DAC Talk

[Jasonovich]

My first love was my Topping E30 budget DAC, shame it got cooked when we had a power outtage, that's another story!

Topping caught my eye lately with their DX5 II DAC, this hybred design has a lot going for it.
Topping always gave you great value but the neutral linear and transparent sound may not appeal to people who prefer warm colouration to accuracy.

If you have something to share about DACs, love to hear 🙂

View: https://youtu.be/TDgSMFbDJ2A?si=cG81We3si0RjfHss

 

[davidf]

One day I'll set up a demo day for the Chinese "DAC of the day" compared to A.N.Other DAC. I'm not saying these budget DACs don't sound good, but I'm not convinced they're the 'be all and end all' that many seem to think. Many rave about the Eversolo DACs, but from my own experience, they're 'not all that', as some would say. Completely uninvolving. I think too many relate ultra low distortion to 'transparent'. Yeah, low distortion is great, but if the DAC doesn't engage you with the music, it doesn't matter how low the distortion is.

 

[Gray]

My first love was my Topping E30 budget DAC, shame it got cooked when we had a power outtage, that's another story!

Topping caught my eye lately with their DX5 II DAC, this hybred design has a lot going for it.
Topping always gave you great value but the neutral linear and transparent sound may not appeal to people who prefer warm colouration to accuracy.

If you have something to share about DACs, love to hear 🙂

View: https://youtu.be/TDgSMFbDJ2A?si=cG81We3si0RjfHss

I like the look of that new Topping.
Reasonably priced too - great for someone that needs a DAC or headphone amp - and especially someone in need of both.

My first DAC was the original O-DAC (objective DAC) Its designer set out to prove that a good DAC does not need to be expensive.
It tops out at 96kHz, but I've never found that to be a problem.
I still use it, to feed a Topping A50S headphone amp.

ODAC Released

CAREFREE ENJOYMENT: I’ve been listening almost exclusively to the ODAC for several weeks now and I’ve been smiling a lot—not so much at the...

nwavguy.blogspot.com

 

[Jasonovich]

One day I'll set up a demo day for the Chinese "DAC of the day" compared to A.N.Other DAC. I'm not saying these budget DACs don't sound good, but I'm not convinced they're the 'be all and end all' that many seem to think. Many rave about the Eversolo DACs, but from my own experience, they're 'not all that', as some would say. Completely uninvolving. I think too many relate ultra low distortion to 'transparent'. Yeah, low distortion is great, but if the DAC doesn't engage you with the music, it doesn't matter how low the distortion is.

I think I'm going to say something you'll agree. One special component doesn't necessarily transform the sound.

It isn't only about the DAC, it's holistic.
The signature is etched onto the canvas, once you match it up with the right speakers and amp and this means nothing if you don't feed it with a quality source. Dealerships are best place to go for mixing and matching 😊
You hear a lot of DACs and your feedback adds great value to the forums but I do think the Chinese make some excellent HiFi.
Not a bad thing, competition is always good.

 

[RoA]

DAC's 🙂

I have built in amplifier ones from AKM, ESS, a Chord, another one in my FiiO headphone amplifier and a lowly stand alone, tiny dongle one, also ESS I believe, which I bought years ago. That one is now doing duty in my speaker system for streaming (it is imho 'better'than the much newer AKM in my streamer and 'better' than the higher tier ESS's). The Chord is for my CD transport, originally used as headphone amp/DAC.

Saying all this, whilst there are differences they are small and I would be happy to use any for anything.

Amplifier, speakers (and room/positioning) make a bigger difference (imo).

I do not dabble in ladder or tube DAC's.

This Topping DAC looks great but Topping have a history of in field customer software testing which results in initially partially functioning units with bugs and can end in no more updates once a new, similar product is released (in about two months).

 

[Jasonovich]

My FiiO K11 R2R gives a glimpse of the ladder sound, I like it but there's a caveat. Chipset DACs is served with a clear glass of water whereas the water from the ladder resister sound is a little cloudy but the taste is magical.

I think my R2R itch was scratched when I purchased the FiiO. Well I thought that was the case, then I saw the Denafrips entry level DAC on AliExpress and the devil gave me a massive prod, I stared back at him or shim and uttered the words f'Orph!
I just cleared my piggy bank when I purchased Hifiman discontinued He1000 stealth V2, alas, not my dream Susvara but hey-ho proud to be a peasant and not the gentry.

It's pretty odd, or why should the sound of one be the exclusion of the other?
I quite like the sound of FiiO R2R but I also love the micro detail and transparency from my other chipset DACs.

Denafraps Enyo 15th digital audio decoder R2R architecture entry-level DAC With I2S input - AliExpress 44

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