I used to listen to CDs on my dad’s massive headphones with a big 1/4 inch jack plugged into his amplifier with the stainless steel face. Man, I loved that sound. It was rich, immersive, and as loud as I wanted. I could hear every instrument and the breathing of the lead singer. I have never been able to recreate that sound quality with smartphones. I have been trying for nearly 30 years. There are few good phones for audiophiles, and I really want there to be more. The Moondrop MIAD01 is a rare exception but falls short in a few areas.
Sure, there was the LG V60, which boasted quad-DAC setups and headphone jacks, and the LG V30 to V50 line with built-in DACs, but I never got my hands on one of those before LG pulled the plug on its entire smartphone venture. Understand that I’m not an audio engineer or technical expert. I’m simply a music lover with a lifelong passion for high-quality, exceptional sound. I’m also a smartphone fan. I would love to recapture that beautiful sound I enjoyed in my youth from the powerful device I carry with me every day.
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The Moondrop MIAD01
A beacon of hope with a few trade-offs
We recently wrote about the Moondrop MIAD01, an Android device from the Chinese maker of well-known headphones and other audio gear. Moondrop integrates a DAP into the phone and includes both a 3.5 mm headphone jack and a 4.4 mm headphone jack. It also supports higher-grade formats like FLAC, WAV, and DSD. All of this sounds great on paper.
But the MIAD01 as a phone is not anything to write home about. It offers a mid-range MediaTek Dimensity processor, and its cameras are mid at best. You won’t be taking any great photos or doing much gaming on such a device. It’s made of plastic and ships without Google Play Services. So, it’s not a high-quality phone by any stretch, and for the cost of the phone, I could buy a decent DAC and plug it into a much more powerful phone. But that’s not what I want.
How mainstream phones fall short
Intentional, or just cheap?
So why aren’t any of the big players stepping up? Why doesn’t Samsung or Apple have a decent device that can output Hi-Res FLAC? The answer probably boils down to market forces. Most people rely on streaming services for their music, whether that’s Spotify or YouTube Music. These formats are mostly 96kbps (and 160kbps for “high” quality). This is fine for a pair of earbuds, but it’s not the kind of audio I’m looking for.
Some of the streaming services offer decent sound. Tidal offers Hi-Res FLAC streaming at up to 1140kbps. Qobuz up to a whopping 9,216kbps. Even Apple Music offers exceptional lossless audio and Dolby Atmos tuning. Yet, few phones can handle any of these without attaching another device, such as a dongle or DAC.
A possible solution?
Can Sony save the day with its Xperia line?
A 3.5 mm headphone jack, Dolby Atmos tuning, MicroSD slot, and a phenomenal Zeiss camera. Does the Sony Xperia 1 VI have what it takes to sate my starving ears? It’s close. Perhaps paired with a smaller portable DAC it could fit the bill. Even without a DAC, the phone is decent and includes a headphone jack. While I don’t like that Sony dropped the 4K screen to 1080p in the Xperia 1 VI, perhaps with the new 19.5:9 aspect ratio it means usability is finally at the forefront.
Will someone please step up?
I have a simple plea to the smartphone industry: please make a high-end smartphone for us audiophiles. We crave quality sound, great processors, headphone jacks, expandable storage, and good cameras to boot. The Moondrop MIAD01 should serve as a template for what we want in the audio realm, and combined with the Sony XPeria 1 VI’s performance, by gosh, I think we’d have something magical. Until then, I’ll just keep listening to CDs on a big pair of headphones in my living room.
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