[MLGrado]

Super happy about that one, along with iCAN it put us on the map! May it serve you well, cheers

I would like to find an original iDAC, just for being the overboard collector of electronic 'stuff' that I am.

If I recall correctly, the first one was built on ESS chipset, then the very NEXT one to come out was the iDSD nano, which is when the Burr-Brown DSD1793 came on board and started making iFi history.

I miss that Nano. At the time I was running an original Audioquest Dragonfly that has no support above USB 1 standard, so limited to 96khz. Then comes this 'new kid' and his toy could do DSD up to 128x.. And we all oooooh and awwwwed. And purchased.

It still sounds great. That DAC is almost entirely consumed by the digital stage.. amazing how good the simple analog stage left over worked.

 

[soundofsingle]

5 Dac
T+A HA200 (headphones)
T+A DAC200 (2 ch)
Audiobyte Hydra Vox+Zap
RME Ad2 Pro
CEC DA53

 

[Rattle]

Bifrost 2 OG
Gungnir A2

That is all
Oops forgot one, whatever DAC is in my oppo 103 as well.

 

[Derivative]

Just one, Mojo 2. But looking for another, would like to try the Bifrost.

 

[genclaymore]

I currently uses the Fiio Q11 as my main, But I also have Creative XFI usb, Fiio Q1 MK2, and then the SMSL SU-8.

 

[M0X3]

A bit late to the party but since I'm new to this hobby I was wondering how much difference you hear between different DACs. I've been able to test different headphones and amps and the differences are clear to me. The next logical step is testing different DACs. Any thoughts on the differences and maybe where to start for a cheap DAC?

 

[chesebert]

What is “cheap“? what gear do you have? music preference? sound profile?

 

[M0X3]

What is “cheap“? what gear do you have? music preference? sound profile?

I have a few headphones but my main one at the moment is the Hifiman HE1000se. I just got the Ferrum Oor and wanted to get a DAC for under $200 as a start. The kind people of Audio46 recommended the Ferrum Wandla but I think that's going to have to wait... Ideally I'd want something neutral and adaptable as my music taste ranges from relaxed jazz/r&b to aggressive electronic.

 

[chesebert]

@M0X3 Evga sound card.

 

[Designsfx]

Some great dac collections here- nice to see! I don’t have as many as some do but here they are
1) Oppo BDP-105D, I used to use this as a dac until I realized I couldn’t stand the sound of it! Used only as a transport now
2) Neko D100-MKII, This is a nice dual mono D/S unit, inexpensive and nice all around balanced presentation
3) Aqua La Scala Optologic MKII, NOS R2R with FPGA processor- a really nice dac and more than most would ever need
4) Lampizator Golden Atlantic TRP 3, fully balanced with latest Engine 11 processor- totally definable with the magic of tubes

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Right now, and for some years now, just the one: an Oppo UDP-205. I've loved its versatility as a source player for nearly every format I own, a DAC that as far as I am aware is still stellar, and a decent (?) headphone amp? Being able to hang it off a PC, shuffle it to a room to play some discs with a headphone, rack it in a home theater, or cart it around with some powered monitors for a top notch remote system, has been rather cool! I had (and still have...) a Benchmark DAC-1 (pre-USB) but it hasn't worked properly for some time and I'm not sure a repair is worth the cost.

This also means that I don't have a great deal of experience with alternatives to evaluate whether I could do better or not. I've gathered that the UDP-205 may not have a particularly notable headphone amp, but threads on this site were mostly uninformative, with posts ranging from a $50 amp being way better to needing to spend into the four figures to match it--none of which was backed up by any data, of course.

For now I'm going to assume it's still a very good DAC and a serviceable amp, but I'm open to perspectives as I work to grow this hobby.

Minor edit: I do occasionally get mileage out of the Apple Lightning and USB-C dongles and a handy iPhone or iPad with an Oppo PM-3. These combos have always felt quite performant. The same Oppo powered by a 16" MacBook Pro's integrated headphone jack has also felt quite good.

The Oppo is a great USB DAC and the headamp is better than expected. Enjoy!

 

[Lindholdt]

SMSL DO100 os the only dedicated DAC I have at the moment, but I'm looking change that, as I think my main Violectric V200 and HE1000 deserves a bit better

 

[F208Frank]

just two, one being the blue sound node for my elac navis speakers (powered) that retail for 2k.

quite simple and tidy.

 

[chesebert]

10 dacs/integrated streamer and dac

Linn Akurate DS/3 Katalyst
Linn Klimax DS mk2
Emm Labs DAC2xv2
Sonic Frontier SFD-1 mkii
Chord Mojo
Cary Xciter DAC
ifi dac
AQ Dragonfly
Slim Devices Squeezebox 3
Slim Devices Touch

Added NewOnTech Dac07 and Jeff Rowland Aeries to the collection. I think I have an addiction to buying dacs

 

[Failed Engineer]

Multiple ECP Walnut V units. Cycled through a number of pricey stuff and always came back. Done with DACs.