DACs listed Best to Worst

[chrisfromalbany]

Here is my list of DACs rated from best (1) to worst (11)
1) Make your own list
2) Comment on yours or others

In that order..

These are my preferences from all that I have read.

Top Tier
_______
1)Benchmark DAC1 ($975, external, small headphone amp included)
1b)Apogee Mini-DAC (w/o USB $1000, using USB $1200)
3)Bel Canto 2 (external) $1120
4)Grace 901 (external)
4a) dAck! 2.0

Mid Tier
_______
5)Channel Islands VDA-1 + VAC-1 $500 (external DAC & Power Supply)
5a) DAC-AH (ebay special) US $135.00 http://cgi.ebay.com/Lite-Audio-TDA15...QQcmdZViewItem
5b) Behringer DEQ2496
6a) Modded (1812m, 1212m, 0404m) removes filters and better Opamps
6c) 1812m (Emu internal soundcard.. Tops from Soundblaster. Same DAC as 1212m)
6d)Headroom MicroDAC (same DAC as 1212m 1812m) US$299
7)1212m (Emu internal soundcard.. )
8)0404m (EMU internal soundcard.. AKA professional line SoundBlaster)
8a) U24 Waveterminal (USB external Soundcard)
9)M-audio Firwire Audiophile (Firewire external soundcard)

Bottom Tier
__________
10)Audigy 2 NX (common soundcard)
11)DAPs (ipod irive, ect.)

Disclaimer.....

1) Better or worst is your own subjective take on how you would rate these DACs
2) We all understand there isn't a clear winner
3) In different setups there are different winners (synergy)

But with that known make a list if you choose. Again I am going to stress that I don't think one DAC is better or worst. This is just for fun. But getting all the names of the DACS is good and getting a persons perspectives is good as well. Obliviously most people think the Audigy 2z is going to be low and DAC1 is going to be pretty high. I am not going into the granular level of synergy between components. This is just your perferences on DACs. If you find that I don't have first hand knowledge of these DACs and question where I put them, I challenge you to make your own list. I didn't find many threads that listed all the DACs out there, not that I have them all. So I find the Thread to be useful.

Additions to the list.. There are many other DACs and new ones are found everyday but below is a running list of DACs there other HiFi members have told me about through PMs or in this Thread. Some are very expensive, while others are cheap.

Fubar II USB DAC US$94 http://www.firestone.idv.tw/
Spitfire DAC US$188 http://www.firestone.idv.tw/
MHDT Lab Digital Dialogue II US$180 ebay
MHDT Lab Digital Renaissance 3.1 US$312 ebay
Xindak DAC-3 US$270 http://www.coemaudio.com/
MITE DAC-24 US$430 http://tw.f3.page.bid.yahoo.com/tw/...?aucview=search
POINT P-Type Pro 2000 http://tw.f2.page.bid.yahoo.com/tw/...?aucview=search
iwdiy.com or DIYClub.biz DAC-68 US$575 http://www.iwdiy.com/xoops2/ & http://eshop.diyclub.biz/
April Music Stello DA220 US$1295
Lavry Blue LE4496 2ch DA US$1500
TwinDAC+ USB DAC - US$2k
Wavelength Audio Brick tubedac - US$1750
Wavelength Audio Cosecant - US$3500
X-DACV3 Digital-to-Analog Convertor http://www.musicalfidelity.com/mf/e...ts/SmallX/SXDAC
USB 2 D/A - D/A Converter and USB Sound System http://www.aqvox.de/products.html
Electrocompaniet ECD http://www.electrocompaniet.no/prod...ecd1/ECD_1.html $2000
http://www.accusticarts.de/pages/en/dac_i_fr.html
LavryBlack Stereo D/A Converter http://recforums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/t/7268/0
Perpetual Technologies P3A
Boulder 2020 Advance D/A Converter (very expensive..lol) (If you have to ask..)
CEC DA53.

 

[jpelg]

Please define "Better", and/or "worse" a bit (no pun intended) more clearly.

 

[Jahn]

wow i wish i could do a list like this, but usually i'm stuck just with an A/B comparo at the most. i can tell you what sounds different/better than what, but not for a full 10+ list!

Edit- oh alrighty i'll give it a try but this is with a BIG boulder of salt, ok? I've heard all of these, some are based on owning, others on meet impressions, so the list may not be all that fair. And I use Grados. Except when I used Darth Beyers.

1) Apogee Mini-DAC
2) Scott Nixon Tube Dac+ (This and the MiniDAC just hit the right spot for me in terms of warmth and presence and everything.)
3)Benchmark DAC-1 (Technically great, but a bit bright.)
4)Lite DAC-AH (I'm just guessing it should go here - sounds great but never compared it directly to the top 3)
5) Modded 0404 (my old standby, this is the "control" DAC that drives my purchase tolerances hehe)
6) Modded Toshiba 3960 (just a smidge rounder sounding than the modded 0404.)
7) Channel Islands VDA-1 + VAC-1 (if it can make my DT770 sound delicate, it's doing something right!)
8) Headroom MicroDAC (actually probably a tie for #7 what with all the options with it. Have to give this a longer listen. I really liked the Overture DAC too, would put it here)
9) 0404m/1212m (a tie because i like the 0404 energy, but the 1212 IS more accurate)
10)Turtle Audio USB thingy (hey with the HD201 it sounded good, with the KSC-35 even better! thanks for the tip Oski!)
11) M-audio Sonica USB modded (great laptop external card)
12) ipod 3G (portable? does the trick!)
130000) Soundblaster LIVE! (YUK!)

