Lightning Headphones: Are They Better or Just an Inconvenience?

[gbc204]

Bluetooth is fine but like other wireless technologies its not about quality but convenience. Its more convenient not to have a cord handing down when I run so I like wireless. Its easier to get in and out of the car with music if I can wirelessly control and listen. Thing is, cable connected sounds better. Cable connected networking is generally better as well but less convenient.

I'm fine with Lightning headphones and don't mind if they only work with the phone. I have lots of "older" style headphones around to use with all of the other devices. Its not a big deal if the pair only works with the phone.

I actually find bluetooth LESS convenient. Just having to pair/unpair, which i know only takes a few seconds, is much less convenient than plugging/unplugging my headphones. For some reason my iphone, even after disconnecting from a bluetooth source, always tries to reconnect to that source if i'm still in range. Which is annoying. Especially when I'm playing games in the bathroom and there are other people in the living room and i didnt realize it was still playing through the bluetooth speakers in the living room.

And when driving, even in cars I bought this year and two years ago, when I'm connected via bluetooth, the display shows less information, I can't use all the features (like activating shuffle), and the volume is lower. For all those things to work, I have to be plugged in.

 

[Agilis]

Huh? is the jack not part of the phone????

Well they are saying a couple of things: By not including a higher quality DAC for the 3.5mm sound output, Apple can charge less for the phone making their customers happier. On the other hand, because of the inclusion of the 3.5mm jack, the iPhone does not have the room required for a higher quality DAC and amplifier.

...

Which is total nonsense because as others have pointed out, the DAC is not nearly as important as the amplifier and the circuitry associated with it. Sure, there are differences in specifications but the differences in those specifications are inaudible. A higher quality amplifier is what makes all the difference.

Again, huh? "Sounded better" based on what? Too bad "Stereo Review" magazine isn't really around anymore to debunk this kind of fluff.

Hopefully nobody believes this article, it's meaningless.

I kind of have to agree. Sound is all subjective based on many factors but the most important factor is someone's own listening preference. What I may think is great sounding, another person may think the sound is too bright, tinny, or bass too heavy, etc.

I will seek out AVS Forums when I am looking for comparisons between different audio equipment.

 

[0098386]

I don't understand what's wrong with the wireless/Bluetooth headphone option? There are great ones to use starting at $20 on Amazon and up depending on your purchase preference. No reason to stay wired any more practically and even those wireless headphones come with a wiring option.

Sound quality and battery life are my grievances. You recommended cheap ones, but cheap BT headphones are awful. The last pair I owned (£40 Sony ones) had a 1 second audio lag which meant they were okay for music but awful for videos, games, and hands free calls.

So with that said I'm not sure why you say there's "no reason to stay wired any more", when there are very very good reasons to avoid.

 

[Barry Bishop]

I understand your frustration....

Problem is there are hardly any Mac-related-rumors these days.

Are you kidding me!!! One rumor...ready...the new FCPX was showcased at NAB...go find that info out.

 

[sandler77]

Everyone should relax. Everything will be fine when Apple announces the 3.5mm jack removal at the same time they announce wireless charging. Problem solved. Just wait until September when they announce.

Do some homework about Energous and their WattUp technology. Turns out they were purchased by a major cell phone manufacturer, but they can't announce anything due to secrecy. I wonder who holds that philosophy???

 

[falainber]

I don't understand what's wrong with the wireless/Bluetooth headphone option? There are great ones to use starting at $20 on Amazon and up depending on your purchase preference. No reason to stay wired any more practically and even those wireless headphones come with a wiring option.

You do realize that you are in a minority and most people still prefer wired head phones, right? You know when was the the last time I changed batteries (or charged) in my head phones? Never. And I prefer it this way. And we are not even talking about the dismal sound quality of BT headphones on iOS devices (is it still at 128kbps?).

 

[MH01]

There was a time when Sony was perceived by the market as leader in innovation and accessibilty. Then in their self sufficiency restricted their gadgetry compatability to nonuniversal inhouse accessories (Sony Memory Stick, Sony Betamax, etc). They called it innovation, and in fact they were superior to their conterparts, but the trade off was incredible inaccessibility. Unless Apple is sure to win the market with this new format, its better not to create massive inconveniences. Continue this pattern, Apple will loose credibility as Sony did. Sony might seem like a joke today, but every house hold used to own several Sonys just 20 years ago.

