XiangSheng DAC-01A Tube DAC Headphone Amplifier

[User211]

I would agree with the jumper in preamp mode there a loss in quality of output I didn't find subtle.

[struth]

It's marginal if you don't have to go past a third. After halfway it starts kicking in. Very system dependant as to how well it will work in pre mode, but a handy extra. After all it's really a dac headphone amp

[meBob]

Hello zzag,

Jandl100 was kind enough to loan to me for a demo, it went up against my Beresford Caiman SEG. I only got to listen to the SS side with no preamp or vale function, it had problems.

It's a very nice sounding dac, that I found on my system a slight nudge on the warm side of neutral, it was a pleasant and musical/analogue kind of sound, not flat or clinical. Having been inside the the dac I found it to very congested with components and not much space for them to breath and also the caps looked of lesser quality. You also have to be careful buying one; there's a few different manufacturers of them with varying quality.

Another dac but more expensive is the new Caimen SEG with a usable and upgraded pre, load. of positive reviews with very few negative.

[mikeyb]

My 2p's worth is that the Xiang Sheng is a great budget DAC but not a decent pre where in my system it sounds harsh.

I would say look elsewhere for a pre...

I would say the same, once I drove my Xhiang Sheng a bit harder it grated, I know others haven't had this issue but with my Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP power amp I didn't like it at decent volume, I know you can tube roll but in the end I sold both the Xhiangs I tried.