DAC is the way or am i wrong?

[orys]

yeah.
just want to see what is the cheapest way to use my ipod 160gb as source.
those damn dock line-out cables cost $135 on the bay. wonder what must i do.

 

[dallan]

You can get just the dock plug with a female mini hole in it for a mini to rca. Thats easy just go to aloaudio.com and he has what he calls a female dock , i'll try to find the link and put it here.

 

[dallan]

ALO Audio

There it is female mini dock, then just find a cheaper mini to rca jack like the ones that Zu cable auctions on ebay, they usually go for around $35. and it is good cable and flexible for your ipod.

That gives you a very good line out set up for $90. and you can go cheaper if you get different cable that isn't as high end.

 

[orys]

just emailed moon audio as prices seem more reasonable.
thanks for the help dude.
time to hit the sack.
it's 2:15am here already.

Headphone Cable

 

[milkweg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by plonter /img/forum/go_quote.gif ok. so the usb will be the right choice for my dac then. can i use also the cd-rom as a cd player? will i hear it through the usb port..? or maybe its only through the soundcard's digital outputs?

You don't have to use USB on a PC with a DAC so long as your soundcard has optical and/or coax out. I've used my EMU 0404 USB via USB, coax and optical. Currently I have it connected to two PCs using both coax and optical. I don't hear a difference between all three input methods but here are the basic differences. Coax has less jitter than optical but I have read articles that say the difference is negligible and not audible. Some audiophiles may claim otherwise but IMO they are just falling for the placebo effect. Optical has better isolation from EMI because it uses light and glasss to send the signal, this is a non issue with a decent coax cable that has good shielding. The great benefit to me of using coax or optical is that I don't have to install a driver ofro my EMU 0404 to use it and I don't have to switch soundcards around in the OS either. That's much more convenient to me because I use X-Fi for games and don't want to have to change settings everytime I choose to listen to music. This also allows me to hear the game sounds over the EMU or Klipsh speakers at the same time. With USB it is one or the other. USB can have issues with stuttering sound if you have crap USB host controllers on your PC or another USB device that might hog the bus. I've seen a few people with that issue but I have never experienced it. I would try to get a DAC that has both USB and coax/optical in so you have options if one option should give you an issue or is not convenient. That's one of the things that makes the EMU 0404 such a versatile choice for a cheapish DAC. THere is a post in the forums somewhere from someone who spent quite a bit of time trying different DACss and in the end he preferred the EMU 0404 with his Senn HD650 to a DAC costing $2,000 and another at $1,000. It's cheap but it ain't crap.

 

[plonter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkweg /img/forum/go_quote.gif You don't have to use USB on a PC with a DAC so long as your soundcard has optical and/or coax out. I've used my EMU 0404 USB via USB, coax and optical. Currently I have it connected to two PCs using both coax and optical. I don't hear a difference between all three input methods but here are the basic differences. Coax has less jitter than optical but I have read articles that say the difference is negligible and not audible. Some audiophiles may claim otherwise but IMO they are just falling for the placebo effect. Optical has better isolation from EMI because it uses light and glasss to send the signal, this is a non issue with a decent coax cable that has good shielding. The great benefit to me of using coax or optical is that I don't have to install a driver ofro my EMU 0404 to use it and I don't have to switch soundcards around in the OS either. That's much more convenient to me because I use X-Fi for games and don't want to have to change settings everytime I choose to listen to music. This also allows me to hear the game sounds over the EMU or Klipsh speakers at the same time. With USB it is one or the other. USB can have issues with stuttering sound if you have crap USB host controllers on your PC or another USB device that might hog the bus. I've seen a few people with that issue but I have never experienced it. I would try to get a DAC that has both USB and coax/optical in so you have options if one option should give you an issue or is not convenient. That's one of the things that makes the EMU 0404 such a versatile choice for a cheapish DAC. THere is a post in the forums somewhere from someone who spent quite a bit of time trying different DACss and in the end he preferred the EMU 0404 with his Senn HD650 to a DAC costing $2,000 and another at $1,000. It's cheap but it ain't crap.

from what i have been told,the optical and coax outputs are coming out from the soundcard,in contrast to the usb which is not. so if i use the optical/coaxial outputs the sound card will take part in the process , a thing that i dont want to happen. am i wrong...?
what should i do to use the soundcard only as a TRANSPORT and not as a SOURCE...? can i use the optical and coaxial outputs as well as the usb port?
please help me with that issue. thx