Budget USB DAC

[0verkilled]

I know there are lot of questions like these already, but I need your help in choosing this one. I will keep it as focused as possible. I have read a few forums and finally zeroed in on 2 DACs: JDS Labs ODAC and HRT Streamer

I currently have MS Avaiano6 and MH 25.2, currently using my Bluray player as DAC/streamer from PC.
I want to play music directly from PC and hence need a USB DAC, I am planning to put this DAC inside the PC cabinet and if its USB only DAC there is no external power supply, saving me by one extra switch to turn on.

From the reviews I learned that both are a little bright sounding and I am ok with it, considering my amp and speakers are very laid back, this should be fine. However, I dont know which one to buy.

Schiit Modi is also in my budget, and weiliang's dac that our fellow fm recently bought although a bit pricey- New Finished AK4495SEQ AK4495 AK4118 DAC Decode LM49860 High Quality Audio | eBay, problem with this dac is the quality issues that might come up later, some people complaining about loud sound being heard whenever its switched off or on.
Both these DAC's would be difficult to fit inside the PC cabinet.

Your help is very valuable to me. Thanks in advance.

 

[omishra]

Go with ODAC. I heard it while comparing with my Schiit Uber. And its equivalent.

 

[0verkilled]

Thank you, so the weiliang's dac is not worth considering?

 

[regeHA]

While I have not heard these DACs, my experience with USB DACs in the budget range has not been very good.

Also consider the Asus Xonar Essence range of sound cards, extreme value for money in the $200 range.

For $35, the Chromecast Audio is unbeatable and has a pretty good on-board DAC, though it's strength is in wireless streaming.

Personally I love the Schiit sound myself, and have 2 of their DACs that I am using with excellent results. The good thing about them is they do not change much even with change in the rest of the chain.

 

[hifiramr]

hi check on below dac which very good you need to buy a usb to coaxial converter for this model to work with USB.Also you can see diyaudio thread for the same dac

Parallel AK4399 AK4118 DAC software 192K Assembled Board - $136.00 : Enjoy in your hi-fi project, diy tube amp, amplifier diy, amp diy

 

[omishra]

Thank you, so the weiliang's dac is not worth considering?

I haven't heard it, so I can't comment. BTW I have Asus Xonar ST too in my desktop. But troubled me a lot with Windows 8.1U1. Drivers were not working. I installed some thirdparty driver. Still either headphone or RCA works at a time. Also either front or rear output works at time. Desktop is Z97 mobo with latest Intel core i7 processor, 16GB RAM

 

[hifiramr]

0verkilled please go through the DIYAUDIO forum thread you will better understand this dac go through the below thread its a long thread you will find your answer there

ebay:Weiliang Dual X2 AK4399 DAC with LCD - diyAudio

 

[afj]

I know there are lot of questions like these already, but I need your help in choosing this one. I will keep it as focused as possible. I have read a few forums and finally zeroed in on 2 DACs: JDS Labs ODAC and HRT Streamer

I currently have MS Avaiano6 and MH 25.2, currently using my Bluray player as DAC/streamer from PC.
I want to play music directly from PC and hence need a USB DAC, I am planning to put this DAC inside the PC cabinet and if its USB only DAC there is no external power supply, saving me by one extra switch to turn on.

From the reviews I learned that both are a little bright sounding and I am ok with it, considering my amp and speakers are very laid back, this should be fine. However, I dont know which one to buy.

Schiit Modi is also in my budget, and weiliang's dac that our fellow fm recently bought although a bit pricey- New Finished AK4495SEQ AK4495 AK4118 DAC Decode LM49860 High Quality Audio | eBay, problem with this dac is the quality issues that might come up later, some people complaining about loud sound being heard whenever its switched off or on.
Both these DAC's would be difficult to fit inside the PC cabinet.

Your help is very valuable to me. Thanks in advance.

hi overkilled
i've got the weiliang ak4495 dac and its a very good dac. brilliant sound stage and smooth. i've also just changed the opamp section on it with a unit made by fm linuxguru. has improved the dynamics and sound separation and detail. def worth the money. you wont get better at the price point. and very good build. inside it looks factory made and not assembled

 

[raghupb]

Schiit Modi-2 and Modi-2-Uber have external PS. It is preferred as you do not want to power the DAC over USB (possible noise issues)

I have Modi-2-Uber. Have tested it with OPT/COAX and USB. No noise over USB; at least not audible.

I have used whatever cable was available at home. Schiit recommends USB2.0 cable.
Just got the new 2.0 cable; yet to try.

Bengaluru FMs are welcome to PM me and come over to audition.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[ShutterX]

I recently bought the SMSL Sanskrit 6. I like it and have noticed a difference over onboard. Have tested the coaxial and optical in too. Its good for its price. I havent heard any other similar DAC, other than my Fiio e7 to which the SMSL is far superior.

 

[0verkilled]

@hifiramr and afj, I spent a lot of time looking at the options from weilieng none of the listings come with USB module fitted. And the cheapest one is around 18k including shipping.

Thank you everyone for the suggestion.

For now, I feel ODAC is better for my budget. It wont sound worse than my BDP right?

 

[hifiramr]

@hifiramr and afj, I spent a lot of time looking at the options from weilieng none of the listings come with USB module fitted. And the cheapest one is around 18k including shipping.

Thank you everyone for the suggestion.

For now, I feel ODAC is better for my budget. It wont sound worse than my BDP right?

Thats true when you calculate all the price will come to above but realy value for the amount.I mean we can easily say this is an hi end dac.IF you you dont have such budget you can look on below dac.Which i have used it before excellent value for money.You love its sound also you can play around with opamp also

Review: Wolfson WM8740 USB DAC from China – Music Server Tips

WM8740 DIR9001 PCM2704 USB DAC Decoder AC9 12V Coaxial Input 24bit 44 1K 96kHz | eBay

 

[afj]

fm sarith has a dac with similar specs if im not mistaken that he was looking to sell. you can contact him if youre interested

 

[saikatbiswas82]

As you have a decent budget, I think it would be better if you get it from schiit itself. The shipping might cost around $30. So the overall cost might come to around $150+$30. In case you select modi 2, its always better to go with uber analog update. This is a very good (rather one of the best) value proposition below $200.

Other value propositions could be:

1. Musiland Monitor 02 US Dragon 32bit 384kHz Asio USB3 0 Sound Card DAC | eBay
$140 (including shipping)
2. Musiland Monitor 03 US Dragon 32bit 384kHz Asio USB3 0 Sound Card DAC PCM1798 | eBay
$175 (including shipping)

These dacs is highly praised in many forums. Just google it

3. Completed XMOS U8 Parallel plus AK4399 USB DAC 24B 192K Headphone amp best pric
$168 (including shipping)

Wish you all the best for dac hunting. I finally settled with a used one

 

[afj]

overkilled, another bit of advice - if youre looking at one of these kits, and if you dont have a technical background, i suggest you go with a fully assembled kit with usb input card as well in full working condition. you get a lot of dac cards with optical / coaxial input. but then you also have to get a case, usb input, power unit etc. and all these could prove problematic to put together without the required knowledge. i was very clear with the supplier that i wanted a plug and play solution

 

[keith_correa]

overkilled, another bit of advice - if youre looking at one of these kits, and if you dont have a technical background, i suggest you go with a fully assembled kit with usb input card as well in full working condition. you get a lot of dac cards with optical / coaxial input. but then you also have to get a case, usb input, power unit etc. and all these could prove problematic to put together without the required knowledge. i was very clear with the supplier that i wanted a plug and play solution

True that! The costs just keep adding up.

 

[0verkilled]

@afj you are correct, I dont know anything about chips and boards, I dont even have a soldering gun. So any kind of diy is not possible at all.
Thanks for the tip, I have sent a pm to sarith and will decide on what he replies.

Saikat, you nailed it. I read few reviews about Musiland 03 and it looks good. I have also emailed minishow regarding the details in parallel AK4399.

Can you tell the difference between the parallel AK4399 - Completed Xmos U8 Parallel Plus AK4399 USB DAC 24B 192K Headphone Amp Best Pric | eBay
and - New Hi End Parallel AK4399 DAC Software 192K Use Low Jitter AK4118 Weiliang | eBay
I went through the diy thread shared by hifiramr and the latter is supposed to be the best DAC for the price.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I have 3 more options now Musiland 03, parallel AK4399 and sarith's DAC.

 

[srisaikat]

Recently I was studying all around about R-2R DACs, so have ordered - HiFi CD Audio TDA1541A DAC Digital Audio Converter w Asynchronous USB CM6631A | eBay . This is a cheap one to have a test of legendary TDA1541. Now waiting finger crossed for the arrival.

What I understand about comparison between DS & R-2R (Multibit):- this comparison have somewhat similarities when one compare SMPS based power supply and Linear Power Supply.

 

[saikatbiswas82]

@afj you are correct, I dont know anything about chips and boards, I dont even have a soldering gun. So any kind of diy is not possible at all.
Thanks for the tip, I have sent a pm to sarith and will decide on what he replies.

Saikat, you nailed it. I read few reviews about Musiland 03 and it looks good. I have also emailed minishow regarding the details in parallel AK4399.

Can you tell the difference between the parallel AK4399 - Completed Xmos U8 Parallel Plus AK4399 USB DAC 24B 192K Headphone Amp Best Pric | eBay
and - New Hi End Parallel AK4399 DAC Software 192K Use Low Jitter AK4118 Weiliang | eBay
I went through the diy thread shared by hifiramr and the latter is supposed to be the best DAC for the price.

Thanks for all the suggestions, I have 3 more options now Musiland 03, parallel AK4399 and sarith's DAC.

Let me tell you a secret..minishow and weiliang both are the same guy...it took me so much time to figure this out

The funny part is I asked same question to weiliang ($134 dac) and minishow ($150 - Completed Newest Xmos U8 Parallel AK4399 USB DAC 24B 192K Plus Headphone Amp Out | eBay), I received reply from weiliang only...the question was ....how good or bad one dac is when compared to the other?

I never received a reply from minishow but weiliang confirmed that both the products are same :lol:

I went through the diy thread shared by hifiramr and the latter is supposed to be the best DAC for the price.

One more thing to consider... The latter does not include USB input. This should sound better as all the components are better like nichi caps, lme opamp, dual discrete psu etc.

 

[saikatbiswas82]

Recently I was studying all around about R-2R DACs, so have ordered - HiFi CD Audio TDA1541A DAC Digital Audio Converter w Asynchronous USB CM6631A | eBay . This is a cheap one to have a test of legendary TDA1541. Now waiting finger crossed for the arrival.

What I understand about comparison between DS & R-2R (Multibit):- this comparison have somewhat similarities when one compare SMPS based power supply and Linear Power Supply.

This looks promising... 4 trafos ...that's sexy. BTW...did you try gustard ever?