Beginning a DAC project

Status
Not open for further replies.
Hi all,

I have aspirations of building my own stereo DAC and I'm wondering if there's any great tutorials for a new DAC builder to read through? Are there certain sections of the design that can be excessively complex or particularly audible if done wrong? Basically I'm in the initial research stage and would love some pointers and guidance from the gurus here. Thanks.

-Eric
 
Well I'll likely choose USB though other bus methods have come to mind to avoid certain downfalls of USB, but for now let's assume USB interface. I have no idea what a V or I out DAC is, I'm at that level of research right now, and I'm not sure what you mean by output stage. Do you mean level of gain stage output? Line level out is the plan, with volume control.
 
Most of the info about DAC's is contained within the pages of DIY Audio but it is all spread out so you have to get used to searching (best use Google search engine as it pulls out the most popular) and wading through individual threads.

There are old type DAC NOS chips which are yielding even better results now as the DIY enthusiasts experiment.

eg http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...building-ultimate-nos-dac-using-tda1541a.html

Alternatively you can buy a cheap kit off ebay - there are many good sounding DAC's available for not much money.

Personally I have found that the key to a good sound is largely down to low noise power regulation and good components elsewhere in addition to a good sounding DAC.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.