[shadesbass]

Benchmark Media DAC1 PRE

Looks like it has a pretty good range of connections.
RRP $1,575.00

Has anyone got one of these yet?

 

[cconnaker]

I'm listening to mine right now. Great piece of equipment.

 

[shadesbass]

What's the preamp section like on it? Do you think it's worth the extra $300 over the DAC1 USB?

 

[fishski13]

if i needed a pre, i'd buy one of these blind (and cross fingers). my standard DAC1 is superb through both the Cayin and the Krell. the headphone amp is nothing to sneeze at either.

Chris,
i wasn't aware of your website - very nice. btw, looks like we're going to get a Feb. thaw here in the Twin Cities. should be a great weekend to get out. my bones need a little sun and warmth.

PACE

 

[cconnaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishski13 /img/forum/go_quote.gif if i needed a pre, i'd buy one of these blind (and cross fingers). my standard DAC1 is superb through both the Cayin and the Krell. the headphone amp is nothing to sneeze at either. Chris, i wasn't aware of your website - very nice. btw, looks like we're going to get a Feb. thaw here in the Twin Cities. should be a great weekend to get out. my bones need a little sun and warmth. PACE

Hey hey fishski13 - Thanks for the nice comments about my site. The thaw can't come soon enough here in Minneapolis! I am so sick of winter!

 

[cconnaker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadesbass /img/forum/go_quote.gif What's the preamp section like on it? Do you think it's worth the extra $300 over the DAC1 USB?

I haven't had time to really test the preamp section of it yet. I certainly think it is worth the extra $300. The preamp section is not the only upgrade on the DAC1 PRE. Benchmark explained the whole upgrade to me and there are many high quality additions to these units.

 

[fishski13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cconnaker /img/forum/go_quote.gif I haven't had time to really test the preamp section of it yet. I certainly think it is worth the extra $300. The preamp section is not the only upgrade on the DAC1 PRE. Benchmark explained the whole upgrade to me and there are many high quality additions to these units.

as Stereophile have extensively covered both the DAC1 and DAC1 USB, i would assume that we'll see the Pre in print too.

PACE

 

[kool bubba ice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cconnaker /img/forum/go_quote.gif I haven't had time to really test the preamp section of it yet. I certainly think it is worth the extra $300. The preamp section is not the only upgrade on the DAC1 PRE. Benchmark explained the whole upgrade to me and there are many high quality additions to these units.

Yeah.. The headphone amp has a low/high gain switch, & has a power/standby button along with other upgrades..

 

[KarateKid]

Do you guys think, if money is not a problem, would there be any reason to get the DAC1 USB over the DAC1 Pre? I mean shouldn't the Pre basically do everything that the USB does, but better?

 

[fault151]

is this just a dac or is it designed to be used as a pre amp? Or can it do both?

 

[infinitesymphony]

It's mainly a DAC and a digital pre, since it only has one set of analog inputs, but three coaxial digital inputs, an optical digital input, and a USB input.

The DAC1 USB has no advantages over the DAC1 PRE besides price.

 

[Elk]

I see another advantage. You can get the USB in black. Silver is a deal breaker for me.

 

[mhamam]

The Dac is the same in all versions, so they will all sound the same in principle if used in equivalent manners. Yet there are some differences other than the obvious usb input in the usb version and the pre (+usb) in the pre version. For that, see the info in their site or give them a call.

I have recentlly bought the Dac 1 pre (US1600) due to its greater versatility. I have compared the dac section with the Headroom Micro dac (around US600) and the Bel Canto (around US2800). Let me just say that I'm very satisfied with the Benchmark. If you're between the Bel Canto and the Benchmark let me suggest the following. Both are great dacs and I believe that in terms of sound, the decision between one or the other would be idiosyncratic. The Bel canto looks much better and it is much more robust. That said, the Benchmark costs 1000 dollars less, has a headphone amp (the merits of which deserves a separate paragraph), and produces a better result with computers and cheap transports (DVD, CD, PS3, etc). Benchmark people also claimed to me that cabling – and believe it or not source – makes no difference with the dac1. For the technical explanation, which I'm not really interested, call them. As one should expect the Bel Canto will be more refined if used with their own cd transport, or something like that; however, the refinement would only be there if it is played through an equally refined amp, speakers, etc. Again, we would be talking completely different budgets. The comparison would be entirely unfair were it not for the fact that when we listen to both and think of the extra money necessary to make the Bel Canto top the Benchmark, we understand that one would only rationally buy the Bel Canto over the Bencjmark because of the former's appearance.

Other Dacs considered: Lavry, Grace, Apogee. All good stuff. Question here in my opinion is less "which is has the best sound" than "which is the most versatile". Perhaps this is why the Benchmark is so successful.

 

[illkemist]

To answer the OP's question, I did own one of these. It was a great product and was easily the most revealing piece of equipment I have ever owned. I bought it for the flexibility (I bought a DAC1 USB and returned it for the Pre). I like the fact that it can be used as a preamp. I orginally purchased it because I needed a high-end single-box device.

However, I did recently sell it in favor of the Grace m902. Why? A couple of reasons. The headphone amp in the DAC1 Pre is good, but it is a tad bit analytical. That's a great thing if you're pairing it with other equipment, as you can tailor the chain to your tastes. But I found that the m902 was just a bit more enjoyable. I was willing to sacrifice detail for fun. Also, the m902 has a few more control options that I find appealing, including the remote control and crossfeed options.

 

[fzman]

the dac1 pre sounds better than the earlier units, as it has better op amps in the output section-- which are NOT retrofittable (factory anyway) into the earlier units. there are incremental improvements as well. for sonics, if it is in the budget, the dac1pre is the way to go