I was swapping systems anyway so I took the extra seconds to test out both amps. TLDR: Don't lose sleep about alleged differences between systems of this quality. The Sony amp is a post-2010 amp with all the bells and whistles, so one might conclude that all recent mid-fi systems are just as good as the new class Ds.
test 1:
sony receiver vs amd asrock b650 DAC / 3.5mm audio jack
sony
pixel 3a
headphone jack
mediocre 3.5mm-> RCA cable (~4 ft)
set to mono out in android accessibility options
b650
mpc-hc
set to mono out in settings (L and R in signal -> both speakers in output)
procedure:
play michael jackson - wanna be startin' somethin on both. I.e. one speaker per system. attempt to sync the audio track on both. switch between muting each device. This is a track I know intimately and use to demo speakers.
results: 95% no difference. maybe a slight win to the b650. if there is such a difference, my guesses are:
mediocre cable quality
phone DAC
test 2:
usb 16 bit WAV playback on sony
vs
Aiyima
linux
vlc
result: both systems sounded the same.
test 1:
sony receiver vs amd asrock b650 DAC / 3.5mm audio jack
sony
pixel 3a
headphone jack
mediocre 3.5mm-> RCA cable (~4 ft)
set to mono out in android accessibility options
b650
mpc-hc
set to mono out in settings (L and R in signal -> both speakers in output)
procedure:
play michael jackson - wanna be startin' somethin on both. I.e. one speaker per system. attempt to sync the audio track on both. switch between muting each device. This is a track I know intimately and use to demo speakers.
results: 95% no difference. maybe a slight win to the b650. if there is such a difference, my guesses are:
mediocre cable quality
phone DAC
test 2:
usb 16 bit WAV playback on sony
vs
Aiyima
linux
vlc
result: both systems sounded the same.