Help me find a DAC/AMP

[Verdinut]

Have a look at this which has a USB port. It's available at an attractive price from a reliable seller.
Amazon is asking $899.99 for it:

The Mighty Audiolab M-One Class AB Integrated Amp | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for The Mighty Audiolab M-One Class AB Integrated Amp at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

M-ONE

The audiolab M-ONE is a compact integrated amplifier and a fine addition to the M-DAC family. While harnessing our acclaimed DAC and amp tech in a single diminutive box, an array of analogue and digital connections, aptX Bluetooth and USB ensure a thrilling sonic experience with up to 384kHz...

www.audiolab.co.uk

Amazon.com: Audiolab M-ONE 80-watt Stereo Integrated Amp / Bluetooth DSD DAC - Black : Electronics

Buy Audiolab M-ONE 80-watt Stereo Integrated Amp / Bluetooth DSD DAC - Black: Amplifiers - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

 

[panteragstk]

ok, @panteragstk
The absolute best I could find are these two:
Both have USB DACs, high-quality components, and top designs. Both have excellent amps and sub-outs.
Denon due to its size probably a better fit on the desk:

Accessories4less: High End Audio at Low End Prices!

www.accessories4less.com

and

YAMAHA A-S801 2-Ch x 100 Watts Integrated Amplifier w/DAC Black

Yamaha Factory Refurbished

www.accessories4less.com

I'd love to have both, but that's out of my price range. I'm looking sub-$200

 

[NINaudio]

Motu m2 + 2x Kali lp6

How about one with a sub output?

 

[lovinthehd]

Catchng up late and didn't study everything but these units with a sub out are full band or bass managed or what?

 

[panteragstk]

Catchng up late and didn't study everything but these units with a sub out are full band or bass managed or what?

Mine might just be a summed output, and I think it's full range. No bass management to speak of other than me setting the proper crossover on the sub. Not ideal, but I'm getting what I paid for.

I think with the quality some of these cheaper DACs have it's kind of hard to ignore that one paired with one of the cheap, but somehow equally good low wattage amps that exist might be the best solution. It won't look as "pretty" as the unassuming box with a light and knob looks now, but I bet it will sound better. Or it might not, but it will be cheaper than any all in one solution I've found that actually looks REALLY good.

Now to see if any of them have a sub out or if I'll have to figure out something. One thing that is an option is to use my current amp with an external DAC since it does have an aux in. 3.5mm isn't ideal, but that would be temporary until I can find another amp. Maybe one with some bass management or sub out at a minimum.

 

[panteragstk]

Found this one too. Haven't located much in the way of reviews, but it has my attention.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089M5QM13/ref=emc_b_5_i

 

[kantoliving]

Kind of an old thread but did you end up keeping the YARO2? You mentioned you are limited to 96khz sampling rate with optical but the USB port doesn't offer anything higher that 96khz anyways - none of our speakers go past 96.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Found this one too. Haven't located much in the way of reviews, but it has my attention.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089M5QM13/ref=emc_b_5_i

looks interesting, fakespot result isn't bad:

Aiyima D05 Bluetooth 5 0 Power Ampli... Fake Review Analysis

Pros: Only problem (nitpick) is that the remote is kind of jank looking. This thing is mighty for the size and built tough. Buy it and you won't be...

www.fakespot.com

 

[panteragstk]

Kind of an old thread but did you end up keeping the YARO2? You mentioned you are limited to 96khz sampling rate with optical but the USB port doesn't offer anything higher that 96khz anyways - none of our speakers go past 96.

So far I have it in place. It works fine, but I'll be getting a stand alone DAC and amp unless I find something better.

USB on the Yaro goes up to 192khz. I'm not concerned about the sample rate so much as I bought a USB DAC that doesn't have a functioning USB port. That's the issue.

EDIT: Hmm. The manual says it only goes to 96khz like you said, but Windows (when it worked) let me choose 192 without issue and it worked well. Weird, but with the issues I've had with the USB port, it makes sense that Windows wouldn't get it's capabilities correct.

 

[panteragstk]

looks interesting, fakespot result isn't bad:

Aiyima D05 Bluetooth 5 0 Power Ampli... Fake Review Analysis

Pros: Only problem (nitpick) is that the remote is kind of jank looking. This thing is mighty for the size and built tough. Buy it and you won't be...

www.fakespot.com

I saw that and it looks pretty nice. I still think I'm going to go separate since the two units I'm looking at are pretty reasonable and I should still have the ability to do an output for the sub. I'll update this thread when I get around to grabbing this stuff.

 

[kantoliving]

I used an AIYIMA A07 during testing of the YU Passive 4" and 5.25" speakers. Awesome performance for the price. No hesitation to recommend their stuff (now that YARO2 is discontinued of course haha)

 

[panteragstk]

So I recently decided to dual boot Linux and I decided to plug the DAC in via USB while Linux was loaded and it worked without issue.

@kantoliving you know of a replacement Windows driver I could try? BSOD isn't promising, but if I can get at least a test driver it might help.

If that doesn't work, a new DAC and amp will be incoming shortly.

 

[kantoliving]

All our products use the generic windows USB audio driver. If you're having issues a system restore to when it was working is usually the easiest way to solve the problem. You can also run System File Checker to see if the driver got corrupted or overwritten. Reformatting Windows is also an idea assuming it's not too much of a hassle. I am not super familiar with all this stuff so we're essentially at the end of the road for my support abilities.

