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Using DACs with Stereo Monitors rather than headphones

post #1 of 10
12/12/09 at 10:11am
Thread Starter 
Hi

I'm very close to pulling the trigger on the HotAudio DAC destroyer, as it's at the perfect price range for a newbie, and has gotten good reviews on this site. I plan on mainly using them with my Behringer MS20 studio monitors using the RCA out rather than using the headphone out. I will of course occasionally use the headphone out with my cheapo Sennheiser HD201s, but my main goal in buying a DAC is to improve speaker sound.

The HotAudio Destroyer product page says that it's recommended for medium-to-high-impedance headphones and not IEMs. It doesn't say anything about speakers through the RCA out. Should that mean anything to me, if I'm primarily looking to improve my speaker sound? The site offers DACs with RCA outs only, but they're double the price:
DAC STRAIGHT [DAC STRAIGHT] - $119.00 : HOTAUDIO.COM, Hand Made Audio Perfection!

and specifically talk about stereo output to speakers (obviously, since it doesn't have a headphone out).

Also, If my source is going to be a laptop with onboard sound, but my MS20s have a toslink in, is there any benefit to buying a DAC with a toslink out rather than just RCA out, in terms of sound quality? I just need stereo sound, as I don't have a 5.1/7.1 setup. Thanks.

Sorry if my questions are confusing. I'm very new to this.
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post #2 of 10
12/12/09 at 10:33am
Buying a DAC with optical out? That would keep the signal digital so it won't really be a DAC .

If your speakers have an optical input, you could consider a cheap USB->Optical converter to get the job done. No headphone out of course, but a cheap and simple way to get your speakers going.
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post #3 of 10
12/12/09 at 10:34am
A DAC with a digital out is useful, you may want to route digital out for a digital recording device or multi-room. My av pre-amp and my stereo DAC has digital out.
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post #4 of 10
12/12/09 at 10:58am
Thread Starter 
the USB to digital out converter sounds like a good option at some point. For now though, I'm just trying to determine whether the HotAudio Destroyer is better suited to headphones than speakers. At this price range, do you think that it would be a good option to get this (RCA+Headphone out only) to get good SQ out of my speakers? Thanks.
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post #5 of 10
12/12/09 at 11:27am
You'll be using speakers through the RCA out. In the land of amps RCA's are used for Line in and Line Out (your speakers).
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post #6 of 10
12/12/09 at 12:25pm
Thread Starter 
yeah, i know, sorry if I didn't make that clear. Do you think the HotAudio Destroyer DAC will be a good match for MS20 monitors as well as Sennheiser HD201s? I know the equipment is fairly low-end, but I'm coming from a world of computer speakers, non-audiophile headphones and integrated laptop sound.
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post #7 of 10
12/12/09 at 12:48pm
It will definitely work.
Two 'problems' I can see:
1) no volume control, so you're tied to digital volume in your laptop. Be careful with that slider to not blow your ears out. Not my favorite but will work.
2) only USB input. You can only use a PC based source with this.

for the price you can't really go wrong of course.
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post #8 of 10
12/12/09 at 1:18pm
Thread Starter 
thanks for the info. I think I'll go ahead and get it. I was planning on waiting for the Fiio E7, but I'm thinking that this is good enough for right now.

I don't mind the USB only input. I don't use amp/DAC stuff on my portable set up. On-the-go, I use a Blackberry Bold 9700 with Sennheiser CX300 IEMs, which I'm more than satisfied with.

Also, I realize that the Destroyer doesn't have an onboard volume control. My MS20s however do, so if the default DAC output is too loud, I can control it using the MS20s, or lower the source volume on my computer.
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post #9 of 10
12/12/09 at 11:02pm
Having fun with the CX300 bass? And lack of highs?
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post #10 of 10
12/13/09 at 12:59am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DeusEx View Post
Having fun with the CX300 bass? And lack of highs?
I take it youre not too fond of it then? It serves my needs well...i mostly listen to alternative-industrial-punk-electronic, so bass for me is decent, and in terms of highs, if you take a look at the sort of equipment im coming from, then the Senns dont look so bad in comparison. Still, i ordered the Hotaudio DAC this morning, so i guess I ll soon see what Ive been missing out on.
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