Spot on. Sony went from innovating to trying to control its user base with proprietary standards. It lost its hold on music doing exactly this, one reason the iPod took off, shock horror , you could just load mp3s onto it .....while Sony wanted you to convert the files to its standard. The rest is history .

 

[nikhsub1]

Funny that anyone would care about the quality of headphones listening to ****** quality mp3 or mp4 compressed and stripped source files to begin with... The other side of that is bluetooth makes your ****** source files sound even ********. What a dilema!

 

[igorsky]

What about those of us who use the credit card readers for our business. They all plug into the headphone jack.

Companies will have to make new versions and I know they won't be free like the current versions.

You know this, eh?

 

[iSee]

If you want sound quality over convenience, headphones with a lightning connector is the way to go.

If you want convenience over sound quality, Bluetooth is the way to go.

Dropping the 3.5" jack seems like a no-brainer.

 

[igorsky]

You really want something else to charge?

edit: misread post.

I'm ok with "change", but not so sure about having another item to "charge"

 

[Soccertess]

It's the age of bluetooth headsets now, cut the cords!

If iphones had wireless charging, and headphones too could adopt that protocol, than I would cut the cord Immediately!

That being said, it would have to be wireless charging from at least a few feet away.

 

[Agilis]

Ultimately, you can't introduce sound quality that isn't there, so justifying the removal of the 3.5mm jack by reference to an improved DAC just doesn't make sense. The amplification will have a greater perceived influence on sound quality than the DAC itself.

I encourage you to do an A/B on a 256 file. You'll be hard pressed to notice much of a difference between DACs. Do that same comparison with a lossless file and the difference becomes much more apparent.

Agreed. Source material and amplifier and it's circuitry is what makes the difference with the exception of the quality of the speakers/drivers.

 

[falainber]

So, let's check what people who actually bought lightning headphones on Amazon are saying about them:

Tara A.:

I thought the idea of having a lightening pin headphone connector was a really neat idea, but unfortunately, the headphones didn't perform that well. I used these at work to listen to music from my phone. We have sit/stand desks and whenever I was seated and went to stand, the headphones crackled and all sound stopped. The first time I thought maybe it was just a fluke, but it happened repeatedly. I tried to jiggle the wire but it didn't get the sound to start again. The only way to get the headphones to produce sound after it cut out is to unplug the headphones and re-plug them back in. Every time I changed from sitting to standing the sound stopped and I had to stop what I was doing to unplug and replug the headphones back in. Not worth the hassle in my opinion. I will say that when the headphones worked the sound was fine and they were pretty comfortable to wear all day.

And most reviews seem to be like that. Sure this is just one model but people who dealt with digital audio should be familiar with issues caused by, say, USB drivers for specific DACs etc, so it's nothing new. So, unless there is a really important reason for getting rid of the conventional audio plug, can we keep it?

Link

 

[nevheatley3]

So if I do an A/B test with my record player... 1 with the built-in Pre-amp and one through a dedicated, proper Pre-amp... is the dedicated Pre-amp not better because the only difference is more volume?

I mean... being able to actually HEAR something is the entire goal... no?

No doubt, but quality and quantity (volume) are different concerns. I have tested headphones that allowed me to hear details I previously missed and others, with amps, that were just loud.

 

[igorsky]

Bingo. Today your 3.5mm headphone will work on any music player

Don't know how many "music players" you personally use, but I'm almost certain that your average person uses one...their phone. I mean just look around you and use anecdotal evidence...when was the last you saw someone outside of a music studio with headphones that weren't attached to a phone? Your personal use case notwithstanding, removing the 3.5mm jack won't effect the extreme majority of people. They will use the (alleged) Lightning headphones with their primary music player...their iPhones.

Worst case scenario, you can keep and use your legacy Earpods for all of your other music players.

 

[Moi Ici]

As per article heading;
Lightning Headphones: Are They Better or Just an Inconvenience?


