[lamski]

I have a set of HD-580's and almost cirtainly decided to get a LD MKIII as I just could not find a suitable all in one combo (DAC/AMP/Preamp) that I liked.  I think the LD MKIII will be a great fit for the HD 580's as I love the warm nice full sound they give. 
 
Since im a little over budget on my amp section I need to find a DAC that will be a good match for the HD 580's and the LD MKIII without breaking the bank.  Im thinking $200 or less.  The problem is I dont have much room on my desk after the LD goes on it.  I would like either an in computer option or a small one I can tuck away behind the desktop computer or monitor.
 
The E-MU 0404 PCIe comes to mind but I have no experience with any E-MU products and am not sure if that would be the best fit.  I also looked at the HRT music streamer II but the reviews on this guy seem to be very mixed.  Are there any other DAC units that would fit my situation?  FYI, my current soundcard is an X-Fi xtreme gamer.

 

[soundaddicted]

I had a lite-audio DAC once that fitted the bill.  But for $200 or less, I would consider a higher end sound card.

 

[Diciembre]

I haven't really seen mixed reviews on the Streamer II, except for possible computer-dependent issues with USB power. Is that what you're talking about? That is personally what I'd go with in that range, especially given your space limitations. The uDAC-2 is also in your price range and it's even smaller that the MSII, but in my opinion it doesn't compare to the Streamer at all, although for me it does have a bigger soundstage. I've had both, but I've used them with active speakers only (Swan M200MkIII's). If you're interested in it, you can always try the MSII and lose only the return shipping if you buy if from Amazon (and they fulfill the order). I can't say how it compares to the E-MU. Maybe I don't know enough about PCI sound cards, but I don't think they can easily beat a well-implemented asynchronous USB DAC.