[kargi]

A DAP without a DAC inside so no analog outputs. Only coaxial, optical and maybe mini usb outputs. I mean many people have portable dac/amps today right? They are using 7 year old players...



I imagine it also with a small low power consuming screen (like sansa clip) and relatively big lipo inside since it doesn't have to be too small considering height of dac/amps and depth of digital outputs. And just a music player, no radio, no games, no clock Wouldn't it be cool but cheap?

 

[a_tumiwa]

you mean Portable Digital Transport?? the market is low, i doubt it

 

[Epicality]

This isn't a fully bad idea. it makes a lot of sense for people who has portable DACs and amps. However, it makes zero sense for manufacturers, because as tumiwa has said, the market is extremely small. (Even if all the people in the audiophile community buys one, you compare it to the billions of ppl with ipods, and you'll see a large gap in the profits the manufacturers can earn) 
 
Also, currently i don't think portable DACs for DAPs are very popular yet, because it adds on another box, like what the boomslang and toucan combo from ibasso does. And, IMO, they are mostly larger than an imod rig with external caps. (im talking about valgrind caps and etc, not those ALO audio ones) So this makes the rig more transportable than portable. Then again, not all audiophiles appreciate having a large portable rig. there are many who prefer simply DAP + AMP, and most of the times they choose smaller amps, which causes the rise of small amps like RSA Shadow and Pico Slim. Heck, some even simply go ampless, because they rather enjoy full audio bliss in the comfort of their home.
 
Personally, i would appreciate a player that simply has line out, and, perhaps, digital out (maybe in optical and usb form), so if i feel like carrying an amp out, i can use the line out. and when im home, and im lazy to power up my computer or any form of media servers, i simply plug the digital out to a DAC which then goes to a desktop amp. and,  i would rather it to be in a small package, no bigger than the size of an iPod Classic, in terms of width, length, and thickness. otherwise, it doesnt really make much sense to call it 'portable' .
 
all these are IMO, though.

 

[ZarakiSan]

If you're going to make your own DAP, whether professionally or in amateur circles, it makes more sense to include a DAC in my opinion. There's no reason to physically separate the decoding and converting business, not enough at least to warrant making an additional box to lug around. A good DAC, of course, would still be a necessity. Once you get to making an audiophile player, you might as well include these functions, properly done, inside of one box.