DacMagic and Apple Macs (USB)

[admin_exported]

I'm going to be buying my first proper hifi in a few weeks time and have decided to go for the Cambridge Audio DacMagic. I'm going to be using my Mac as the audio source but as it's not got an optical connection I'm going to have to connect it to the DM via USB. I've read that some people have had issues when connecting the DAC via USB on Macs and concluded that the DM isn't fully Mac compatible.

Does anyone on here connect their DacMagic via USB to their Mac and experienced any problems?

I understand via USB you can only output 16bit audio, but that's not a problem as I will be playing Apple Lossless CD rips and the odd 256kbps AAC file. Does the DacMagic still upsample to 24/192 even when connection is via USB?

All help is greatfully recieved!

 

[John Duncan]

Suasexed:it's not got an optical connection

Is it an older one? Most of the recent ones have one in the headphone socket.

As for USB, I'll give it a go.

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:Suasexed:it's not got an optical connection

Is it an older one? Most of the recent ones have one in the headphone socket.

As for USB, I'll give it a go.

I'm afraid so, I'd love a new MacBook, espcially one of those aluminium ones, alas I think I'd prefer to spend the money on a decent stereo, it's been too long coming.

Thanks for seeing if the DAC will work over USB, really appreciate it.

Oh and sorry if this should have gone in the Computer Audio section...

 

[Anonymous]

The DacMagic is certainly compatible with Mac computers. However, you will usually need to tell the Mac to output sound to the DacMagic rather than to its own speakers.

From the Apple menu select "system preferences", and then choose "sound" option from the hardware section.

The DacMagic should be listed as "C-Media USB Headphone Set" as well as any other sound card devices installed. Ensure that the above device is highlighted to enable the sound to be output via the USB to your DacMagic instead of the built in sound device.

Volume control should be done through the amplifier that the DacMagic is connected to, and not through PC software being used.

If you wish to temporarily stop using DacMagic and revert to using your computer's internal sound card while leaving all connections in place you may do this by selecting "system preferences" again from the Apple menu and in the sound option re-select your computer's internal sound card or alternative device.

When you disconnect the USB from your Mac, the sound will revert to the previous device before connection was made to the DacMagic.

Over USB, it will always be a 16/44.1 or 48kHz input to the DacMagic of course as that's all that standard USB audio can do, but the audio output of the DacMagic is fixed at 24/192, so yes, this 16/44.1 or 48kHz USB input will still be upsampled to 24bit/192kHz, the same as the other digital inputs.

Hope this helps.

 

[Andrew Everard]

Suasexed:Oh and sorry if this should have gone in the Computer Audio section...

It's OK - I'll shift it.