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Enable USB audio on any Android 4.0 smartphone/tablet

post #1 of 148
2/12/12 at 2:51am
Thread Starter 


If you want the USB audio enabled on any Android 4.0 device via official firmware/kernel, please vote (aka star) here:

http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=24614



Star: Vote by clicking on the star







According to Android 3.1 specifications, Android 4.0 devices could support the USB audio feature, i.e. Android 4.0 devices and USB_CLASS_AUDIO compliant devices like standard USB DAC could interoperate:

http://developer.android.com/guide/t...usb/index.html

http://developer.android.com/reference/and...bConstants.html



USB_CLASS_AUDIO compliant devices like standard USB DAC don't need a special USB device driver. Instead, they use an operating system standard driver.

The Android standard USB audio driver is the generic USB Audio Driver for ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture).

And the latest Android 4.0 includes card.c, the USB Audio Driver for ALSA which should be compliant with USB audio class 2 devices allowing for 24 bits / 192 kHz.

https://bitbucket.org/paulobrien/android_ke...ound/usb/card.c







Android relies on Linux version 2.6 for core system services such as security, memory management, process management, network stack, and driver model. The Linux kernel also acts as an abstraction layer between the hardware and the rest of the software stack.

Thus Android handles all the things that Linux is really good at such as a vast array of device drivers, which take the pain out of interfacing to peripheral hardware.



Most USB DAC work without special USB device driver on PC, Mac and hopefully Android 4.0 devices with USB audio enabled.



Some USB DAC:



. Portable FiiO USB DAC/amp:

http://www.fiio.com.cn/product/



. Portable iBasso USB DAC/amp:

http://www.ibasso.com/en/products/



. Portable RSA USB DAC/amp:

http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/predator



. Portable HeadAmp USB DAC/amp:

http://www.headamp.com/pico/pico_dac_amp/index.htm



. Portable GoVibe USB DAC/amp:

http://jaben.net/shopping2/Porta-Tube_Plus.html



. Desktop CEntrance USB DAC/amp:

http://centrance.com/products/



. Desktop USB DAC MSB DAC IV:

http://www.msbtech.com/products/platinumHome.php



....







About external USB DAC/Amp



A digital audio system is composed of:







. A storage module: Music is stored in file as a series of bits 0 & 1 with different encoding formats (MP3, WAV, FLAC).

. A player: The player decodes the bits 0 & 1 to PCM digital audio signals.

. A DAC (Digital to Analog Converter): The DAC converts the PCM digital audio signals to the original analog audio signals.

. An amplifier: The amplifier amplifies the analog audio signals.

. A speaker: The speaker restitutes the music.





Like a PC or a Mac, an Android phone is a digital audio system.





 



Hopefully, the Android phone, running on a kernel with a USB audio driver, can output the PCM digital audio stream to an external standard USB DAC & amplifier & headphone, much more efficient than the internal DAC & amplifier & speakerphone.





 



The official Android with USB audio enabled should be used by most people, who don't want to mod their device.



A die-hard audiophile minority should likely use audio-optimized Android kernels modded by some kernel modders.



"An interesting example is the HRT music streamer II, it IS asynchronous USB, but it is still very sensitive to what happens in the computer. On the SAME COMPUTER I can make simple changes to OS scheduling parameters and get a huge difference in the sound. At one end of the scale it's dull, lifeless, no depth at all, at the other end of the scale it is wonderfully alive, dynamic, huge depth etc. And all this by just changing a few numbers, NO change in hardware at all."

http://www.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.pl?...audio&n=101397



For example, a underclocked kernel should be better than a normal kernel to provide a lesser jittered digital audio stream to a USB DAC, because the USB transmission clock is less polluted by electric and electromagnetic interferences generated by different processors.



Android kernel modders have already enabled the USB audio feature on Nook Color tablets which are powered by Android 2.3 Gingerbread.


Edited by DanBa - 10/26/12 at 3:47pm
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post #2 of 148
2/12/12 at 8:00am
Worthy of a bump. Would be great.
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post #3 of 148
2/12/12 at 2:57pm
I voted. Great idea
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post #4 of 148
2/13/12 at 7:59am
Thread Starter 
Thank you for your votes!

