DAC progress
http://www.smsl-audio.com/productshow.asp?id=157
New DAC, from Chinese maker SMSL. Interesting spec, comes in at around £300 GBP. Fully loaded in terms of features, although I've only used it to stream local files via my SOtM SMS-200 streamer.
Sound wise, the M-500 blows away anything I've heard despite cheap op-amp based output stage. Loving the remote control. Loving the deepest, most controlled and textured bass I've heard. Utterly flat in terms of FR and transparent as air!
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/smsl-m500-dac-and-hp-amp-review.9606/
Great thread with measurements here. As a DAC is a computer I think this is a quite valid way of assessing performance capability and the abilities of the designers. Measurements won't tell you if you'll like it, for sure,but luckily I seen to like well designed DACs!
Not without it's controversy though, which is hardly surprising given this almost impossibly high performance for so little money: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/smsl-m500-teardown-ess-es9038pro-dac-thermal-analysis.10348/
New DAC, from Chinese maker SMSL. Interesting spec, comes in at around £300 GBP. Fully loaded in terms of features, although I've only used it to stream local files via my SOtM SMS-200 streamer.
Sound wise, the M-500 blows away anything I've heard despite cheap op-amp based output stage. Loving the remote control. Loving the deepest, most controlled and textured bass I've heard. Utterly flat in terms of FR and transparent as air!
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/smsl-m500-dac-and-hp-amp-review.9606/
Great thread with measurements here. As a DAC is a computer I think this is a quite valid way of assessing performance capability and the abilities of the designers. Measurements won't tell you if you'll like it, for sure,but luckily I seen to like well designed DACs!
Not without it's controversy though, which is hardly surprising given this almost impossibly high performance for so little money: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/smsl-m500-teardown-ess-es9038pro-dac-thermal-analysis.10348/
Comments
I should really make an effort to check out some alternatives. I chose my current Asus DAC largely because I liked the Asus sound card in my old media PC. Pretty lazy really. :-D
(Tho was congruent with your “computer companies make good DACs” argument I suppose...🤔)
Objective measurement will back me on this.
Thanks Alan. :-)
I think it’s dead good, but haven’t done any comparisons.
I went for the one with the Muses op amps as I read it was the best sounding of the Asus Essence Ones.
(And some distributor in Germany was selling them at a reduced price. ;-) )
Many over on ASR forum love the merry go round and try each new device. And why not? You can try each new DAC released and still pay less than buying a Weiss, Auralic, Mola Mola, etc. It seems like good harmless fun. Rather like trying different cartridges on a favourite arm.
Now some of the cheapest DAC makers build some of the best measuring devices, doors and opportunities are opening to listeners. I wonder if companies like SMSL & Topping will consolidate their achievement by building more substantially finished models at a higher price sometime in the near future, making them more conventional Hi-Fi manufactures (but with an unarguable performance pedigree).
The highest performance and finished DAC from this group of Chinese makers is from Matrix audio at a more conventional £2k-ish. I'm not able to make an impulse purchase in this case, but the X-Sabre Pro is high end in every sense, and virtually unchallenged at well over twice the price; real reference, end game stuff.
Only thing that would make me feel better is easily reachable SoTA specs and premium quality / finish, but if I had to choose but two, it would financial reachability and SoTA specs.
I will have to get around to installing Roon Core somewhere on the network, perhaps on a pi? I'd love to play with it, maybe even use a streaming service too.