[Apos Audio]

Wonder if they are removable but they sure are ugly, hahaha. A vu-meter would have been the ultimate.

Hi there,

Unfortunately, they are not removable because they are permanently fixed by screws inside, unlike the TA-22 which has removable metal guards.

 

[Cecala]

Are the dac chips the same ones used in the xd05 pro? Would be neat to see a simplified economy for this instead of needing separate dac chips for each unit, and that would absolutely put this dac/amp on my radar for things to buy

Yes they are. This is a seriously good design and I like the 'toy' look very much. Quality parts are to be found inside. This will be remembered as a golden time in audio in years to come. It's amazing what your dollar buys today.

 

[ExTubeGamer]

If i would get into headphones right now I would simply order this as a one-and-done solution.

 

[MusicalDoc8]

Another toy alike designed amp from xduoo

Chord's buttons look like toys i had when i was a toddler with bright colours, still a maker might be having an eccentric look to better differentiate the product, all that matters is how good it is!

 

[wkvk]

Is it possible to bypass the tubes?

 

[Loftprojection]

Hi there,

Unfortunately, they are not removable because they are permanently fixed by screws inside, unlike the TA-22 which has removable metal guards.

ho well no sweat, the DAC cards options clearly makes up for it, that is really a great design feature.

 

[kandamrgam]

@Apos Audio Can this be used as a pure amp, completely by-passing the built-in DAC?

I ask this because many DAC/amp combo devices which have analog-in will reprocess the analog signal input (which is weird) rather than feeding it directly to amplifier. For e.g. Burson Audio Conductor 3X GT will reprocess the analog input via 3-pin XLR with it's ESS9038 DAC

 

[Syan25]

Chord's buttons look like toys i had when i was a toddler with bright colours, still a maker might be having an eccentric look to better differentiate the product, all that matters is how good it is!

Chord's buttons remind me of the electronic game Simple Simon from the late 70s.

 

[DietmaR]

Is there any possibility to EQ the sound? Perhaps bass, middle, treble settings via remote control?
Thanks

 

[zephyrstar]

Wonder if they are removable but they sure are ugly, hahaha. A vu-meter would have been the ultimate.

Everything is removable if you have a Dremel

 

[LoneFurrow]

@Apos Audio Can this be used as a pure amp, completely by-passing the built-in DAC?

I ask this because many DAC/amp combo devices which have analog-in will reprocess the analog signal input (which is weird) rather than feeding it directly to amplifier. For e.g. Burson Audio Conductor 3X GT will reprocess the analog input via 3-pin XLR with it's ESS9038 DAC

It certainly looks like you can bypass the DAC. You have balanced and single-ended inputs, together with a range of digital input options. Connect a DAC to either one of analogue inputs and you should be good to go. You also have the option to use it as a tube pre into another amp or powered speakers, which is nice. I have an XD05 Pro and TA-66, both of which I'm thoroughly enjoying. As far as I'm concerned, xDuoo has supplied my favourite DAC module (ROHM) as stock, based on the three currently available.

 

[kandamrgam]

It certainly looks like you can bypass the DAC. You have balanced and single-ended inputs, together with a range of digital input options. Connect a DAC to either one of analogue inputs and you should be good to go. You also have the option to use it as a tube pre into another amp or powered speakers, which is nice. I have an XD05 Pro and TA-66, both of which I'm thoroughly enjoying. As far as I'm concerned, xDuoo has supplied my favourite DAC module (ROHM) as stock, based on the three currently available.

It looks like that, given the port situation. But only someone who knows the internals can answer authoritatively. For e.g. the case of Conductor 3X GT I mentioned above, why would they reconvert an analog signal to digital and then to analog again.. :/

 

[ericrosenfield]

Questions:
* are the 12au7 tubes actually acting as an amplification stage or are they merely a tube buffer to add a tube “sound”?
* since it looks like there is a DAC output that bypasses the tube stage, is there a way to use it without turning the tubes on, if you want to sometimes use it as a solid state DAC and not burn down the tubes?

 

[wkvk]

* since it looks like there is a DAC output that bypasses the tube stage, is there a way to use it without turning the tubes on, if you want to sometimes use it as a solid state DAC and not burn down the tubes?

That's exactly what I wanted to know.

 

[Apos Audio]

Questions:
* are the 12au7 tubes actually acting as an amplification stage or are they merely a tube buffer to add a tube “sound”?
* since it looks like there is a DAC output that bypasses the tube stage, is there a way to use it without turning the tubes on, if you want to sometimes use it as a solid state DAC and not burn down the tubes?

Hi @ericrosenfield

The 12au7 tubes are actually acting as an amplification stage. Unfortunately, there’s no way to use it without turning the tubes on.