The USB audio request is currently ranked 50, and there are 17550 requests.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

In fact, it is ranked in top 10 of less than one year old requests.
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post #5 of 148
2/13/12 at 8:28am
I agree. I love my Galaxy S2 but that Yamaha pos DAC hurts it (compared to the Wolfson on the original)
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post #6 of 148
2/13/12 at 8:29am
I've starred this feature request. It would be great since a lot of people use their iPods (and I assume the iPhone has this capability, as well) with a line out dock to run better amps. Being able to inject a nicer DAC/amp into an Android device signal chain would be a huge bonus.

I'd also like to see them work out the audio latency so the companies that make stuff like iRig could produce Android alternatives. I'd love to be able to hook my bass up to my tablet for those times that I don't want to fire up the amp. This is beyond the scope of the feature request, I presume, but getting Google to make vital changes to the platform to improve audio performance would be a huge step forward.
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post #7 of 148
2/13/12 at 9:46am
That's really cool Dan! May I have permission to copy your post to another forum to get more people aware of it and support its development?
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post #8 of 148
2/13/12 at 12:26pm
I starred it as well. Would be nice if they added AVRCP to the bluethooth stack while they were at it.
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post #9 of 148
2/14/12 at 2:43pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by amirm View Post

That's really cool Dan! May I have permission to copy your post to another forum to get more people aware of it and support its development?

Please do!

And thank you, Amir!
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post #10 of 148
2/14/12 at 2:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nosferatu View Post

I agree. I love my Galaxy S2 but that Yamaha pos DAC hurts it (compared to the Wolfson on the original)

USB audio test is ongoing with a modded Galaxy S2 kernel:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1288850

Red Pill Kernel
RedPill_Rev1.3
Experimental: USB Audio support for DAC devices
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post #11 of 148
2/26/12 at 12:48am
Thread Starter 
Instructions for enabling USB audio on Ainol Novo 7 Advanced Allwinner tablet:
http://www.slatedroid.com/topic/2928...vers-and-libs/


The official USB audio request is currently ranked 26 of 17969.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

In fact, it is ranked in top 3 of less than one-year-old requests.

Vote: Click on the star

Thank you for your votes!
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post #12 of 148
3/4/12 at 2:38am
Thread Starter 

A "proprietary" USB DAC, wich is compliant with iPod/iPhone/iPad, has to include an Apple authentication coprocessor.
http://www.xmos.com/products/development-kits/ipod-dock

 

An iDevice compliant USB DAC acts as a USB host, and an iPod/iPhone/iPad acts as a USB device.

 

A common USB DAC compliant with PC, Apple Mac and modded Android devices acts as a USB device, and a PC/Mac/modded Android device acts as a USB host.

A common USB DAC should be considered as standard USB device able to connect to an Android smartphone/tablet like a USB mass storage device, a USB keyboard or a USB mouse.
The capability is there, because the Android kernel is a Linux kernel, and Linux can interface with USB DAC.

The Google issue "Enable USB audio", requesting Google to activate the feature "USB audio out towards a common USB DAC" on Android smartphones/tablets, is currently ranked 24 of 18247.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

In fact, it is ranked in top 3 of less than one-year-old requests.

Vote: Click on the star (it appears after signing in)

Thank you for your votes!


Edited by DanBa - 11/10/12 at 3:42pm
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post #13 of 148
3/9/12 at 11:28am
Voted!
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post #14 of 148
3/20/12 at 1:50pm
Thread Starter 
For the time being, the standard USB devices for USB host-capable Android devices are only USB hubs, USB mass storage devices and USB class for human interface devices (for example, mice and keyboards).

We have to lobby for imposing USB DAC as a standard Android USB device, like a standard USB device for every Mac or PC (i.e. we don’t have to request each individual PC manufacturer to add the USB audio capability).

Google should include USB host (and USB audio) on every new Google "Nexus" device, which is supposed to be a reference Android device for others.

The 1st out-of-the-box (i.e. without modding) Android device able to support USB audio is the Android 4.0 ICS powered Archos G9.
Archos 80 G9 Turbo slate shipping now, Ice Cream Sandwich on board -- Engadget
Archos 80/101 G9

Archos G9 & Logitech USB speaker
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...php?p=23852275




The Google issue "Enable USB audio", requesting Google to standardize USB audio on Android smartphones/tablets, is currently ranked 19 of 19,004.
Issue 24614 - android - Enable USB audio on the Galaxy Nexus (or any Android 4.0 device) - Android - An Open Handset Alliance Project - Google Project Hosting

It is ranked in top 3 of less than one-year-old requests.

