Guess I dodged a bullet then lol. I dumped $250 on the latest "Hi-Fi" NW-A306 because my music collection is outgrowing the 64GB on my iPhone and I don't want to either A) downgrade to a lower-end Android device that still has microSD or B) consistently pay for storage upgrades every time I get a new phone or C) sell a kidney to get an Xperia with microSD. I wanna say it sounds just a tad bit more sparkly and the bass sounds more defined than the basic Apple dongle, maybe not $250 better, but I guess the fact that it's also most of a tiny Android phone tacked on (without Five Gee) makes it feel like less cringe of a purchase.
The Apple dongle has a very deadpan sound tbh, it’s a very dead neutral. No personality to it. High end DAC chips do make a difference, but they can be very, very expensive for what’ll feel like minimal gain. But, once you’ve already bitten the bullet and picked up a good hifi player, you’ll always appreciate having those little extra details and flavor here and there. Plus, having an audio player that’s separate from your phone makes listening to music that much more intimate. There’s something really special about the ritual of disconnecting from your phone and just sinking into your favorite jams
