[dspringham]

Hey guys,

Just received a DAC-10H/ST-10 combo purchased on the resale market.

ST-10 works great but I can't seem to get the Line level inputs on the DAC-10H working.

I'm using XLR to RCA adapters from the balanced outputs of my Sony HAP-Z1ES in order to feed the Line inputs of the DAC-10H (which in turn feeds the ST-10 via balanced connectors). When I select the Line inputs of the 10H (either 1 or 2) I get no output. When substituting the 10H with my Nuforce MCP-18 (same configuration - single-ended input from Sony source and balanced out to ST-10) everything is fine.

Not able to try the HP output since all my cheap cans have mini plugs and no adapter.

I haven't tried the DAC inputs on the 10H since I don't have my Mac Mini online at the moment (due to using the Sony player as main source).

Anyone have any suggestions? I'm hoping maybe it's just operator error but can't see what I might be missing.

Jason - is there a way to reset the micro processor in the unit? Some sort of hangup maybe?

Thanks guys.

Dave

[dspringham]

UPDATE!

I have two Sony HAP-Z1ES players. One modified by Red Wine Audio for full battery operation with tube output stage (balanced output only - single ended outputs disabled) and one unmodified with stock factory balanced and single-ended outputs.

I tried the stock unit with the same XLR-RCA adaptors on the balanced outputs and the DAC-10H line inputs work fine. WTF???
This would make me wonder about the wiring convention of the XLR outputs on the modified Sony, but when I use the same adapters on the modded player and feed single-ended into the Nuforce MCP-18 "CD" inputs everything works fine with the ST-10 fed balanced from the MCP.

Why do the single-ended inputs on the DAC-10H and the MCP give different results (ie. MCP works, DAC-10H does not) when fed a single-ended signal from adapters on the modded Sony?

[rustydoglim]

This is not a support site, you should contact [email protected] and if you are from the USA, it is better that you create a help desk ticket on mytdss.com.
The reason is that our support staff does not read this forum.  And I don't visit here every day.

Having said that, please try another analog source such as the headphone output from your smartphone. We can't debug your setup when you are using XLR to RCA adapter. If a normal RCA source works, that clear points to your adapter problem.

[JackD]

Since Vinnie modified the Sony to work with the preamp in place at the time maybe you should ask him about the incompatibility problem with his modded unit.  Seems to be where the problem is since the stock unit works fine.

[dspringham]

Jackd,

Yes,  I initially did suspect the output of the modded Sony, however with the adapters it works fine on a single-ended connection to the Nuforce preamp. Obviously there must be input circuitry differences between the DAC-10H and the Nuforce pre.

Ultimately my wish would be that the 10H had a set of balanced input connections as does the Nuforce MCP-18 (which really is a very nice unit when used as a transparent volume control - it will replace my Wyred-4-Sound STP-SE).

The ST-10 is quite good with the MCP-18 but the differences between it and my ncore NC400 are subtle. The build quality/fit and finish of the Nuprime pieces are impressive.

[dspringham]

Just in case anyone is interested, I have discovered the issue with the setup as described above.

The modded Sony has a very tiny amount of dc offset on the outputs. It would appear that the DAC-10H is sensitive to this and may have internal circuitry to detect and mute if dc is present (if I'm not mistaken the DAC-10 does not employ input coupling caps). The Nuforce MCP is obviously more tolerant of this dc since it worked fine with the Sony (maybe the MCP has input caps).

Anyways, adding a small coupling cap in series with the Sony outputs allows the DAC-10H to play fine.