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HELP: is Monarchy Audio DAC a good idea?

Hi all,

I am a newbie to this WONDERFUL hifi world and am setting up my first/humble HiFi (if I may say so) system right now. I bought a Bryston 3B and PSB Stratus Mini (both used). I do NOT have any PreAmp. I am thinking of using a Monarchy Audio 18B DAC which has volumne control capability so I can completely bypass the idea of preamp. My questions are:

(1) is this 'no preamp' a good idea? (according to Monarchy it is !)
(2) is Monarchy DAC, particularly 18B, good for my system? (I noticed it does NOT user any Burr Brown chips)

Since I only have a SONY DVD player as source, no phono/FM/tape/..., Monarchy sounds to me a very reasonable/economical solution. My intention:

SONY DVD optical output --> Monarchy --> Bryston 3B --> PSB

any input is welcome.

Abe
abetongd719

Showing 1 response by platsolos

platsolos
90 posts
 
I am currently using the 18B with a meridian 500 transport with excellent results and running it directly to the amp. I would say that the sound is good, however i prefer when I have a preamp hooked up. I am not an expert, but I think the extra amplification of the signal the preamp gives makes it sound better to me. A little deeper, more refined and more dynamic with my preamp.

Keep in mind that this is system dependent and to answer your question: Will the 18B offer great preformance? YES. Will it be better than a high end preamp like a rowland synergy or anything like that? To me, NO. It seems to lose a bit.
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