Total newbie question here about completing a system


Hello all: Forgive the novice nature of this, but I'm trying to help my son build out a system and I'm a bit lost. Here's what we have so far: Adcom GFA 5500 amp, Audio Research LS2 preamp, Klipsch RP-160M reference premiere bookshelf speakers (new), an old Yamaha turntable, plus a tuner and CD player that we're not certain we'll use. We seem to be missing an equalizer, correct? Also, I should note my son plans on using mostly digital (Pandora, etc.), plus some wax. Please advise on what we need to round this out. The digital feed needs to be converted, correct? Again, so sorry for the basic questions, but most of these components are inherited and I don't have enough understanding of putting this together. All wit and wisdom welcome.
newkphoto

Showing 2 responses by willemj

There are two ways to get a digital signal to your amplifier. The first is to use a computer. Computers have inbuilt Digital to Analogue Converters (DAC) but these are rarely any good. So you need to use their digital output, and that is almost always usb (and not optical or coaxial). Next you need an external DAC (or an amplifier with an inbuilt DAC, as more and more now do). Such external usb DACs exist at many price levels, from the pretty good and dirt cheap Behringer UCA 202 (still a lot better than the DAC in almost any computer), to the very good and very affordable ODAC, to the ultimate in a DAC like the Benchmark DAC3. The ODAC is good enough for an ambitious system.
Another way (instead of using a computer) to get digital input is to use an external streamer like the Apple Airport Express, the Sonus Connect or the Google Chromecast Audio. These all have inbuilt DACs. Even the cheapest of these, the Chromecast Audio has a pretty good inbuilt DAC: http://archimago.blogspot.nl/2016/02/measurements-google-chromecast-audio.html I use it into a pretty revealing system with Quad electrostatic speakers, and the sound quality is fine, as was to be expected from the excellent measurements. So why not start with the analogue output of the Chromecast, and see if you think it is good enough? However, if you want something better, these streamers all have optical digital outputs that can be used with a better external DAC. Since such a streamer is not necessarily the only digital source (think also of an (UHD Bluray) disc player or a television) it is worth using a DAC with multiple inputs and variable output such as the Pioneer U-05, the rather more expensive Benchmark DAC3 or, alternatively, a modern disc player like the Oppo UD 205 with its additional optical input for a streamer like the Chromecast Audio. But all these options are rather more expensive (and double up with the existing pre amp).
If you are considering using the analogue output of the Chromecast Audio (as I would, at least initially - it is just some $35), realize that there is a setting that you have to decide on: high dynamic range, or not. Google says HDR is for ambitious gear, and ordinary is for basic gear such as table radios, but this is misleading. In reality the difference is not in the dynamic range, but in the output level. HDR is at the standard 2.0 Volt that is also used by CD players, and the ordinary setting is simply a lower voltage. If your amplifier's input sensitivity is on the high side (as is often the case) using the lower output level is actually beneficial (HDR would clip/distort the input).
The one the OP linked to is not the ODAC but a FIIO. The ODAC is a now legendary design by an anonymous experienced engineer called NWavguy (you can google him and his description of the design process, plus measurement data) who was fed up by expensive snake oil products and designed an affordable usb dac that really is about as good as the best. It is available from different sources and with different cases.See e.g. here: https://www.jdslabs.com/products/46/standalone-odac-rev-b/
The one I bought is from Mayflower and sells for $119: https://mayflowerelectronics.com/odac-rev-b-stand-alone/
It is a basic usb DAC: you connect it to the usb port of the computer, and you connect the output to the line input of the amplifier. You normally do not need any specific drivers on the computer. Output is 2.0 Volt, just like a standard CD player. It takes its electrical power from the usb port, so no further cables are required. And it is a tiny and discreet box, smaller than a cigarette case.