Best USB DAC under $100?
Dec 19, 2013 at 1:52 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 18
big45-70

big45-70

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I've been looking at the Fiio E10 AND Hifimediy Sabre so far. It will be only used with my laptop. Am I missing any other hidden gems?
 
Dec 23, 2013 at 12:15 AM Post #4 of 18
some sub-$100 hidden DAC gems:
 
1.) Stoner Acoustic's UD 110v2 (PCM5102A dac chip same as the $1000 W7 firefly) for $49+10S&H.
http://stoneracoustics.blogspot.com/
 
2.) FiiO E70k dac/amp ($89) [Wolfson WM8740 - also same components as the E17 except slightly less powerful amp]
 
3.) DAC Destroyer ($45.99 - AD1955 chip)
http://www.hotaudio.com/store2/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=244
 
4.) Styleaudio carat ud-1 ($58: PCM 2704)
http://www.headfonia.com/styleaudio-carat-ud-1/
 
5.) Behringer UCA202 Audio Interface ($30: PCM2902)
google: "The little Behringer UCA202 has a rather loyal following" for a interesting review
 
6.) Firestone Audio Fireye II Dac/amp ($79: CS4344)
http://www.amazon.com/Firestone-Audio-Fireye-II-Headphones/dp/B002BFH1X6
 
I recently made a silly lil list on sub-$200 dacs, if you're interested
http://www.head-fi.org/t/696401/giant-list-of-sub-200-portable-dacs-w-their-chips-price
 
Dec 23, 2013 at 7:30 AM Post #5 of 18
money4me247 said:
  some sub-$100 hidden DAC gems:
 
1.) Stoner Acoustic's UD 110v2 (PCM5102A dac chip same as the $1000 W7 firefly) for $49+10S&H.
http://stoneracoustics.blogspot.com/
 
2.) FiiO E70k dac/amp ($89) [Wolfson WM8740 - also same components as the E17 except slightly less powerful amp]
 
3.) DAC Destroyer ($45.99 - AD1955 chip)
http://www.hotaudio.com/store2/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=244
 
4.) Styleaudio carat ud-1 ($58: PCM 2704)
http://www.headfonia.com/styleaudio-carat-ud-1/
 
5.) Behringer UCA202 Audio Interface ($30: PCM2902)
google: "The little Behringer UCA202 has a rather loyal following" for a interesting review
 
6.) Firestone Audio Fireye II Dac/amp ($79: CS4344)
http://www.amazon.com/Firestone-Audio-Fireye-II-Headphones/dp/B002BFH1X6
 
I recently made a silly lil list on sub-$200 dacs, if you're interested
http://www.head-fi.org/t/696401/giant-list-of-sub-200-portable-dacs-w-their-chips-price
Click to expand...

Thank you,  that was just the info was I hoping for. 
 
Dec 24, 2013 at 8:51 AM Post #6 of 18
Cakewalk UA-1G, if you can get it cheap, which is better than the dragonfly v1.0 and way better than the behringer uca202, both of which I own. Having said that, the dragonfly is good and more compact, just not as good SQ as the cakewalk and the lack of a separate volume control I find annoying.
 
Dec 24, 2013 at 1:02 PM Post #7 of 18
I'm in the same market. Thanks for the great post money4me247!
I do have to mention that the DAC DESTROYER description actually says it's $29.99 + $8.88 shipping for the Christmas season. Maybe you can message them if you're looking at it.
I'd like to add to that list external usb sound cards such as the Asus Xonar U3 ($45) and the Creative X-Fi Go Pro ($25). On a blogspot which I don't think I'm allowed to name, a very smart, objective-focused engineer has a comparison of several low budgets DACs.
I was eyeing the Behringer UCA202 until I saw several comparisons, and realized it definitely won't be good for me since all my gear is all portable-range resistance.
 
I think I'm torn between the Hifimediy line (not sure which one again..), Stoner Acoustics UD110, and the X-Fi Go Pro. I might possibly be using it along side my Galaxy S4, hence why I'm sticking to the smaller ones.
 
Dec 24, 2013 at 1:54 PM Post #8 of 18
asdfvtn said:
  I'm in the same market. Thanks for the great post money4me247!
I do have to mention that the DAC DESTROYER description actually says it's $29.99 + $8.88 shipping for the Christmas season. Maybe you can message them if you're looking at it.
I'd like to add to that list external usb sound cards such as the Asus Xonar U3 ($45) and the Creative X-Fi Go Pro ($25). On a blogspot which I don't think I'm allowed to name, a very smart, objective-focused engineer has a comparison of several low budgets DACs.
I was eyeing the Behringer UCA202 until I saw several comparisons, and realized it definitely won't be good for me since all my gear is all portable-range resistance.
 
I think I'm torn between the Hifimediy line (not sure which one again..), Stoner Acoustics UD110, and the X-Fi Go Pro. I might possibly be using it along side my Galaxy S4, hence why I'm sticking to the smaller ones.
Click to expand...

yup, glad it was helpful. i actually made a full sub-$200 list of dacs & their chips, found here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/696401/giant-list-of-sub-200-portable-dacs-w-their-chips-price
 
I didn't include the those two because I wasn't sure what sound quality they were. I've seen the ASUS Xonar U3 Sound Card for $40 and it's supposed to have the ASUS-branded UA100 dac. Creative Soundblaster X-Fi Go! Pro is $24ish w/ some sort of Creative-branded dac. cldn't find any info on it.
 
i personally ended getting the stoner acoustic ud110v2. i'll probably post impressions on its appreciation thread once i get it. i am a bit skeptical of the amount of sonic improvements that will be gained w/ a dac, so it should be an interesting experiment! all three of your picks should be steals at their price point, considering how the more well-known audio-company-branded dacs are sooo pricey. both the PCM5102A dac chip & ESS Sabre ES9023 are very quality dac chips considering the pricey gear they are found in!
 