The answer is: Both.
It is inconvenient to use a proprietary input, but it is also better, as the sound is very good and it takes advantage of all the built in goodness in the lightening port.
I have the new Audeze sines with cipher cable and the sound is very very good. Albeit, it does have a dac built into the cable, so that helps a lot. They also come with regular 3.5 cable, if I want to use with non Apple iOS gear. Win win.
Also, I have some cheapy Bluetooth earphones, yes, convenient, but sound very average and underwhelming...actually kind of crappy

I think Apple should introduce an adapter for the lightening port this next iPhone iteration so people can test it out. Keep the 3.5 for now and I think a lot of people will really like the better sound and maybe be more inclined to let the 3.5 go.

Sorry about size of font, since I copied the headline the font won't go any smaller :/. Didn't want it to look so "hey listen to me.......ish.

 

[Serban]

As someone who listens to music at work with headphones while charging...no thanks.

you have the smart connector for charging while listening to your lightning headphones

 

[nevheatley3]

In all due respect, I'll wait for a review from a decent audio/hifi site. I'd never trust an IT techie to review anything audio related.

head-fi has reviews of the Philips, I believe.

 

[igorsky]

As someone who listens to music at work with headphones while charging...no thanks.

I remain confused as to why everyone assumes it'll be one or the other.

 

[falainber]

Don't know how many "music players" you personally use, but I'm almost certain that your average person uses one...their phone. I mean just look around you and use anecdotal evidence...when was the last you saw someone outside of a music studio with headphones that weren't attached to a phone? Your personal use case notwithstanding, removing the 3.5mm jack won't effect the extreme majority of people. They will use the (alleged) Lightning headphones with their primary music player...their iPhones.

Worst case scenario, you can keep and use your legacy Earpods for all of your other music players.

Many people use headphones at work connecting them to their laptops or desktops. More importantly, so far, nobody has been able to explain the benefits of removing 3.5mm jack. The thickness of the phone is the only valid reason but we are not there yet and I am not sure making the phone that thin is a good idea in a first place.

 

[CFreymarc]

Given how flimsy headphones are, I don't want to have to buy a new $100 pair of headphones every couple of months, all so that apple can shave off another 0.0001 off the iphone. I'm actually all for them to add back some width and actually give us a decent battery.

It is not the reduction in parts but the nearly full square centimeter in board space freed up with this connector gone. In the world of surface mount, sub-miniature components, this is a land rush.

 

[theluggage]

Removing the headphone jack doesn't make sense, even when you consider audio quality.

The only points in favour of removing the audio jack are:

• Make the phone thinner (or maybe squeeze in a tiny bit more battery)
• Remove a point of failure - 3.5mm jacks are vulnerable - a little crowbar sticking into your phone just waiting to lever components off the board. Lightning is better designed in that respect.

Audiophiles who want the DAC in the headphones can still use lightning - you don't have to remove the jack & there needs to be a DAC in the phone to drive the speaker anyway. If its cost, Apple shouldn't be counting pennies on a high-end premium phone.

- They work with nearly all sources from various manufacturers

Yup and on a plane you might want to unplug from the iPhone and plug in to the airplane's 3.5mm jack.

OK, I've got some handy cans that can use 2 bluetooth devices and 3.5mm (and I think its OK to use Bluetooth on a plane now) but I think that's less common in smaller phones.

Also, I use the 3.5mm jack to plug in to my HiFi... and, hey, how are people going to connect their virtual Moog Modular to their Marshall amp stack and pretend that they are Tangerine Dream?!

And the most obvious point... this entire discussion is completely moot when the source file is anything less than Lossless.

Not so sure about that - how does bluetooth audio work - do the headphones contain codecs for MP3, AAC etc. and receive the original compressed file, or does it get uncompressed and then re-compressed in bluetooth-friendly format to be sent to the headphones?

 

[zhenya]

It is not the reduction in parts but the nearly full square centimeter in board space freed up with this connector gone. In the world of surface mount, sub-miniature components, this is a land rush.

Imagine how much space they could free up if they did away with the battery? Or the screen??

 

[_mdavenport]

Great, informative video.

Lightning-equipped headphones do seem to have their upsides, but they are already available with current iPhones and the headphone jack doesn't need to be removed for one to use them. Why force them on the masses?