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Best DAC under $500- need some advice

Any thought on the ODAC?
I've read it compares very closely to the Bifrost Schiit.
It can be bought new from several sources, including JDSLabs.com, for around $150. Would be even less if you can DIY.
BG
 
tromba said:
I've always used Exact Audio Copy, and they are vbr lame encoded. Not sure what the V0 means....

And while the DAC will make them sound better, will I be thinking "Sounds better if I pull the CD off the shelf" (although CDs are currently in my office, and listening room is home)
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-v0 is the highest quality vbr setting with lame
 
nd4speed said:
If you could swing $600 you could probably pick up a Benchmark DAC1 (non USB though). If you could live w/o USB that's the one I would go with. I've had owned the DAC1 USB on two different occasions and wouldn't hesitate to get one if my budget was under $2K.
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This. I love my DAC1, its really taken my system to a whole new level. Ive owned many DACs over the years from the likes of Peachtree, Grant Fidelity, and Cambridge Audio. While those were great DACs in their own right, they dont have the true-to-source sound of the DAC1. The analytical nature of the DAC1 makes it a great match with tubes, especially single-ended tubes.
 
wizargoz said:
BTW- I have heard good things about the Valab Dac and leaned that way. But I am hesitant to order from China.
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I understand that reluctance to order from China. I've done it rarely, and I've been fortunate so far. One of those orders was a Valab dac, and I can't say that it's necessarily an upgrade from your current gear. Mine has been pretty well relegated to second system duties for more than a year.

I also have a balanced MHDT Havana that I love quite a bit, but I'm not entirely sure that would be an upgrade either. Rather than being a resolution champ, it's a gentle player that makes everything sound sort of good. I consider it an insurance policy for all of my terrible, 1980s digital. I can also say that the USB implementation is *severely* wanting in comparison to other options.

If you have in the neighborhood of $600 to blow on Chinese gear, I'd look very carefully at the Audio GD line. I've had great luck with that stuff. The sound has almost an idealized "this is what Marantz could have been" tone and jump while still being resolving and musical. It's hard not to love it, though it's possible to love other stuff even more.

You might also want to check into the options offered by Channel Islands Audio. Dusty makes solid, listenable gear that will certainly change things up from the presentation you're used to.
 
I am also looking for better pc audio. have decided i want a dac..
i currently have a Asus Xonar Essence STX internal soundcard.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132010&Tpk=essence stx i bought it because it brags about sound quality and has two Line Level outputs on the card for stereo operation.
but the new product,, Asus Xonar Essence One.. DAC caught my attention with its upsampling and features.
I spent $200 on my soundcard, i hear the difference between the onboard.
but i guess my real question is whats my chances that a DAC will sound better than my current sound card?
and how important are sampeling rates? and is that worth the price?
or can i do better for $600?
i listen to flac files when they are available to me. but i use pandora alot.. and pandora streams at 128kb/s
do you guys think that maybe the Essence One DAC will offer improvement over what i have currently or can i do better for $600? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ords&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleAdwords-_-pla-_-NA-_-NA
 
pete_mac said:
The audio-gd NFB2.2 is one heck of a DAC for $500, but you need to factor in shipping costs on top of that. The NFB17.2 and NFB3.2 are cheaper and damn close in performance.

I also like the Schiit Bifrost.
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schiit bifrost! Mine kicks ass.:music:
 
Camelot Technology

Is anyone familiar with their Arthur line of DACs? I have an opportunity to buy one at a good price but can't find much info??:scratch2:
 
Just wanted to throw in my 2 cents worth re ordering from China - I can get gear delivered to my door here in rural Australia from Shenzhen or Hong Kong *faster and more cheaply* than I can have it delivered from Perth. When I lived in Brisbane, the difference was even more stark - 3 days versus 'sometime next week'. I would add that I have never had a problem with a Chinese etailer claiming a product was 'In Stock' when it wasnt - I cant say the same for Australian retailers. One outfit in Brisbane was caught out when their 'just in time' inventory system out of China was impacted by industrial action - right to the bitter end they tried to argue that 'In Stock' is normally completely transparent to the customer, but I havent bought a single thing from them since. In another case, Ray Samuels quoted me completely exorbitant Fedex shipping rates on one of his amps, then added insult to injury by adding his Paypal fees to the quote. That doesn't make Ray a bad person, and I'm not here to bag his business practices, just giving you some examples where the Chinese retailers have come through for me.

Getting back to the topic, I have been quite happy with my HRT MSII, but I agree with the earlier suggestion that a USB-SPDIF converter combined with something like the base (no USB) Bifrost seems like a very versatile option for minimal outlay. John Darko has done a lot of work on the idea that a converter is a must at the budget end of the USB DAC world - might pay to spend a little time revisiting his thoughts.

http://www.digitalaudioreview.net/

Good luck.
 
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