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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want an all-in-one travel kit that turns a plane's seat-back jack into a Bluetooth link and also hands you two pairs of earbuds, choose Avantree Voyager & Avantalk; if you need a serious portable DAC/amp for wired headphones that also does aptX Adaptive and LDAC over Bluetooth, choose Questyle M18i.
• Avantree Voyager & Avantalk — biggest strength: a complete, self-contained travel package. It's a Bluetooth 5.4 transmitter with an OLED screen for pairing, plus two pairs of earbuds in one case (one ANC, one semi-open), Auracast support, and LE Audio with the LC3 codec.
• Avantree Voyager & Avantalk — biggest trade-off: it can't pair two headphones over classic Bluetooth, and it's aimed at convenience listening rather than critical headphone driving — there's no dedicated amplifier, no balanced output, and no wired headphone stage.
• Questyle M18i — biggest strength: genuine audiophile hardware. An ESS ES9219Q DAC, dual outputs (3.5mm unbalanced and 4.4mm balanced), manual gain, 60 volume steps, a 0.0002% distortion figure, and Bluetooth 5.4 with aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, LDAC and LE Audio.
• Questyle M18i — biggest trade-off: no earbuds included, no noise cancelling, an 8-hour battery with a 100-minute charge time, and it expects you to bring your own wired or wireless headphones. It's also the more specialized, "sit down and listen" device.
• Who each pick is for: the Avantree set is for travelers, flyers and casual listeners who want everything in one box; the Questyle M18i is for headphone owners chasing better sound from their phone, laptop or PC.
This is a product built around a very specific annoyance: plugging into an airplane's seat-back entertainment system and being stuck with whatever wired headphones the airline assumes you own. The Voyager transmitter solves that by taking the plane jack and broadcasting it over Bluetooth 5.4, so you can use your own wireless headphones or earbuds. The OLED screen is the detail I appreciate most here — it displays pairing status and connected device info, which turns a fiddly, blind button-mashing routine into something you can actually see and trust in a cramped seat.
The second half of the package is the Infinity earbuds: two pairs in one case, one with active noise cancelling for focus and one semi-open for all-day comfort. That's a clever split, because those two styles genuinely suit different moments — ANC when you're trying to drown out engine drone, semi-open when you want to stay aware of your surroundings on a walk or in an office. There's also Auracast support via the Avantalk app for finding and joining shared broadcasts, plus LE Audio with the LC3 codec, which the spec sheet ties to lower power use, a stronger connection and clearer sound, with ultra-low latency for gaming and video.
Who should buy it? Frequent flyers, commuters, and anyone who wants one purchase to cover both "connect to the plane screen" and "I need earbuds." It's also a natural fit for group or public listening thanks to Auracast. Who should skip it? If your priority is extracting maximum fidelity from a pair of high-impedance wired headphones, this isn't that product — there's no amplifier stage, no balanced output, and no wired headphone path. Note too that the transmitter can't pair two headphones via classic Bluetooth, so if you were hoping to share one movie audio stream with a travel companion over standard Bluetooth, that's a real limitation to plan around.
The M18i Max is a different species of device. It's a portable USB DAC and headphone amplifier that also happens to be a Bluetooth receiver, and its whole reason for existing is sound quality. At the center is an ESS flagship ES9219Q DAC chip, developed through collaboration between Questyle and ESS around what Questyle calls its TTA DAC framework. Around that sit two patented quad-core Current Mode Amplifier SiP modules, which Questyle credits with powerful drive, delicate timbre, and an ultra-low distortion figure of 0.0002%.
Physically and functionally, it's set up for people who own real headphones. You get both a 3.5mm unbalanced output and a 4.4mm balanced output, manual gain control to match different headphones and audio systems, and volume buttons with 60 levels of loudness. There's an MFB button for pairing and playback control in Bluetooth mode, and the unit switches seamlessly between lossless Bluetooth and USB DAC modes — so it can serve as your phone or laptop's outboard sound card when wired, and as a wireless receiver when not.
On the wireless side, the spec sheet is notably complete: Bluetooth 5.4 with Qualcomm Snapdragon Sound, supporting AAC, SBC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, LE Audio and LDAC at up to 24-bit/96kHz. Questyle states the aptX Adaptive and aptX HD codecs deliver CD-quality 16-bit/44.1kHz losslessly and high-resolution 24-bit/48kHz and 96kHz over wireless earbuds and headphones. The chassis is aluminum, it weighs 3.52 ounces, and there's a 12-month warranty.
