Audio Any views on the SMSL SD793-II based DAC | AMP ?

Black_Hawk

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SunnyBoi said:
Its been a very long time since I've bought or used anything new, I am really out of touch with the current trends
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Oh okay. I've just bought a few small random audio stuff lately to try them out. I'll post a few photos...
 

Chaos

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Black_Hawk said:
Has anyone here used a SMSL SD793-II based DAC | AMP connected to your PC?
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Haven't used this but have used other smsl products (specifically the m8) and they are trash tier IMHO. They sound absolutely pathetic with no refinement.

This particular dac uses a DIR9001 receiver which is a pretty sad excuse for a usb receiver these days. It doesn't even support asynchronous mode USB and is basically a chip designed by TI in the late 90's.
 
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Black_Hawk

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Chaos said:
Haven't used this but have used other smsl products (specifically the m8) and they are trash tier IMHO. They sound absolutely pathetic with no refinement.

This particular dac uses a DIR9001 receiver which is a pretty sad excuse for a usb receiver these days. It doesn't even support asynchronous mode USB and is basically a chip designed by TI in the late 90's.
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This is for my desk at home so portability doesn't matter. What I need is something like a FiiO E10K to which I can connect my headphones on the front Headphone-Out port and my powered speakers at the Line-Out back RCA ports from my PC. Anything out there that can do this within 15k?

I don't mind both the Headphone-Out port and rear Line-Out ports output audio simultaneously at the same time, I'm okay with muting my speakers when I put on my headphones. This the SMSL SD-793-II does and that's why I was looking into it.
 

Chaos

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Black_Hawk said:
This is for my desk at home so portability doesn't matter. What I need is something like a FiiO E10K to which I can connect my headphones on the front Headphone-Out port and my powered speakers at the Line-Out back RCA ports from my PC. Anything out there that can do this within 15k?

I don't mind both the Headphone-Out port and rear Line-Out ports output audio simultaneously at the same time, I'm okay with muting my speakers when I put on my headphones. This the SMSL SD-793-II does and that's why I was looking into it.
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Look for an Aune or Shanling/Topping based on DAC/amp in your budget. Aune X1S Pro seems like a good bet. Sells for 18k on headphonezone.
 

quaratineinthesejeans

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If possible save up some more and get the Topping A90.
Pairing it with D90...you're set for next 10 years or more.
Khadas Tone 2 Pro is another relatively inexpensive product with MQA ( if you believe in it, I don't and sounds worse to my ears) and balanced options.
HD560s sounds exceptional with A90
 

psyph3r

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Black_Hawk said:
What I need is something like a FiiO E10K to which I can connect my headphones on the front Headphone-Out port and my powered speakers at the Line-Out back RCA ports from my PC. Anything out there that can do this within 15k?
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ifi Zen sounds like the perfect fit for your needs, availability might be an issue though.
Depending on your headphone, you can also look at some studio interfaces like Scarlett solo or Steinberg UR22.
 

Black_Hawk

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Chaos said:
Look for an Aune or Shanling/Topping based on DAC/amp in your budget. Aune X1S Pro seems like a good bet. Sells for 18k on headphonezone.
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Topping-L30 is available on HPZ but I don't know if I'll go for it since it did have some issues in the past and I don't know if they still persist. I have a FiiO E10K I bought from Amazon on a whim and I might just connect it and see how it does. There is the Fiio K5 Pro but it's currently OOS on Amazon and should it come back then I might just end up getting it.

I still haven't thrown the option of the SMSL SD-793-II out of the window yet with the good reviews I've watched and read about it and that price point so I might just get it for trying it out. In any case I'm not much of a headphone guy so yeah that is there. I always tend to lean towards my speaker setups for listening to music.

Oh the joy in trying audio gears out :)
 

Nitendra Singh

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Disciple
I too 've read about quality control issues with topping, I hope they're resolved now.
Are you looking for a dac/amp combo or just a amp ?, don't know what's your budget but as suggested by red dragon topping A90 is a very good and powerful amplifier.
I think L30 is not the best solution, you can also try topping's new A30pro amplifier selling for 30k, it's like younger brother of A90.
If you just want an amp only avoid Aune x1s pro, no doubt its a beautiful looking dac/amp combo but it's slightly warmish sounding Dac with a mediocre amp.
 

quaratineinthesejeans

Justiceforall
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L30? Please stay away. A30 is a very good option ( never heard it though, but if it's similar to A90...)
A90 is possibly the best amp I ever had. Unlike THX789 is doesn't make everything "sharp" sounding.
If possible audition the A90 once even with cheap headphones like HD598..you will love it. What a beautiful amp!! And it is not overpriced considering the pristine output, even headphones like DT990 looses the edginess without loosing any detail retrieval.
 

Black_Hawk

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No, I'n not burning 30k on the A90 because I very occasionally listen to music on my headphones on PC. Pointless in my case since 85% of my listening is done on my speaker setups.
psyph3r said:
ifi Zen sounds like the perfect fit for your needs, availability might be an issue though.
Depending on your headphone, you can also look at some studio interfaces like Scarlett solo or Steinberg UR22.
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Yes mate, availability is a huge issue in these COVID times with supply chains being botched. Also, anything directly shipped from China or AliExpress is no longer an option. I guess I'll just try the Fiio E10K that I have lying around packed or just get the SMSL for now and wait till the ifi Zen or the Fiio K5 Pro come back in stock.
 
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Chaos

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Deleted
 
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Rockfella

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greenhorn

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I don't have that particular model, I do have the smsl sap2 which is the matching headphone amp and some similarly priced Chinese dacs ( fx audio dac x6 and m6). Build quality is gorgeous, components used are top shelf branded stuff, but sound quality is pretty average. May be an upgrade to a very cheap realtek, but not any better than most phone outputs or decent onboards, and nowhere near my qudelix 5k or es100