CIAudio VDA2

[Karura]

I came across these while browsing some threads. How do these rank generally for SQ and pricing? They seem to be reasonably priced so I was wondering if they are worth their money and does anyone know if they use high quality components that would surpass the Pico? Should the VDA2 be paired up with a VHP2 and two VAC1s for both the DAC and amp?

 

[Mister Crash]

I have had a VDA-2 for about three years now. It is a nice DAC. It's very neutral, has coax and toslink inputs, and can output a balanced signal with an adapter. I haven't heard the Pico, so I can't really compare the two. I think the VDA-2 is properly priced at $600.

At one point, I had both the VDA-2 and VHP-2, and they do sound pretty good together. However, I never had the external power supplies, so I never got to hear them at their best.

 

[melomaniac]

well, I have both, but I hardly ever directly compare, since the Pico resides at work, and at home I have two VDA2s. with the VAC1 and a RAL umbilical, it is very good - strong clean fast with plenty of bass (I'm listening to it as I type, through planar speakers - don't have headphones on that system). with an aftermarket PSU and stock umbilical, also strong; that's what I use to feed my little tubed headphone amp. I'm usually using the Pico only with IEMs. if I get around to comparing the Pico directly to the VDA2, I'll update this post; but keep in mind that the Pico uses USB, the VDA2 does not, and already the comparison is not apples to apples...

 

[paaj]

Using a VDA2/VAC1 here and I really love it. It sounds very much like the Apogee Duet, just a bit more refined but it's very close. There is a little comparison by me somewhere too, maybe you can find it using both products names.
It not really comparable to the Pico because you have two inputs and two RCA outputs that you can use for a balanced setup later. (I'm not talking about sound since I've not heard the Pico).

 

[V-DiV]

I have a VDA-2 feeding a VHP-2 into my K701s, both with upgraded power supplies. It is a very clean/neutral system. I have a Pico DAC/amp on the way to use with my laptop and portable headphones. I will try to make a comparison of VDA-2 with the Pico DAC.