[morfic]

For those who have optical or coax spdif already:
 
There are a lot of threads out there asking for DACs that don't cost too much and sound decent.
To all those i would want to reply the same thing, so instead i just paste a link to the ebay item.
 
I enjoy it thoroughly (nice with the stock OPA2134, i enjoy it with an LME49720 in it of course) music is full, rich, and listening to it through my Little Dot I+ (yes, also with LME49720 in it, and CV4014/EF91 tubes) is a lot of fun.
I have not heard the metronome this easily in Rasputina's "Wish you were here" on "Lost and found" for example. And all of that without sacrificing a strong low end and clear(est) vocals.
 
I use it on my m-audio transit in linux (i rather not waste my time putting anything on that linux for sound thread that went off track), *EDIT*: I now use it on a desktop box, gotta love having spidf straight on the mobo, one less box to add to my cable mess..
 
I went for a BIN auction and went to EMS shipping for $25 for a total of $95, i have plenty of 12V power supplies, so that was the best choice for me, you can sit down and hunt them cheaper on a regular auction. ($60-$95 is your price range then.)
 
It works well, looks good (yes i care) is not too large and is decently priced and has a socketed opamp.
 
http://cgi.ebay.com/DIR9001-PCM1793-OPA2134-24BIT-192KHz-MINI-DAC-/380213856012?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item588683070c
 
I hope this one helps somebody.
 
Daniel
 
P.S.:
 
Aside from Rasputina I listen to all sorts of things like:
 
Emilie Autumn
Lisa Gerard
The Paxcecilia  ( http://www.paxcecilia.com/ )
Edward Elgar
Balanescu Quartet
Persephone
ASP
Unheilig
Rammstein (always interesting how much more you can catch out of the audience on live recording with a good dac)
 
Certainly beats any PCM2702/PCM2707 dac i owned before or the m-audio's line out.
 
Oh yeah: for those who go "what dacs are there under $X?" :
 
http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/325941/all-the-dacs-money-can-buy-pt-2

 

[Hybrys]

One, that's a decent looking DAC.  There are a lot of people that go with 'cheapo' ebay DACs and find themselves very happy.
 
Two, the 'All The DACs Money Can Buy' threads are ancient.  Half of them are dead projects, and some of the current good budget models aren't listen.  (Musiland, uDAC, etc.)

 

[morfic]

Time for part3? (No, i am not offering, altough a lot of it could be copy/paste probably)
 
I figured if you google for the names on there and you find a higher version, you still gained something from the links, as you can then use new version + "review" and end up back over here or other sites for some user feedback.
 

 

[Hybrys]

Quote:

Time for part3? (No, i am not offering, altough a lot of it could be copy/paste probably)
 
I figured if you google for the names on there and you find a higher version, you still gained something from the links, as you can then use new version + "review" and end up back over here or other sites for some user feedback.
 

Okay, I'll do Part3.

 

[Aynjell]

I just ordered on of these. What power supply should I get?

 

[ShinyFalcon]

Seems like any wallwart with 12VDC will work, regulated or not. It states there is an onboard regulator on the DAC.

 

[Aynjell]

the 12 volt number is the only one that matters?

 

[Aynjell]

By the way, does this DAC have a noise floor at all?

 

[Caphead78]

Huh this may just be my next purchase! Does it not come with a wallwart power supply though?

 

[morfic]

Quote:

Huh this may just be my next purchase! Does it not come with a wallwart power supply though?

may or may not, i got it without since i have plenty of 12C power supplies. the one i used is actually some random cheapy i had still in power strip and nothing moved me to replace it since it's not causing any issues.
 
if link is on and at normal listening volume i hear nothing, as far as noise floor is concerned. could crank up the amp and listen this way for a noise floor if anyone would want to know.
 

 

[Aynjell]

Please. I have an I+ also, albeit with a 2107 and M8083's... best combo I found so far... and your findings would be invaluable. Well, sorta. I already ordered but I'm anxious. =)
 
I got 2 2107's for 9.99 shipped, which was cheaper than just one, and it's my favourite op amp so far. Looking forward to putting one into the DAC.

 

[morfic]

Not a fan of the OPA2107...
 
But that's not what you asked about, so i looked for the noise floor with the dac linked and nothing playing and amp cranked up, and i saw the floor fell out, so nothing to report.
 

 

[Dalamar]

Go figure, no RMAA results again...

 

[Aynjell]

Thank you morfic. So basically, the noise floor is only that generated by the LD I+. What's the volume level you're normally at with your setup (since our setup will be identical soon)?
 
And dalamar, what's this RMAA? You mean rightmark?

 

[Dalamar]

Yes, RightMark Audio Analyzer..