[Shaman]

Hello all,

I am not a very active poster on the forums, but I lurk quite a bit.

I am debating my need for a stand alone DAC, mainly because they are shiny and new and I like shiny new things.

I currently use my PC card, an old EMU 0404... yes it still works, yes I have a new main board with a PCI slot, Yes there are drivers for windows 10 ( which is amazing...) so bottom line, even after I built a new computer last year I can still use it and it works... very well. It is getting OLD, like 15 years old which is ancient in the PC world.
In all my years of computer building that card is the longest lived piece of PC hardware I have, and it just keeps going. It has analog and digital I/O and it does what I need.

I mainly use it for a DIY speaker system I have. I built a 3 channel amplifier and run a 2.1 system in my office. Also I use headphones a lot and I have a few quality amps for those, but rely on my PC for the analog source.

Would a basic modern DAC, such a Schiit Modi or JDS, or whatever be an improvement, or just a new shiny thing on my desk? If so , what should I be looking at in a reasonable price range ( say less than $200)?

Thanks

EDIT: for those that don't remember Creative's EMU line, here is a link to the specs of the 0404.
http://www.creative.com/emu/products/product.aspx?category=505&pid=20022

 

[stuck limo]

I would highly advise a new outboard DAC but whether you hear the differences between the old PC and the new one will be up to your ears.

Schiit Modi 3 and Topping DX3 Pro from Massdrop would be fine DACs in that price range.

 

[blackdragon87]

I would highly advise a new outboard DAC but whether you hear the differences between the old PC and the new one will be up to your ears.

Schiit Modi 3 and Topping DX3 Pro from Massdrop would be fine DACs in that price range.

Also maybe consider the Grace Massdrop standard dac as well

 

[Shaman]

Also maybe consider the Grace Massdrop standard dac as well

I find that partnership very interesting, the only other Grace equipment I have seen was years ago. It was super expensive pro audio gear...

My choices look like the following:

JDS OLDAC
Schiit Modi 3
Topping DX3
Topping D30
Grace Massdrop DAC

For more money there are a few interesting ones

IFI iOne ( has blue tooth, that could be useful)
AUNE X1S ( has an amp too)
Schiit Modi Multibit


To me the once you get to certain standard of design and construction, DAC's have little effect on the sound of the overall system. At least that is my take on it, but I have not exactly messed around with bunch of AD/DA equipment in home system.

Sound---Headphones>>>>>>>>>>solid state amp>>DAC---Source

I don't know about the multi-bit thing, seems like a good idea in theory, but does it have a practical benefit?

 

[blackdragon87]

I find that partnership very interesting, the only other Grace equipment I have seen was years ago. It was super expensive pro audio gear...

yeah, unfortunately the drop is not active at the moment. maybe it will be in the future. anyway good luck with your search

 

[ScubaMan2017]

Shiny things are important. And don't forget about glowing tubes sticking out of your shiny things.

Re: multibit whoo whoo. I'll reserve judgement on that technology. I like it. I had some extra beer-money, so I sprung for the fancy Modi-Multibit. I'd recommend any new user the Modi 3 as a starter device.

BTW, the JDS Labs The Element has a NICE volume knob... it's far smoother than my Magni and Loki. JDS Labs also answered my noob-questions... and I appreciated that.

BBTW, Massdrop. I saved a chunk of change on my Sennheisser HD650 clones (Massdrop HD6xx). I like the feel. My 2 cents...

 

[Preachy1]

If you can stretch your budget another $80 or so, I highly recommend the Xduoo TA10. It's matte black, so it's not shiny, but does have a nice glowy phalus!!!!

Seriously though, it works very well for me with a variety of inputs (FiiO, Pioneer, Xduoo) and cans (Audeze, Focal, Grado)

 

[Shaman]

Thank you all for the responses, in my search I ran across a used Schiit Bifrost and VERY reasonable price... so that kind of made up my mind.

I like the modular design, should be fun to mess around with.

 

[ScubaMan2017]

I've reached the end of my little box collection. What can replace a Eitr-Vali-Magi collection. Hell.... a Gungnir Multibit?! With a Asgard perched on top?! Zero percent need. 100%... All "want".

 

[ScubaMan2017]

If you can stretch your budget another $80 or so, I highly recommend the Xduoo TA10. It's matte black, so it's not shiny, but does have a nice glowy phalus!!!!

Seriously though, it works very well for me with a variety of inputs (FiiO, Pioneer, Xduoo) and cans (Audeze, Focal, Grado)

Glowing members are good. Heh heh.

 

[iFi audio]

Hello all,

I am not a very active poster on the forums, but I lurk quite a bit.

I am debating my need for a stand alone DAC, mainly because they are shiny and new and I like shiny new things.

I currently use my PC card, an old EMU 0404... yes it still works, yes I have a new main board with a PCI slot, Yes there are drivers for windows 10 ( which is amazing...) so bottom line, even after I built a new computer last year I can still use it and it works... very well. It is getting OLD, like 15 years old which is ancient in the PC world.
In all my years of computer building that card is the longest lived piece of PC hardware I have, and it just keeps going. It has analog and digital I/O and it does what I need.

I mainly use it for a DIY speaker system I have. I built a 3 channel amplifier and run a 2.1 system in my office. Also I use headphones a lot and I have a few quality amps for those, but rely on my PC for the analog source.

Would a basic modern DAC, such a Schiit Modi or JDS, or whatever be an improvement, or just a new shiny thing on my desk? If so , what should I be looking at in a reasonable price range ( say less than $200)?

Thanks

EDIT: for those that don't remember Creative's EMU line, here is a link to the specs of the 0404.
http://www.creative.com/emu/products/product.aspx?category=505&pid=20022

These days even affordable DACs can improve sound quality significantly, especially in comparison to old hardware a rather major quality leap happened over the years, so to shortly answer your question, sure, go for it!

 

[Yello]

Separate DAC will make your system more flexible in sound tuning.

 

[Deftone]

Imo unless youre using something quite old the differences are small so it all depends on is it worth it to you.

 

[Nautrachkfriend]

I came from a semi-old creative dac that was inside my PC to an external modern dac and the difference was actually pretty big. PC's are inherently pretty loud, especially those with internal PCI/PCIe/etc dacs that are directly connected into the motherboard. I had bad noise issues constantly with the internal creative dac I had. It actually sounded like chainsaws cutting down multiple trees when I finally decided to take the plunge into getting an external dac.

Upon making the change to a "modern external dac" I had better sound stage, detail, darker background, no chainsaw noises, better bass tonality, just a much more pleasant music listening experience in general. You certainly won't regret it, and $200 is a great starting point. You can snag a lot of options that have already been mentioned for that price.

 

[iFi audio]

Separate DAC will make your system more flexible in sound tuning.

Can't argue with this.