Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 Review: Give Your iPhone the Hi-Res Bluetooth Audio Apple Left Out

Questyle is a Chinese manufacturer of specialized audio electronics. Their product lines include devices and accessories for maximizing personal, desktop, and wireless Hi-Fi experiences. Products include DAC (Digital-to-Analog) / headphone amplifiers, earphones, and audio adapters. In this review, we examine the brand’s flagship Bluetooth transmitter, the Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2.

What Is It?

The Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 is an ultra-portable, plug-and-play wireless audio gateway that enables iPhones, iPads, and Macs to communicate using the latest high-resolution codecs.

For those not familiar with codecs, specifically audio codecs, an audio codec is a hardware or software technology that encodes and decodes digital audio, enabling efficient storage, streaming, and transmission. It processes audio signals by compressing data, removing redundant or less noticeable information, and balancing quality with file size to ensure smooth playback across different devices and network conditions.

Progress in improving the sonic fidelity of digital audio and wireless devices has been continual since their inception. Over the last decade, many new technologies have been developed and adopted, including the high-resolution codecs LDAC, aptX (HD / Adaptive / Lossless), and LHDC-V5.

Currently, iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Windows computers do not support high-resolution Bluetooth codecs and therefore cannot recognize the full potential of premium wireless headphones. The QCC Dongle Pro2 was created to address this shortcoming by providing the technology that enables LDAC, aptX, LHDC, and other hi-res audio codecs for these devices.

Since most consumers aren’t up to date on the latest developments in wireless audio, it would be a good idea for QCC to provide more education in this area. For instance, it may not be obvious to everyone that, because iOS source devices such as iPhones and iPads are not yet LDAC-compliant, Apple AirPods are not compatible with the Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2.

What is LDAC?

From Wikipedia:

LDAC is a proprietary, lossy audio coding technology developed by Sony, designed for streaming audio over Bluetooth connections at up to 990 kbps at 32 bits/96 kHz (high-resolution audio quality)^. It is used by various products, including headphones, earphones, smartphones, portable media players, active speakers, and home theaters.

Audio coding

On 17 September 2019, the Japan Audio Society (JAS) certified LDAC with its Hi-Res Audio Wireless certification. As of June 2024, JAS-certified codecs that bear the Hi-Res Audio Wireless logo include LHDC, LDAC, SCL6, LC3plus, SHDC, and aptX Adaptive.

Currently, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Windows still do not support LDAC. On macOS and Windows, you can use an additional Bluetooth audio transmitter that supports LDAC, but you’ll need a special driver from the manufacturer. On Apple and Microsoft operating systems, you can use the AAC wireless codec as a fallback.

What’s in the Box

• QCC Dongle Pro2 Lossless Bluetooth Transmitter
• USB Type-C to USB Type-A Adapter
• Warranty Card
• Instructions

Design and Build Quality

The Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 is a very small device that attaches to your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or PC via USB-C or through the included USB-C to USB-A adapter. The device measures .99” wide by .4” high by .6” deep (25.2 x 10.3 x 15.25 mm) and weighs .08 ounces (2.2 gr).

It is made of glossy black plastic that has a subtle opalescence. The front of the unit features the Questyle logo and Pro2 moniker. The only other feature is the LED indicator light on the top face, which changes based on status: red for LDAC / aptX Adaptive / aptX Lossless / LHDC Codec; white for aptX HD / aptX Codec; blue for SBC / LC3 Codec. Red and blue lights flash for Pairing Mode, and a flashing blue light indicates Reconnection Status.

Compatibility

The QCC Dongle Pro2 works with a wide range of source devices including the Sony PlayStation 5, the Nintendo Switch, PCs, iPhones, iPads and Macs. Although not compatible with Apple AirPods, the Pro2 works with LDAC-compliant Bluetooth headsets, sound bars, Bluetooth speakers and earbuds.

The dongle can also transmit high-quality audio wirelessly to a high-performance DAC and amplification system such as Questyle’s M 18i. This lets users connect wired Hi-Fi headphones and desktop Hi-Fi systems to wireless digital audio sources.

The Pro2 is also MFi certified, meaning that it has been tested and approved by Apple to meet its performance, safety, and compatibility standards as well as long-term iOS support for iPhone, iPad and iPod devices.

Supports Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows 11, Linux, Android, HarmonyOS. Mac OS and iOS systems.

The design of the dongle itself is that of a horizontally oriented rectangle with proportions more than twice as wide as it is high or deep. This configuration suits smartphones and tablets especially well, but less so laptops.

