Recommendations for cheap Dac for Rotel transport...

starkiller
starkiller Posts: 2,723
edited October 2011 in 2 Channel Audio
Any recommendations for a cheap, price-wise, not sound-wise, DAC to mate up with a Rotel transport??:razz:
Computer room Hegeman 1 SpeakersM&K VX-80 subKenwood DP-7010Cambridge Audio CXC Transport Rega DACPrimaLuna Prologue Four AmpAric Audio Tube PreampGarage Jennings Research SquareCustom tube preampCrown XLS-1000Denon DCD-1500II Modded MSB Link DAC
Post edited by starkiller on
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  • pearsall001
    pearsall001 Posts: 5,068
    edited October 2011
    What is your interpretation of "cheap"?
    "2 Channel & 11.2 HT "Two Channel:Magnepan LRSSchiit Audio Freya S - SS preConsonance Ref 50 - Tube preParasound HALO A21+ 2 channel ampBluesound NODE 2i streameriFi NEO iDSD DAC Oppo BDP-93KEF KC62 sub Home Theater:Full blown 11.2 set up.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,165
    edited October 2011
    What was wrong with the Adcom GDA600 Dave had fs? That's a stellar unit at the sub $200 catagory even in stock form.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • pietro944
    pietro944 Posts: 720
    edited October 2011
    starkiller wrote: »
    Any recommendations for a cheap, price-wise, not sound-wise, DAC to mate up with a Rotel transport??:razz:

    I'm using the Xiang Sheng DAC-02A with the 6N1 Tube,which I replaced with the Sylvania 5670.....2 outputs(Dac or Tube),which is a nice feature.4 inputs(BNC,Co-ax,Optical,USB.....Headphone amp.....$245 w/free ship.

    I paired it with the Yaqin CD3 Tube Buffer(2 6n8P tubes)....$167 w/free ship....This buffer is magical!!!:biggrin:
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  • fbm211
    fbm211 Posts: 1,488
    edited October 2011
    Here is a decent DAC for sale.These sell qiuck.

    Link> http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?dgtlconv&1324580110&/Audio-Alchemy-DDE-v1.1
    SDA-2BTL with custom IC
    Adcom 565 monoblocks--Monarchy Audio M-10 preamp
    Theta Data Basic Transport--Stello DA100 Signature DAC--Camelot Dragon Pro2 MK III
    Harman Kardon T-55c TT
    DH Labs Q-10 Signature Speaker Cables With Furez silver plated copper bananas
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver Reference AES/EBU
    Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy Cryo-Silver i2s digital cable
    4 Furutech FP-314Ag with FI-11cu Plugs/FI-11AG IECs--- Power Cords
    DH LABS REVELATIONS ICs-amps
    Revelation Audio Labs Paradise cryo-silver ICs-Source to pre
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  • decal
    decal Posts: 3,205
    edited October 2011
    pearsall001 wrote: »
    What is your interpretation of "cheap"?
    Yes, what do you consider cheap?
    If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money.
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    starkiller wrote: »
    Any recommendations for a cheap, price-wise, not sound-wise, DAC to mate up with a Rotel transport??:razz:

    What model Rotel is it? Some Rotels have pretty killer DAC's in them, and, for those models, there is no way you could improve upon their internal DAC's "cheaply".

    We need to know a model number to know how far up the chain you need to go to get an improvement.
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,243
    edited October 2011
    The emotiva dac is like $300
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  • starkiller
    starkiller Posts: 2,723
    edited October 2011
    What model Rotel is it? Some Rotels have pretty killer DAC's in them, and, for those models, there is no way you could improve upon their internal DAC's "cheaply".

    We need to know a model number to know how far up the chain you need to go to get an improvement.

    This is a transport, not a player..
    Yes, what do you consider cheap?
    Under $200 preferably...

    What was wrong with the Adcom GDA600 Dave had fs? That's a stellar unit at the sub $200 catagory even in stock form.


    Nothing was wrong, just want to know what is out there and what might sound good with the Rotel...
    Computer room Hegeman 1 SpeakersM&K VX-80 subKenwood DP-7010Cambridge Audio CXC Transport Rega DACPrimaLuna Prologue Four AmpAric Audio Tube PreampGarage Jennings Research SquareCustom tube preampCrown XLS-1000Denon DCD-1500II Modded MSB Link DAC
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    starkiller wrote: »
    This is a transport, not a player..

    OK... so what do you have it transporting to now? Again, we gotta know what we're up against to beat here.:smile:
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,165
    edited October 2011
    FWIW, a few years ago we did a comparo between the Rotel 1072 (nice player) and the Adcom GDA 600. The 600 came out on top as far as tighter bass, better soundstage and better image separation. This wasn't a dramatic difference but it was there.

