[StephenFSC]

Hello, everybody
I am a newbie here.

I have a RME HDSP 9632 soundcard. I have read many topics about the good Sound Quality of Benchmark DAC-1 after connecting to the system.

Do you think whether it is worthwhile to buy the Benchmark DAC-1 connecting with my RME soundcard?

Will it have a big difference in sound quality after adding the DAC?

 

[davvy]

I don't know if you've seen this thread. It should pretty much answer your question about the differences.

Whether it is worthwhile for you depends on how much money you have and what your priorities are.

One thing I would say though is that the Benchmark is supposed to have excellent jitter reduction, so the digital out of the RME is probably overkill. If you do buy the Benchmark, you could try ordering something cheaper with a decent bit-perfect digital out (eg the Chaintech for less than $30). If you don't hear any decrease in quality, get rid of the RME and save yourself some money.

 

[StephenFSC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by davvy One thing I would say though is that the Benchmark is supposed to have excellent jitter reduction, so the digital out of the RME is probably overkill. If you do buy the Benchmark, you could try ordering something cheaper with a decent bit-perfect digital out (eg the Chaintech for less than $30). If you don't hear any decrease in quality, get rid of the RME and save yourself some money.

Thx for your reply.

That's mean if I connect the the Benchmark DAC-1 to my 9632, the sound will not improve so much??

 

[Mr.Radar]

Yes. The DAC1 is seemlingly jitter immune which means a higher quality (less jitter) digital output will make little, if any, difference in sound quality. If you live in the US you should get the Chaintech AV-710 and flash it to an Audiotrack Prodigy to get bit-perfect output.

 

[StephenFSC]

OO....

If I want to add a DAC, do anyone can suggest me some models(under US$1500)??

or just simply buy another soundcard, e.g. LynxTwo, to get a better sound quality??

 

[dip16dac]

Depends on what headphone amp and headphones you are using. What do you have?

 

[StephenFSC]

I am not using Headphone.
I am using the Genelec 1030A.

 

[minya]

I would definitely add a DAC to your system as opposed to a new soundcard. You will notice a greater improvement with an outboard DAC as opposed to a soundcard upgrade. That said, I have a Bel Canto DAC2 (retail US$1300) which I enjoy very, very much. I'm sure the Benchmark DAC1 is also a very good choice. It's a matter of taste, really.

- Chris

 

[thomaspf]

Not all DACs are equal. Some DACs require a high quality digital signal to sound good while others sound the same even with a signal that just meets the specs . The key quality characterisitc that is being referred to here is jitter.

The Benchmark DAC1 mentioned above is one of the DACs that will sound pretty much the same if you connect it to a $29 Chaintech or your RME card.

Completely independent from this fact is the question of how the analog sound from your RME card and the DAC1 connected to your RME card or the Chaintech will compare.

Most people will probably say a DAC1 sounds a bit better but you can read a variety of opinions on this forum.

Depending on how much money you are willing to spend there are higher end DACs available that also have high jitter immunity but are not using an asynchronous sample rate converter like the Benchmark.

Have a look at:

http://www.weiss.ch/dac1/dac1.html


Edit: I just looked up the specs for the 1030A. The amps in the 1030A provide for a THD+N rating of 0.08% ~ -62db. At some point you need to make sure that your end-to-end chain can actually make improvements in the source audible.

Cheers

Thomas

 

[dip16dac]

Quote:

Originally Posted by StephenFSC I am not using Headphone. I am using the Genelec 1030A.

Since the 1030A has balanced XLR inputs, the Benchmark DAC1 would connect to it with it's balanced outputs with XLR to XLR cables.
Other DACs that have only unbalanced outputs would not match up as well.

 

[StephenFSC]

Thx for all you guys replies.

I need to think clearly before taking action.

Apart from benchmark, it seems many many other opinions to choose.
As before posting this topics, I wrongly think that there are only very few opinions for the prices around US$1000(and under US$1500)

Can anyone suggest more model for me to be my reference?
Thx so much

 

[StephenFSC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dip16dac Since the 1030A has balanced XLR inputs, the Benchmark DAC1 would connect to it with it's balanced outputs with XLR to XLR cables. Other DACs that have only unbalanced outputs would not match up as well.

I nearly forget this point.
This is why I choose Benchmark DAC as it has XLR Balance Analog output.

However, I will consider the sound quality first.

 

[cadobhuk]

Quote:

Most people will probably say a DAC1 sounds a bit better but you can read a variety of opinions on this forum.

From what Irond Dreamer posted so far,it seems dac1 is two heads above even fully modded EMU,and RME is just absolutely out of contest.

 

[StephenFSC]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cadobhuk From what Irond Dreamer posted so far,it seems dac1 is two heads above even fully modded EMU,and RME is just absolutely out of contest.

Yup. Benchmark seems great.

After reading the review written by Irond Dreamer, I just wonder if I connect the RME to the DAC-1, will the sound quality have the same proportion improvement like the review said.

 

[thomaspf]

The improvement you can expect really depends on your system end-to-end! The headphone amp in the Benchmark Media DAC1 is extremely clean with a THD+N at 0.0003% ~ -110db ~ 18bit resolution under load. I don't know how the Gilmore performs but there is this idea of looking through a series of windows and the smallest window in the chain determines your field of view.

If you have a component in your chain that adds noise and harmonics at 0.08% ~ 61db ~ 10bit resolution it is less likely that lowering the noise floor or distortion at the source from -100db to -110db will have a big audible impact.

Cheers

Thomas