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post #15 of 148
4/24/12 at 8:42pm
I have seen this post all over the internet! That DanBa guy gets around. It's the same images, and text, on every search result for USB Audio DAC Android. So I have an AT&T Galaxy S2 (I777) and have made a car audio cable. It sounds OK. I would really like to have a USB Audio DAC I can plug into the phone and have it output to line level analog out that would go into my Alpine headunit. Does anyone know of such a beast? I figured this would be a great place to start asking. Thanks!
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post #16 of 148
4/25/12 at 2:56am
Thread Starter 
For the time being, we are waiting for the decision of Google to impose USB DAC as a standard USB device supported by Android phones & tablets with a USB host controller.

Concerning the stock Samsung Galaxy S2, it’s up to Samsung to enable the USB audio feature, as the ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture) USB audio source code is included in the Android kernel source code.

However, there are at least two modded teams working to enable USB audio on SGS2:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...=digital+audio
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1288850

Quote:
Originally Posted by CNLiberal View Post

Does anyone know of such a beast?

There are a lot of reviews and discussions on USB DAC or USB DAC/amp on HeadFi:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/607048/audi...er-vs-fiio-e17
http://www.head-fi.org/t/507559/list...work-with-ipad

SGS2 & Samsung SII Car Dock:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...audio&page=291
"I have today received an Official Samsung SII Car Dock.
The dock has 1 USB connector (that goes into the phone) that is then split out into a USB power input and a Audio Jack input."

http://review.cyanogenmod.com/#change,14046
"Found that the dock usb analogue device (dock) emits the status 2 (which is the value for usb digital for (usb_audio)"
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post #17 of 148
4/25/12 at 5:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by CNLiberal View Post

I have seen this post all over the internet! That DanBa guy gets around. It's the same images, and text, on every search result for USB Audio DAC Android. So I have an AT&T Galaxy S2 (I777) and have made a car audio cable. It sounds OK. I would really like to have a USB Audio DAC I can plug into the phone and have it output to line level analog out that would go into my Alpine headunit. Does anyone know of such a beast? I figured this would be a great place to start asking. Thanks!

Samsungs have Bluetooth audio feature. Save youself a hassle to have cable connection and use wireless.
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post #18 of 148
4/26/12 at 2:09am
Thread Starter 
It depends on your needs.

The SBC codec involved in the Bluetooth A2DP of the Samsung Galaxy S2 is lossy.
http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/KB/Bluetooth.htm

The USB audio feature is able to support true 44.1 / 96 / 192 kHz bit perfect audio.
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post #19 of 148
4/26/12 at 5:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DanBa View Post

It depends on your needs.

The SBC codec involved in the Bluetooth A2DP of the Samsung Galaxy S2 is lossy.
http://thewelltemperedcomputer.com/KB/Bluetooth.htm

The USB audio feature is able to support true 44.1 / 96 / 192 kHz bit perfect audio.

You will unlikely need lossless audio in the car. Noise level and overall distracion won't let you appreciate high resolution audio. So convenience of keeping your phone in the pocket will outweight loss of sound quality.
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post #20 of 148
4/26/12 at 7:28am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DanBa View Post

For the time being, we are waiting for the decision of Google to impose USB DAC as a standard USB device supported by Android phones & tablets with a USB host controller.

Concerning the stock Samsung Galaxy S2, it's up to Samsung to enable the USB audio feature, as the ALSA (Advanced Linux Sound Architecture) USB audio source code is included in the Android kernel source code.

However, there are at least two modded teams working to enable USB audio on SGS2:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...=digital+audio
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1288850

There are a lot of reviews and discussions on USB DAC or USB DAC/amp on HeadFi:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/607048/audi...er-vs-fiio-e17
http://www.head-fi.org/t/507559/list...work-with-ipad

SGS2 & Samsung SII Car Dock:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...audio&page=291
"I have today received an Official Samsung SII Car Dock.
The dock has 1 USB connector (that goes into the phone) that is then split out into a USB power input and a Audio Jack input."

http://review.cyanogenmod.com/#change,14046
"Found that the dock usb analogue device (dock) emits the status 2 (which is the value for usb digital for (usb_audio)"

