ayon integrateds--USB input... for what?

Thanks Reubent....Of course, I don't mean to be snobbish by my question I just had not heard of such a thing on anything but very inexpensive equipment. And then, only rarely. For the record, I'm running a Musical Fidelity A5 and love it...so again, no disrespect.

So someone, please validate....if there's a usb port on these things, there's a DAC built in?! Of course, If there is I'd have to try it before removing my stand-alone...but could potentially make the Ayons even more of a bargain.

The only other thing I thought...was maybe USB was a service port...but to service what, they are old school tube amps...

Not sure , but my take on it is that the USB is used for connecting an iPOD type device that simply plays through the integrated. There's is not listing of an internal DAC on their integrated amps that have an USB.

MI8764ag...there are plenty of end integrateds and/or preamps that incorporate an internal DAC. Check out the following:

1) McIntosh C48/C50 preamps (just introduced) with onboard DACs
2) Bryston B100SST integrated
3) Boulder 1012 preamp with DAC ($19K)
4) NAD M2 Direct Digital integrated amp
5) Naim Uniti integrated amp
6) Simaudio Moon i3.3 integrated amp with onboard DAC as an added option
7) All of Meridian's preamps/processrs have or can be configured with onboard DACs
8) Magnum Dynalab MD-309 integrated amp with onboard DAC
9) Esoteriz RZ-1 integrated
10) Perreaux 150i/250i integrateds with optional onboard DAC

and ofcourse the Ayon integrateds as you list. There are more I am sure I am missing but this has become an emerging area of focus as digital escapes the grasp of teh CD and has increasingly migrated to music server and PC-based sources. Hope this helps

suggest you call Paul at USA Tube Audio - an Ayon dealer and get your question answered - he's easy to talk to

MI8764ag...I checked the Ayon website and it seems like the Orion integrated is the only one that has USB input. And it is strange that they do not highlight that there is an onboard DAC in the Features or Specs tabs. You may want to follow up with USA Tube Audio as Facten suggests above. They should be able to answer the question. My inclination is to say the USB input accesses an onboard DAC, but better check. Ayon also makes excellent digital products (CD players with digital inputs as well as a stand-alone DAC) so it's not incoceivable that the Orion comes with a DAC onboard. It's just strange that it is not mentioned anywhere in their product literature on the website. Let us know what you find out.