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The sound quality from DACs - is it all the same?

I've been talking to my cousin brother about sound quality. He is a self-proclaimed expert audiophile. He says that Audio Science Review has all of the answers I will need regarding audio products.

In particular, he says an inexpensive DAC from any Chinese company will do better than the expensive stuff. He says fancy audio gear is a waste of money because the data is already bit-perfect.  All DAC chips sound the same. Am I being mislead? 

He also said that any DAC over $400 is a waste of money. Convincing marketing is at play here, he says.

He currently owns a Topping L30 headphone amplifier and D30 Pro DAC. He uses Sennheiser HD 569 headphones to listen to music.  I'm not sure what to think of them. I will report my findings after listening one day! (likely soon, once I get some free time)

- Jack 

 

 

jackhifiguy
goofyfoot
1,316 posts
 

It amazes me that a post about whether all DAC’s sound the same would be a four page thread. I posted on recommended mono vinyl and I think I got eight responses. Maybe I should start a thread on whether warped records sound the same as flat records?

stuartk
2,330 posts
 

@jssmith 

Why not simply take the car for a test drive?

 

cd45123
191 posts
 

Is it just me or are most of the DACs subtle in their differences? I can hear the difference between an Ares II, Merason Frerot, Border Patrol, etc but it’s not fundamentally changing that much of my experience with the music. I’ll go back to my Bluesound and I don’t mind it, so I’ve sold off those special DACs off. Maybe something in the 5k and more range would change my mind.

ghdprentice
6,354 posts
 

@cd45123 

 

It is highly dependent on your system. The better the system (in general) the more profound the difference.

jssmith
294 posts
 

@stuartk 

What if there are two dozen cars that go fast, handle great, and stop good? You gonna waste your time test driving all of them? Or does it make more sense to filter them first?

Plus, there's way more than two dozen choices when it comes to audio components.

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