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Non Over Sampling USB DAC PCBs
* * * UPDATE 08/01/2006 * * *
After a very long wait, there is finally some movement on this project.
I have had a small quantity of boards made.
It is a NOS-USB-DAC with a built-in high quality headphone/pre amplifier.
I am in the process of gathering the last few parts to put together a few partial kits.
Once everything is here, I will put up ordering information.
For now, you can see some preliminary information at Head-Fi
(The post on the first page is a prototype -- the production version is around post # 41 or so.)
The beginnings of a project page are at http://www.ecp.cc/HPDAC.html.
Please be aware, this is all still unofficial. I'll update the project page as soon as things are ready.
I am currently considering having a quantity of either the TDA1543 or TDA1541A based NOS-USB-DAC boards manufactured for sale. Whether this would simply entail boards, or partial kits (presumably including the hard to find parts), or full kits, or completed boards, is being considered. Until that time, if you might be interested in one or the other, send me an email at usb_boards@ecp.cc. Don't worry, you are not agreeing to anything, you are just letting me know whether it is worth going forward. No decisions will be made until the TDA1541A board is more fully tested and interest is guaged. Also, so you have some more information to think about this, the TDA1543 board costs about $50-60 to fully populate. The TDA1541A board is more like $120-200 to populate depending upon the quality of the capacitors used (notice that there are something like 30 film caps that need to be of decent quality.) Also, while standard versions of the TDA1541A are usually under $20, high quality versions can easily command well over $100. Last, since the TDA1543 project has been found to sound better with the transformer off-board, I might consider building a small optional headphone amp/gain + buffer stage on to the board in the space left empty by the transformer's removal. Chances are it will be a Mint clone, but perhaps with a discrete buffer. It will not, however, use the AD8397. |
