DAC Recommendations - $500 or less

[mkrzych]

If headphone out is important to you, then you're looking for an "all-in-one" unit with an amplifier circuit attached.

 

The Musical Fidelity M1 DAC is more "DAC" as it only does Digital to Analog conversion. If you're a purist who's out for the best sound quality, then you'll usually find it with two separate units. All-in-one units have good synergy equaling to great sound quality due to the builder being in control to implement it in a way where coloration and such is at a minimal, whereas with two separate units become more of a search for synergy. For example, If you were to have a bright DAC and a bright AMP then the two will not synegize well into a neutral tone thus giving you excessive high frequency sound. This is why audio hobby is subjective and the reason you should "LISTEN" for yourself to see if it fits you as a unique individual before you run off and purchase something off of impulse.

 

All-in-ones are great, however like with all great things, there comes cons such as added noise due to multiple transformers, not having enough room to get the best out each separate unit, shared ground, not high enough output current for power hungry headphones, heat issues, etc.

 

That's more theoretical statements, but other side of the coin is "if all of this is audible". I know that purist audiophile will pick up the separate segments, but that introduce the cost and more interconnects which may pick up the noise as well.

[Timothy Hoang]

That's more theoretical statements, but other side of the coin is "if all of this is audible". I know that purist audiophile will pick up the separate segments, but that introduce the cost and more interconnects which may pick up the noise as well.

 

Like what i say with everything, take it with a grain of salt. You choose what information you want to filter, it's totally up to you.

 

If they're not theoretical statements then i don't know what is. Obviously there is no definite word here when it comes to idiosyncratic listening. These various designs are audible otherwise there wouldn't be so many different implementations. There are many forms of audibility in which you're speaking of, though you have to agree that there many types of sound characteristics (warm/cold/neutral) here in which i'm addressing to. I'm not pointing toward recommendations of lowest THD amps or upgrading power cables here which falls into that "if all of this is audible category" of yours. This is a comparison level such as one similar to comparing operational amplifiers (OP-AMPS) for tonal balance.

 

I agree with you regarding the use of separate units. Extra cable runs, sometimes too long, along with purchases of unshielded RCA or XLR will add to that noise pickup (trust me, i've seen plenty). In general, both all-in-one and separate unit routes have wrinkles. Life isn't perfect. Go with the gut feeling. That way you'll feel at least some form of happiness.

 

P.S.

I like your Dali Mentor 2 setup.

[mkrzych]

Like what i say with everything, take it with a grain of salt. You choose what information you want to filter, it's totally up to you.

 

If they're not theoretical statements then i don't know what is. Obviously there is no definite word here when it comes to idiosyncratic listening. These various designs are audible otherwise there wouldn't be so many different implementations. There are many forms of audibility in which you're speaking of, though you have to agree that there many types of sound characteristics (warm/cold/neutral) here in which i'm addressing to. I'm not pointing toward recommendations of lowest THD amps or upgrading power cables here which falls into that "if all of this is audible category" of yours. This is a comparison level such as one similar to comparing operational amplifiers (OP-AMPS) for tonal balance.

 

I agree with you regarding the use of separate units. Extra cable runs, sometimes too long, along with purchases of unshielded RCA or XLR will add to that noise pickup (trust me, i've seen plenty). In general, both all-in-one and separate unit routes have wrinkles. Life isn't perfect. Go with the gut feeling. That way you'll feel at least some form of happiness.

 

P.S.

I like your Dali Mentor 2 setup.

 

Mostly I agree. We are not listening to parameters, but those are useful for some kind of comparison and early filtering what to audition later.

 

P.S.

Thanks. They are still at the burn-in state - I need around 30h more. I like your HD800 cans - way too much for my budget ;-)

[DSDMate]

ES9018 chip can support max 500k sample rate with 32bit through I2S path. So DXD 384 is useful and valid for ADEA-I DAC.

But i don't know which DAC chip can do DXD 768? Who can tell me?

Thanks.

[copy_of_a]

I'm looking for recommendations for a DAC, $500

 

here are more of my specific requirements:

 

* Defeatable ASRC.

* Balanced and unbalanced outputs.

* USB 2.0, optical and coax inputs.

 

NAD D1050 DAC

 

2 reviews:

SoundStage! Access | SoundStageAccess.com (GoodSound.com) | NAD D 1050 Digital-to-Analog Converter

NAD D 1050 USB Digital to Analog Converter | AudioStream