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New RME ADI-2 Pro EX DAC
- Thread starter Pearljam5000
- Start date
Nothing official about the 2/4 EX. As for now, only the ADI-2 Pro EX has been announced and specs are already posted at RME. According to Musicnetwork, the EX series was going to have ESS DACs chipset but that is not the case for the one released which has AKM 4493 so take the info provided by Musicnetwork with 2 grains of salt!
RME introduces the next generation: Welcome to the ADI-2 EX series!
RME introduces the next generation: Welcome to the ADI-2 EX series! 03 June 2026 Just in time for HighEnd in Vienna, audio enthusiasts and mastering professiona...
www.musicnetwork.ch
Ah I see… guess I am not late to the party afterall!Nothing official about the 2/4 EX. As for now, only the ADI-2 Pro EX has been announced and specs are already posted at RME. According to Musicnetwork, the EX was going to have ESS DACs chipset but that is not the case for the one released so take the info provided by Musicnetwork with 2 grains of salt!
RME introduces the next generation: Welcome to the ADI-2 EX series!
RME introduces the next generation: Welcome to the ADI-2 EX series! 03 June 2026 Just in time for HighEnd in Vienna, audio enthusiasts and mastering professiona...
Looking forward to seeing what the story is whenever the announcement is official. I’ve owned the 2/4 SE for a little over a year at this point.
I ordered the ADI-2 Pro EX about 10 days ago from Sweetwater with ETA for first week of August. No need the extras of the 2/4 EX.
I guess I don't understand their naming convention as I thought the ADI-2 Pro EX was the top model in the 2 channel line up?
Top of the line: ADI-2/4 Pro EX
Second of the line: ADI-2 Pro EX
Third of the line: ADI-2 DAC EX
The headphone amp is normally the same between the A pro and 2/4 Pro right?
The 2/4 Pro has 4.4mm balanced out. Not sure about the difference in power performance between the 2 units headphone amps.
Thank you.
The Capstan
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AnalogCircuit
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I figured RME released something new because my saved searches have gone bonkers with people liquidating their prior gen ADI-2 PRO FS R BE's. I've only seen a couple for sale in the past 6 months, now suddenly there are many options. Price corrections soon for the hot plate generation of RME's? 
In addition to higher specs, I'm grateful to see 2 things on the Pro EX: Trigger out for powered studio monitors and claimed better heat handling.
My ADI-2 DAC FS stays cool all day but when I tried a ADI-2 PRO FS R BE you could fry eggs on it and I never liked that.
This PRO EX is pricey though, so I won't be buying one until they're half of retail on secondary market in a couple of years.
In addition to higher specs, I'm grateful to see 2 things on the Pro EX: Trigger out for powered studio monitors and claimed better heat handling.
My ADI-2 DAC FS stays cool all day but when I tried a ADI-2 PRO FS R BE you could fry eggs on it and I never liked that.
This PRO EX is pricey though, so I won't be buying one until they're half of retail on secondary market in a couple of years.
Last edited:
BassTinker
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I wouldnt be too sure about this. The ADI-2 DAC EX could have digital inputs only afaik.
A $110 DAC (Topping DX1 II just got reviewed by Amir) now has a built-in 10-band PEQ and great functions/specs overall.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/topping-dx1-ii-dac-hp-amp-review.72034/
I can't see why the $2,500 device still sticks with 5-band PEQ like it's 10 years ago when the first ADI-2 Pro device came out.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/topping-dx1-ii-dac-hp-amp-review.72034/
I can't see why the $2,500 device still sticks with 5-band PEQ like it's 10 years ago when the first ADI-2 Pro device came out.
Does it have intersample peak headroom engineered to sufficient level and 5 voltage reference levels through independent analog stages to keep sinad and snr optimum from 1 dbu to 24 dbu? How much internal headroom for EQ does it have? Does it have a reference grade ADC?
IMO these are the things that really seperate a RME and all in one compact device. That and the fact that they will perform repairs after warranty ends for a reasonable fee.
TOPPING is great at making high quality A to D converters, but after warranty repair is buying a new DAC basically. For the device you mentioned, that's easy enough. But not for their higher end models
Seems that thing do have some pretty good EQ implementations, check measurements in this review:
Topping DX1 II DAC & HP Amp Review (NTTY)
Hello everyone, This is a review and measurements of the Topping DX1 II Dac and headphone amplifier. I bought it from Topping site and received it rapidly. I got it for around 120$. Topping DX1 II - Presentation This little device acts as a DAC (USB or Optical input), with line level...
www.audiosciencereview.com
10-band PEQ can be critical for room correction or precise headphone tuning, which is a can/cannot feature. Optimizing SINAD through analog level matching, gain staging, and other engineering refinements are nice to have, and I appreciate that kind of work. Topping does a lot of push-the-limit engineering as well. But the audible benefit of squeezing out few more SINAD is eventually quite subtle in actual use. Better long-term support and service, sure, you paid 25x for the metal box.
As owner of two ADI-2 series devices (the original ADI-2 Pro and ADI-2/4 Pro SE), I think the new minor revision is lack of meaningful innovation or upgrades in areas that matter most to users today. But I have a feeling they may make some changes through future firmware updates. Hopefully something will happen.
