Little Dot DAC_II

May as well bump this to start some discussion rather than starting a new thread. IMO, someone that is on a budget, get the DAC_II. The DAC_I has balanced out but no headphone amp, which won't be needed if paired with something like the MKVII+.

Here are two examples of a good setup with Little Dot:

Non budget
Little Dot CDP_I
Little Dot DAC_I
Little Dot MKVII+
Headphones balanced

Budget
Computer
Little Dot DAC_II
Headphones SE

The only advantage of the DAC_I is the balanced out. If the DAC_II had balanced out, I would not think twice about buying it. The DAC_II could replace my Zero DAC, but considering I am going to have two different setups with a SS amp (MKVII+) for my ALO-780, I may as well go balanced. So my future setup will probably be:

Little Dot CDP_I
Little Dot DAC_I
Little Dot MKVII+
ALO-780

All depends on budget though, both great DAC's that could benefit from many setups.

I got a dac_I paired with a mkv, and a audiotailor jade. Wow! Really a great combo. The combo with the mkv is remarkable detailed. and its very smooth with a tube. If your interested I can pull out my mkiii and give it a listen. I got the little dot dac after i purchased the audiotailor jade, so I haven't pulled it out.

Could you pull it out for me and give the combo (MK III + Dac_I) a lsiten for me as I am really thinking about this combo (MK III + Dac_I + HD600)

Hows the Dac_II? I'm debating between the Dac_I, Dac_II and Nurforce Udac.

I'm thinking the Little Dot Dac_II because its only $20 more and has headphone amp incase I decide to sell ym Little Dot MK III.

My Dac_II, purchased for the express purpose of replacing the Nuforce uDac in my home office rig, should be here any day. When it comes, I'll try to do a bit of a comparison.

FWIW, I pulled the DacMagic out of my living room system this weekend and tried it in place of the uDac, which had been the source for my Consonance Cyber 20 amp. Huge difference! I expect the Dac_II to show similar results, but still have to wait a while for that.

Will you please so I dont end up dishing out $340 for nothing lol.

Well I'll give this a quick shot. I'm not amazing at reviews, and haven't done many so try to graze over some awful mistakes :-)

Alright well here's my setups.

Asus D2X>Toslink>DAC_I>little dot Mkiii

My mkiii uses blue glass ef91, upgraded power tubes as well.
Asus D2X>Toslink>DAC_I>little dot Mkv

Headphones:

HD650 (Clou Red Cable), k702 (zombie x cable!), Grado sr225, beyer dt880

Initial Impressions: Wow, this is a pretty stand-up amp. Forgot how powerful it was too.

Listening to Coldplay's 42

I picked this song because my girlfriend is a avid coldplay fan. One day she decided to give my set-up another listen, after not understanding anything of the headphones I was trying to show her. She said "it's strange its almost as if the singer is right infront of me and the piano is far off to the left" My heart fluttered

MKIII
I'm struck by how detailed vocals are, especially since this is a tube amp. Saliva can definitely be heard. Unfortunately, later in the song when the rock picks up, I have a sense that the music backed off. Strings obviously turn out fantastically, and very detailed.

Pros: Very strong presentation of strings, very very detailed, considering it is a tube amp. Very bright and peppy, matches the hd650's pretty well. Bass is surprisingly deep and transparent.

Cons: Unfortunately I have to compare it to my audiotailor jade, which is a slightly more pricey amp. Strings are not as life-like as they are in the jade (However the Jade isn't as detailed). Soundstage was pretty narrow as well.

MKV

Obviously a very powerful amp that matches well with HD650s. Provides a very neutral and flat presentation in comparison.

Pros: So detailed, every gasp of air is felt, and the saliva can be heard at some parts. Much more upbeat presentation when rock started. More upfront music

Cons: Strings are there, and can be heard, but there's not as much beauty or naturalness to them. Soundstage is really small.

Listening to Peter White's by candlelight (Flac)

MKIII

This song is a purely composed of 1 acoustic guitar. Soundstage is presented better, but still not as wide. Detail is still so remarkable, especially for a tube amp. Everything fades just naturally, without an echo or trapped feeling. This is actually a great song to match it with.

pros: Detailed guitar presentation. Everytime the pick hits the guitar string it's heard. Great presentation of strings

Cons: Still not too tubey for my liking. Soundtage is still not too wide.

MKV:

Pretty decent representation. Still a fairly lifelike touch to the guitar

Pros: Very detailed, and good representation

Cons: Soundstage? What's that?


Sorry, I got a busy day so this is all I can do right now. If you have any other combos you'd like to hear I'll give it a shot (Different music, headphones, etc.). And I'd love to answer questions. If anyone is interested, I may be willing to sell this MKIII so I can look at a new portable rig. Thanks

Thanks for the input! Its much appreciated. I think I will go ahead with the Little Dot Dac_II

I'm having trouble getting 24/192Khz to play through my Little Dot Dac_II. I have everything setup correctly but for some reason my Dac_II is silent when I test 24/192. I tested the follow sample rates

44.1 - Works
48 - Works
96 - Works
192 - Fails to play test tones

I get "No Signal" from my Dac_II's LCD as well! I'm using it as follows

Essence STX (Toslink SPDIF)-> Dac_II -> HD600

Bump.

 

Am thinking of getting an amp/dac for my new Shure SRH840 cans and this seems like a valid choice when it comes to "bang for the buck."

 

The problem is that I'm a complete noob when it comes to this stuff and am completely lost with those inputs.

I'm familiar with that USB and that TOS but i've never seen those other two.

So what are those and what do I need to hook up my xbox360 to it?

 

And also is this good for the Shures? They're pretty low impedance.

Edited by S1En1 - 10/13/10 at 12:12pm