Dec 25, 2013 at 5:25 AM Post #10 of 18
asdfvtn said:
Do you have any knowledge to elaborate on the differences between the Hifimediy line by any chance money? Im looking forward to your impressions!
Click to expand...

Mmm... the only difference so far as I can tell is that there is one version w/ an external power supply+amp for desktop use, one version w/ async... the rest (tiny/android/optical) versions should be the same product with just different input/outputs & a different usb receiver chip. they all use the same sabre ES9023 DAC chips.
 
unfortunately, i have not been able to compare the different products within the hifimediy line against each other so I can't help you there. not sure what kind of sonic quality variety would be between the products, but I would imagine it is marginal.
 
there are some great comparison threads on the hifimediy on head-fi. note that impressions may be of an older version of the product.
http://www.head-fi.org/t/682439/hifimediy-sabre-u2-async
http://www.head-fi.org/t/688300/hifimediys-new-budget-offering-asynchronous-usb-dac-looking-for-thoughts-upcoming-review#post_10017186
vs dragonfly 1.0: http://www.head-fi.org/t/678798/hifimediy-sabre-usb-dac-uae23-and-audioquest-dragonfly-brief-comparison
vs fiio e10: http://www.head-fi.org/t/673976/usb-dac-for-under-100-hifimediy-sabre-usb-dac-or-fiio-e10
vs breeze: http://www.head-fi.org/t/679883/first-dac-amp-advice-hifimediy-sabre-usb-vs-breeze-cm6631-cs4398
 
Dec 26, 2013 at 2:02 AM Post #11 of 18
I can testify for the E10 unit. For what it's worth, it is a warm sounding DAC and I currently use it it in conjunction with a HiFiMAN EF2A amplifier. The headphone amplifier of the E10 is much rather neutral so it's built-in DAC does fair a bit better with it much more. To get straight to my point, it's a well regarded recommendation on my behalf. : - )
 
Dec 30, 2013 at 10:20 AM Post #12 of 18
Hello there, I am using a Behringer UCA202 as my DAC for office use. No obvious problems, decent sound. There is surely much better equipment around, if you are willing to spend considerably more.
At home, I have a Peachtree DAC-It and two asus xonar essence stx. Nothing really fancy but they are obviously better; still the small Behringer won't make you run away from the listining room crying.
I have used it with pleasure in my countryside house where I have an old hi-fi set. Just brought the laptop and a USB hard drive, and I had my whole library available during the summer vacations. Newborn child enjoyed Mozart Concertos and Symphonies just like at home
wink.gif

 
May 16, 2015 at 9:55 AM Post #14 of 18
money4me247 said:
  some sub-$100 hidden DAC gems:
 
1.) Stoner Acoustic's UD 110v2 (PCM5102A dac chip same as the $1000 W7 firefly) for $49+10S&H.
http://stoneracoustics.blogspot.com/
 
2.) FiiO E70k dac/amp ($89) [Wolfson WM8740 - also same components as the E17 except slightly less powerful amp]
 
3.) DAC Destroyer ($45.99 - AD1955 chip)
http://www.hotaudio.com/store2/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=244
 
4.) Styleaudio carat ud-1 ($58: PCM 2704)
http://www.headfonia.com/styleaudio-carat-ud-1/
 
5.) Behringer UCA202 Audio Interface ($30: PCM2902)
google: "The little Behringer UCA202 has a rather loyal following" for a interesting review
 
6.) Firestone Audio Fireye II Dac/amp ($79: CS4344)
http://www.amazon.com/Firestone-Audio-Fireye-II-Headphones/dp/B002BFH1X6
 
I recently made a silly lil list on sub-$200 dacs, if you're interested
http://www.head-fi.org/t/696401/giant-list-of-sub-200-portable-dacs-w-their-chips-price
Click to expand...


I will add the hrt-dsp-idsp . I use it myself and find it very good. For something like $70 on amazon you can't go wrong. 
 
Mar 11, 2016 at 6:57 AM Post #15 of 18
I know that this is a relatively old thread, but I thought that I would chime in for anyone looking for a USB headphone amp/DAC for under $100. I would personally recommend the Fiio K1.
 
 
For $40 you can't beat it. Especially if you plan on using it with a laptop (or desktop for that matter) and hiFi player, such as Fidelia and a good pair of IEMs, such as the Thinksound ms01 IEMs (which is what I use; they sound great and are affordable compared to other IEMs)
 
The K1 sounds really good to me. It uses the Texas Instruments PCM5102 DAC chip, which is the same chip that is used in another unit, which I will not name, that is in the $600 range. Both units serve the same purpose, but the $600 unit may have better DAC firmware and more features.
 
Regardless, I would recommend the K1 for anyone looking for an inexpensive portable USB headphone amp/DAC.

Regards,
 
- hiFidelityMan :)
 
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