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Coax or Toslink AND USB Input Question

PJuddery

PJuddery

Well-Known Member
This is probably going to seem, to some, like a daft question and maybe it is, but I'm going to ask it anyway, lol.

I've currently got a Topping D10 DAC, which connects my PC to my receiver and a bog standard, nothing special cd player, which connects via component cables.
What I'd like to do is get a decent 4k bluray multi-media player and connect it via either coax or toslink cable, to a new, as yet unpurchased DAC and then to the receiver.
However, it seems silly to have 2 different DACs, 1 for the PC and one for the bluray player.

Is it possible to have both USB and a coax or toslink, physically connected to the same DAC and switch between input sources? I've made quite a few Google searches on the subject and I can't seem to find a suitable answer.
 
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The answer is yes. There are a plethora of options. I'm sure many will chime in with more info, as it depends what you are looking for, what you already have, etc. Not with your topping though... as far as I know. I believe it only has one USB in.

I'm mainly replying because I had to google "bog standard". What a great saying. I've always enjoyed British slang.

(Follow up edit: There's nothing wrong with having multiple DACs. I do. Many do. I'm actually in the market for another now.)
 
I've got no experience with the Topping (but I'm looking for the manual now to see if I can help you) but I have my streamer going to the optical in and a blu-ray player for CD's going into the SPDIF input on my Modi DAC and it is selectable with a switch on the front of the unit. Highly recommend the Modi :)

glancing at the Topping D10, it appears that it's only USB input so in this case you would need another DAC if you weren't going to use the onboard converters of your blu-ray player.

-Steve
 
Toblerone said:
The answer is yes. There are a plethora of options. I'm sure many will chime in with more info, as it depends what you are looking for, what you already have, etc. Not with your topping though... as far as I know. I believe it only has one USB in.

I'm mainly replying because I had to google "bog standard". What a great saying. I've always enjoyed British slang.

(Follow up edit: There's nothing wrong with having multiple DACs. I do. Many do. I'm actually in the market for another now.)
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Thanks for the reply Toblerone. I was hoping it might be possible, but wanted to be sure before I bought a new DAC, just in case I needed to look out for anything specific, to make it possible. It never even occurred to me to think that my use of the bog standard expression might throw anyone. It's funny how we just use expressions that we're used to, without even thinking about them, isn't it. :D

Edit: And you're correct about the Topping. It only has USB in, so I'd need to buy a different DAC to use anything else.
 
sbcrockett said:
I've got no experience with the Topping (but I'm looking for the manual now to see if I can help you) but I have my streamer going to the optical in and a blu-ray player for CD's going into the SPDIF input on my Modi DAC and it is selectable with a switch on the front of the unit. Highly recommend the Modi :)

glancing at the Topping D10, it appears that it's only USB input so in this case you would need another DAC if you weren't going to use the onboard converters of your blu-ray player.

-Steve
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Agreed Steve, the Topping D10 does only have USB in, so I'd have to buy a new DAC for this purpose. Ideally I'd like to make sure that I know what to look out for when buying a new DAC. Things like, how will it be powered when not using the USB connection etc and if it has a separate power supply, will that cause problems with the USB etc.
 
PJ: Well, you just need to take a close look at the models, that you're interested in. The Camridge DacMagic 200M for example sports a "source" button on its front for switching between its inputs. And on its back you can see the input for the external power supply - and there also is a little ground lift switch for decoupling the USB ground in case of a hum problem.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
 
lini said:
PJ: Well, you just need to take a close look at the models, that you're interested in. The Camridge DacMagic 200M for example sports a "source" button on its front for switching between its inputs. And on its back you can see the input for the external power supply - and there also is a little ground lift switch for decoupling the USB ground in case of a hum problem.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
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Awesome, thanks @lini. That helps a lot. I swear that I did try to find an answer before asking here. Maybe my search terms weren't good enough, but all I seemed to get was "how to connect a DAC" type results and none of those covered this scenario.
 
PJ: The also are separate USB isolators/ground breakers, btw - so if you get a DAC, that doesn't sport an integrated one, and then notice a hum problem, you can always still install a swparate one.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
 
lini said:
PJ: The also are separate USB isolators/ground breakers, btw - so if you get a DAC, that doesn't sport an integrated one, and then notice a hum problem, you can always still install a swparate one.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini
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Thanks Manfred, that could come in very handy to know and greetings from the UK.
 
PJ: You're welcome.

Greetngs from Munich!

Manfred / lini

P.S.: Haven't yet been to Derby, btw - but quite close, to Nottingham. That was, when I visited the parents of my friend Mark from B'ham for the second time, when they had already moved out of town to Kings Bromley.


edit: typo extermination... *sigh*
 
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lini said:
PJ: You're welcome.

Greetngs from Munich!

Manfred / lini

P.S.: Haven't yet been to Derby, btw - but quite close, to Nottinghan. That was, when I visited the parents of my friend Mark from B'ham for the second time, when they had already moved out of town to Kings Bromley.
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Well you didn't miss much by not visiting Derby. Derbyshire as a county is gorgeous countryside for the most part, but Derby itself is just a small city, with not much here. We do have the Download festival just a quick drive out of town, but that's in Castle Donnington rather than in Derby.
 
Most DACs that have multiple inputs require either front-panel switching or using the remote. One of many features I like about my RME ADI-2 DAC FS is that it auto-switches between inputs, depending on input signal. I'm constantly switching between FB and YooToob videos to my LMS server to the WiiM Mini, all done without me having to manually switch the DAC inputs.
 
chicks said:
Most DACs that have multiple inputs require either front-panel switching or using the remote. One of many features I like about my RME ADI-2 DAC FS is that it auto-switches between inputs, depending on input signal. I'm constantly switching between FB and YooToob videos to my LMS server to the WiiM Mini, all done without me having to manually switch the DAC inputs.
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Thanks chicks. That does look like a pretty sweet DAC and the auto switching does sound really useful. If only it wasn't about £1k beyond my currently affordable price range. :eek:
 
PJuddery said:
If only it wasn't about £1k beyond my currently affordable price range. :eek:
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Yeah, cost is always a consideration, sadly. :oops: RME, for me, is well worth the cost - no audiophool nonsense; their consumer gear is built to the same standards as their extensive line of pro gear.
 
Toblerone said:
Stating your budget may help if you are looking for recommendations.
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That's fair. Ideally as little as possible, without sacrificing audio quality, (which is obviously subjective and based on my perceptions of my current setup, which you can't hear obviously). So I guess as much bang for the buck sound quality wise as possible for definitely no more than £300, but less if possible.
 
chicks said:
Yeah, cost is always a consideration, sadly. :oops: RME, for me, is well worth the cost - no audiophool nonsense; their consumer gear is built to the same standards as their extensive line of pro gear.
Click to expand...
It sure is and it's not so much that I mind paying that much, if it's good enough for the price. I'm going to be wanting new speakers soon and a 4k multi-format player to go with the DAC and just don't have the spare finances to spend a lot individually on each item I want at the moment. I'm already a few £k into the audio adventure, which to some is about what they spend on just one cable, but to as much as I would like to be able to do that, it's not on the cards for the moment at least. I'm enjoying what I've got though, so it's all good. :)
 
What is your budget for the disc player?

Do you need the DAC to do DSD?

Edit: Do you need the DAC to handle MQA? (If you say yes, I'm out. Just kidding. But seriously, if you say yes, goodbye.)

Overall, what are you looking to do? What sources are you planning to connect to the dac? Etc?
 
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