Who should buy it? Anyone with a decent pair of wired headphones — especially balanced-capable ones — who wants dramatically better sound from a phone, PC or laptop, and who also wants strong Bluetooth codec support when going wireless. Who should skip it? Travelers who want earbuds included, anyone who needs active noise cancelling (the M18i has none), and people who want to listen for a whole long-haul flight without charging — the battery is rated at 8 hours with a 100-minute charge time.
• Best for airplane and travel use → Avantree Voyager & Avantalk. The OLED-screen Bluetooth 5.4 transmitter is purpose-built for seat-back jacks and quick pairing.
• Best for sound quality with wired headphones → Questyle M18i. Dedicated ESS DAC, dual 3.5mm/4.4mm outputs, manual gain, and a 0.0002% distortion spec.
• Best for "everything in one box" → Avantree Voyager & Avantalk. Two pairs of earbuds (ANC + semi-open) are included; the Questyle ships with none.
• Best for balanced-output headphone owners → Questyle M18i. The 4.4mm balanced output is something the Avantree kit simply doesn't offer.
• Best for low-latency gaming and video → Avantree Voyager & Avantalk. LE Audio with LC3 is called out specifically for ultra-low latency audio.
• Best for hi-res wireless codecs → Questyle M18i. aptX Adaptive, aptX HD and LDAC up to 24-bit/96kHz versus the Avantree's LC3/LE Audio focus.
• Best for listening all day without a charge → Avantree Voyager & Avantalk. The Questyle M18i is rated at 8 hours with a 100-minute charge time.
• Best for group or public audio sharing → Avantree Voyager & Avantalk. Auracast support lets you discover and join shared broadcasts.
• Best for a phone/laptop DAC upgrade → Questyle M18i. USB DAC mode plus Bluetooth mode in one aluminum-bodied unit.
In my opinion, these two don't really compete for the same buyer, so I'd pick based on what's missing from your setup. If you fly, want earbuds included, and want the simplest possible path from a plane jack to your ears, I'd buy the Avantree Voyager & Avantalk — the OLED pairing screen, Auracast, LE Audio/LC3 and the two-pair earbud case make it the more useful everyday travel object.
If instead you already own good headphones — particularly balanced ones — and you want the biggest jump in fidelity from your phone or laptop, I'd buy the Questyle M18i. The ESS ES9219Q DAC, dual outputs, manual gain and aptX Adaptive/LDAC support are aimed squarely at sound quality, and that's a job the Avantree kit was never designed to do. Check the current price on Amazon before deciding, since the value math shifts with whatever each is going for at the time.
what is aptx adaptive headphones
aptX Adaptive is a Qualcomm Bluetooth audio codec. In these two products it appears in a specific way: the Questyle M18i's spec sheet lists aptX Adaptive support alongside aptX HD, LDAC and LE Audio via Snapdragon Sound, and describes it as delivering CD-quality 16-bit/44.1kHz losslessly and high-resolution 24-bit/48kHz and 96kHz over wireless earbuds and headphones. The Avantree Voyager & Avantalk, by contrast, emphasizes LE Audio with the LC3 codec and Auracast rather than aptX Adaptive.
Is the Questyle M18i better than the Avantree Voyager for sound quality?
On the specs, yes — the M18i has a dedicated ESS ES9219Q DAC, an amplifier stage, 3.5mm and 4.4mm outputs, manual gain and a 0.0002% distortion figure. The Avantree kit is a Bluetooth transmitter with earbuds and no dedicated amplification. For critical headphone listening I'd choose the Questyle; for convenience and travel I'd choose the Avantree.
The spec sheet states it can't pair two headphones via classic Bluetooth. So for shared listening, plan around that limitation — the Auracast feature is about discovering and joining shared broadcasts rather than pairing two sets of headphones the classic way.
Not necessarily. If you're happy with how your wireless headphones sound, the Avantree Voyager & Avantalk covers travel, plane-jack audio, Auracast and low-latency LE Audio. The Questyle M18i makes more sense if you also own wired headphones and want a proper DAC/amp path plus strong Bluetooth codec support in the same device.
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