[REVIEW] Audioengine D1 DAC: A Feature Packed Entry DAC

[FYL941]

Some photos of D1 with the creek

 

[FYL941]

 

[ravager]

I bought a pair of SRH840s and have been pairing with the D1 (Macbook Air -> D1 -> SRH840) and I find that this pairing has great synergy, and I have temporarily abandoned the X10s in order to enjoy this setup. I find that I enjoy the warmth the D1 affords in this capacity, and when required, gives me a nice, punchy bass. 
 
I had just bought the Schiit Modi/Magni and was considering selling the D1, but I am enjoying it too much right now.
 
The screaming you hear in the background is my wife discovering my Head-Fi-induced purchases. Call it retail therapy. : )

 

[MahthovenWang]

I would like to know how does the D1 compare with the JDS Labs ODAC... I use the iBasso P4 as an amp and I mainly listen to classical and pop music. So any advice?

 

[oats2012]

bought this as a nice partner for my ath m50 and fidelio x1's after reading this review. sounding great so far! thanks for the review effort!

 

[kingofzero]

How do you think the D1 fairs with the K601 / K612? no additional Amp.

 

[Phishin Phool]

Any thoughts or experiences with the audio out on this unit. I am looking for a DAC that can feed my Project sunrise tube amp that would be better than what is in my phone, tablet, disc player. I am going back and forth between this and the Modi as reviews seem to rave about how much better sounding the Modi DAC is than what you should expect for what you pay but it only accepts USB while this one seems to get talk about it being an average DAC but very versatile. It would be nice to have optical and usb input but I really have no interest in the amp as I would use either my tube amp or High end AVR if using a solid state amp. Anyone care to comment on the difference between this an dthe modi's sound?
 
I guess my question is if you were me what do you think would be more worthwhile for use as a straight DAC ---> analog out

 

[ravager]

   
 
I guess my question is if you were me what do you think would be more worthwhile for use as a straight DAC ---> analog out

 
The D1 is "okay" but a bit overpriced. I bought the D1 first, because of the versatility of the optical in and USB along with a headphone amp. The D1 also comes with its own power supply if you are using optical, but that uses the USB port, unfortunately. Since i bought the Modi and Magni, the D1 stays in my backpack and I use it for  my macbook air. You cannot beat the Schitt for the price, in my opinion, especially for analog out to Magni or Asgard, but I am not so sure about a tube amp. The Modi is a steal at < 100 USD.
 
Not affiliated in any way. Just a satisfied user.
 
http://schiit.com/news/review/modi

 

[Phishin Phool]

   
The D1 is "okay" but a bit overpriced. I bought the D1 first, because of the versatility of the optical in and USB along with a headphone amp. The D1 also comes with its own power supply if you are using optical, but that uses the USB port, unfortunately. Since i bought the Modi and Magni, the D1 stays in my backpack and I use it for  my macbook air. You cannot beat the Schitt for the price, in my opinion, especially for analog out to Magni or Asgard, but I am not so sure about a tube amp. The Modi is a steal at < 100 USD.
 
Not affiliated in any way. Just a satisfied user.
 
http://schiit.com/news/review/modi

I e-mailed Schiit regarding using the Modi with a moblile phone/tablet and this was their respons
 

It somewhat works with USB OTG, but I can't say we'd recommend it. We haven't had it working reliably here for long using that connection. I suspect it draws too much power.

 
I think I have decided to use a Fiio e17 and am going to use a "Y" adapter that converts the headphone out signal to analog R/L rca outputs and feed the amp that way but can simply remove it and use it on the go when needed.

 

[ravager]

I think the E17 is inferior to either the D1 or the Modi, but at least it does have its own power source. So you said that you wanted it to feed your tube amp, which I am assuming isn't portable? I can tell you that my macbook powers the D1 with no issues, but haven't attempted to use digital out in any portable devices because the head-fi experiences have generally been unfavorable. YMMV.

 

[Phishin Phool]

Yea the digital out tends to suck in phones (the GS3 in particular which I have ) which is why I am looking for an external DAC to process the digital signal and pass along a better analog conversion
one of the articles I saw that seemed to really favor it was this
http://lifehacker.com/five-best-digital-to-analog-converters-dacs-483393503
 
(I can get one along with all optional accessories and an A! amp for $140) so I may give it a shot and see how it does- If not I can recoup most of my $$ w/o too much hassle
 
Once you get to the 'headphone out' stage you are analog and I can feed my amp from there - no concerns with the Fioo amp part at all.
 
Also could use this 'on the go' forgoing my tube amp and using the  E17 this would allow me to be mobile with my DT990's and the solid state amp oin the E17 as it will drive 250 Ohm cans while my phone & tablet really can't much above a whisper.

 

[indybrett]

I know this is a somewhat old thread, but...
 
I just received this unit, and will be returning it, and here's why.
 
1) if you use a USB cable that is more than a couple of feet long, it does not work, at least not with my PC.  I had to use the supplied 1.5ft cable.
2) it does not even come close to driving my DT990 Pro 250 ohm headphones loud enough.  My Pioneer receiver does a much better job.  I don't even listen that loud.  Perhaps louder than most, but not extreme by any means.
3) 3.5mm headphone jack.  Really?  Ok, that's my bad.  I should have noticed that before i ordered.
 
As for sound quality... never got to that part of the review.  No point. 

 

[Makuta11]

I recently picked one of these up at RMAF, and I love it so far. I am about to order a Modi as well, so I will make a comparison thread once it arrives. As a side note, I am only interested in the D1 dac, not amp, as it is connected to a dedicated amp and I have a Calyx Kong, which I love, for on the go  listening.

 

[ravager]

  I know this is a somewhat old thread, but...
 
I just received this unit, and will be returning it, and here's why.
 
1) if you use a USB cable that is more than a couple of feet long, it does not work, at least not with my PC.  I had to use the supplied 1.5ft cable.
2) it does not even come close to driving my DT990 Pro 250 ohm headphones loud enough.  My Pioneer receiver does a much better job.  I don't even listen that loud.  Perhaps louder than most, but not extreme by any means.
3) 3.5mm headphone jack.  Really?  Ok, that's my bad.  I should have noticed that before i ordered.
 
As for sound quality... never got to that part of the review.  No point. 

Interesting what you said about the length of the USB cable. I am using a meter-long cable with my Modi, but since I use the D1 as a portable device, I just stick to the supplied cable, which is pretty high quality. The headphone jack is 3.5mm because of the portability. Most portable headphone amps use these as well. I do think the amplifier stage was an afterthought on the D1, but it sufficiently drives my 840s while using with my macbook air. A win for me. I used the RCAs at home. 
 
Brett I would look at a Modi/Magni for driving those DT990s. Great rig but you do lose portability and spdif inputs.

 

[ravager]

  I recently picked one of these up at RMAF, and I love it so far. I am about to order a Modi as well, so I will make a comparison thread once it arrives. As a side note, I am only interested in the D1 dac, not amp, as it is connected to a dedicated amp and I have a Calyx Kong, which I love, for on the go  listening.

Modi uses the same chip as D1 for DAC, but is more neutral because you aren't forced to go through amplifier stage. If you don't need SPDIF, Modi is hard to beat.