Cheapest DAC with USB input and volume control VIA a remote worth buying?

SuperDerpBro · October 1, 2022

I've just been using an Apple USB C dongle DAC for my music streaming PC. I'd like to upgrade. I found an FX Audio DAC-SQ3 for CAD $120 (Shipped). Not even sure that would be an upgrade or not. I don't know enough about DACs. Everyone says the lil Apple DAC is quite good. Other than that I see a Topping e30 II but I'm not sure I want to spend that much (over $200 CAD shipped). Anything else I should be looking at?

Cheers

Psittac · October 2, 2022

On 9/30/2022 at 6:25 PM, SuperDerpBro said:

I've just been using an Apple USB C dongle DAC for my music streaming PC. I'd like to upgrade. I found an FX Audio DAC-SQ3 for CAD $120 (Shipped). Not even sure that would be an upgrade or not. I don't know enough about DACs. Everyone says the lil Apple DAC is quite good. Other than that I see a Topping e30 II but I'm not sure I want to spend that much (over $200 CAD shipped). Anything else I should be looking at?

Cheers

I would make sure that you understand what a DAC is and the difference between a DAC and amp. The apple dongle dac is misleading because it's actually a dac/amp I believe, which means it also amplifies. Typically a DAC does not provide any power to drive headphones, rather it provides a line level signal that needs to be amplified. Both of the "DAC"s you listed aren't going to power headphones. I would look at the topping MX3 It's the only budget dac/amp I'm aware of with a remote control. I bought one many years ago for a friend of mine who is blind and he got years of use out of it before it lost some functionality. I mention that he is blind because he used it every day all day.