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Looking for DAC advice based on my system and needs

G

greggor

New Member
I am ready to invest in a new DAC; marrying a new Samsung TV into a vintage stereo is kind of forcing my hand.
I my current system is Elac Unifi 2.0 speakers, Adcom GFA555 amplifiier, Rotel RSP 960 Pre amp. Sonos Connect Pre amp for streaming Spotify. I have also ripped my large CD collection to an external hard drive (flac). While I love the Sonos for ease of use I hate the noise floor that is coming through the speakers, this is audible when music isn't playing. I alos use Tune-in & Sirius XM through the Sonos. So I'm looking for a DAC to feed the digital stream & bypass the Sonos through coax, use an optical in to feed my audio from the TV (stereo only). I would also like to bypass the Sonos and play my stored files direct from my hard drive, from a laptop I suppose (through usb). The Dacs on my short list are; SCHIIT Modi Multibit, Topping DX3 Pro or, the Pro'ject Pre box S2 are there other sub $500 DAC's to consider? I suspect sound differences are small between these 3 so I am looking for the most vesitality and best noise filtering (I may be wrong here?). I am also thinking bypassing the Sonos DAC would eliminate the noise I'm getting, but maybe this isn't true so I'm also looking at that Bluesound node 2i to replace the Sonos but the poor reviews of the Bloesound app scare me since I'm happy with the Sonos interface. the connect and one Sonos powered speaker are my only Sonos pieces so I'm not heavily invested in Sonos.
 
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greggor said:
the Pro'ject Pre box S2
Click to expand...

While I`m not connecting my Pro-ject Pre S2 in the manner you desire, greggor, I`ve been a most happy, & pleased with it`s performance/SQ since buying it in March, it provides me with very excellent sound ( original ripped CD`s quality dependent, of course) from the two externally switched/selectable S/PDIF coax connected WAV. ripped digital music sources fed to it every day all day through 4 of my house`s room`s stereo systems, and the included quite small remote is handy at times.

I can`t speak about it`s USB, or TosLink (optical) performance, since my setup is configured for S/PDIF coax, and that`s the way I always connected up the 2 prior, and the Pro-Ject S2 DAC`s, and have never interfaced my DAC`s to a TV, or cable/sat box, either.

Good luck on whatever your selected DAC provides you.

Ciao
 
In the sub $500 category right now, I'd suggest having a look at the Bluesound Nods 2i. It was a good deal at $569, and Bluesound has them on sale through the end of the month at $469. It will do everything you need, comes with a very nice onboard DAC, and let you control everything remotely from a.smartphone, tablet or laptop. The BluOs app is fine. It's not perfect but its completely functional.
 
Topping DX7Pro can be had for under $500. I love mine. Rock solid build, and great profiles to choose from. XLR out was important to me. Headphone amp is very nice. XLR, 1/4 inch, and 3.5 MM. Will power my HD650's beyond loud.
 
greggor said:
While I love the Sonos for ease of use I hate the noise floor that is coming through the speakers, this is audible when music isn't playing.
Click to expand...

How did you determine the noise is coming from the Sonos? Is it hum, hiss, something else?
 
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