Good MQA capable DAC under $300 (preferable at/under $200)?

[Sayeduzzaman Rayan]

Hi,

I've been looking for a dual-purpose DAC/amp/preamp for my systems.
One of them being an IEM, a Campfire Audio IO;
and a stereo system: A sony str-dh190 connected to a pair of Fyne Audio F302's
Right now, I'm just using the 3.5mm port of my phone and laptop, occasionally using Bluetooth (on the sony amp) but I want to upgrade my sound. I first heard about the Audioquest Dragonfly series and was considering getting their Cobalt USB DAC, but after hearing about its disappointing performance:
AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt Review (Portable Headphone Adapter) | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum,
I think I'd like to go on a different route. I also saw the E1DA 9038D review which I'm pretty impressed by:
E1DA 9038D Review (portable DAC & Amp) | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum
Another one I heard of THX Onyx Review (headphone adapter) | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum
I need a recommendation for something like this. I know MQA isn't the best place to listen to music, but I happen to like the sound it gives and I've been using Tidal for a while now and its student discount plan serves me pretty well. Also, I'll be using this (with the IEMs) at the library sometimes so I can't get one that requires mains power but if there are any that very good, I might consider getting that.

Thanks in advance!

 

[JSmith]

MQA DAC

So you're just looking for a headphone adapter/dac dongle?

If so a Hiby FC3 may be a decent option.



JSmith

 

[Grooved]

You should look at the Khadas Tone2 Pro, it matches all your needs, except that it's bigger than a dongle DAC

 

[cbxbiker61]

The THX Onyx is pretty good. I'm happy with mine. It's a nice tidy package that doesn't look out of place connected between a phone and iem's.

 

[Grooved]

So you're just looking for a headphone adapter/dac dongle?

The THX Onyx is pretty good. I'm happy with mine. It's a nice tidy package that doesn't look out of place connected between a phone and iem's.

I think he also wants to connect it to his Sony amp (and so his speakers).
That's why I said the Tone2 Pro is matching all his needs (can also use it with headphones as it has balanced and unbalanced headphones outputs) and it's $200

The filters bug in the first firmware has been fixed, the jitter is now perfect...
Take a look at its measurements thread (and look at the lastest post to see the improvement with the last firmware):
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/khadas-tone2-pro-review-dac-amp.20684/