This made sense to me, so, I extended my consideration to more costly units. However, along the way through my research I had come across credible assertions that the sound quality emanating from DACs vary, both from variations in the quality of the digital to analog chipset used, as well as from the minimal, built in amplifier used to create the line level analog output needed by the user's amplifier. It was a disappointment, as the sound was little or no better than the sound produced by my computer's internal DAC. First DAC It seemed like what I was looking for, so, I bought it. At the nearby Frys I found the Nuforce Class Leading Mobile DAC ,a simple, USB powered DAC for $100. Though Guitar Center and Sam Ash had access to some interesting candidates, they did not keep them in stock. I am fortunate to live in close proximity to a Guitar Center, Sam Ash, Frys Electronics, Best Buy and MicroCenter superstores. They seemed much more able to survive any of the expected jostling or bumping that might result from sitting on the shelf next to the computer and other audio devices, cds, etc. The rest of the market consists of self contained devices, usually small in size, and physically independent of the computer. There are several similarly designed DACs on the market, and I eliminated all of them for this reason. It seemed like a candidate for destruction from an innocent bump or other accident. So, I did some research, took some action, and have some results to report.įirst, I decided to try as many DACs under the grace of my local retailers' generous return policies so I could get familiar with the field of candidates and get the best DAC I could without risk of being stuck owning a pile of the devices.Īlthough recommended by Bruce in Philly, I decided against the AudioQuest Dragonfly as it had a male USB tip extending from its body, which plugged into the computer USB port, leaving the DAC protruding out from the side of the computer, much like a USB flash drive. I had not heard of a DAC before, and, his recommendation of the device got me interested.
![pianoteq 6 stage amazon pianoteq 6 stage amazon](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71wS-8UHQ5L._AC_UL160_SR160,160_.jpg)
In a recent, interesting thread about the facility of using external speakers for a slab digital in lieu of the slab's internal speakers, Bruce in Philly offered the prospect of using an external DAC in place of the computer's internal DAC. Due to this sound, I have been unable to manage much effective practice for the last three months. It doesn't kill me, but, when present, it commands all of my attention, and, escaping it immediately becomes a very high priority. Metaphorically, it was to my ears as ammonia is to my nose. The best way I can describe the overtone is that is sounded like a very poor piano with a horrible, nasal, lingering, high overtone. The other keys around it were nearly as caustic. This left me wanting to lift that key just to avoid that harsh overtone. At A440 the fundamental tone was accompanied by a high pitched overtone that was just nasty, and, which did not decay as quickly as the fundamental.
![pianoteq 6 stage amazon pianoteq 6 stage amazon](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51CE9vXZBJL._AC_SX425_.jpg)
Worse, though, were the sounds in the octave above middle C.
![pianoteq 6 stage amazon pianoteq 6 stage amazon](https://www.picclickimg.com/d/l400/pict/163394314565_/New-Modartt-PianoTeq-6-Pro-Piano-Plug-in-Mac.jpg)
The sound quality in that range was about at the level of a mediocre spinet piano. Those notes had a metallic onset, with the metallic influence decaying at about the same pace as the decay of the fundamental. Specifically, in the range of about 1.5 octaves below middle C, the notes sounded more like hammers hitting a metal rod rather than a string. It was hard to play more than 30 seconds without being completely stopped in my tracks by the awful sound quality I was getting from the middle of the keyboard. There was a range of notes in the middle of the keyboard whose sounds were so poor/ugly that they continually distracted me from playing. For the last three months I have been struggling to get an acceptable sound from my VPC1/Pianoteq 6 Stage/Samson MediaOne M50 powered studio monitor setup.