[seekadds]

Quote:

I never use the headphone output of M-DAC. I campared it to my AMP when I got my M-DAC, driving two full-size headphones, and I found my AMP is much better. So if you have a relatively high expectation of your headphones, just get a independent AMP for them.

 
What if I have just mediocre expectations of my headphones? i.e. My most-demanding cans to drive are measly Denon D5000's, and maybe HE-400's down the road. I know the M-DAC is a DAC first and an amp second, but will it be serviceable as a headphone amp for those cans? Most people use something like a Fiio E9 for the D5000's - I can't imagine the M-DAC amp being any worse than the E9. I'm not expecting the M-DAC to be as powerful as say, one of the Burson or Schiit amps, but as long as it doesn't "hurt" the music then I'll get one ASAP. I really want an one-box solution, and don't want a separate headphone amp. 

 

[mbllbm]

whether Hegel hd 20 will be good for a set of bryston bha1, audeze lcd 2?

 

[doctorcilantro]

I've had no problem using the Zodiac Control Panel On Windows 7 x64. The clicking only occurs when I first start playback. Maybe your player is resetting each time, or inserting silence? Maybe it does clicking when changing sample rate though, I'll have to check. I have two zones in JRMC and usually use the upsamping to 192kHz.
 
The new ASIO USB DSD>PCM driver however is borked; even the 2nd iteration out this week. Class 2 and DSD firmware hopefully soon!

 

[maximuslt]

DISCLAIMER:
ANTELOPE ZODIAC GOLD
For each notch on the wheel you adjust the volume with, there's an audible mechanical "click" coming from the zodiac. When I had it hooked up by USB, the same "click" was heard every time a song ended (and the unit didn't get any data), and every time a song started. Click, click, click IF this is how all zodiac's are, I'd never in a million years buy one if I was going to use it via USB. Would be nice to hear from other zodiac owners if theirs behave the same.

You're supposed to be able to update the dac and adjust features like how bright the light is from a software control panel (windows/mac/linux). On my windows 7 x64 pc the control panel does not work.

thenorwegian, it does not depend on the operating system, the version of the DAC (Zodiac, Zodiac+,Gold): if the stud is connected through the USB, once the audio stream stops, the relay is triggered. When connected via optics or spdif this is not observed. Apparently this is the legacy of professional technology, so as not to interfere with monitors or other equipment. This I see when playing through Foobar. Through AIMP and iTunes this does not happen. I think that there is a silence, when the music is not played.

The only negative thing is the bright white LED on the front. I want to put the zodiac where I can see it all the time, but that LED is too disturbing. A true shame.

The brightness of the LED can be adjusted using the program "Zodiac Control Panel". There you can change the volume display (percent or decibels), you can also control the power on, turn off the DAC, and change the source.