I pretty much got the rme for intersample peak headroom, 5 dbu reference levels, the ability to go up to 24 dbu, the adc and after warranty repair. I also see no need to upgrade from the 2/4 se to the 2/4 ex. But I'm waiting to see the specsSeems that thing do have some pretty good EQ implementations, check measurements in this review:
Topping DX1 II DAC & HP Amp Review (NTTY)
Hello everyone, This is a review and measurements of the Topping DX1 II Dac and headphone amplifier. I bought it from Topping site and received it rapidly. I got it for around 120$. Topping DX1 II - Presentation This little device acts as a DAC (USB or Optical input), with line level...
10-band PEQ can be critical for room correction or precise headphone tuning, which is a can/cannot feature. Optimizing SINAD through analog level matching, gain staging, and other engineering refinements are nice to have, and I appreciate that kind of work. Topping does a lot of push-the-limit engineering as well. But the audible benefit of squeezing out few more SINAD is eventually quite subtle in actual use. Better long-term support and service, sure, you paid 25x for the metal box.
As owner of two ADI-2 series devices (the original ADI-2 Pro and ADI-2/4 Pro SE), I think the new minor revision is lack of meaningful innovation or upgrades in areas that matter most to users today. But I have a feeling they may make some changes through future firmware updates. Hopefully something will happen.
I agree!
I had lots of hopes for the new ADI's, and 10-band EQ seemed like a given ... but I guess not! EQ will matter much more than the minimal increase in tech specs. It's like totalmix would have been nice or phantom powered preamps or the ability to use the ARC USB: I suppose the 2/4 EX can be used as a preamp sort of with external 48v - so that's nice, but no 10-band EQ is a sort of crazy to not include for a refresh in 2026. The specs are pretty much the same for the most part too so not much of an upgrade. I have owned ADI-2 Pro FS R BE and ADI-2 DAC and ADI-2/4 ... and honestly, the lack of 10-band EQ is one of the main reasons I sold them. I hope there's a way to implement a 10-band eq in the future.
Actually, when enabling Bass and Treble controls, you get 7 x PEQ instead of 5.
I think the Bass and Treble settings only work at lower sample rates from what I can remember. For professional recording/mixing/mastering studios - they may not have a choice of what sample rate is submitted by a client. Looking on RME Forums - it seems like it was confusing to enable the Bass/Treble settings to others also: so not very user friendly vs just normal EQ bands and no special requirements to turn them on or off.
10 bands of normal EQ seems reasonable in 2026. It's not like they don't have it in other RME gear - the much cheaper 2021 UCX II has a 9 band EQ + you can also throw in 3 additional bands, and you're probably less likely to use that for a headphone interface exclusively than a RME ADI-2 Pro EX. As stated before by others, Topping and other brands have 10 band EQ too and the models with 10+ band eq is only increasing.
Admittedly, the DX5II I had died in less than a year though and I didn't even use it much! I did take a chance on a Topping M62 for 2 portable mic preamps and the headphone output is great and also has 10 bands of EQ. - Hope it lasts longer than the DX5II! If it dies on me I'll probably quit buying from Topping though.
I am hesitant about buying gear from manufacturers I've previously had issues with. For example, as you represent Rythmik Audio - I did have a Rythmik sub that I bought used, but it had issues right away and it took months to straighten out: Yes, things were resolved, so I do appreciate the company, but I'd still be hesitant about buying one again and sold the sub not long after as I was afraid it would have issues again sooner than later.
RME with it's 5-7 bands with normal Q settings is at least usable unlike the Neumann MT-48 with unknown Q values, so their EQ is pretty much worthless unfortunately unless they ever got it updated.
Overall, the new ADI-2 EX's seem like a very small update and not the updates many were hoping for and the large price increase doesn't help either. I suppose just a bit disappointed. At least it seems like they will be released unlike the 2024 RME Firenet AIO!
10 bands of normal EQ seems reasonable in 2026. It's not like they don't have it in other RME gear - the much cheaper 2021 UCX II has a 9 band EQ + you can also throw in 3 additional bands, and you're probably less likely to use that for a headphone interface exclusively than a RME ADI-2 Pro EX. As stated before by others, Topping and other brands have 10 band EQ too and the models with 10+ band eq is only increasing.
Admittedly, the DX5II I had died in less than a year though and I didn't even use it much! I did take a chance on a Topping M62 for 2 portable mic preamps and the headphone output is great and also has 10 bands of EQ. - Hope it lasts longer than the DX5II! If it dies on me I'll probably quit buying from Topping though.
I am hesitant about buying gear from manufacturers I've previously had issues with. For example, as you represent Rythmik Audio - I did have a Rythmik sub that I bought used, but it had issues right away and it took months to straighten out: Yes, things were resolved, so I do appreciate the company, but I'd still be hesitant about buying one again and sold the sub not long after as I was afraid it would have issues again sooner than later.
RME with it's 5-7 bands with normal Q settings is at least usable unlike the Neumann MT-48 with unknown Q values, so their EQ is pretty much worthless unfortunately unless they ever got it updated.
Overall, the new ADI-2 EX's seem like a very small update and not the updates many were hoping for and the large price increase doesn't help either. I suppose just a bit disappointed. At least it seems like they will be released unlike the 2024 RME Firenet AIO!
Fletcher–Munson
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Can`t wait for direct comparisons of EX vs the Topping D900 soundwise.. but i am not sure this will happen sooner than the next 2-3 months.
