Dirt cheap simple usb dac, any ideas?

[Zoidburg]

Hi everyone.

I'm looking for suggestions for a cheap mini dac to feed choones from my Dads windows laptop into his amp. He's not a hifi buff and his system does not warrant anything expensive at all.

I'm sure Iv seen discussions on this sort of product on here here (ideally usb powered too) so can anyone suggest anything please? Budget wise im thinking 30 quid maybe / hopefully.

Cheers,

Ben

[synsei]

For 20 quid more you could do a lot worse than the Lindy DAC Ben, it gets very good reviews from those who've owned it. Features are good too ;)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lindy-Digital-Analogue-Converter-Headphone/dp/B005ZRV07U/ref=sr_1_20?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1414516445&sr=1-20&keywords=dac

[Zoidburg]

Cheers Dave,

That's exactly the sort of reply I was hoping for but its a bit more than I want to spend ideally.

I have also been considering something like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MUSE-PCM-2704-HI-FI-USB-mini-DAC-USB-to-S-PDIF-Converter-Black-Decoder-/311016016733?pt=UK_AudioTVElectronics_HomeAudioHiF i_Amplifiers&hash=item4869ffcb5d

not sure if it would be any good but its only a tenner.

[brian2957]

Have a look at the Maplins DAC.

[synsei]

Cheers Dave,

Thats exactly the sort of reply I was hoping for BUT your link is saying £50 though! Is it available elsewhere?

I have also been considering something like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MUSE-PCM-2704-HI-FI-USB-mini-DAC-USB-to-S-PDIF-Converter-Black-Decoder-/311016016733?pt=UK_AudioTVElectronics_HomeAudioHiF i_Amplifiers&hash=item4869ffcb5d

not sure if it would be any good but its only a tenner.

Indeed, which is why I stated '20 quid more' than your budget :)

Crikey that's cheap Ben, go for it mate ;)

[Aligauld]

Hi there,
This one http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/digital-to-analogue-audio-converter-a14kf is £40 from Maplin.
I use one and it's surprisingly good but requires a powered usb port from the PC.

Cheers,
Alistair

[Zoidburg]

Indeed, which is why I stated '20 quid more' than your budget :)

Crikey that's cheap Ben, go for it mate ;)

Sorry i spotted that and revised my reply mate

[Zoidburg]

Hi there,
This one http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/digital-to-analogue-audio-converter-a14kf is £40 from Maplin.
I use one and it's surprisingly good but requires a powered usb port from the PC.

Cheers,
Alistair

Still 10 quid over budget mate lol

[Aligauld]

Hi there,
Sorry I'll need to read things more carefully.

[synsei]

Sorry i spotted that and revised my reply mate

No worries Ben. Incidentally the Muse gear I've owned or heard sounds pretty good and it's well made too. I've no experience with this little DAC however IME I'd expect it to sound pretty decent ;)

[Zoidburg]

No worries Ben. Incidentally the Muse gear I've owned or heard sounds pretty good and it's well made too. I've no experience with this little DAC however IME I'd expect it to sound pretty decent ;)

Thanks for your thoughts Dave, I think I might just buy it and give it a try myself for the fun of it. Not expecting miracles and in all honesty all it needs to do it provide something that sounds better than the headphone out from a laptop which can be hard can it?

[synsei]

Thanks for your thoughts Dave, I think I might just buy it and give it a try myself for the fun of it. Not expecting miracles and in all honesty all it needs to do it provide something that sounds better than the headphone out from a laptop which can be hard can it?

It'll improve on using the headphone socket that I can say for certain and for the pittance they are charging it's a no-brainer :)

[technobear]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Behringer-UCA202-U-Control-low-latency-Interface/dp/B000KW2YEI

[JohnMcC]

Another vote for the Maplin DAC. I run my netbook flacs to it via foobar with wasapi, and then into the amp. Subjectively there seems to be a little missing off the top end compared with vinyl or CD, but the ear quickly adjusts when listening. Sound stage is detailed and stable. The slightly early roll-off may be down to the box-a-bits RCA cable between DAC and amp; (memo to self: must get another decent, short interconnnect for it). As a first step into DACdom the Maplin is excellent IMO - for £40 you can't go far wrong.

[struth]

Hifimediy Sabre USB DAC is very good for 30 quid. i have one and it is not far behind my top one

[WAD62]

Hifimediy Sabre USB DAC is very good for 30 quid. i have one and it is not far behind my top one

Another vote for the Hifimediy Sabre USB U2 DAC, an asynchronous Sabre DAC for £34!!! And for a whacking £17 extra you can get the accompanying USB isolator...:eek:

Sounds excellent with my SBTouch, and my Mini-1 kitchen setup...

[r100]

i have one like this and it works pretty well http://www.ebay.com/itm/MUSE-AUDIO-X5-MINI-HIFI-USB-DAC-PCM2704-SOUND-CARD-BOARD-Purple-/140975534958

[JohnMcC]

Without any good reason for it, I'm suspicious of hi-fi connections made via a mini-jack. One reason I bought the cheap Maplin DAC was the RCA outputs. Just seems to me that the mini-jack socket and plug is a potential source of noise/cross-channel interference. Anyone explain why I'm wrong?

[struth]

I get a good enough connection with mine. I also use the mini jack socket on my main system for my turntable without issue.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/xq90/661/YV2dlt.jpg

excuse the blurred image:lol: