What would you buy Sub $350 Firewire/USB DAC

Prof,

Congrats, I'm confident that you'll be happily surprised at how good this thing sounds.

Perhaps due to a brief brain cramp, I said I use the DACMagic with a Mac on my piano & that's wrong. It's a PC - the DACMagic is not an approved "MAC compatable" device. Just wanted to be sure I didn't provide bad info.

Marty

I thought about buying the Valab DAC from the Pacific Valve Company as I heard so many good things about it. Ultimately, the rave reviews and the versatility of the dacMagic won me over. Were I to take the NOS route, I definitely would have purchased one of the Scott Nixon DACs.

I won't be able to see my gift before February 1st, but once I get it, I'll be sure to post.

Best,

MP

I just received my Giga Lab Moon NOS USB DAC from Pacific Valve yesterday. A 200% improvemnt over my tiny, $30 Behringer USB/headphone thing.

I was also in the price range of $200 - $500. I chose the Moon becuase:
> wanted US service (Pacific Valve is great, I sent them 3 e-mails w/ questions and they answered all of them within 1 hour).
> I wanted NOS becuase of reports that it had a "tube sound" And it does, slightly.
> no headphone crap.
> no inputs that I didn't need (has USB,coax and optical in)
> looked well-built - and it is.

I decided to go low end on my budget because in the future I intend to upgrade to something in the $2500 area from Wavelenght or Emprical.

Based on their reputation, I was serously considering the Cambridge MagiDac, but it had too much stuff that I don't need.

USB cable:
> cheap: Belkin 2.0 - $14 for 6' @ JR.com (I have one on the way)
> not cheap: Kimber B Bus - $65 for 2m @ needledoctor.com
Cryo Parts - 6' for $70
> unaffordable: Locus Design Axis - 3' for $549 (!)

Hope you enjoy the MagiDac.

My wife couldn't bear to make me wait. I've received my unit in black and am breaking it in now.

Details:

Speakers: B&W DM 610s
Amplifier: Musical Fidelity B1
Sound files: .flac
Software: JRiver Media Player / ASIO4All

Upon opening the box, I had three thoughts:

1) The unit seems reasonably well built. The case and controls feel solid
2) It comes with a wall wart--I wonder if this results in less interference by having the power supply away from the unit or if that was a cost-cutting measure
3) I don't believe that I've ever seen such a cheap USB cable in my life.

So, I connected the unit with a better USB cable, and played the Dead Can Dance Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove. I was floored by the imaging and sound stage. The latter exceeded the dimensions of my listening room. Next, I played the Chemical Brothers Setting Sun. With both of these excerpts, I was very impressed with tight controlled bass.

Before listening to more demanding music, I created a play list of very eclectic music and let the DAC run for about 36 hours. I played a number of excerpts (William Grant Still's Afro-American Symphony, Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, CPE Bach's Symphonia, & etc.) and was disappointed in the somewhat harsh nature of the highs. The bass continued to be extraordinarily well behaved, and the mids were quite warm.

I let the unit play for another 30 hours or so, and while the highs still seem a touch harsh, they seem to be mellowing somewhat. I am hoping that trend will continue.

I'll keep you posted,

Prof - is it sounding any better?