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DAC for Audioengine A5's

post #1 of 10
1/11/12 at 4:06pm
Thread Starter 

Hello Community.

 

I am using a Gaming Laptop (Asus G74SX), like all Laptops/PC's, they have the worst integrated audio.

 

Don't got a Desktop so i can NOT buy sound card's like Asus Xonar, Essence STX, Creative X-FI HD, etc.

 

THUS IM LOOKING FOR A Digital Audio Converter.

 

Setup:

Front Speakers: Audioengine A5

Subwoofer: Polk Audio PSW350

Headphones: Sennheiser HD 598

 

-------------------

DAC IN BETWEEN |-----|

-------------------

 

CONNECT TO : Laptop, Digital Piano (Yamaha CP33), and Flat Screen TV (Vizio 2" M420VT)

 

Since the integrated sound cards on all three sucks, would a DAC Help me out in this situation?

 

- Tim

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post #2 of 10
1/11/12 at 4:36pm

Musical Fidelity V-Link I or II.

 

I use with AE 5 and very compatible.  Go for II with laptop.

 

Of course many, many, many options...

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post #3 of 10
1/11/12 at 5:14pm
Thread Starter 

someone told me to pair a FiiO E7 with an E9.

 

Or i could get the new E17 with an E9 for even better sound output right?

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post #4 of 10
1/11/12 at 5:20pm

If you get a DAC, you will need an amp to drive the speakers and headphone.

 

You can get a DAC/AMP combo also.

 

What's the budget??

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post #5 of 10
1/11/12 at 5:22pm
Thread Starter 

@ wrathzombie

 

The speakers (Audioengine A5) has a built in Amplifier, so would the extra amp hurt it in terms of performance?

 

My budget is around $200-$250. Mainly want to search for those hidden bang for the buck.

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post #6 of 10
1/11/12 at 5:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cssarrow View Post

@ wrathzombie

 

The speakers (Audioengine A5) has a built in Amplifier, so would the extra amp hurt it in terms of performance?

 

My budget is around $200-$250. Mainly want to search for those hidden bang for the buck.



Apologies for my ignorance. I thought Audioengine A5 were just regular bookshelf. HRT Streamer II/Music Fidelity V-Link are all good DACs.

 

But then again, V-Link and Streamer just provide RCA outputs, so where will you plug in your headphone.

 

Mav Audio Tube Magic D1 is reasonable and there is something from Audio-GD

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post #7 of 10
1/11/12 at 5:48pm
Thread Starter 

Yes, i was also looking at both the HRT Streamer II and the Music Fidelity V-Link too.

 

The V-Link is cheaper, which i hope doesn't make it suck more.

 

The E17 has better USB Decoding Support of 96K/24bit as opposed to the E7's 48K/16bit.

Also has less distortion and better SNR.

 

http://www.fiio.com.cn/news/index.aspx?ID=154

 

Hopefully more people's inputs can help me narrow my choices.

 

Update: I hear the E17 is terrible with the E9, E9 being the bottleneck.


Edited by cssarrow - 1/11/12 at 6:00pm
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post #8 of 10
1/12/12 at 4:26am

For $150, you're not going to do much better than the Streamer.  Once you break the $200+ price barrier, it's game on and there's lots of well-earned competition for your dollars.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by cssarrow View Post

Yes, i was also looking at both the HRT Streamer II and the Music Fidelity V-Link too.

 

The V-Link is cheaper, which i hope doesn't make it suck more.

 

The E17 has better USB Decoding Support of 96K/24bit as opposed to the E7's 48K/16bit.

Also has less distortion and better SNR.

 

http://www.fiio.com.cn/news/index.aspx?ID=154

 

Hopefully more people's inputs can help me narrow my choices.

 

Update: I hear the E17 is terrible with the E9, E9 being the bottleneck.



 

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post #9 of 10
1/12/12 at 1:05pm
Thread Starter 

ok i narrowed my choices to two items:

 

Audinst HUD-mx1 for $179

 

384467f1_img56406148.jpeg

Specifications :
Interface :USB 1.1 and USB 2.0 Full Speed compliant
Resolution/Sampling rate : 24bit / 96kHz
D/A Converter: 24bit / 192kHz, 117dB SNR
Headphone Impedance: 16~600 ohm

 

or the E-MU 0204 for $125

 

20113159327750_prod_0204usb2.png

IS414485-01-02-BIG.jpg

Specification:

Premium 24-bit/192kHz A/D and D/A converters deliver unmatched USB audio fidelity (A/D: 113dB SNR, D/A: 117dB SNR, THD+N = .0008%).

ASIO2 and WDM ultra-low latency USB drivers offer accurate timing and playback of your recorded audio and software

Record and playback for a multitude of sample rates: 44.1k, 48k, 88.2k, 96k, 176.4k, 192kHz

Studio-grade headphone amplifier

 

--

 

The second choice does not have RCA output, so i'd have to get a converter. Which one is better suited for me?

 

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post #10 of 10
2/21/12 at 1:31am

Did you get anything yet? There's the Audioengine D1 to check out as well, supposed to be a top notch chip.

http://audioengineusa.com/Store/Audioengine-D1#overview

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