Great idea and pencil skills!

Do you wanna take the Grados outside? You know that they are open? I do take my SR60s outside from time to time but everybody passing me, can hear what I listen to.

From a power standpoint, every Bluetooth AMP should be sufficient. As Grado can't change cable without modding, no need to look for a balanced AMP either.

Fiio has a great reputation for products over the last 10 years. So you should be doing fine getting a BTR5. I would choose the BTR7 solely for its 4.4mm output but that is not a think with the Grados as mentioned.

I have worked in Sales and Support for nearly twenty years and if you experience all the problems, the customers have, you start searching for them on your own devices and start doubting your own reason. That's pretty much the same with doing.to much research on possible problems online.

Your Pixel6 asks for allowance. Your DAC recognizes it by indicating the pass through via LED. So I would imagine it works. What it doesn't do is change led colour by audio format. Could that the format is not transmitted. Could also be that the driver doesn't communicate the led change correctly.

What happens to the LED when you plug your DAC into windows and use Tidal from the desktop. My HiBy is much more reliable in terms of LED change with Windows than with my Sony Xperia....

Hi! Do you use Tidal through UAPP? Or do you use the AMP directly with Tidal app?

Does your phone ask if you want to give tidal/UAPP access to your DAC? It has to for the MQA throughput to work. If it doesn't ask, the audio signal is down sampled by Android and then given to the DAC.

Also are you sure, that the light turn red or is it just also red as well as blue to create purple but only if looking from the right angle?

I have a HiBy FC4 which does MQA and indicates quality if the played back file with the LED. And there are times, that I misinterpret the LED because of the viewing angle...

Apart from all this. Does the setup sound great to you? Does it change sound with MQA vs no MQA?

Thank you! Very interesting.

Does the headphone only look like metal or is it really a heavy headphone?

I've never heard of these Headphones. Where are they from and whats their sound like?

Does your Fire have Problems streaming to the fosi? Mine is bugging down heavily when I try to use my external HiBy DAC and Tidal MQA...

I love the Denon. Yet to find a genre, that they don't sound great on!

For Metallica it's a tie at the moment between it and the Sony but I think the Sony will get a little ahead when balanced...

The base though on the Denon is unbelievable pleasing without sacrificing the highs or bleeding into the treble.

I absolutely stoked about them at the moment...

At the moment it's my new Denon AD-H7200 most of the time at home.

When out and about it's my Open-heart Resin iems at the moment after getting my new balanced cable for them.

The Sony MDR-1a get out, when it's Metallica time and will get out a lot more, when their balanced cable arrives later next month.

When I like something different and have time for my tubes or wanna game, it's Grado SR60 most of the time.

The V-Moda M100 are my nostalgic pair and get out least often now adays but sometimes when I'm in a dark jazz mood, they are unmatched still.

My Bluetooth cans (Sony WF 1000XM3 and B&W PX) are mostly used for gracery shopping and have been my work headphones before getting my external mic shortly before Christmas.

Ok. That's helpful.

I always felt that way about Metallica with my Grado and V-Moda M100. The stood all in one place on stage in my head and I never liked them when going mobile.

Than I snatched a pair of Sony MDR-1a for dirt cheap off of eBay and the revelation came. The Sony have really good imaging and soundstage and if nothing else would be great, I would own them just for Metallica. They are great soll around though and super comfy. I will not give them away and they can be upgraded with a balanced cable.

So, hunt down some cheap used Sony MDR-1a as a complement to your Philips would be my suggestion.

GAS = Gear Acquisition Syndrome

FOMO = Fear of missing out

In other words do you miss something real or do you just want to get something new, to get something new.

Looks good to me. What are you lacking? Do you wanna try something different or is it just GAS/FOMO?

I have the Tripowin GrandVia for my Denon AD-H7200 with 4.4mm to dual 3.5. it fits the Hifiman as well and can be bought in different terminations for the player. They aren't cheap but really really nice and worth every penny!