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The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

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Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#301

Post by manicdee »

ChoHag wrote: post #229
AceJohnny2 wrote: post #178

> When you plug an audio cable into a smartphone, it just works. No, hardware-wise you're still going through a DAC, and the complex audio subsystem of the OS is still deciding, upon receiving the connection signal, to re-route the application audio through that headphone DAC. Or not. Jack or Lightning doesn't change this. > Apple can choose which manufacturers get to create Lightning-compatible audio devices. Sure.…

If a device has an audio jack with the aim that its owners make use of it, it has to provide audio when "something" is plugged in. It's not able to discern what's there. That is what "just works": not that audio is supplied, but that audio is supplied without the possibility to discern what (merely whether, and that a hack) it is being supplied to. That the software may disable the port when it's empty or just on a w…

The same applies to Lightning-connected DACs. You might believe that there is something special about an internally connected DAC versus an externally connected DAC, but "just works" is not a point of difference. They both need to work in order to achieve their purpose.

At some point, sound needs to make it into your ears.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#302

Post by manicdee »

bluegene wrote: post #228
AceJohnny2 wrote: post #178

> When you plug an audio cable into a smartphone, it just works. No, hardware-wise you're still going through a DAC, and the complex audio subsystem of the OS is still deciding, upon receiving the connection signal, to re-route the application audio through that headphone DAC. Or not. Jack or Lightning doesn't change this. > Apple can choose which manufacturers get to create Lightning-compatible audio devices. Sure.…

> Sure. Or you can use the included lightning-jack adapter and just use normal, un-DRM'd headphones. What prevents Apple from obsoleting the adapter in the future and making analog jack incompatible with lightning jack?

The desire to keep customers, perhaps?

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#303

Post by cmdrfred »

bitwize wrote: post #280
cmdrfred wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While my laptop doesn't have a floppy drive anymore. It does have a DVD drive and USB ports. Who is this 'everyone'?

"ports older than USB" meant serial and, later, ethernet. My new-issue Dell work laptop lacks an optical drive and Ethernet. My dad just bought an even beefier Dell laptop and the first thing he asked was "where's the DVD drive?" Dell offered to send him a free external USB optical drive, but told him that internal optical drives were simply not an option on that make of laptop.

Did Apple ever offer a laptop with a serial port?

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#304

Post by [deleted] »

bitwize wrote: post #280
cmdrfred wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While my laptop doesn't have a floppy drive anymore. It does have a DVD drive and USB ports. Who is this 'everyone'?

"ports older than USB" meant serial and, later, ethernet. My new-issue Dell work laptop lacks an optical drive and Ethernet. My dad just bought an even beefier Dell laptop and the first thing he asked was "where's the DVD drive?" Dell offered to send him a free external USB optical drive, but told him that internal optical drives were simply not an option on that make of laptop.

[deleted]

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#305

Post by sigmar »

dogma1138 wrote: post #299
sigmar wrote: post #298

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I have doubts that the EarPods are digital also it's not stated anywhere. They specifically said in the announcement that the earpods are digital not analog: https://youtu.be/G6I-IKYEVMI?t=21045

Hmm not sure most of the "digital" stuff was not about the earpods but about the wireless ones AKA the "AirPods" The ones that come with the iPhone 7 in the box are the regular earpods we have now just with a lightning connector, there have also been a few videos going back to july about the 3.5mm connector some of them taken it apart it doesn't seem to have anything in it.

o.0 Did you click the link? It goes to right when he starts explaining Earpods switching to lightning, with "digital audio" written in the slide, and reiterating "digital audio" multiple times.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#306

Post by Yetanfou »

cr1895 wrote: post #115
Yetanfou wrote: post #105

That Apple wants their users to only use 'approved' peripherals with their stuff (i.e. only those from which they get a share of the profits) under the guise of 'user experience' and 'convenience' does not mean the rest of the world will suddenly give up on their analogue headphones. Apple users will be able to buy dongles (which have to be Apple-approved, so Apple will still get their share of the profits leading to…

>As an aside, what a strange creature is man that he wants to replace a device which is analogue by nature - ears not being digital after all - with a digital counterpart which is clearly sub-optimal, overly complex and fraught with potential restrictions Well, if you're hearing it it's ultimately become analog. The question is where does it become analog. I can legitimately understand that many people would like tha…

No, the conversion from digital to analogue can and should happen in the device itself to be able to use the analogue signal with the plethora of peripherals intended for this purpose, without any additional restrictions above those already in place. For those who want or need digital output this possibility already exists in more than one way - through USB and Bluetooth to give some examples - so this is not a valid argument to promote the omission of an analogue output. Nor is Apple's claim of interference from the camera or other on-board hardware valid, given the abundance of camera-equipped devices which have no problems with interference.

It does not take that much thought to see through the rhetoric and discern the true reason for omitting an analogue output, I'd even go so far as to claim that it takes more thought to remain wilfully ignorant of the fact that Apple simply wants more control over how, when and where to 'allow' the device to produce output.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#307

Post by topranks »

tetraodonpuffer wrote: post #256
AceJohnny2 wrote: post #178

> When you plug an audio cable into a smartphone, it just works. No, hardware-wise you're still going through a DAC, and the complex audio subsystem of the OS is still deciding, upon receiving the connection signal, to re-route the application audio through that headphone DAC. Or not. Jack or Lightning doesn't change this. > Apple can choose which manufacturers get to create Lightning-compatible audio devices. Sure.…

if your phone only has a 3.5mm jack, you will have to provide high quality audio through it (if you want to be able to sell it to people interested in listening to music on high quality earphones) if your phone only has a digital jack and a certification process, you can decide to provide high quality audio to your digital headphones and low quality audio to the 3.5mm adapter. It's not guaranteed that the DAC you are…

Yeah I would like to know this.

The DAC sockets on recent iPhone models (5 up) has been pretty good.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#308

Post by topranks »

aidenn0 wrote: post #250
ajross wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you are recording stuff from your iPhone using the 3.5mm jack you are already suboptimal perhaps even to the bluetooth. This isn't true at all, unless your hardware is legitimately bad. All but the worst cables and amplifier chains can carry a 20 kHz signal (again, we're talking audio here -- that's basically D/C to modern electronics) at better than the ~45dB signal/noise ratio needed by the ADC on the other si…

I don't know about the iPhone, but many portable devices use a class-D amplifier on the headphone output for battery life, and most class-D amplifiers struggle with high-frequency reproduction.

That's changed drastically with more recent class D designs. At least in the pro audio world at least.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#309

Post by tzs »

mcpherrinm wrote: post #200
jtrip wrote: post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How did they succeed?

Rumour is, Amazon threatened to stop selling CDs for record companies who wouldn't let them sell DRM-free MP3 files. Certainly they used their massive sales presence to negotiate a deal with the record companies. I think that was the major tipping point for DRM on music. Apple followed after that.

Jobs' open letter on DRM came out seven months before Amazon even started selling MP3 files.

Re: The End of Headphone Jacks, the Rise of DRM

#310

Post by topranks »

mmagin wrote: post #188
ngoldbaum wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting, the reverse is true in my car, which probably says more about the stock head unit than anything.

I've observed a lot of ground loop problems in cars with a smartphone connected to a stereo line input and also to a USB charger. Some of the USB supply return currents pass through the shield of the audio cable and nastiness ensues.

Yeah have had this too.

Still stick with the 3.5mm jack over Bluetooth for quality.

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