Do all DAC's need a signal to lock on to?


Not knowing a thing about digital technology I'll apologize in advance if this is a stupid question, but here goes.

I wanted to use my 3-year old Rotel changer with a DAC and discovered that the Rotel is one of those players that will only output a digital signal when there is music to play. So the DAC I tried (an MSB) would have to re-lock on the signal after every disc and track change, which is accompanied by a loud click from the relay in the unit and an audible thump thru the speaker as the output is turned on. Pretty annoying.

So, do all DACs work this way, i.e., will they only 'switch on' when there is a signal present, or is this something peculiar to the design of this DAC?
joetoto

Showing 1 response by glen

I run a Theta transport to a Classe dac1. No problem,no thumps no pops no clicks. In my H/T system I run from the transport to a pre-amp (digital connection) with positive results. You may do better with a different transport. Good luck!!