Thanks for the reply DanBa. However, I'm already running CM9 on my I777. I've already asked Entropy about a USB DAC and he says he doesn't have one, so he doesn't know if it'll work or not. I guess if I got him one, he could make it work :-)

I have the Dock Audio working. The links you provided are a little mis-leading. The USB Dock audio is actually just analog audio out. The reason I want the DAC is that I'm hoping it'll prevent alternator noise from the engine. That gets annoying, fast. With the noise reduction adapter I have (i think it's just a wire wrapped around a ferrite core), you lose some of the highs and lows. I'm really just trying to get comparable sound from my Android that I have from my iPhone. This could be a losing battle. I'll check out the Head-Fi posts. Thanks!!
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post #21 of 148
4/28/12 at 8:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ap1 View Post

You will unlikely need lossless audio in the car. Noise level and overall distracion won't let you appreciate high resolution audio. So convenience of keeping your phone in the pocket will outweight loss of sound quality.

Actually my autos have pretty good sound systems, so I prefer lossless (everywhere, really).

Issue starred, thanks for making us aware.
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post #22 of 148
5/4/12 at 2:35am
Thread Starter 
"[64GB + 64GB] #GalaxySIII includes an USB driver named "snd-usb-audio" [ALSA USB audio driver]. Only testing will tell if it means USB DAC are supported out of the box." [Supercurio]
https://twitter.com/#!/supercurio/st...18860128780289


The Google issue "Enable USB audio", requesting Google to standardize USB audio on Android smartphones/tablets, is currently ranked 12 of 21,436.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

It is ranked in top 2 of less than one-year-old requests.

Vote: Click on the star (it appears after signing in)
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post #23 of 148
5/4/12 at 1:38pm
I know it's not usb audio but I found this to be a nice upgraded driver for the Exynos based Galaxy S2's out there.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...o.louder&hl=en
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post #24 of 148
5/17/12 at 4:46pm
Thread Starter 
USB audio is enabled on Texas Instruments Blaze tablet, which is targeted at developers.
http://omappedia.org/wiki/USB_on_Blaze_Tablet_with_ICS
http://www.svtronics.com/products/5-...pment-platform

"The two HS USB ports are the standard High Speed Host ports and are used for connecting devices like Mouse, Keyboard, USB stick, Camera, USB audio Headset/speakers etc. Also, many customers use the EHCI interface for Modem Connection. If you connect a camera to this port, you can browse the pics on the SD card in camera in the gallery using the PTP daemon in ICS. Also, you can connect USB Headset or speakers and play audio over USB."

"On Blaze if you plug in a USB audio device, all audio will be routed to the device."
http://music.columbia.edu/pipermail/...il/000614.html


The Google issue "Enable USB audio", requesting Google to standardize USB audio on Android smartphones/tablets, is currently ranked 11 of 22,586.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

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post #25 of 148
5/19/12 at 2:58pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:


"[64GB + 64GB] #GalaxySIII includes an USB driver named "snd-usb-audio" [ALSA USB audio driver]. Only testing will tell if it means USB DAC are supported out of the box." [Supercurio]
https://twitter.com/#!/supercurio/st...18860128780289

"The Samsung Galaxy S III: AndroidNZ goes hands-on, brings you our thoughts and exclusive details
...and what about those USB audio drivers?

Anyone with a passing familiarity with me will know this was one of the questions I most wanted an answer to. You see Supercurio was able to ascertain that USB audio drivers are present on the S3, only there was no way for him to know whether they work out of the box.

Sadly it seems they do not.
To my great disappointment there was no audio output on connecting my FiiO E17 USB DAC and headphone amplifier. I guess we'll just have to keep waiting for some enterprising developer to make use of those orphaned drivers that are just sitting there on the S3..."
http://www.androidnz.net/2012/05/sam...idnz-goes.html


The Google request "Enable USB Audio" has reached the Top 10 of the Google issue rankings.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

Vote: Click on the star (it appears after signing in)
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post #26 of 148
5/26/12 at 9:37am
Thread Starter 
Like the overwhelming majority of factory or stock Android devices, with the exception of the Archos G9 tablet and the developer-targeted Texas Instruments Blaze tablet, the factory Linux-powered Logitech Squeezebox Touch does not support USB DACs.

