Transcript for:
Moondrop MIAD 01 - Audiophile's Choice

This phone is so special that it deserves your attention. Now, there are two reasons for it. These two. Yes, this is the only phone that comes with two headphone jacks. A common 3.5 mm audio jack that we still see in some phones a bigger 4.4 mm balanced jack that we have never seen on a smartphone like ever. Well, this is the Moondrop Mobile Internet Audio Device on MIAD 01. For those who don't know, Moondrop is an audio brand which is known for very good IEMs and headphones and this is their first phone aimed at audiophiles. They have designed this phone specifically for people who want to experience their music in the best way possible. Think of it like a HiFi audio device that's also a smartphone. Let's talk details now. First of all, this phone does look nice and stands out. Even without the LEDs. It's a plastic body with a curved OLED screen and uniform bezels all around. The phone is on the heavier side but does feel alright in the hands. There's this bump at the top, which is to house the dual DACs and dual headphone jacks. Apart from that, you also get a dual hybrid SIM slot expandable up to 2TB, which is really good. Now, when it comes to audio-related specs and features, there's plenty to talk about but before I do so, a quick disclaimer, I am a beginner audiophile. Okay, so you get dual headphone jacks; dual flagship DACs, although they haven't specified which ones, but it's speculated to be Cirrus Logic CS43198 a 6 layer audio circuit with interference shield to reduce RF interferences which can be audible in some DACs, a dynamic range of 132dBs and lastly, it bypasses the SRC of Android. Now, these are some impressive specs but when I unboxed this phone, the first question that came to my mind is that what is the difference between a 3.5mm jack and a 4.4mm balanced jack? Well, some of you might already know this, but for those who don't, in simple terms, a 4.4mm jack, due to its size, has better conductivity and less resistance which results in better audio output but at the same time, its power consumption is more than that of a 3.5mm jack. In-fact, the 4.4mm balanced jack has 2 left and 2 right outputs so the sound stage gets wider and the surround effect is also better compared to the 3.5mm jack. It's quite noticeable in songs like Bohemian Rhapsody and the output gets very loud as well. Let me show you. This is the output from my phone, this one from my laptop. And this is the sound from these headphones. Who needs a speaker when you have this? I also tested the audio output with these IEMs and these headphones. By the way, we spent 20,000 rupees on these headphones and wires just to test the 4.4 mm jack. Now, Moondrop does power all these earphones and headphones pretty well and it can output a 32-bit 192Khz via both the ports, pretty Hi-Res for sure. I listened to a variety of songs ranging from 'Bad Guy', 'When I Grow Up', The Box' and more, and the audio experience was very very good. Even an entry-level IEM like the KZ EDX Pro that costs its 990 rupees can beat any TWS and a 5K easily in terms of sound quality. As for the sound signature, it is very slightly different from the Sony Walkman. Some people in our office like Sony, while some chose the Moondrop. It was a close call. One thing though, you get a lot of audio customizations on Sony, while you get only this much with the Moondrop. And if you're thinking of pairing it with your Bluetooth earphones, it only supports LDAC and not AptX or LHDC. Now, all said and done, if you are an audiophile who wants a very good Digital Audio Player that happens to be a smartphone, then this is it. In-fact, LG smartphones are still very popular among audiophiles because they had the best audio hardware on any mobile ever, including their trademark Quad DAC. Now that LG no longer sells smartphones and all the other brands are removing headphone jack, there's a huge gap in the industry for audiophiles, who prefer quality music over the convenience of going wireless. For those specific set of people, this device makes a lot of sense. Now if I talk about the rest of the phone. It's running on Android 13, the specs is okayish, there's no protection on the front glass and you also don't get a charger in the box. The cameras? Well, we didn't test it because we didn't have to. The company itself mentioned on their product page that "It's not good, but works". So why? Why take the effort? I really appreciate the honesty here. I wish other brands were that honest especially Xiaomi with HyperOS, Samsung with Exynos and Apple with pricing. What do you guys think? On a serious note, the company is not making any profit out of this phone. They are doing it only to improve the audio experience on smartphones because it's getting worse day by day, and no one else is doing it. So, kudos to Moondrop for bringing the phone for the audiophiles. I hope they continue improving this lineup with time. That said, I hope you enjoyed watching this video. If you did, press that like button and subscribe to our channel for more amazing tech videos. Thank you for watching, and I'll see you in the next one.