Help choose DAC

[jobas77]

I have the KZ EDC Pro and the KZ EDX Pro and I connect them to my Asrock B75M-DGS R2.0 motherboard Audio. - 5.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC662 Audio Codec)

I don't have the budget to invest in expensive DAC dongles but I would like to find out if there is a good, cheap and compact DAC to extract the full potential of these IEMs

Is there much difference between the motherboard audio chip and a DAC?

 

[Chrispy]

Have you reviewed the tons of dac reviews on this site? If your onboard dac doesn't pickup extraneous noise I wouldn't particularly worry about it....can you hear a difference?

 

[unpluggged]

extract the full potential of these IEMs

I smell someone who has been misled by audiophool reviews on the Internet.

All you need to feel confident about "fool potential" of your IEMs is the Apple dongle. Anything fancier than that will not sound any better, unless you need a well-implemented PEQ, in which case it's worth to get the Qudelix 5K.

 

[Roland68]

I have the KZ EDC Pro and the KZ EDX Pro and I connect them to my Asrock B75M-DGS R2.0 motherboard Audio. - 5.1 CH HD Audio (Realtek ALC662 Audio Codec)

I don't have the budget to invest in expensive DAC dongles but I would like to find out if there is a good, cheap and compact DAC to extract the full potential of these IEMs

Is there much difference between the motherboard audio chip and a DAC?

You could look into the dongle, which, with a little patience, can be had for €/$30 or less. I would prefer it to the Apple just because of its almost 10 times higher performance.
JCALLY JM20 MAX Headphone Dongle Review The MAX is important.

 

[jobas77]

JCALLY JM20MAX x VE ODO what better?

 

[Roland68]

JCALLY JM20MAX x VE ODO what better?

Decide for yourself, 19mW at 32 Ohm (manufacturer's specification) or actually measured 186mW at 32 Ohm.

 

[unpluggged]

JCALLY JM20MAX x VE ODO what better?

At this point, I would be looking for a better IEM. Buying a dongle that is four times the price of your phones is not a very wise move.

Also, KZ had been caught for its shady business practices: https://crinacle.com/2023/08/17/the-kz-boycott-still-stands/

 

[Cosmic Heretic]

After much research I chose the $100 Fosi Audio SK02 for use with IEM's because of its incredibly low noise floor and small form factor. I use it with my laptop in hotels and love it's features and the handy volume/pause/mute wheel.