Just get a DAC that comes with a volume control - it can be used as a preamp - for example Benchmark DAC1 has no need for passive attenuator. The concern about DAC's should be first and foremost its reputation for jitter immunity (is it well respected) and then take your pick for the subtle sound differences...
I'm new to this. Critique my tentative plan?
Hi -- I am new to the world of high end audio. I got interested after a friend lent me his stereo, which is a Conrad-Johnson LS17 Preamp and MV-60 amplifier. He has a custom DAC from a defunct manufacturer. The setup sounds, from naive point of view, breathtaking. Remarkable detail, clarity, and warmth on a great soundstage.
For him -- and for me as I get into this -- the dominant usage case is streaming lossless or other high-quality files from an iTunes source to a DAC, then having a system put out two-channel stereo sound.
What I have now: An extensive digital library of music, a cheap integrated Onkyo amp, and a pair of 30 year old B&W bookshelf speakers up on stilts. The speakers sound great and my tentative plan is to keep them.
The question is --- what to get? I'd like to spend well under $3,000. My first thought was to buy a DAC, preamp, and amplifier, or an integrated amp and preamp. I listened to the Rogue Audio Atlas gear that Stereophile recommends, but missed the lost clarity. I also listened to a Pathos Classic One, which sounded better but not nearly as good as the CJ setup that spoiled me.
Here's what I'm thinking: Rather than get a preamp at all, I could get a DAC, passive attenuator, and power amplifier. Tentatively: The Channel Islands VDA-2 DAC, matching attenuator, and a used MV-60. As an experiment, I connected the MV-60 I'm borrowing up without a preamp, and it sounded amazing.
What do you all think?
For him -- and for me as I get into this -- the dominant usage case is streaming lossless or other high-quality files from an iTunes source to a DAC, then having a system put out two-channel stereo sound.
What I have now: An extensive digital library of music, a cheap integrated Onkyo amp, and a pair of 30 year old B&W bookshelf speakers up on stilts. The speakers sound great and my tentative plan is to keep them.
The question is --- what to get? I'd like to spend well under $3,000. My first thought was to buy a DAC, preamp, and amplifier, or an integrated amp and preamp. I listened to the Rogue Audio Atlas gear that Stereophile recommends, but missed the lost clarity. I also listened to a Pathos Classic One, which sounded better but not nearly as good as the CJ setup that spoiled me.
Here's what I'm thinking: Rather than get a preamp at all, I could get a DAC, passive attenuator, and power amplifier. Tentatively: The Channel Islands VDA-2 DAC, matching attenuator, and a used MV-60. As an experiment, I connected the MV-60 I'm borrowing up without a preamp, and it sounded amazing.
What do you all think?
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- 7 posts total
- 7 posts total