2. digital
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To DAC or not to DAC?

I’ve been very happy with my system for a few years now and hadn’t thought much about any additions. It’s not the best but respectable and enjoyable. (Mcintosh MC 207, MX122, MR85, MB100,OPPO 205, Dared MC-7P tube preamp for Marantz TT15s1 with B&W 803’s & 805’s) I have no intention of giving up any media source and have large collections of LP’s CD’s and DVD’s, but have recently been spending more time with streaming. I enjoy HT and 2 channel music listening. I recently stopped in to my local retailer, who tried to explain what hidden gems I was missing by not having a separate and dedicated DAC. I run my Oppo with HDMI to the MX122 and the MB100 with XLR’s. The retailer was directing me towards a Mytek or Moon DAC. I’m looking for other’s opinions on whether it might make a dramatic difference over my present system. Please let me know your thoughts.


gwbeers

Showing 2 responses by goofyfoot

goofyfoot
451 posts
 
Isn't there a DAC chip in your Oppo player?
goofyfoot
451 posts
 
To state the obvious, the primary goal of a DAC is to make digital files sound analogue. Which ever DAC, CD player, streamer, etc... does this effectively is, in my mind, doing what's expected. Which then brings in to question the characteristic qualities of the DAC, i.e. detail, color or neutrality of tone, depth and width of sound stage, and so on.

I agree with Elizabeth that an actually listening test of the component connected to your personal hifi is optimal however, you still might be able to tell a lot by listening to it at the store.

What I cannot understand are the price tags on current DAC's given that they're all over the place. I'm still happy with my Ayre QB 9 DSD DAC (with tweaks) even though it's antiquated and it retailed for $3,500.00 new. A reference DAC in today's market, from what I can tell, could retail for as high as $20,000.00 or as low as $1,500.00.The question being, will the high priced DAC produce a better analogue sound than the low priced DAC?
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