Pixel 6 and 6 Pro make peace with audiophiles: DAC problems solved

As we have reported to you in the past few days, the most recent Pixel smartphones have received a lot of news with the June update: in one fell swoop the June security patches, the QPR3 version of the operating system and a new one arrived. Feature Drop. But for the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, the most recent top of the range produced by the company, there is also another novelty, not expressly documented, but very welcome: the resolution, after months, of technical problems in the use of external DACs.

DACs (Digital-Analog Converters) are an accessory particularly appreciated by audiophiles: in fact they are USB dongles that connect to the USB port of the smartphone, process the signal and then send it to the headphones – or any other playback terminal that desires it. user. How long have they been out the Pixel 6 were able to interact with the DACs only if these Not they had complete control over the audio processing without going through the built-in Android driver – a requirement, it could be argued, indispensable to ensure the best possible listening experience.

Already around the month of March, with the first beta of the QPR3 update, traces of one had been noticed a feature known as Direct USB Access that, although its purpose was not explicitly mentioned, it hinted, even only from the name, a correlation to the DAC question. So it was: and now that QPR3 begins to spread in the community, the first positive responses are also arriving.

Put very simply, now the DACs work as expected. If you too find yourself in this situation and want to check for yourself that the issue has been resolved, just use USB Audio Player Pro, which you can find on the Play Store (costs € 7.49). It should no longer show limited feature alerts and reports with the latest Google smartphones. If the update hasn’t arrived yet, your best option is to hold on for a few more days; but if you are reasonably experienced and geek, you can proceed with the manual installation of the OTA Image. The links are below:

• Pixel 6 Pro: SQ3A.220605.009.B1 OTA
• Pixel 6: SQ3A.220605.009.B1 OTA

• Google Pixel 6 Pro is available online a 699 euros or from eBay to 769 euros.
• Google Pixel 6 is available online a 512 euros or from eBay to 609 euros.

Available on: Pixel 6 Pro at 770 euros and Pixel 6 at 580 euros. (Update of 10 June 2022, 09:37)