SMSL DO100 PRO - HDMI ARC DAC

[nanook]

It is as if Topping and SMSL are toying with us, one has PEQ, one has HDMI ARC.

As far as I understood, the PEQ on the Topping D50III works for USB input only, which is a pity.
My speakers have the same shortcomings whether being fed by USB or whatever, right?

I'm actually searching for a dual ES9039q2m with PEQ for USB, SPDIF/Toslink and Bluetooth.
Maybe even an XMOS XU-316 could do this job easily.

I don't want to spend a lot of money however an I'm completely happy with the sound of my D-6s (single ES9039q2m).
-> Any ideas?

Fallback could be USB -> SPDIF -> WiiM (PEQ) -> D-6s (or DO100 Pro), but this is close to nonsense.....

 

[V.b.]

You could stream to wiim from a computer with dlna or similar to avoid USB TO SPDIF and keep the SPDIF for TV. Actually, the reason I would love HDMI ARC is for wife acceptance factor.

Wiim Ultra may be a solution but we will see the value proposition. I still don't see the value of a screen under a big TV.

 

[nanook]

You could stream to wiim from a computer with dlna or similar to avoid USB TO SPDIF and keep the SPDIF for TV.

That's absolutely true, and yes, it's the setup where the TV is.
For music this is perfectly fine, the WiiM plays very nicely from NAS via WiFi, but how would I route audio when I use the W10 computer to watch videos (Mediathek, YouTube)? -> Chromecast?

Currently the TV basically is a TV receiver DVBT2) connected to the HDMI input of the monitor. The audio output is Toslink.
The computer connects via HDMI too with an HDMI switch.

Actually, the reason I would love HDMI ARC is for wife acceptance factor.

WAF is a very valid argument!
My fallback solution is clearly in conflict with this concept ...

 

[V.b.]

Chromecast if you have wiim pro or Microsoft Edge cast to wiim mini DLNA. YMMV.

 

[nanook]

O.k., thanks. Will try that when I'm back home.
Last time I tried Chromecast it was stuttering etc. Same problem as with the LS-Teufel Connector2 before.
I didn't know, there is Edge-Cast.
WiFi should be good enough though.

 

[formdissolve]

So the HDMI ARC does work but is a bit finicky. It is mentioned by SMSL on their website that you may need to turn the DO100 Pro off and then on again to get it to work due to "the diversity of ARC interface protocols". This was the case for me and is not mentioned in the manual.

What I needed to do was set the DAC to ARC mode, turn the unit off with the switch on the back (not just putting it into standby), then turn it on again. As long as the DAC was left in ARC mode when put into standby it would work again as soon as I turned it on. If the input source is changed at any point then the off/on procedure must be performed again.

I was not able to get the DAC to synchronize with the power state of the TV. My TCL 55S425CA mentions in the menu that compatibility with this feature may vary. The mute and volume functions work fine and the TV automatically turns off its internal speakers when the DAC is running. It switches back to using the internal speakers when the DAC is turned off.

One thing I noticed is that the stream reports as being 44.1 kHz as opposed to 48 kHz when using an optical connection. The ARC connection appears to bypass some kind of upsampling that the TV is doing with its optical connection.

There is no upsampling as most audio from video sources (streaming, blu-ray, etc) is 48khz broadcast standard. That is very weird that it sent at 44.1 .. I still want to get one to test it out though.

 

[The Me]

There is no upsampling as most audio from video sources (streaming, blu-ray, etc) is 48khz broadcast standard. That is very weird that it sent at 44.1 .. I still want to get one to test it out though.

What I am noticing is that when ARC is used the DAC reports the stream as being 44.1 kHz, and when optical is used it reports it as 48 kHz. It doesn't seem to matter what content is playing. This includes the home screen menu. It appears fixed at these sample rates with each input type.

Even with the Spotify app the DAC displays everything as being 48 kHz over optical. My understanding is that Spotify doesn't have any content at 48 kHz. I would think this shows that some content must be getting upsampled somewhere.

I wonder if the 44.1 kHz stream with ARC has something to do with some kind of compatibility mode stemming from the off/on procedure that is required to get ARC to work with my TV. Even content that should be 48 kHz shows as 44.1 kHz. In this case I can only think that something must be downsampling the stream.

 

[formdissolve]

What I am noticing is that when ARC is used the DAC reports the stream as being 44.1 kHz, and when optical is used it reports it as 48 kHz. It doesn't seem to matter what content is playing. This includes the home screen menu. It appears fixed at these sample rates with each input type.

Even with the Spotify app the DAC displays everything as being 48 kHz over optical. My understanding is that Spotify doesn't have any content at 48 kHz. I would think this shows that some content must be getting upsampled somewhere.

I wonder if the 44.1 kHz stream with ARC has something to do with some kind of compatibility mode stemming from the off/on procedure that is required to get ARC to work with my TV. Even content that should be 48 kHz shows as 44.1 kHz. In this case I can only think that something must be downsampling the stream.

Ah yes, I see what you mean. I'm pretty sure optical output will always be 16 bit, 48khz on most TVs when selecting PCM. That's not ideal for Spotify, but it's fine for movies. Downsampling for movies to 44.1 is strange though. I had planned on buying one of these for the ARC support, but if it's doing that, then I might skip. My TV has eARC so maybe I'll look into an extractor instead. Thanks for the info!

 

[V.b.]

