DAC help much needed!!

[kash]

Dear all

I have yet to buy a DAC but need one, I have done the internet research and really do not know what to buy, because of the following: Chips!!!!! wolfson wm8740/41/42 ???? Sabre buffalo, Sabre32????

I appreciate that it is not all about the chip, but can any recommend/give advice on the best Dac I can buy for £300 secondhand, I also don't mind buying someone's DIY project.

I really don't understand when some people buy and upgrade a berefsford 7520 and get brilliant results, and then some people spend £3000 on something exotic....snake oil????

My system as follows:
Older Audiolab 8000CDM transport with phillips pro 9 mech
Tag Maclaren Pre amp
Cairm Mono Blocks
Proac Studio 110's

Hopefully after some advice from here, I can actually get down to listening to a CD!

[jantheman]

At the price you quoted for 2nd hand,these new options may suite. The MF M1 takes some beating. Jump up just a little and the Moon 100D at about £500 is, in my opinion, damn good. Maybe 2nd hand would settle around 300 but you wont find one.....

[Reid Malenfant]

Hi Russ, it might help if we know what type of digital outputs you have available on the back of your Audiolab transport ;) Best to worst of the most likely:- AES/EBU, S/PDIF, Toslink.

I should imagine most would probably recommend a Gatorised Caiman as a one stop solution :eyebrows:

[Ali Tait]

Ask Nick (Lurcher) here to build you something. It would be better than pretty much anything commercial you could buy in your budget.

[kash]

Hi Mark

The audiolab trans has a RCA coaxial output, if that helps.

Does Nick (Lurcher) have a website or do people just use him from here?

Thanks

[Ali Tait]

He's a friend who happens to be very good at building things like valve amps, phono stages and dacs etc. He doesn't have a website as such, as he doesn't do it as a business, it's more of a hobby. His Buffalo dac with valve output stage is the best digital I have heard so far.

[kash]

I also dont need a usb connection, as the dac is only needed for the CD.

[Ali Tait]

Check this thread out for the kind of stuff he builds-

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=8167

[DSJR]

I suggest saving for a Rega DAC, as this is better than the Saturn's sonics (which compare at least as well to the Gator/Caiman - ask Alex(UK) as he was fooled in an AB comparison we did recently, thinking the Gator/Caiman was the Saturn when in fact it wasn't...;)). The Rega DAC is designed and built by people who love records, who won't take second best in sound, who have one of the finest Red Book CD players out there as a reference and who haven't overpriced their UK made? offering IMO. You won't need to delve inside and butcher it with updates and it will have a decent guarantee, as well as hold its value well in years to come.

Look it up..

[StanleyB]

You won't need to delve inside and butcher it with updates ..
It's just for fun and far cheaper than buying a new DAC every time or sending it off to someone for an upgrade at a ridiculous price. My DAcs are the only ones on the market with that much flexibility, and fortunately nobody else has complained about it openly so far.

[oldson]

how about a 2nd hand meier stagedac?

[Marco]

Hi Simon,

Welcome to AoS :)

Could you please pop into the Welcome area and say hello, by telling us about your system and what music you like? This is the required procedure for all new members joining our community.

Cheers! :cool:

Marco.

[goraman]

I would strongly recommend the Little Dot DAC1.
http://www.littledot.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=814

This DAC sounds more like a $1,000.00 unit and has been compared to the Benchmark at a fraction of the price.
Nice big transformer,no little wallwart on a string. Uses the same chip as the Cambridge audio Dac majic.
You will be shocked at just how good it sounds.

$259.00 USD

[Yoga]

In that price range, once you get delivery to the UK, plus import tax, you'd be much better off with a Gatored Caiman from Stan. Also compared (bettered in some cases) to a Benchmark DAC1.

[tannoy man]

DPA Enlightenment designed by Rob Watts I think, Ive had mine for years and it makes CD exciting without the pitfalls like harshness, the only DAC I might change it for is the Chord DAC 64, also by Watts.

[kash]

Thanks everyone for the advice so far. With all the reviews I've read I'm leaning now towards the Rega Dac, apparently it has a full, detailed and most importantly non fatiguing sound,so I will try and get a home demo. Also contacted Nick, as I would prefer to buy something a true enthusiast has built and tested, he's going to look into it and see what he can do. Cant wait!

[Ali Tait]

Good stuff, you won't be disappointed with anything Nick builds. Let us know how you get on.

[oldson]

Hi Simon,

Welcome to AoS :)

Could you please pop into the Welcome area and say hello, by telling us about your system and what music you like? This is the required procedure for all new members joining our community.

Cheers! :cool:

Marco.

sorry
i am not the best when it comes to reading instructions, but i have now posted a welcome thread.
cheers

[Yoga]

There is also the Matrix Mini-I...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Matrix-mini-i-24-192-Balanced-DAC-Headphone-Amp-/350235725907

Review here: http://www.headphonista.com/matrix-mini-i/

[WAD62]

Hi Mark

The audiolab trans has a RCA coaxial output, if that helps.

Does Nick (Lurcher) have a website or do people just use him from here?

Thanks

That's rather strange my Audiolab CDM (F reg) has BNC, TOSLINK & AES/EBU, no RCA at all... :scratch:

P.S. You could always have a look for a second hand Audiolab 8000 DAX, as long as you don't want to use it for high resolution, would be a good match for your transport (assuming the connections are as mine), and pre-amp :)