advertisement


Need advice on DAC that has good Preamp section for active speakers

W

WPP61

New Member
...what it says really!

I'm well aware of Topping E30 and others but it's clear that eg on the E30 the sound is impaired when using the preamp vs in pure DAC mode.

So - what recommendations for a single small box that contains a good DAC AND good Preamp? Ideally not as expensive as the D90. I'm Ok going secondhand.
Marantz HD-DAC1?

Thanks!
 
WPP61 said:
...what it says really!

I'm well aware of Topping E30 and others but it's clear that eg on the E30 the sound is impaired when using the preamp vs in pure DAC mode.

So - what recommendations for a single small box that contains a good DAC AND good Preamp? Ideally not as expensive as the D90. I'm Ok going secondhand.
Marantz HD-DAC1?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
FWIW I tried the D90 as a Pre and was underwhelmed, as a DAC only it was really good though.

One of the little Teac units like the UD-301
https://www.audioemotion.co.uk/teac-ud-301-x-usb-dac-23383-p.asp

Separate DAC and Passive Pre a thought, I know it’s 2 boxes but there are some really small passive boxes out there and tiny DACs.
 
I use an RME ADI-2 fs DAC as my DAC/Pre, currently, it feeds passive speakers via a power amp, (no additional pre) but, I have also tried it into my Yamaha 'active monitors' via balanced connection and it works very well. The RME is a bit pricy compared to the Topping, but I bought it for the DSP parametric EQ functions which come in handy to dial out a bass hump in my room.

One other thing the RME does well is the volume control, which allows me to scale 0dB for my max listening vol. the DAC operates with no attenuation and it scales the output using a switched resistor ladder. It is a clever bit of kit.

RME also have excellent support via their own forum, even if it can be a little abrupt at times. The RME people don't engage with the usual audiophile tweaks!
 
Paul McDonough said:
I use an RME ADI-2 fs DAC as my DAC/Pre, currently, it feeds passive speakers via a power amp, (no additional pre) but, I have also tried it into my Yamaha 'active monitors' via balanced connection and it works very well. The RME is a bit pricy compared to the Topping, but I bought it for the DSP parametric EQ functions which come in handy to dial out a bass hump in my room.

One other thing the RME does well is the volume control, which allows me to scale 0dB for my max listening vol. the DAC operates with no attenuation and it scales the output using a switched resistor ladder. It is a clever bit of kit.

RME also have excellent support via their own forum, even if it can be a little abrupt at times. The RME people don't engage with the usual audiophile tweaks!
Click to expand...
Good shout, didn’t suggest the RME as I thought it would be over the OPs budget, under a £grand the rme would be my choice for sure.
 
WPP61 said:
Yes I've heard that's good, prob a little out of range price wise though...

Maybe if I did accept 2 boxes, it would give greater flexibility and possibly better value for money?
Click to expand...
They come up used if you’re prepared to wait a bit and monitor the usual for sale forums/ebay, I sold my one a good while ago I think for £575.

2 boxes is more flexible, depends if you enjoy a bit of messing about/mix match.
 
The last one on here was £525. Mine was eighteen months old and £600 a year ago.Not only is it excellent SQ but the headphone output is superb. It’s worth squeezing your budget on this occasion. At this price level it could be your final purchase it is that good and flexible. No hifi premium, just a pro kit outfit easily able to exploit the often overpriced hifi market.
 
If your looking for value for money I would suggest Cambridge audio streammagic 6, audiolab mdac/mdac+.
 
ASenna04 said:
Be careful here and listen before you just use a DAC. A pre amp plays a key role is amplification.
Click to expand...
That can be true, but it depends entirely on the amp design in question. Some power amps simply won’t perform well without a well matched analogue preamp, Naim being the obvious example. On the other hand some DACs and power amps, such as Chord, are designed to work together, and they really don’t require an analogue pre in between unless you need to add other analogue inputs.
 
Hiya! Have you considered the Grace Designs 900? Its a beautifully made small desktop headphone/AKM dac/preamp. i used it with great success into a Temple Audio power amp ( undiscovered Uk cottage industry magic) in my study, then took it through to the big rig, replacing the dac and valve pre at the front of a big active dipole system. The AKM dac and pre were remarkable: big open spacious sound with lots of fine detail - far more than just a stand-by! I conclude that the pre is very capable.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top