DACs under £350, combination headphone amps and CA DacMagic Plus upsampling

Yes.

I'd not bother with much more than my phone for mp3 via headphones. IME its all about the analogue bits - amp and speakers. MP3 vs lossless is so little compared to quality downstream components.

Hi 

NUFORCE ICON HDP is a combination of headphone amp and DAC is a good option .

I own the MUSICAL FIDELITY V DAC 2 a basic DAC but deliver a specious , warm and detaild sound for my taste much better than the CA  DACmagic .

I think I've gone cold on the heaphone amp front (although last few Teac UD-H01 in RS look tempting at £150).

I've tried the V-DAC II once and it seemed capable, but I'd want to hear it again to make a decision in favour. 

Hi John ,

I compared the V-DAC  II to the CA DACMAGIC in my home (my dealer lent them to me to compare between them ) and it was a day and night .

the CA is bright not focused and the lack of bass was obviuos . I strongly recommend you to compare between them as well . 

Interestingly I found almost the opposite. The M-DAC was overly clinical, "dry" and devoid of any feeling or warmth to it. The DM+ on the other hand belts it out in my system / room! Just shows, use your own ears!

Hey guys,

Thanks again for your help so far: I demo'd a few more DACs in RS/Superfi earlier this week, and I think I'm going to go for the Teac UD-H01. At £135 (open box), it seems impossible to beat in terms of value for money.

I have encountered a potential problem though:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/dacs/teac-dac-and-aacpcm-problem

Any help would be appreciated

How about the new Micromega MyDAC?   Costs £260 in black or white plastic box.   

Usual spec asychronous USB, optical, coax.   No volume control or headphone amp though.

I am tempted to give it punt myself.    Anyone out there tried it?

It looks like a very good product but I am a little suspicious about this DAC please  look carefullly at  this customer review :

http://www.amazon.com/Teac-UDH01-B-Converter-Audio-Interface/product-rev...

That is the only review and seems more of a review of the retailer than the product. The TEAC is supposedly a good machine. .

I demo'd it in RS without any problems - just installed the driver and it worked perfectly (Windows 7 x64 and iTunes, in case anyone was wondering).

But thanks for the heads-up.

I've had the MF V-dac II in my system for 1,5 years.

It was an engaging, full, musical experience and it wasn't until I got too picky I decided to upgrade.

I have the Lindemann now and couldn't be happier but last week I upgraded the PSU and was forced to send the original as well.

So my dealer was kind enough to lend me a CA DacMagic Plus to use for two weeks while my DAC was cripple.

The first week it could barely put a smile on my face. After a week I noticed it started to sound smoother and more detail and resolution snuck in. I use the USB connection when listening to music. 

The two things that remained to bother me were the voices that sounded edgy and somewhat unpleasant. (could need further burn-in)

The bass was prominent but at the lowest notes it got a little blurry.

I also had the impression that it sounded a lot better if you gave it more hi-res stuff. With 320 kpbs it was not such an able performer.

The headphone out was not bad at all. I used it with my Ultrasone HFI 680 while watching TV and remember a clean, detailed output

that was only to get picky held back by sounding a bit soft sometimes. I have a small portable headphone amp (Leckerton UHA-4) that

is more punchy and dynamic compared. But the CA sounded it's best when I played something like Melody Gardot or Celtic Woman. It had

a fuller and more detailed sound then my mobile amp.

If I had to choose between the two I would choose the MF over the CA anyday.

Totally agree !

Currently using it, bought it a fortnight ago and the only real pains are having to download the driver for the USB off Teac's website and the input light blinking when a source is disconnected.  Otherwise, build is good, sound quality nice, no complaints and you get a very good quality 32-bit DAC for £150.  

Hi guys, I've ended up with the TEAC UD-H01 (£135 open-box from RS) and am very happy with it, in combination with the PM6004 and BX2s. I haven't spent much time using the headphone amp feature, but it seems decent and to my ears, superior to the DM+ (borrowed off a friend).Thanks for all those who offered advice, and apologies if I didn't follow it, haha.

I think you've got a reply in the new issue of the magazine btw...