Muff Deterrent
New Member
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2021
- Messages
- 1
- Likes
- 0
What I would like to see is a DAC that looks meh on paper, but sounds wow and costs +~- $100. Circa 2005 DAC's were still esoterica and frankly, I never heard good sound coming out of an Altoid tin. Back then I was into gaming so the name Sound Blaster was familiar to me... and not necessarilly in a good sense. My audiophile yearnings were met with two-way, upper-tier setup that were much too pampered to be let near my computers lest a wonky sound wave blemishes a component. Naturally like every other uppity "audiophile" I reacted the same way to "Sound Blaster" than to Bose: shock horror. But at least the SB's looked okay... as far as computer components go. Also with Ad Lib and the buggy Yamaha cards for competitors SB held that market all by itself, excluding pro DSP gear that cost an arm and a leg. BUt one day I read an extrely well-written article about how DSP was getting rid of the bugs that plagued analog SP. Just for kicks I enquired around and ended up buying the Sound Blaster SB1240 aka X-Fi Music Premium, bridged it between my desktop and audio preamp, slid in Moving Pictures by (no need to mention the household band that composed it here?) in the cd player and... holy crap that combo kicked premium butt! SQ-wise.
I thought I was dreming but no, recording after recording rolled out as if borne by angels (or devils). Sound was crisp, clear, detailed and nicely shaped with tones and textures I had never known existed on those recordings before (take that Naim, hope you had fun with my $3,000 I shelled out for the receiver I bought from you and it still sounds okay but to think a decent Mobo/PSU/USB-powered DAC costing less than a grand could whack the transistors out of you was a humbling experience, and the beginning of my life as a desktop audio fiend, but don't worry too much I still listen to phones made by your French sibling Focal). 2 decades later and the dcidedly chi-fi friendly USB DAC sector has made giant leaps both in market penetration, value and performance. Keeping in mind however that USB DAC's are very dependent on PSU output power stability and that mobo's must have advanced. well-designed features to keep EMI under control because that makes a huge difference. If you're just looking to save a buck by using a USB-powered DAC with a cheap or even average Mobo/PSU tandem don't bother. it will sound like like crap. USB DAC's may be affordable but they are finicky on what you feed them with and what they in turn feed your audio system. Forget about the integrated HP amps on them, most if not none can swing the volts even for a miserly (but graciously designed)18-Ohm Hifiman Sundara. USB-powered DAC's are just that, DAC's.
Preaching to the choir I suppose but after that initial experience I dabbled with dozens of DAC's USB-powered or otherwise and I found that when it comes to sheer meatiness and massive impact with low distortion USB-powered DAC's have it easy against tiny little self-powered USB's. In fact it's hard to find one that costs less than $1,000. That being said I have two among my DAC's that could be called "high-end" if that term wasn't so uppity as to be sanctimonious to those who have to contend with "lesser" gear. I have the claassic venerable Naim DAC-V1 ($3,500 iirc) and the Marantz HD DAC . Both have qualities that USB-powered DAC's don't, and they don't require complex drivers. Oops sorry about lanching into a hobby I couldn't live without anymore. You're in luck, I have a sudden urge for pulling out my old SB$) and listen to Lee Ritenour. See ya!
I thought I was dreming but no, recording after recording rolled out as if borne by angels (or devils). Sound was crisp, clear, detailed and nicely shaped with tones and textures I had never known existed on those recordings before (take that Naim, hope you had fun with my $3,000 I shelled out for the receiver I bought from you and it still sounds okay but to think a decent Mobo/PSU/USB-powered DAC costing less than a grand could whack the transistors out of you was a humbling experience, and the beginning of my life as a desktop audio fiend, but don't worry too much I still listen to phones made by your French sibling Focal). 2 decades later and the dcidedly chi-fi friendly USB DAC sector has made giant leaps both in market penetration, value and performance. Keeping in mind however that USB DAC's are very dependent on PSU output power stability and that mobo's must have advanced. well-designed features to keep EMI under control because that makes a huge difference. If you're just looking to save a buck by using a USB-powered DAC with a cheap or even average Mobo/PSU tandem don't bother. it will sound like like crap. USB DAC's may be affordable but they are finicky on what you feed them with and what they in turn feed your audio system. Forget about the integrated HP amps on them, most if not none can swing the volts even for a miserly (but graciously designed)18-Ohm Hifiman Sundara. USB-powered DAC's are just that, DAC's.
Preaching to the choir I suppose but after that initial experience I dabbled with dozens of DAC's USB-powered or otherwise and I found that when it comes to sheer meatiness and massive impact with low distortion USB-powered DAC's have it easy against tiny little self-powered USB's. In fact it's hard to find one that costs less than $1,000. That being said I have two among my DAC's that could be called "high-end" if that term wasn't so uppity as to be sanctimonious to those who have to contend with "lesser" gear. I have the claassic venerable Naim DAC-V1 ($3,500 iirc) and the Marantz HD DAC . Both have qualities that USB-powered DAC's don't, and they don't require complex drivers. Oops sorry about lanching into a hobby I couldn't live without anymore. You're in luck, I have a sudden urge for pulling out my old SB$) and listen to Lee Ritenour. See ya!
