New dac up to £350 or so?

[alan47]

Nah,
The op amp in mine is a wee black chip with eight legs placed straight into the board, no socket as such. It is flanked by two wee red upside down handbag shaped things...not the rectangular components in your pictures and having checked the original link they are also rectangular, Feck....looks like I have something else....

I have just opened up my AK4396 Dac to change the opamp and it is the same as Tony's .I thought my chip puller was busted,then i saw solder on the legs,must get some new glasses,i didn't even see that there was no socket.
I contacted the seller last night,he was very apologetic,and has promised to send me a new dac board.Give it a go Tony,i am sure you can talk Ali into fitting it for you.
Regarding different caps,he said it was to improve the sound,but he would say that wouldn't he.We shall see..

[bobbasrah]

I have just opened up my AK4396 Dac to change the opamp and it is the same as Tony's .I thought my chip puller was busted,then i saw solder on the legs,must get some new glasses,i didn't even see that there was no socket.
I contacted the seller last night,he was very apologetic,and has promised to send me a new dac board.Give it a go Tony,i am sure you can talk Ali into fitting it for you.
Regarding different caps,he said it was to improve the sound,but he would say that wouldn't he.We shall see..

Hopefully the replacement board will arrive with the socket fitted.

I doubt the seller will want the old board back, and if so, when it arrives and you get the board replaced, you could perhaps desolder and fit a socket in place of the opamp on the old board, and try the mods on that marathon thread over at http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digit...93-5532-a.html ?

[alan47]

I will certainly have a go at that.Mind you i don't hold out much hope,after a working life mending 30 ton volvo dumpers,i find anything smaller than a cement mixer a bit hard to focus on.