[bixby]

Quote:

Thank you for your response,
 
I have been interested in the NuForce, although NwAvGuy does not make it seem worthwhile.
 
It does have all the features that I am interested in, those being:
RCA Line Out
USB In
Headphone Volume controlled Out
 
While I will not be able to try it out (no access to a store), I will research it online.
 
Thanks.

Northwesterner!  See above
 
Your buddy, the Northwesterner, luvs the Behringer as a dac, cheap or not.  Me, I have  never heard it.

 

[paullindqvist]

The UCA-222 (which i also researched) is a cheap audio interface for those who wants to record stuff. While it might be small improvement in terms of DAC will it be enough of an upgrade ?
 
The Nuforce Udac, have gotten both praise and well not so much praise...i would personally not go with it.
 
Since you up your budget to the likes of AE D1 there are plenty of options to go with in that price range. 

 

[ColesSmartBuy]

RE: bixby's post.
 
Ah, thank you for explaining that; I did not see his location.
 
You have been of much help in this thread, and I thank you for imparting your expertise on this topic.

Thanks.

 

[shiorisekine]

Quote:

Thank you for your prompt response.
 
I was seriously considering that option, but I thought that I may achieve better performance within the same price range with the Audioenigne D1.
 
Could you please advise me as to whether the e7 and e9 combo will offer a significant improvement to my current situation?
 
If it helps, I have also recently acquired a pair of Grado SR80i headphones, and I spend equal time between listening to them and my Sennheiser HD 518s.
 
Thank you for your response and help on this topic.

Hi,
 
 
Okay sorry for the late response. I have right now only the FiiO E7, which is a great DAC alone; However I do need to plug it into another amp. Which is where the E9 would make a great edition.  The products themselves look amazing. The FiiO would help you current setup because the FiiO E9 with a E7 docked works like a DAC which is like an external sound card. The FiiO E9 also has somewhere to plug in your RCA cables so you wouldn't lose out on that. Music out of the audio jack isn't as clean and smooth as it would be out of a DAC. I would actually recommend trying the new FiiO double play the FiiO E17 and the E09K/E9. 
 
Shiori
 
P.S. The grado's might gain a lot from this setup because the FiiO adds a little bit of fullness to headphones IMO. 

 

[ColesSmartBuy]

Thank you for your detailed response.
 
I will look into the Fiio e7/e17 and e9 combo again, as I was turned off it by the overwhelmingly number of recommendations for the Audioengine D1 and Maverick Audio D1.
 
The price is within my (new) budget, and your review outlined everything nicely.
 
Thanks, and I will continue researching.

 

[ColesSmartBuy]

Thanks for your response.
 
I accept your advice for the Fostex monitors, as I have heard great things about them. They are within my 'new speaker budget', although I won't be putting than plan into action for several months.
 
Regarding the ODAC and MusicStreamer, if you have possessed either of them, would you be able to impart some advice as to their characteristics? (e.g. sound and value (most important))  I have read excellent reviews on them, but I am really unsure as to how much they will benefit my current situation.
 
Once again, thank you for helping me in this decision. Your ideas have opened my horizons further.