 

[panteragstk]

All our products use the generic windows USB audio driver. If you're having issues a system restore to when it was working is usually the easiest way to solve the problem. You can also run System File Checker to see if the driver got corrupted or overwritten. Reformatting Windows is also an idea assuming it's not too much of a hassle. I am not super familiar with all this stuff so we're essentially at the end of the road for my support abilities.

That's what I figured. The issues started with the new motherboard.

USB on linux works, but it's still buggy. It's actually starting to have issues with optical now which tells me it's just going out in general. Sucks, but it was good while it lasted.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Is it perchance an AMD board?

AMD Locates 'Root Cause' of USB Issues on B550, X570 Motherboards

A patch will arrive through the upcoming AGESA 1.2.0.2 update, which motherboard vendors will likely start rolling out in early April via beta BIOS updates.

www.pcmag.com

 

[panteragstk]

Is it perchance an AMD board?

AMD Locates 'Root Cause' of USB Issues on B550, X570 Motherboards

A patch will arrive through the upcoming AGESA 1.2.0.2 update, which motherboard vendors will likely start rolling out in early April via beta BIOS updates.

www.pcmag.com

Yup. None of the BIOS updates have fixed squat. I've got other devices with issues too, but this one is directly related to my DAC/AMP. I plugged it into other PCs and they BSOD as well. Linux won't read it either so it isn't a Windows thing.

 

[panteragstk]

So I got the new stuff yesterday, and I'm pretty happy so far.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-smsl-m100-dac.8842/

Good deal at $85. $10 off regular price on Amazon. Windows recognized this device without issue no matter what port I plugged it into, so I'm confident the other DAC is DOA. Plus, this has a nice ASIO drive that goes way up to an unnecessary 32bit/768khz sample rate. Also supports DSD up to DSD512. I'm just happy Plex and Tidal work perfectly fine with their respective desktop apps. Haven't gotten DSD to work properly yet though.

I had considered getting an MQA capable DAC, but didn't want @lovinthehd to disown me. That, and I couldn't care less and the price triples for that functionality. Sounds just fine letting the software do the decoding.

I also got an amp that was also nicely in my price range.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/aiyima-a07-tpa3255-review-amplifier.18984/

With how many devices there are running around on Amazon and everywhere else I decided to keep it simple and just go with something that had measurements so ASR was a logical choice to look. This little amp can get LOUD as hell with my overnight sensations. I can't even put the knob at 50% without it being silly.

Also, there is a stereo out that I'm using for the sub and it VERY much matters where the knob on the amp is positioned as to whether or not the output is too hot. I've got it pretty well dialed in, but will keep playing around.



So far I'm very happy. For around $165 my DAC/Amp got replaced with separates. Ooh fancy me. They really do sound very good for the money. Plus, not a huge foot print.

 

[Trebdp83]

Very cool.

 

[PENG]

So I got the new stuff yesterday, and I'm pretty happy so far.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/review-and-measurements-of-smsl-m100-dac.8842/

Good deal at $85. $10 off regular price on Amazon. Windows recognized this device without issue no matter what port I plugged it into, so I'm confident the other DAC is DOA. Plus, this has a nice ASIO drive that goes way up to an unnecessary 32bit/768khz sample rate. Also supports DSD up to DSD512. I'm just happy Plex and Tidal work perfectly fine with their respective desktop apps. Haven't gotten DSD to work properly yet though.

I had considered getting an MQA capable DAC, but didn't want @lovinthehd to disown me. That, and I couldn't care less and the price triples for that functionality. Sounds just fine letting the software do the decoding.

I also got an amp that was also nicely in my price range.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/aiyima-a07-tpa3255-review-amplifier.18984/

With how many devices there are running around on Amazon and everywhere else I decided to keep it simple and just go with something that had measurements so ASR was a logical choice to look. This little amp can get LOUD as hell with my overnight sensations. I can't even put the knob at 50% without it being silly.

Also, there is a stereo out that I'm using for the sub and it VERY much matters where the knob on the amp is positioned as to whether or not the output is too hot. I've got it pretty well dialed in, but will keep playing around.



So far I'm very happy. For around $165 my DAC/Amp got replaced with separates. Ooh fancy me. They really do sound very good for the money. Plus, not a huge foot print.

$85 for an USB DAC that is based on an Sabre ES9018Q2C chip, and can play 512 DSD? That is ridiculous, don't they have to pay the much increased tariff to import from China? Talk about competition...

I have never seen any build in DAC with even $5,000 integrated amp (Anthem STR can only play up to DSD128) Put it on the bench with the STR integrated my money is on this $85 SMSL that it would measure significantly better. Unbelievable!

 

[panteragstk]

$85 for an USB DAC that is based on an Sabre ES9018Q2C chip, and can play 512 DSD? That is ridiculous, don't they have to pay the much increased tariff to import from China? Talk about competition...

I have never seen any build in DAC with even $5,000 integrated amp (Anthem STR can only play up to DSD128) Put it on the bench with the STR integrated my money is on this $85 SMSL that it would measure significantly better. Unbelievable!

So far I'm very happy with it. Getting dsd to it has been a pain, but I can see in the driver that it's getting the proper signal. I only get LOUD static.

I suspect a configuration issue somewhere. That or a driver issue.

The fact that it's just a tiny box with so much processing capability is very impressive. Especially for the money.

The little amp is no slouch either. It would easily power more demanding speakers.

It was a large upgrade over what I had. DAC technology has increased significantly since I bought the unit that broke.