Newb to Computer audio DAC setup

[jgstudios]

Hello folks. I've been into audio systems since the '70s, but as a poor kid, I could never call the gear I had audiophile quality. It never diminished the pleasure of listening to my favorite music though. Currently I have a Sony Win 10 Vaio laptop with an audio card that has always had a noticeable hiss. This irritates me to no end, and has reached a point that I just don't use it anymore. I would like to purchase a setup that will allow me to run the audio out free of the audio card, and that 1/8" jack. The built in speakers are weak and just can't put out the volume I would like. I know I need a DAC and a speaker set. Preferably something with a subwoofer so I can get some decent bass. I'm currently looking at the following speakers .

Edifier S350DB Bookshelf Speaker and Subwoofer 2.1 Speaker System (sorry, can't post links yet)
or
Swan Speakers - M50W - Powered 2.1 Bookshelf Speakers

Will these work?? I have no idea what DAC to look at. There are so many, and also so many with the same features with wildly differing prices. I hate to overspend on something I could have gotten for less. Currently I've been using a long HDMI cable to my AV receiver which works fine, but that's a video/audio cable and I'm not sure if that affects the sound in any way. Plus I have to disable my built in audio to force it to go out to the AVR. I'm not necessarily looking for "audiophile" quality sound here. Good reliable sound is what I want. Also, I'm not sure what using a DAC would require. Is there software/drivers to install to make it work or is this a plug-n-play setup? I assume it's all connected via USB, and that would bypass or negate that audio card hiss issue. Do I have to make configuration changes every time I want to use it, or can I just power it on and play frmo CDs, Windows Media, or Spotify? I'd like one that would allow two things. Output to the speaker set, and output to my home stereo system via the RCA jacks when needed. One more thing...It has to look nice. I just don't like the "black-box" look. So far the Cambridge audio DACMagic Plus is the only one I've found with more than one set of outputs. It's more than I wanted to spend; is this overkill? The DacMagic 100 might be fine and I could just continue to use the HDMI to output to the AVR but I hate the audio config changes. What do you guys think, is there anything I'm missing or any advice you can add? Is there a better, perhaps cheaper way to go? Apologies for being long-winded. Thanks to all. JG

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

I‘m sure you’d be happy with either of those speaker systems.

A DAC is basically nothing but an outboard soundcard. You will operate your computer the same way you always have.

If you need dual outputs, you can find that cheaper with one designed for pro audio use, such as the Focusrite Scarlett 2i4.

However, a cheaper option (and less complicated than the Focusrite) would be to use a basic stereo DAC like the DacMagic 100 or AudioEngine D1 with a pair of RCA splitters to get to both the powered speakers and your sound system.

If you don’t like that option, you can send the DAC’s outputs to a second device that could give you multiple outputs, such as Behringer Zenyx 802 mixer.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[jgstudios]

OK, cool, Thanks for the response. So just to confirm, based on what you said it sounds like the DAC is plug & play. That is, the audio driver is already built into windows 10 to recognize the usb audio device?. It doesn't seem like I need to load any drivers/software correct? I've never seen anybody mention that in web reviews or forums.

 

[PENG]

For $75, the Dac magic XS sounds as good as many expensive dacs.

https://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-Audio-DacMagic-Portable-USB/dp/B015JESV4S

I bought one for much less that was even dsd capable but CA has better build and probably reliability.