    YMMV

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • starkiller
    starkiller Posts: 2,723
    edited October 2011
    The Rotel is not transporting anything right now..just sittin' there:mrgreen:
    Computer room Hegeman 1 SpeakersM&K VX-80 subKenwood DP-7010Cambridge Audio CXC Transport Rega DACPrimaLuna Prologue Four AmpAric Audio Tube PreampGarage Jennings Research SquareCustom tube preampCrown XLS-1000Denon DCD-1500II Modded MSB Link DAC
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    starkiller wrote: »
    The Rotel is not transporting anything right now..just sittin' there:mrgreen:

    Gotcha. Then anything is better than nothing!

    My recs. in that price range:

    If you don't care about asynchronous USB support (or looks :razz:) I'd recommend the original Musical Fidelity V-DAC. It can be had new for 249 to 299. Here's a used one on ebay for 185:

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Musical-Fidelity-V-DAC-w-original-power-supply-/230692095227?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b65204fb#ht_500wt_1156

    No affil. Buy at your own risk.


    If you do care about asynchronous USB support (and looks), then I'd suggest the new Musical Fidelity V-DAC II. It can be had for 349 new, and there won't be many used ones since it's so new:

    http://www.amazon.com/Musical-Fidelity-V-DAC-II-MKII/dp/B005K8CSZ2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1319637167&sr=8-2
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,165
    edited October 2011
    falconcry72 wrote: »
    Gotcha. Then anything is better than nothing!

    My recs. in that price range:

    If you don't care about asynchronous USB support (or looks :razz:) I'd recommend the original Musical Fidelity V-DAC. It can be had new for 249 to 299. Here's a used one on ebay for 185:

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Musical-Fidelity-V-DAC-w-original-power-supply-/230692095227?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b65204fb#ht_500wt_1156

    No affil. Buy at your own risk.


    If you do care about asynchronous USB support (and looks), then I'd suggest the new Musical Fidelity V-DAC II. It can be had for 349 new, and there won't be many used ones since it's so new:

    http://www.amazon.com/Musical-Fidelity-V-DAC-II-MKII/dp/B005K8CSZ2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1319637167&sr=8-2

    Ummmm.........if he's using the Rotel as a transport USB anything is moot. Plus $349 is close to double his budget :confused: :eek:
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    heiney9 wrote: »
    Ummmm.........if he's using the Rotel as a transport USB anything is moot. Plus $349 is close to double his budget :confused: :eek:

    For the Rotel USB is obviously moot, but I thought he may be interested in a PC rig sometime in the future...

    If he's not interested in USB, then he'd go with my first suggestion: the VDAC mk1, which goes new for 249, and the used one I pointed out is 185. Right at his budget. That particular unit appears to now be sold, but it gives him an idea of what's possible.

    What's the problem, not enough coffee this morning?:razz:
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,967
    edited October 2011
    Audio gd nfb3 is fairly cheap, just picked one up myself for a tad over 2 bills. You also have the grant fidelity tube dac which is also cheap. A used Cambridge Dacmagic usually runs around 3 bills. If you go used, plenty of cheap dacs on the market.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    Here's another VDAC on auction for 149 with 1 day left. I've bought from this seller before; he's legit:

    http://www.ebay.com/itm/Musical-Fidelity-V-DAC-Digital-to-Analog-Converter-USB-/290622598849?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43aa74eec1#ht_586wt_881
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited October 2011
    tonyb wrote: »
    Audio gd nfb3 is fairly cheap, just picked one up myself for a tad over 2 bills.

    I've never heard the NFB-3, but I own 2 other Audio GD pieces, and I was surprised by the quality of both for the price. Very cool company.
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,967
    edited October 2011
    falconcry72 wrote: »
    I've never heard the NFB-3, but I own 2 other Audio GD pieces, and I was surprised by the quality of both for the price. Very cool company.

    Was replaced with the nfb 3.1.

    Bought mine from the guy who had it for a Stereo times review, he writes for them. This paricular unit had an upgraded DL chip in it, if you follow audio-gd nerds, you know what it is. I was lucky, he lives here in Illinois not far from me. We got to talk a bit over the phone and he really like the analog sound to it which is what I was looking for. He also has the Burson da160 he's reviewing and compared the 2 and though while the Burson was better, the differences were slight. He claimed the audio gd performed well above it's price point and had a somewhat organic feel to the sound like the Burson. Planning on using this one with my Sonos, have a music streamer dac now but I don't like it at all.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
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  • drselect
    drselect Posts: 664
    edited October 2011
    tonyb wrote: »
    Audio gd nfb3 is fairly cheap, just picked one up myself for a tad over 2 bills.
    Nice score on the nfb3.1. I think they are currently listed new for $299 plus shipping.
    I have the nfb 3 and have been pleased with its performance.
    I have been considering a winter project based on FTGV review of the DAC he built.


    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?123137-Cheer-and-cheerful-24-192k-DAC
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,967
    edited October 2011
    Actually it is the nfb 3 I bought, not the 3.1. From what I gathered from user reviews, most liked the earlier version better. And with the added chip, should sound a tad better than the stock version.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter