What is a good DAC to pair with massdrop THX AAA linear AMP

Nov 27, 201814754 VIEWS

I am looking at buying the THX AAA linear AMP on massdrop. However I don't know what DAC I should get with it .I got a budget of 350$ same price as the amp

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Azeendeen

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Chatto

Apr 5, 2019

The are a lot of smart people in this community, so I guess I must have just skipped past the post that recommended the Geshelli enog pro 2. Under $200, balanced, and as I have one, I can say, fantastic. If you watch any of Zeos recent reviews, you'll see his lit up on the left. It's an American couple that make it, and you won't find better service anywhere. Did I mention it's a great DAC?

Azeendeen

Apr 5, 2019

ChattoYes , I saw the review by zeos and the measurement review by audiosciencereview. However I only heard about it after I had bought the SMSL. But not a big problem tbh, atleast the SMSL has more features e.g remote, more output and so on. Might get the geshelli though in the future nxt year for my UNI setup

nick_t

187

Apr 4, 2019

What about Mayflower Arc as adac to the THX AAA linear amp ?

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Azeendeen

Apr 4, 2019

What do you mean afford it? I got a job to pay for the DAC?

nick_t

187

Jul 3, 2019

AzeendeenWhat kind of job ?

gtbrown50

Dec 1, 2018

Schiit multibit DACs are exceptionally good and very reasonably priced. I have one I use with my THX 789 and love the combination.

pslayer1

274

Nov 29, 2018

I'm a fan of balanced connections. I'd recommend the SU-8 and then use a few bucks from the savings to get some balanced connections (DAC to amp and then AMP to headphone)

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GiantHeadphoneSquid

637

Dec 1, 2018

It's actually much more important for interconnects to be balanced than headphone cables. Headphones don't have their own ground reference, they're inherently differential. Even more importantly, errors introduced at the input to the amplifier will be amplified, so it makes sense to minimize them prior to the amp.

Sperduti

May 20, 2021

pslayer1I may sound stupid here but whatever lol what is best way (Without modding headphones) to connect DT 770 as a balanced output.

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TheGame21x

100

Nov 29, 2018

I'm running it with a Topping D50 and a Modi 3 and both make the THX AAA amp sing in my opinion. I'm tempted to get a SMSL SU8 for its balanced output, especially since they cleaned up the issues with the Version 2 revision but as of right now, it's not a huge priority for me.

jaydunndiddit

3262

Nov 28, 2018

Personally, I went with the SMSL SU-8 (ESS) since it is balanced, has some filters, and a remote for $200. I should get it by Friday so I'll share my thoughts on it when I get it in. I also have the Grace Balanced SDAC (AKM) but won't get that one until May. Otherwise, I've been using my humble iFi nano BL (technically a "multi-bit" burr-brown) and THX portable amp/dac (dual AKM) and enjoy them all depending on the source and files being played that day. I really like the nano the best as it just sounds so natural and pairs well with the 789 (IMO).

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Keth

760

Nov 29, 2018

A truly balanced DAC has separate DAC chips for each channel, and uses the chips stereo decoding to create polarity flipped signals that are used for noise canceling purposes. There are XLR to RCA adapters, I'm not sure how well those would play with a balanced amp, I have no experience there.

nick_t

187

Jul 3, 2019

jaydunndidditWhat is the best ?

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Alexzogh

Nov 28, 2018

Agree on the topping D50. You want something super clean.

dcha12

460

Nov 27, 2018

That depends. What headphones are you using? Do you use the balanced output of your amp?

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dcha12

460

Nov 29, 2018

I actually would highly recommend someone take a listen to the iFi line. I've heard some of their iDACs and iDSDs and liked it; I just personally prefer the sound of Schiit DACs and think that they offer better performance for the dollar (and I do know people who think they sound like a** too). However, the Schiit house sound isn't for everyone; the Yggdrasil in particular leans very far towards being analytical (I actually don't like it that much). My favorite DAC is the Chord DAVE, but it's too expensive (and I'm not about to recommend someone buy something that has such dubious price/performance unless you know exactly what you're looking for)

Igor123456789

Dec 10, 2019

Take a look at their Asgard 3 if you have some time to spare. I love it. I have one with the built in AK4490 dac. All put together is $300, and when compared to other stuff at the same price range it seems like a good deal to me.

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