Another one:

SMSL DO200 PRO

Color screen, 12 CS43131, 400 USD

DO200 Pro

Foshan ShuangMuSanLin electronics Co., LTD. founded in 2009 which located in Shenzhen, China. And our branch company VMV Technology(HK) Company Limited registered in HK in 2013. Our company is specialized in the audio DAC, stereo headphone amplifier, power amplifier, and with own R&D...

www.smsl-audio.com

 

[Graham849]

Another one:

SMSL DO200 PRO

View attachment 364420

Color screen, 12 CS43131, 400 USD

DO200 Pro

Foshan ShuangMuSanLin electronics Co., LTD. founded in 2009 which located in Shenzhen, China. And our branch company VMV Technology(HK) Company Limited registered in HK in 2013. Our company is specialized in the audio DAC, stereo headphone amplifier, power amplifier, and with own R&D...

www.smsl-audio.com

Yeah, but nah. Lose the MQA, and add PEQ. Market demand is shifting as per wiim and topping.

 

[nanook]

Lose the MQA, and add PEQ. Market demand is shifting as per wiim and topping.

I fully agree, but e.g. Topping D50iii is offering EQ only for USB input. My speakers or my room have the same flaws independent of the input source.
And when playing from the Windows computer, I can easily use a software PEQ.

I'm waiting for a budget / midrange device that offers PEQ with all sources, just like the WIIM does, but with a SOTA DAC and ideally a decent HP amp. Might be the WiiM Ultra, which I expect to be significantly beyond budget price-wise.

 

[Human Bass]

Consoles are a bit frustating usb wise. PS5 and Switch use UAC 1 and Xbox doesnt output audio from usb at all. Why the console of the company that makes Windows with full UAC 2 support doesnt have usb audio? I dont have a clue.

Still interesting if the price is good hdmi eARC and usb support for game consoles.

 

[Human Bass]

Hdmi arc seems cool but it is overkill for a stereo signal. Im more than fine with optical, handles stereo super fine and gets rid of any electrical interference.

Now hdmi arc may be useful with notebook, where you can output audio while maintaning all USB inputs avaiable.

 

[TonyJZX]

its because Sony and Microsoft want to very closely limit what devices can be hooked up to their closed ecosystem

and ext. dacs are very very niche

but back to the DO200

" 12 x CS43131? "

twelve dacs??? like wat?

 

[khuntim]

What I am noticing is that when ARC is used the DAC reports the stream as being 44.1 kHz, and when optical is used it reports it as 48 kHz. It doesn't seem to matter what content is playing. This includes the home screen menu. It appears fixed at these sample rates with each input type.

Even with the Spotify app the DAC displays everything as being 48 kHz over optical. My understanding is that Spotify doesn't have any content at 48 kHz. I would think this shows that some content must be getting upsampled somewhere.

I wonder if the 44.1 kHz stream with ARC has something to do with some kind of compatibility mode stemming from the off/on procedure that is required to get ARC to work with my TV. Even content that should be 48 kHz shows as 44.1 kHz. In this case I can only think that something must be downsampling the stream.

This is Spotify app on the TV?

Does the TV have eARC? I am trying to figure out the advantage of the HDMI/ARC input in my basic system with TV/Wiim Pro and powered speakers.

The ARC input doesn't allow volume control from the TV? If the wife has to turn power off/on to get ARC to work wouldn't optical be better?

Optical seems to carry 24/192 with Tidal from my Wiim to DAC, TV always says 16/48 of course.

 

[xSDMx]

Hdmi arc seems cool but it is overkill for a stereo signal. Im more than fine with optical, handles stereo super fine and gets rid of any electrical interference.

Now hdmi arc may be useful with notebook, where you can output audio while maintaning all USB inputs avaiable.

The benefit from HDMI ARC for stereo is being able to easily control everything from one remote and sync power states between devices without any setup. My Nvidia shield remote "just works" with my WiiM Amp.

 

[formdissolve]

Hdmi arc seems cool but it is overkill for a stereo signal. Im more than fine with optical, handles stereo super fine and gets rid of any electrical interference.

Now hdmi arc may be useful with notebook, where you can output audio while maintaning all USB inputs avaiable.

I'd prefer ARC for video sources mainly because a lot of optical ports on TVs are noisy and cause errors with ESS-based DACs. This DAC apparently has user-adjustable PLL so that may not even be an issue.

 

[Human Bass]

I'd prefer ARC for video sources mainly because a lot of optical ports on TVs are noisy and cause errors with ESS-based DACs. This DAC apparently has user-adjustable PLL so that may not even be an issue.

Im skeptical that the hdmi out of a TV will have much less jitter than the optical.

For now my D-6s handles the optical of my tv flawlessly even with the most senstive PLL.

 

[The Me]

This is Spotify app on the TV?

Does the TV have eARC? I am trying to figure out the advantage of the HDMI/ARC input in my basic system with TV/Wiim Pro and powered speakers.

The ARC input doesn't allow volume control from the TV? If the wife has to turn power off/on to get ARC to work wouldn't optical be better?

Optical seems to carry 24/192 with Tidal from my Wiim to DAC, TV always says 16/48 of course.

Yes, this is with the Spotify app on my TCL Roku TV. The TV does not have eARC. Just basic ARC.

I had been under the impression that using the ARC connection with the TV would allow the TV to control the volume and mute functions of the DAC directly, not just the TV adding another layer of volume and mute functions, which essentially creates two volume controls. There is basically no communication/control between the TV and the DAC from what I have experienced.

I don't have another TV with ARC to test the DAC out with so I have no idea if it may behave differently with different models. So far I haven't seen any reports of it behaving any differently though.

I ended up switching back to using optical because ARC wasn't providing any real benefit. I would rather not have the TV attenuate the volume level to the DAC, so I was always leaving the volume at 100 on the TV anyways, and just using the DAC remote to control the volume.

Having to perform the off/on procedure whenever the input is changed was also less than ideal.

 

[formdissolve]

Wait, you have to physically turn the switch off on the back of the unit if you switch inputs from ARC just so it shows up active again?? Maybe I'll just stick to USB from my Shield then..