LG V20 with ESS 9218 quad dac

Fitted the new headphone flex. Beautiful, beautiful glitch free sound again. After using my new Sony XZ1 and prehistoric iRiver H140 for a couple of weeks I am once again astonished at the excellence of the V20's audio. It's not just output power, it is the incredible detail, depth, separation, soundstage....everything! It really kills any inclination or desire to own an Astell & Kern, iBasso, Fiio etc. Anyway I now have an excellent domestic IR remote controller, kodi remote, wifi hi res audio player, UPnP controller....and also a very nice Sony phone

 

Did you ever compared the lg v20 with audioquest dragonfly red? It’s not portable but was wondering anyway. Thanks

 

I've never heard the Audioquest products. I've seen measurements and not felt moved to go any further than that, despite there being an Audioquest retailer just a short walk from my door. Mind you the same shop sells "special" power cords for *hundreds* of £ which to me look very suspiciously like short kettle cords with a makeover. So far as I can tell the Dragonfly products are engineered for exceptionally low power consumption, which is a reasonable approach for a smart phone/laptop accessory. Of course all the marketing spiel is about sound quality but the devices seem to be outperformed by several much cheaper but more power hungry competing products. I have used various tiny USB DACs with smart phones and laptops and for me it is just too frustrating and clumsy. I much preferred the proposition of a phone with seriously good audio output and a swappable battery so bought the V20. Before that I think the best tiny USB DAC I had was the LG Hi-Fi Plus which is a ESS ES9028C2M + Sabre9602C and supports up to 32-bit 384kHz. I really couldn't fault it. It also had the huge benefit of going almost totally unnoticed, unpromoted, unsold and unceremoniously discounted so the retail price plummeted to £20 from £150. There are still lots on ebay here in UK, brand new at silly low prices.

I have to say that while out in town, with all the noises of engines and voices and all the urban hum, I can't fault my Sony with a pair of Vsonic GR07 Bass Edition. When I get home to blissful quietness I can appreciate the superiority and excellence of the V20 at those times I don't want to use loud speakers. It is in a different class for sure.

 

I find the GO2A distinctly better than the V30, and I found the Geek Out V2 an improvement over the Dragonfly black (way back when).

If I were to thumbsuck it, the V20/30 is probably the equal of the Dragonfly Red, depending on what headphones you're using.