DAC's with volume control question

Unsound: Amp is a new  Adcom GFA575se  Input Sensitivity1.90V rms, 350 W into 8 ohms.100mV rms, 1 W into 8 ohms

am i looking for something in particular in the DAC's volume control spec that will work better based on the amps sensitivity?

Djones51: thanks for the heads up. that's exactly what i don't want. CXN V2 is off the list. wrestled with getting a separate DAC and Streamer setup early on. this being a temp setup made me decide to keep it simple and cheap. need an all in one DAC/Streamer with good volume control. something to get me by/through an untimely hi-fi emergency. all my new gear will end up in the living room eventually. complete listening room/hi-fi rebuild planned for early 2022. simple and inexpensive for now.

any thought on the 850N ?

jjss49: that was exactly it..." loss of bit-detail resolution if the attenuation is significant from full volume"

so the top tier guys can minimize it at great expense. what about  lower level gear? never really noticed it with the PWDII but that was well above the price range i'm looking at now. i vaguely remember PSA saying they did something to make it "near perfect" above 50% volume....but that was also 10 years ago. 

are these modern, mid-fi DAC's anywhere near what older/higher end DAC's could do regarding the bit loss issue?. i understand that 10 years hasn't eliminated the issue ( agree theoretical/practical?) but has it gotten "better" across the board or just with higher end gear?.

if lower end modern gear can do what 10 year expensive gear did, i'll be one happy camper 

yyzsantabarbara: went through 5 different preamps the first couple years of owning the PWDII. some higher end ones at that. Pass, Levinson, AR etc. none sounded bad but none sounded better. decided to go pre-amp-less and have been happy since. do plan on trying preamps again when i build my next/real listening room setup but right now, it's just simplicity, cost and get it done quick. like i mentioned above, this new system will be pushed to my living room once i have the time to to build one right in my listening room (research/auditions/much bigger money). this entire ordeal is do to my older system taking a crap on me. just purchased amp/speakers in a matter of days, sight unseen with minimal research. (adcome gfa875se and sonus faber sonetto viii's).  don't have the time to do it right so i'm just putting together a decent system to get me by for 1-1.5 years with minimal expense/effort. terrible timing but i gotta have some decent tunes until time allows me to do it right. 

adg101: that RME sounds like a nice one. got my work cut out for me when i do get around to building my listening room system.  so many different choices now-a-days compared to 2010 (streaming DAC's). but again, this will be a secondary system in my living room when all is said and done. plug and play/all in one/inexpensive/quick and easy is what i need now (with decent volume control)
could be wrong but i'd kinda expect any decent modern DAC to outshine a 10 year old PWDII. 10 years seems like such a long time in digital. i'll be a little disappointed if whatever inexpensive modern DAC/streamer i end up with doesn't sound as good/better then my old PWDII. maybe i'm expecting too much?. will find out soon enough. will consider separates (Dac/Streamer/Preamp) on the next system but gotta admit i do love a single box that dose everything good

unsound: output voltage doesn't seem to be a commonly disclosed spec. couldn't find it for the 851N. thx for the tip though....in case i do ever find it. =)

found this regarding the Cambridge 851N volume control.....

" Keeping the signal digital to the last moment makes it less susceptible to analogue deterioration, while a 32-bit SHARC DSP controls the volume output; by keeping the entire signal digital the best possible sound is achieved, even at very low volume levels.

jjss49: this kinda alludes to what you mentioned above regarding later in the chain?. but then "alludes to" vs stating/explaining are two different things. i have no clue what most of the above means. it just reminded me of what you pointed out. or is it just the typical marketing wanna-be spin?

jjss49: great video. had to watch three times but i now get the jist of it.....or somewhat understand the topic at a very rudimentary level. thank you!

djones51: thank you too. that's what i was looking/hoping to hear.....the volume control should work ok/decently without a noticeable degradation in sound.

understanding there are much better ways to get this done, i've decided to take the quickest/easiest path. 12-16 months is all i need to get outta this rig so i should be good. just ordered the 851N. should be here tomorrow. all in one plug n play box with tons of features for dirt cheap. will check back in and update the thread on my thoughts/findings.

will probably be posting many more stupid questions in about a year when i get into building a new/nicer system. hoping this emergency/quick system build will keep me happy until then. 

thanks to all 
cheers
Lev

quick check in for those who might be interested. am 24 hours into my Cambridge 851N ownership. gotta say i'm definitely not thrilled but will give it chance to burn in a little an see what happens.

first off the volume control is OK at best. no where near as precise as i had hoped for. my PWDII was/is much better at volume adjustment/precision. especially at low volumes.

sound wise....it's a 7/10. not bad but certainly not as organic/smooth sounding as the 10 year old PWDII it replaced. exceptable for now but not hifi imho (probably shouldn't be hifi at this price point but i was hoping). the old saying you get what you paid for and the effort you put into it seems to be true at this point. couple days of research and $1500 is what i have invested. mediocre/ok sound is what i have now. 

have had differing experiences with "burn in" in numerous components over the years. sometimes i notice a big difference. other times near nothing/no improvement. lets just say i'm hoping "burn in" smooths out some of the rough edges here. if not??....i think i can make this work for a year or so.....but definitely not a long term keeper.

on the big plus side, the features and setup are fantastic and easy to use (again, coming from something 10 years old here). spent a few minutes setting it up and it's done. Cambridge app is kinda weak but still very user friendly and very quick/seemless. love having all the music access this box provides. radio and tidal hifi is very enjoyable even with average midfi sound

oh well....at least i have some music playing again.