CrinEar Protocol Micro Ultra-Portable DAC-Amplifier

Perfect for anyone getting their first dongle.

I already have a JM12, so that will be my baseline comparison. Also, I got my Protocol Micro from the Nightfall Bundle, so I basically got it for free. Build: - Loving the threaded cable. Since it is flexible and thin, you can fold the dongle for travel. Also makes it that you don't have a stiff cable dangling at the bottom of your phone when in use. The connections also feels more snug compared to my JM12. PEQ: - Definitely works as intended and using the graph and EQ tools has been very straightforward. - Unfortunately, you need a PC or MacOS (does not work in Linux too) to actually connect it. Hoping for an app or more OS supports in the future. Overall worth it for it's price.

Cheapest decent option for PEQ, with important drawbacks

It's a dongle dac at $10 with PEQ! If your IEM costs less than ~$150, just buy it, set it up once, and leave it! Consider it a way to re-tune an IEM on the cheap with minimal fuss. Drawbacks: - There's no way to change the PEQ settings on Android even via a web browser, it needs a PC with USB C. Consider it less a mobile PEQ solution and more of a set-and-forget way to retune a specific IEM. - It doesn't support low shelf and high shelf filters. They upload in the app but silently do nothing. (Measured via audio loopback into line in and calculation of FR.) - If you set a preamp headroom value and then push an EQ, the preamp gets reset and silently leads to clipping. Preamp must be pushed AFTER any EQ. - There is a slight hiss, audible on high sensitivity IEMs like the Daybreak and Reference, but it's generally not annoying. I wouldn't use it on a high-end IEM like the Crinear Reference. The next cheapest option is FiiO'2 $20 snowsky offering which may not be compatible with your phone case. It still has some level of hiss, but it fixes all of the software issues including high/low shelf support and having a working (but relatively annoying) PEQ mobile app.

Exactly what I was looking for

The ports feel sturdy, cable seems decently strong. One mod I would do is to wrap it in electrical tape for increased durability. Very pleased with my purchase