Such is the case with my ASUS ProArt laptop that features two USB-A and two USB-C ports. On one side, one USB-A and one USB-C sit side by side, and the dongle fits easily; on the other side, those same ports sit next to the power input and an HDMI port. The space allotted for the USB-C cable is fine for most cases, but the dongle is too wide. If this were your only option, you would need to use the USB-A adapter if you had that port free, or buy a cable adapter.

Set Up

The dongle is plug-and-play, with one important caveat: you must have an LDAC-compatible device to connect to. If you have one, and you should, otherwise you can’t take advantage of this product, then the process is quick and easy. Just plug the dongle into your iPhone (or other compatible device), download and open the Questyle app, and search for and pair with your desired Bluetooth device.

Questyle App

The related free app is available for iOS and Android. It provides access to a variety of features, including pairing with devices, upgrading the firmware, restoring the factory settings, toggling Auracast and Game Mode (more on these later), and selecting the desired codec. Available codecs include Qualcomm’s aptX, aptX Adaptive, and aptX HD, as well as LHDC, LDAC, LE Audio, and SBC.

The app also provides access to product manuals, language settings, and a link to the Questyle website, amongst other features.

Performance

As mentioned earlier, the Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 supports hi-res wireless audio codecs for iOS devices. It also supports LDAC (not an acronym but Sony’s name for its proprietary Bluetooth audio coding technology) for premium headphones, enabling output at up to 990kbps.

The Pro2 supports premium headsets such as those from Sony, Sennheiser, Bose, Bowers & Wilkins and Technics. Other manufacturers’ headphones may also be compatible. In this test, I used the Audeze Maxwell wireless gaming headset. For a list of LDAC ‘whitelisted’ headphones tested by Questyle, please see the Questyle website.

The Pro2 dongle offers new features not found on the previous versions, including Bluetooth 6.1, which improves interference resistance, stability, and sync latency, especially in environments with significant signal traffic such as public transportation, public spaces, and office environments.

Another less obvious benefit of the Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 is that it adds an independent Bluetooth audio output that isn’t limited by the computer’s Bluetooth specifications, drivers, or native support, ensuring the highest sound quality, lowest latency, and most stable connections.

Similarly, when paired with compatible headphones, the QCC Dongle Pro2 provides low-latency gaming through codecs such as aptX Adaptive on the Sony PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and other handheld gaming consoles. It claims latency as low as 48ms with aptX Adaptive and 20ms with LE Audio Low Latency Mode, with headphones built on the latest Qualcomm Gen 2 Sound Platform.

The QCC Dongle Pro2 supports LE Audio, the next-generation Bluetooth audio architecture, a low-power audio standard representing the continuing evolution of Bluetooth audio in transmission efficiency, connection architecture, and power consumption. Thus, the Pro2 is ready today for future headphones and speakers as they adopt the new standard.

Another feature of the Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 is its compatibility with Auracast, One-to-Many audio broadcasting, which lets multiple users with Auracast-compatible headsets share the signal from televisions, gaming consoles, and other digital audio sources. This new technology opens new shared listening scenarios at home, the office, public spaces, and for hearing assistance.

The increased compatibility, improved stability, reduced latency, and reduced interference are all excellent, but how does it sound? I tend to come back to a few of my favorite musical selections when testing audio devices, and one that I find truly revealing is a Denon Essentials recording of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake (Moscow RTV Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Vladimir Fedoseyev). I particularly like the No. 5a, b Pas de Deux: Andante, whose violin solo transitions from its initial subtle beauty to a playful back-and-forth with the full orchestra.

This recording sounds good on decent headphones, but with the right equipment, the experience becomes much more powerful. In some cases, the sonic stage is so wide that you can pinpoint individual instruments within the recording space. The better the gear, the more you can appreciate the space in which music was recorded. A faster Bluetooth connection elevates the experience of any compatible headphones. I am very happy with the performance of the QCC Dongle Pro2 and look forward to testing it with better and better headsets.

Specifications

The Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 is a specialty product for those wishing to get the most out of their digital audio devices, especially those with premium headsets and other high-end audio speakers. It enables users of the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows PC, Switch, or PS5 to use the latest high-fidelity audio technologies for higher-quality sound, lower latency, and more stable wireless audio.

The Questyle QCC Dongle Pro2 retails for $99.00 and is available directly from the manufacturer and other retailers, including Amazon.

Source: Manufacturer-supplied review sample

What I Like: Enables LDAC on iOS devices; Enables Bluetooth 6.1; Enables Auracast; Plug and Play; Tiny form factor

What Needs Improvement: Dongle may be too wide for some port spacings