Best midrange DAC for Earmax SE tube amp + K701s?

[sgprater]

Okay, I just took a flying leap from the baby end of the pool into the deeper part, and bought a used Earmax Silver Edition tube amp from a friend of edisonwu.

I'm now confronted with the task of finding a DAC to match the amp. The idea is to give the K701s on the end of the chain a real workout.

Here's my current setup:

I currently have a Dell GX-280 Optiplex running RedHat Linux with the
ALSA kernel sound drivers. I pipe pcm audio streams
out of my installed Chaintech AV-710 sound card, which connects over a
TOSLINK optical cable to the Headroom MicroDAC. The MicroDAC connects
via a 6" cardas mini-to-mini cable to the Headroom Microamp (2006) with the Desktop module, which then goes to the AKG K701s (with a mini-to 1/4" converter cable).

I have all my CDs ripped to FLAC files on an external hard drive.
So I prefer to stick with my computer as source. My taste in music is mostly classical (baroque piano, string quartets) and flamenco, with a heavy emphasis on the vocal. My goal is to open the AKGs up a bit more, and also darken their texture a little (but not too much; I'm not a real bass fiend. But I do love a good viol.)

As far as how much I'm willing to spend on a DAC is concerned: the
minimum necessary to do justice to the amp and the headphones.
Obviously, it should have a toslink SPDIF input, and RCA outputs. 16-bit is okay, 24-bit preferred; 96Khz preferred, too.

Some cheaper options that occur to me:

1) a stopgap measure: get a mini-to-dual RCA converter cable, to connect the MicroDAC to the Earmax;

2) use the M-Audio Audiophile USB DAC I recently bought (for another purpose) in place of the MicroDAC.

I've read that the Benchmark DAC1 doesn't pair very well with the AKG
K701s... that the Benchmark DAC only accentuates the "clinical" aspects of the headphones (though I wonder how much a DAC really colors the sound). It's also rather expensive, but anything up to the Benchmark DAC1 I could probably swing.

I'd prefer to avoid DIY, since the last time I held a soldering iron in high school shop class, back when Deep Purple still roamed the earth, I barely escaped third-degree burns (manual dexterity is not my strong suit).

Any suggestions as to what DAC would go well with the Earmax and AKG K701s?

 

[edisonwu]

If I were you, I would get a DA10 first. Then when new fund is ready, upgrade the power cord of the DA10 and the three tubes on the Earmax. By the way, I don't like AKG with Earmax Pro or SE or AE, although they sound not bad.

 

[sgprater]

Thanks. The DA10 is fairly pricey, but I suppose if I haunt the for-sale forums...

Anyone else have other suggestions?

 

[agile_one]

You might consider an Apogee mini-DAC. All the detail of the Benchmark or Lavry, but not quite as edgy. I have one, and like it very much with EMP AE and K701.

Here's one on Audiogon with USB option for $675. That would give you some flexibility, as you could use Toslink from your AV710, or USB, than choose what worked best.

<edit> I have no connection with or knowledge of that Audiogon seller - just passing on information. </edit>

 

[sgprater]

Quote:

Originally Posted by agile_one /img/forum/go_quote.gif You might consider an Apogee mini-DAC. All the detail of the Benchmark or Lavry, but not quite as edgy. I have one, and like it very much with EMP AE and K701. Here's one on Audiogon with USB option for $675. That would give you some flexibility, as you could use Toslink from your AV710, or USB, than choose what worked best.

Thanks! That's one of the ones I was considering. I'm glad to hear you use it and like it with the EMP AE and K701s.

Not to get too far off topic, but edisonwu, can you tell me what you dislike about the EMP/K701 combo?

I was also looking at:

Bel Canto DAC2 (seem to be quite a few of those for sale... I wonder why?)
Stello DA100

I should add that this will be my office rig, on my desk with all my computer books, coffee cups, external hard drives, post-its, etc. The Lavry DA10 looks very appealing and right up my alley, but it has a rather large footprint, more for a home stereo setup. I like the size of the DA100 and the Bel Canto DAC2.

I keep thinking that an edgy, bright DAC with a warm, cushiony amp might be a pretty good match, the two complementing each other, whereas a warm DAC with a warm amp might equal too much of a good thing (part of what I like about the K701s is their detail); is this a reasonable train of thought?

Just to stir up the mix a bit, I also have a pair of SR-225s that I'll use with this setup.

 

[sgprater]

I decided to go with the Bel Canto DAC2. I found one for a good price on audiogon. It doesn't have as many inputs or outputs as the others, but I'm drawn to its brick-like simplicity, and after two days of brain-numbing research, it seemed to offer the best combo of size, performance, and price (used) -- nobody had a bad word to say about it. Some have remarked that it plays very well with tube amps.