 

[flecom]

i would like to see where the DAC-AH would fit and the Behringer DEQ 2496

i have listened to the behringer and enjoy it very much but havent listened to any of those other dac's so i cant say

 

[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by flecom i would like to see where the DAC-AH would fit and the Behringer DEQ 2496 i have listened to the behringer and enjoy it very much but havent listened to any of those other dac's so i cant say

okeydoke i made a list and put the lite dac-ah in there to give you an idea. don't hold me to it tho, this wasn't done all in one sitting of course hehe!

 

[tkam]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisfromalbany Here is my list of DACs rated from (1)best to (11) worst… These are my preferences from all that I have read.

Seems pretty pointless to me to make a best to worst list based on things you've read.

 

[Jahn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tkam Seems pretty pointless to me to make a best to worst list based on things you've read.

and it's hard enough to do it even if you've listened to them hehe. and there's the bang for the buck thing, and there's personal preference (warmth, accuracy? both? possible?) and all that. there's no harm in him kicking it off with a read-only list as long as he premised it that way - it's actually good that he did so i didn't have to remember all the DACs that are out there - i cut and pasted that list to make mine hehe!

 

[elrod-tom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tkam Seems pretty pointless to me to make a best to worst list based on things you've read.

I'd have to agree with this...how do you rank what you've not heard??

 

[philodox]

Go and listen to the DAC's... For what it is worth, the DAC1 that you have listed as #1 is one of my least favourite as it sounds quite sterile and lifeless.

 

[Apoptygma]

Seems a lot of guys like myself are looking into computer >> DAC. As a noob check list, I'll no doubt find this rather helpful.

 

[rickcr42]

a better question would be "what DAC sounds best in your system".No matter what some try to tell you audio is not plug 'n play but is very intercomponant sensitive.
Match up two great individual pieces and you can still end up with crappy sound if the match is not a good one but match two average pieces that work well together and the combination of the two greater than the individuals could ever hope to be.

All abut the matchups and not what is perceived to be "best" at any point in the signal path which may in fact be your worst in the context of your own system

 

[Jahn]

Exactly. The Apogee sounding a bit squishy with Senns, but awesome with Grados. The benchmark lived happier with Senns, but was too harsh a mistress with the Grados. Things like system matching, price, music preference, how your ears make things sound to your pleasure centers, all of that makes lists like these really tough - harder than headphone lists, where a few generalities have popped out. DACs are beasts of burden, putting out an analog source that is very susceptible to what it's fed. not many people have heard all of these, given the right amount of time for all of these, and certainly not used them all with the same reference system and music and cans and such. So again, take it with a BIG boulder of salt!

case in point- i can rig up an ipod to a sik din to xin mini right angle adapter to SR71 to grado 1/8 to 1/4 adapter to Joe Grado SR-200 and play a WAV that will kick the butt out of a Modded Toshiba 3960 playing that same track with redbook with audioquest diamondback ICs to a Grado RA-1 to a RS-1. In fact, I did, as 1911 can attest to. But as you can see, I wasn't comparing them equally. These lists are only as good as the rig around the DACs, and shouldn't be taken as the final word in any way.

 

[virometal]

He does say it is all in fun. I wonder what the best dac would be for a guy like Chris who owns a variety of headphones.

I wish my experience was sufficient to take any kind of stab at that one. It wouldn't be the DAC1 though.

 

[Tim D]

Making these lists, assumptions, and parroting advice tends to reduce the overall S/N ratio of the forums. I don't consider it a great help to newbies, because it makes it harder for them to find the *original* source of reviews and impressions if all they end up reading instead are "I heard from so and so that so and so is better". Now compiling lists/links to the actual original sources and impressions might be useful. If I wanted to search for reviews and impressions or even lists, I surely wouldn't want to pull up second hand or hypothetical info based on what they read. Its just added noise IMO. Otherwise you create an imaginary consensus based upon what someone ends up reading from just a few individuals.

 

[Apoptygma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 a better question would be "what DAC sounds best in your system".No matter what some try to tell you audio is not plug 'n play but is very intercomponant sensitive. Match up two great individual pieces and you can still end up with crappy sound if the match is not a good one but match two average pieces that work well together and the combination of the two greater than the individuals could ever hope to be. All abut the matchups and not what is perceived to be "best" at any point in the signal path which may in fact be your worst in the context of your own system

Indeed, Sir. You're very welcome to fill in this DAC gap: http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showt...47#post1634747

According to Jahn's list and comments, I should be so lucky as to afford an Apogee, but that's not going to happen until they get old on the used market.