[tomjonesrocks]

Bah. Can't find a thread with a definitive answer I can hang my hat on as far as an external DAC goes. This is out of a desktop PC--so I guess the Indigo DJ is out. I currently use a X-Fi Extreme, so I'm looking for an upgrade over that.

Cost aside, which is the best DAC of the following?
Fubar II
Micro DAC
DAC-AH
Silverstone EB01
Beresford TC-7510
Zhaolu

ANY suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[uzziah]

dude i'm neck deep in worms.............................close the can.....

i.e. good luck finding an easy answer for the "best" of these

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Micro DAC

/flame suit = on;

 

[uraflit]

im interested to see how you guys can answer this question ^_^

but to the OP, maybe posting a price range/budget would help?

 

[Uncle Erik]

Best?

I have no idea. But I can tell you that the SilverStone EB01 is a good DAC. I gave one to my brother-in-law about six months ago, and it sounds great. Also, I love the aluminum case and it looks terrific.

You might also want to think about one of the Entech Number Crunchers that they're closing out for $45 on eBay. I haven't heard one, but it's had some good reviews here and the price certainly is right.

 

[Slem]

It goes without question that the best DAC in the pricerange under $1000 is the Beresford TC-7510. With all the buzz around the net, especially here on headfi one could start to wonder if it is only hype.
I tell you it is not! Because i say so. There.

The first few days it will sound a bit gritty, but due to the advanced electronics and IC on the mulitlayered pcb and superconnects it needs some burn in. It is high end headfi stuff ya know! Give it burn in for a couple of days. No country-music please, this is reported to give the DAC lower potential.

After the burn in the music will sound smoother, fuller, helluva lot more detailed, crisp, warm, fresh, delicate, ornate, oh and did i mention fuller and smoother? lol i guess i did, but only because it is very much so.

All the above is true because i have compared it to a $1000 DAC and then it must be true.
You may ask how this relatively cheap DAC can be so great. Because it is. Great. That is because the Beresford TC-7510 took the design from a really cheap DAC and just improved it. Other DAC makers make on from the ground up. Not so with the Beresford TC-7510. No siree!
While others spend hours upon hours building one from ground up, the design hours on Beresford TC-7510 are just spent upon improving a great great product to an even greater greater product. Yups. There you have it.
Dont believe me? I dont lie. Buy it yourself and find out.

 

[tomjonesrocks]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uraflit /img/forum/go_quote.gif im interested to see how you guys can answer this question ^_^ but to the OP, maybe posting a price range/budget would help?

All the DACs listed are $300 or under. I'm seeing a personal max of about $350 but if I buy an external DAC I want to make sure I buy one that's superior to my X-Fi soundcard. I've gotten a lot of responses that my soundcard is "holding me back", etc.

At the moment I'm not really sure what to make of the 7510 posts. The Headroom seems like the safe choice but am unsure if it's overpriced.

I guess I should clarify that I'm looking for a USB DAC.

 

[tomjonesrocks]

Guess this is a hard one to get a definitive answer on. Funny that despite the overwhelming opinion that an external DAC is far superior to a high-end soundcard there isn't a common opinion on even what dollar amount you need to spend to make that true. Makes no sense to me.

I wound up going with a used MicroDAC in the F/S forum though, so I guess I can compare myself from there.

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Don't forget to post impressions.