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after sonkoz laqxd1 what?

porotikos

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hi guys. my dac is dead and i am in the lookout for new dac.
i havent lurked for a while.
can someone in a glimpse, suggest few dacs for me?
up to 300 euro (i dont have to go that high). i am in europe.
think of the things sonkoz offered. something like that.
even if i dont use balanced out, i dont mind having it. you never ever know.
my main concern is the best sound. period. (i mean the most transparent digital to analog conversion. obviously no colorations)
you can suggest me either balanced or not.
which are my top otions under 300?
thank you guys
 

AnalogSteph

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my main concern is the best sound. period. (i mean the most transparent digital to analog conversion. obviously no colorations)
Any of the usual suspects will be able to achieve audible transparency and beyond, even a 100€ Topping D10s. So that's not much of a criterion right there.

What are you going to connect on the input side?
What will the output connect to?
What sort of features do you need? Display, volume control, galvanically isolated USB, DSP functions even (though that might get tricky in this price range)? It sounds like balanced output would be mostly "nice to have" at this point?

This should narrow down the selection some more.

And do I understand this correctly, you did already have an LA-QXD1 and it died on you? Bummer. Might be worth looking into repair options perhaps, and that's only if the manufacturer should be of no help on this fairly new unit which seemingly still needs some issues to be worked out.
 
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porotikos

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you are correct my friend, on needing more info.
on the input side it will be my pc.
pc->dac->mixing console
because dac will be fed from my pc, i really dont need a volume control at all. display would be a plus galvanically isolated usb is a must i guess.
being prepared for futureset ups, Toslink, Coaxial inputs and digital Coaxial output like in soncoz is nice to have. again options. dsp is nice but obviously not a deal breaker.
can i have a better than soncoz dac (transparensy - wise) with approximately same feautures? there must be some new producta to consider.,,
i will be reading everything again in a few days, but if i can get some proposals to check some specific dacs first, would be awesome. thank you
 

somebodyelse

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I assume the mixing console has balanced inputs. You're more likely to find a DAC with balanced outputs than one with galvanic isolation of the USB, but it should still stop any ground related noise issues. The Schiit Modius is pretty close on features and performance. Still waiting on the price for the D30Pro. SMSL M200 hasn't been tested but is also similar, and the models either side in the range have been decent. Khadas Tone2 Pro and the upcoming balanced D10 version have slightly different feature sets but are cheaper. I've probably missed a few options - not sure if the master review index lists balanced outputs.
 

Katji

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Any of the usual suspects will be able to achieve audible transparency and beyond, even a 100€ Topping D10s. So that's not much of a criterion right there.

What are you going to connect on the input side?
What will the output connect to?
What sort of features do you need? Display, volume control, galvanically isolated USB, DSP functions even (though that might get tricky in this price range)? It sounds like balanced output would be mostly "nice to have" at this point?

This should narrow down the selection some more.
I think we need one of the list-making
[spreadsheet] experts to take care of this...starting with whether or not it has digital isolator. Whether/not it is a headphone-amp-DAC...single/dual channel...
Then look at the sideways SINAD list.


ot sure if the master review index lists balanced outputs.
? I thought it was just a list of links to the reviews.
 
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porotikos

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I assume the mixing console has balanced inputs. You're more likely to find a DAC with balanced outputs than one with galvanic isolation of the USB, but it should still stop any ground related noise issues. The Schiit Modius is pretty close on features and performance. Still waiting on the price for the D30Pro. SMSL M200 hasn't been tested but is also similar, and the models either side in the range have been decent. Khadas Tone2 Pro and the upcoming balanced D10 version have slightly different feature sets but are cheaper. I've probably missed a few options - not sure if the master review index lists balanced outputs.
this is a great idea to use balanced outputs. so i will need to put each channel of the dac to a separate mono channel on my console. and then i should hard pan each channel left and right, right?
should this amplify the signal compared to rca signal? this wouldnt affect signal to noise ratio, right?
i will check the amps you mention, thank you my friend
 

somebodyelse

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? I thought it was just a list of links to the reviews.
It may well be - I remember being able to filter by some things, but not the details. I do remember it being a PITA to get working with some overly paranoid browser plugins, so haven't looked recently.
 

somebodyelse

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this is a great idea to use balanced outputs. so i will need to put each channel of the dac to a separate mono channel on my console. and then i should hard pan each channel left and right, right?
should this amplify the signal compared to rca signal? this wouldnt affect signal to noise ratio, right?
i will check the amps you mention, thank you my friend
Some consoles have dedicated balanced line inputs, but if yours doesn't then the method you describe is correct. You'd have to check the specific devices to be sure of any effect on signal to noise - it could be a bit better or worse, but I doubt it would be a problem. Of course if RCA has ground related noise issues and balanced doesn't then it's an obvious improvement.
 
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porotikos

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after reading reviews from some of the mentioend dacs, i am thinking of topping d30pro. this should be in the same league as laqxd1 but performing better, right?
i wish its price was confirmed. if it is around 250,it is a no brainer i guess
 
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porotikos

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ok just reconsidered some feature that i would need. any dac up to 350 (i am upping it a bit) that is stellar like soncoz laqxd1 or topping d30 pro, but also can be used as a headphone amp?
 

alekksander

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did You end up buying something?
 
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porotikos

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Not yet. I am waiti g to get a replacement from sonkoz for the broken dac, and then i will decide what to do. Thank you
 
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