perhaps cables don't really matter?

 

If you're listening to music from the iPhone while mobile, you're in an environment where any difference in DAC quality would not be noticeable. I know a lot of people on this forum would disagree, and many use complex systems to connect to smartphones, but they're almost always overkill. If you're listening at home, or at work, in a quiet environment, then you might want to look for other solutions, if you really think it doesn't sound good. 

[One and a half]

Just looked over the pinout of the lightning connector and there's no audio channels in the 8 pin config, just digital differentials and a single power channel.

So the 3.5mm to lightning adapter is a DAC, bus powered. When the OP has Shure HPs, they make a DAC to suit, perhaps worth the shot.

 

Granted the better the lightning DAC is, the heavier and more cumbersome they are for mobile use, which sort of defeats the purpose For at home though, the connection possibilities are varied to suit all tastes. 

 

As an aside, am also looking at the 8+, just waiting for Nov 1 to roll around, where glass breakage insurance is provided by Amex with a AUD50 excess. This is the same as Apple Care, without the steep price of Apple Care investment to begin with. Tech support is offered by Google Inc. 

[leftside]

The Shure looks like it could be a great solution:

http://www.shure.com/americas/products/accessories/earphones/earphone-headphone-cables/rmce-ltg

 

It means I'd have to give up/sell my Toxic cables, but if I can't hear a difference then the Shure cable/connector looks like a good option. Thanks for the link.