PC audio out USB to external DAC

Plenty of threads on this subject; definitely get your sound off the computer via USB (do not use an internal soundcard) - your options are either an external conversion to SPDIF via a device like the Empirical Audio OffRamp, Hag USB, Waveterminal U24 (used), or other similar conversion device. Or you can get a DAC that accepts USB input (does the conversion internally) such as Apogee's MiniDac (USB version), Wavelength (various models), MHDT (available on eBay), or others. Your choices will depend on your budget, but in general the technology is very affordable when compared to state-of-the-art transport/players. Along with the archives here, you may want to check over on AudioAsylum there is a dedicated section for PC Audio that has quite a bit of useful input.

Marco

Marco,
Thanks for your input. I have a Hagerman USB to SPDIF converter on the way. So I'll go from PC via USB to the USB/SPDIF converter, and then on to the external DAC. I guess I was wondering if you need some sort of program or additional hardware to direct the audio out the USB port (rather than the computer's speakers) to the USB/SPDIF converter. I asked Jim Hagerman the same question this AM and he told me that all you do is plug in the converter to a USB port and that's it. I'm looking forward to trying this out next week.
Regards, Mike

Mike - As far as software; I use iTunes because I like the interface. I'm a Mac user, but the software is available for PC as well. No special drivers are needed for the USB device itself, though some of these devices do have specific software to control the device itself. The HAG USB is one of the simplest devices of this sort. Plug-and-play. I have one here that a friend loaned to me to check out. I tried it out once and did not particularly like what I heard in comparison to my Waveterminal U24. That was a one-time, short term comparison, so take it FWIW. I'll give it a try again soon and give it some more extensive consideration. It certainly is one of the more affordable solutions, and should you not like it he does have a 30-day money back guarantee. I'll be curious to hear what you think, and what you're comparing it to.

I did leave out one other option open to you: WiFi. You can use a device like an Airport Express (new version just out), or a SlimDevices SqueezeBox to wirelessly broadcast from your computer to the device. In the case of the AE you have the option of getting a digital stream via a mini-toslink connection, or having the internal DAC do a poor job at converting the stream and feed that directly to your amp/preamp via an RCA Y-cord. The Toslink route to an external DAC works pretty well. Alternatively you can also get the information to the AE via an Ethernet cord. I don't know the options on the Squeezebox since I've never used one. Search the threads here and you'll get plenty of input on that subject. There are a few companies modifying the Squeezebox for better performance. There are other WiFi solutions as well.

Marco