The USB audio is enabled manually on Squeezebox Touch:
http://www.digitalaudioreview.net.au...ueezebox-touch

The latest method uses an applet which allows a custom kernel to be installed and provides menus to select the audio output device.
This custom kernel can support 24-bit/192KHz USB DACs. It can also support asynchronous USB DACs which sound theoretically better than the legacy adaptive USB DACs.
http://www.digitalaudioreview.net.au...ueezebox-touch
http://forums.slimdevices.com/showth...ty-impressions

The Google request "Enable USB Audio" has reached the Top 9 of the Google issue rankings.
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...14&sort=-stars

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post #27 of 148
6/2/12 at 12:43am
Thread Starter 
Apparently, the USB audio feature is enabled on factory Samsung Galaxy S III:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/show...&postcount=133

"I got my sgs3 a few hours ago and just plugged it into my Topping tp30 USB DAC/amp and it's playing audio through it to my speakers!!!"


Affordable hi-fi rig:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13645_3-20...?tag=txt;title

music stored on SGS3 > SGS3 player > digital audio stream >> USB cable >> USB DAC/amp Topping TP30 >> speakers










Keep lobbying for the Android USB audio standardisation (i.e.USB DAC as a standard USB device, like a USB mass storage device, for Android smartphone/tablet).
http://code.google.com/p/android/iss...ummary%20Stars

Vote: Click on the star (it appears after signing in)
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post #28 of 148
6/9/12 at 12:16pm
Thread Starter 
Samsung Galaxy S III interworks with USB DAC/amp FiiO E7:
http://www.androidnz.net/2012/06/galaxy-s-iii-usb-audio-is-it-really.html

music stored on SGS3 > SGS3 player > digital audio stream >> USB OTG cable >> USB DAC/amp FiiO E7 >> headphones


Samsung Galaxy S III triggers a new era of Hi-Fi for the masses with affordable rig:

. affordable (subsidized) smartphone

. affordable common USB DAC/amp compliant with PC/Mac, like FiiO E7 (us$80)
http://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier-Black/dp/B003N0XDT4/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1339194973&sr=8-4
NwAvGuy geek’s verdict: "The biggest compliment I can pay the E7 is I can’t find much I would change for a portable product in this price category."
http://nwavguy.blogspot.fr/2011/05/fiio-e7-usb-dac-amp.html
"Clearly, the E7 is priced very competitively, and I consider it a good product — not some cheap Chinese stuff. Not only is the E7 packed with features, it also comes with a solid build quality, and a solid sound quality as well."
http://www.headfonia.com/fiio-e7-portable-dac/

. affordable headphones, like Digitech Pro Monitor Headphones (us$50), clone of Fischer Audio FA-003, Brainwavz HM5 or Lindy Premium Hi-Fi headphones
http://www.jaycar.us/productView.asp?ID=AA2065
"Now that I've had these for a good month I can honestly say they are my 'New' daily headphones!
I simple love the music that comes from these headphones.
They are beautifully balanced with sparkly highs that are not offensive to the ears, mid's that introduces a 'fun' factor to the music for all genres and lastly lows that are firm, bassy and goes amazingly deep with out distorting or overpowering the rest of the music.
The clarity is excellent with a very nice sound stage and for a 'closed' headphone they do sound quite open and spacious!
Isolation is fantastic especially listening to music or playing games at night.
Comfort is excellent and the 'killer' clamp grip slowly eases after regular use! I've listened to these all night and in to the early morning without wanting to take them off!"
http://www.head-fi.org/products/digitech-pro-monitor-headphones/reviews/6900


526783_4214956938095_263849481_n.jpg


Keep lobbying for the Android USB audio standardisation (i.e.USB DAC as a standard USB device, like a USB mass storage device, for Android smartphone/tablet).
http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=24614&sort=-stars&colspec=ID%20Type%20Status%20Owner%20Summary%20Stars

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post #29 of 148
6/11/12 at 11:15am
Great thread. Does anyone know if the SGS3 can also be used to capture audio through a class compliant audio interface?
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post #30 of 148
6/16/12 at 1:48pm
Thread Starter 
A digital audio rig:
http://www.androidnz.net/2012/06/samsung-g...ivity-demo.html

music stored on Samsung Galaxy S III > Samsung Galaxy S III player > digital audio stream >> USB OTG cable >> USB DAC/amp FiiO E7 >> Logitech speaker


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