Tagged: DAC

DSD, MQA, bit-perfect, hi-res PCM — Nell Shaw sorts which digital audio format claims genuinely change what you hear and which are marketing noise.

What actually changes when you stream to headphones: service quality settings, exclusive mode, and the DAC steps that matter more than the app you use.

One box or two? Hannah Reid cuts through the marketing to explain when a combined DAC/amp unit is smart and when separates genuinely pull ahead.

Dave Okafor asks whether budget network streamers can genuinely hold their own against pricier rivals — and what you actually lose if you don't spend up.

Every major streaming service has quality settings that most people never touch. Here's what those settings actually change in the signal chain — and where it genuinely matters.

Digital volume attenuation has a bad reputation, but is it deserved? Theo Mensah separates the real maths from the folklore.

USB audio is more complex than a simple cable swap. Nell Shaw breaks down drivers, transfer modes and what actually matters for headphone listeners connecting a DAC to a computer.

Building a desktop headphone rig that actually performs means more than buying good cans. Jonno Fraser walks through the chain from source to ear.

The DAC chip is only half the story. What the output stage does to that signal — and how it interacts with your amp — matters just as much.

Network streamers, DACs, amplifiers and passive speakers can work brilliantly together — if you understand where the chain can break. Hannah Reid explains how to get it right.

Jitter, clocking and word-clock inputs: do they matter in a home cinema system, or is it audiophile folklore? Jonno Fraser cuts through the noise.

Hi-res, MQA, lossless, lossy — the format wars are loud and mostly confusing. Here's what actually changes what you hear through headphones.

Nell Shaw cuts through the confusion around digital interconnects — USB, optical, coaxial and AES/EBU — and explains which genuinely affects what you hear.

Dave Okafor cuts through the DAC upgrade hype: when a dedicated converter genuinely improves your sound, and when it's just expensive placebo.

Jitter in network streamers is real, measurable, and audible at the margins. Marcus Vale explains what it is, how to measure it, and what actually fixes it.

Theo Mensah cuts through the forum noise to explain what Roon, UPnP/DLNA and proprietary apps actually do differently — and whether any of it affects the sound.

NAD's C 589 CD player pairs MQA Labs' QRONO d2a reconstruction technology with an ESS Sabre DAC — here's what that means for serious listeners.

dCS unveils its first-ever multichannel DAC at High End Vienna 2026 — eight stereo Ring DACs, discrete Class A outputs, and a question worth asking: is this the future of high-end home cinema?

Astell&Kern's AK HC5 dongle brings the flagship AK4499EX DAC chip and an OLED display to your pocket for $450. Is it the serious listener's ultimate USB-C companion?

Spotify's new three-tier Premium structure in India, Indonesia, UAE, Saudi Arabia and South Africa gates lossless 24-bit FLAC behind the top Platinum tier. Here's what it means for AU listeners.

The SP4000T debuts at HIGH END Vienna 2026 as the world's first DAP with a quad vacuum-tube layout. Sofia Laurent unpacks why it matters.

Orchard Audio's Starkrimson 25 monoblock launch confirms that gallium nitride amplification's real advances still come from dedicated specialists, not the mainstream brands.

Chord's new Quartet runs four million WTA filter taps across five FPGAs and adds a built-in ADC. Theo Mensah explains what FPGA reconstruction actually does.

AKM's recovery from its 2020 fab fire reaches a milestone as the AK4499EX lands in Astell&Kern's $450 HC5 — the first portable DAC to carry the chip.

MQA's successor technologies are finally shipping in real products. Here's a clear-eyed account of what survived the collapse — and what's still missing.

HiFiMan debuted the HE1000 WiFi and Arya WiFi at CanJam NYC 2026 — open-back planars with onboard R2R DACs that use Wi-Fi as the primary wireless link. Here's why that matters.