Quote:
Originally Posted by carlosgp
I'm in the same quest for a great source . I've considered several DACs, but recently found what I think will be the best option for me: USB 2 D/A - D/A Converter and USB Sound System . Cosmopragma seems to prefer it to the Benchmark DAC1 by a big margin, and Aqvox is german. It "only" costs 649€.
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Great! I will definitely look into that, thanks a lot!
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigshot
Quote:
Originally Posted by carlosgp
Cosmopragma says:
"For a vinyl lover like you the Benchmark is out in round one, it's the least analogish sounding of the bunch.
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This sentence alone would make me suspect the abilities of the reviewer[...]Reviewers who trot out "analogue" as a description of a desireable quality sound are revealing that their analysis isn't free of bias.
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Yes, I must admit that I also saw that line as somewhat suspicious, and the reviewer may be leaning so heavily towards any 'analog' sound, that he doesn't take into account the overall performance of the units. Thank you for pointing it out
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Still, if this Aqvox dac is as good or almost as good as the DAC1, it would be a great bargain. I will research it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Beauregard
The trick to enjoying hi-end audio is to make the placebo effect work in your favor - and I think you're on the right track!
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thank you *slight bow*
also, thank you for your words on soundcards and the significant and uplifting details on DAC1+interconnects
Quote:
Originally Posted by Elephas
Onboard sound has improved a lot recently, and may be satisfactory for most casual PC users. However, if you're on this site that probably means you want/need better sound. Your Senn HD25-1 definitely deserves better than the onboard headphone port.
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Indeed. That port is shameful
Quote:
Originally Posted by Elephas
Some members use the Chaintech AV710 soundcard to output a bit perfect digital signal to an external DAC. It is inexpensive, less than US$30. You will need to use software such as foobar2000 with ASIO to get a bit perfect signal and bypass the Windows Kmixer.
An E-MU 0404 (US$100) or 1212m (US$200) will also output a bit perfect digital signal, and you have the additional option of using their analog output. I believe the E-MU cards use drivers that bypass Kmixer as well.
Another option is to use the Apogee Mini-DAC's (US$1050) USB connection. I believe Apogee provides their own USB drivers which also bypass Kmixer and are better than the generic Windows USB audio drivers. Like the Benchmark DAC1, the Mini-DAC also has a built-in headphone amp.
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Thank you very much for that info. So even if I buy the DAC1 I'll still have to buy a soundcard... even when it's only 30$, it's another purchase, and the 1212m looks more interesting now. And USB dacs, as you've pointed out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jasper994
Not a lot of the soundcard users read the dedicated source threads... You may have much better luck if you start a thread in the Computer for a Source subforum.
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Ok. Then I will probably do that. I just didn't want make two almost identical threads.