DAC directly drives headphones & speakers ?

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DAC chips by themselves, at least the ones I'm used to, doesn't have the output drive capability to drive a speaker or headphone.

As for DAC *boxes* by themselves, they might... it all depends on your definition of a DAC, and my own definition is a box which has digital input and line level out.

So lets say you put a higher power amplifier (headphone, speaker, whatever) inside a DAC box. You'll obviously then need a volume control, the ability to switch between different inputs would be nice.. and finally if you keep adding features you eventually end up with something that isn't a DAC by my definition but rather something closer to a home theatre receiver. :D

So, what's a DAC?
 
I have made a DAC that directly drives headphones. See http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=24992&highlight=
for details.

This project was completed over a year ago and has been in continuous use since. It's been very worthwhile as filterless direct drive makes a real improvement in the sound.

However, this design only really works with Sennheiser HD25 phones (70 ohm and very high sensitivity). I'm working on a 20 TDA1543 version with higher power supply voltages which should be compatible with a wider range of headphones - I'll report back when it is completed.

Enjoy!

:hphones:
 
Bernhard said:
Is this possible ?

Maybe somebody already is working on it, over the hills and far away :camoufl:


I'm working on a DAC that will hopefully drive headphones directly. A 16-way paralleled DDDAC1543. I'll know in a few days what it'll do to a set of regular Sony MDR-V6s. After that I'll try some more difficult to drive headsets.

I'm driving these TDA1543s at 8.5V so there will be a lot more juice coming from them than in the other unit linked above. How much better it'll be I don't know until trying it.

Peter
 
Re: Re: DAC directly drives headphones & speakers ?

pburke said:



I'm working on a DAC that will hopefully drive headphones directly. A 16-way paralleled DDDAC1543. I'll know in a few days what it'll do to a set of regular Sony MDR-V6s. After that I'll try some more difficult to drive headsets.

I'm driving these TDA1543s at 8.5V so there will be a lot more juice coming from them than in the other unit linked above. How much better it'll be I don't know until trying it.

Peter


What do you do for volume control?
 
But is 'that' this

A.

Bernhard said:

DAC directly drives headphones & speakers ?

or this

B.

Bernhard said:

I think about a DAC that delivers something between 1W and 100W.
Multibit and without I/V conversion.

If it is A., then pburke and intermod have already done the work for you with their multi-dac designs. Personally, I'd take a leaf out of Wadia's book and let the I/V stage do the hard work.
If it is B., then I have to ask if you have actually thought about what would be required. Perhaps you have scribbled a few numbers and done a calculation or two. Perhaps you have read the odd paper or two on current driven loudspeakers. In short, do you know what you are asking for?
 
rfbrw said:
In short, do you know what you are asking for?

I am not asking for it, but asking if it is possible.
 

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Assuming you mean option B., then it is possible in much the same way it is possible to walk from Le Harve to Vladistok.
Frankly I am amazed that one would ask such a question. Consider what you wrote; 1W - 100W, Multibit ,No I/V. It is simply beyond me how you came to put the three together to ask the question in the first place. At this point I must stop 'cause I fear my head will explode if I try to put myself in a position where I am capable of understanding how one can ask such a question.
 
Thanks.

rfbrw said:
Assuming you mean option B., then it is possible in much the same way it is possible to walk from Le Harve to Vladistok.

At this point I must stop 'cause I fear my head will explode if I try to put myself in a position where I am capable of understanding how one can ask such a question.

Finally we have an answer to my question and I assume that if somebody should walk from LH to V, he would be the first to do so. :clown:
 
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