Possible iOS-13 and Audioquest Dragonfly Red compatibility issue

dbtom: I accessed the iOS-13 control center and it does not appear to have an audio output option. There have been some other unusual changes in the new OS, too. These include the inability to display the percentage battery charge alongside the battery icon and the same thing with the VPN notice (when I'm using NordVPN which is all the time except on my encrypted home WiFi). These are only accessible with a screen swipe in iOS-13.

uberwaltz: I reached the same conclusion about inadequate power to the Dragonfly from the iPhone running off the battery. I'm just perplexed though as to why the Dragonfly icon lights when the ensemble is plugged in. I imagine (but then again, I'm not an engineer) that power to external plug-ins was reduced by Apple to extend battery life. So, I just tested the power hypothesis and you are right! Plugging the iPhone 11 into the wall and then hooking up the whole mess (the Apple USB-3 connector --> Jitterbug -->Dragonfly-->Etymotic earphones)...it works!  I understand the Dragonfly Cobalt draws less power, but I don't use the phone absent external power often enough to justify the purchase.

THANKS to all!
Keith

Here's news. Apple iOS 13.1.3 seems to have reconfigured power to the Lightning port. This software version will drive the DragonFly Red and the Jitterbug in series with my earphones, just as before. Presumably, the Cobalt will work too and - if I recall correctly - that model draws less power than the Red.

I was surprised. I used that assembly consistently with my iPhone 6 and iOS 10.x-10.11.x and it always worked perfectly. When I purchased the iPhone 11 (because OS 10.13 was no longer supported in iPhones <6S), the same setup failed. A call to Audioquest was unrevealing. Anyway, two OS updates later, it's functional again!

Fkeubler,
There are two different issues here:

1) In my postings, I conjectured that the first release of the new iOS (10.13) apparently did not supply enough power to the Lightening port to run (in series) the Audioquest Jitterbug and DragonFly Red I was using with my Etymotic Research ER-4 SR earphones. In subsequent OS updates, Apple seems to have rectified this issue since it now works for me. You can see the test steps I followed to arrive at my conclusion in my earlier posts. My guess (and it is only a guess) is that initial iterations of Apple’s software were restricting power to accessories in order to prolong the phone battery run-time: always a big-deal for mobile phone manufacturers.

2). "Legacy" devices will appear on iOS with the alert, as you noted: "This accessory is not supported by this iPhone." That’s presumably not due to your iPhone 6S itself (it’s the last version Apple supports with the new OS 10.13.x), but rather to the new OS. I’ve frequently encountered this problem with my phone when it’s plugged into a genuinely ancient Bose portable speaker, but the device continues to function properly once the warning has been displayed. Based on what I understand you to have written, that’s also your situation: a warning appears, but then the phone/DAC continue functioning, correct? If so, simply ignore it.


The fact that the DragonFly logo lights up indicates it’s receiving power through the port. The specific color indicates the DAC’s processing state (MQA, 16/44, etc).


As for the apparent degradation in sound quality, I don’t know of any reason why 10.13.x would have any bearing. As I understand the matter, the DragonFly DACs are built to bypass the (reportedly) inferior internal hardware in the phone: that’s their purpose. It’s possible (but I think it’s very unlikely since Audioquest continues to sell the Black and Red along with the new Cobalt) that there is some sort of processor/software conflict. When I called Audioquest and spoke directly to an IT rep a couple of months ago, he was unaware of any power problems and asserted their devices will perform properly with the new iOS. That didn’t seem correct (given subsequent developments) but maybe a phone call to the company might be revealing.

Having noted all that, it may be the case that your headphones themselves are drawing too much power. If the sound quality is bad now and good before, that seems like a logical conclusion.

Finally, you can test all of that by un-installing iOS 13.x and downgrading to the latest iteration of 10.12. That’s essentially the same as previous versions, but Apple updated security settings. So, it should operate for you as before, you just can’t be hacked as easily (or so Apple states).


Disclaimer: I’m not a software engineer, so take this analysis for what it’s worth (not too much)

I think our posts crossed in-transit, but here are my quick thoughts:

1) If I understood your posting correctly (I’m reading this on a portable device so I may have overlooked/misunderstood some detail), you obtain good quality sound when the **powered** USB hub is in the chain: is that correct?

2) If so, that’s precisely what I encountered when my phone’s Lightening port was hooked into an Apple branded connector-->Jitterbug-->DragonFly-->Etymotic and when this device chain was run from iPhone (11) battery power. However, when the phone was plugged into a wall socket, all this worked properly. That was my first clue that this was a power issue.

3) If it’s the case that the DragonFly powered up properly but no sound without a powered USB hub, to me that suggests your earphones are drawing too much power for the port to supply.

4) If I’m wrong and your earphones work after an initial run-through with the powered hub and they continue to work *after* the powered USB hub has been removed and the rest of the set-up is plugged into the Lightening port, it may be the case that iOS is somehow re-setting. If that’s what’s happening, it’s a possibly a new security feature: iOS 10.13.x has a built-in setting used to defeat snooping hardware (e.g., Cellebrite’s famed/infamous hacking device). With the phone powered on but if the user doesn’t permit access, the Cellebrite gizmo can mirror the contents when plugged into the Lightening port. Apple blocks that attack once the phone has not been accessed for some (arbitrarily chosen) time: about an hour, last I read, but that may have been revised.
KAC

I've had that same issue with non-Apple products. Mysteriously, while these "clones" all claim to be interchangeable, oftentimes they aren't. While Apple's stuff is usually more expensive, the company does a good job with assuring compatibility and (generally) durability, too.