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If you can go $350, this one is the best sounding one under 1K.http://www.ebay.com/itm/iFi-Audio-Micro-iDAC-High-Definition-USB-DAC-Desktop-Headphone-Amplifier-/291199685548?hash=item43ccda93ac:g:OhIAAOSw7NNT0j81
here is a solution for a DAC which can suit your needsFostex HP-A4http://www.amazon.com/Fostex-HP-A4-Optical-headphone-amplifier/dp/B00G97FG5W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1462661340&sr=8-2&keywords=fostex+hpa4while it is a headphone amplifier DAC, it does plug into the wall can be used non-stopi have one as my secondary DAC and it works just fine.
Give the DAC at least 50 hrs of break in time. Things may improve. One thing that I have found is that many lower priced DAC's sound similar in some respects and that all the higher end DAC's that I have heard sound remarkably different in my system (PS audio DSD, Hugo Chord, Bryston, Luxman DA-06, Exogal Comet, Cary 200ts, Marantz NA-11s1, Auralic Vega and the Wyred 4S DSDse with the Femto clock).Another thing to consider is that different usb cables sound different with different DAC's and systems. We did a usb shoot out at my house and it was an eye opener to say the least.
I bought it second hand im sure it has hundreds of hours on it. the USB cable is LHLABS LightSpeed
Actually i ended up spending quite a bit more (thats why i didnt pursure this topic, it doesnt fit the C&C criteria anymore) and I ended up with this and honestly it feels like a huge waste of time. compared with the mydac at best I hear no differecne (through the optical input). actually through the USB input sounds surprisingly less dynamic than the mydac. im quite disappointed. Im waiting to test it with my new KT88 amp and of the results are the same I will send it back.
I think I found your problem. Do you see those chips marked 'ESS'??? -dBP.S. Seriously, it takes a good deal of hard work and attention to detail to make the ESS chip sound good. It can be done, but IMO it's a lot of effort that could be spent elsewhere if a different chip was used. Heard some good/VG ESS DACs (e.g. Auralic) but not one yet that I loved. I'm largely agnostic, preferring to listen primarily to the end results first/foremost, but those NOS/R2R supporters do have a strong argument when you just listen to the results. But what do I know? -- I'm just a crotchety (not-quite) old man.
opinion about this:http://www.ebay.com/itm/131764951885?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
"HI-END DIGITAL AUDIO COMPRESS"
I have tried 4 different ESS DACs LHLABS Pulse Xfi balanced with femto clockLKS dual mono balanced with separate power supplies for digital and analog sectionsand peach audio idacand another one i dont remeberdidnt like any of them ultimately. so maybe i should try another chip. hence this choice