Do DACs Matter? (my experience)

Do DACs matter? This is a question I have been working on answering for a long time. For me, at least, I think I have come to an acceptable conclusion. There are definitely differences between DACs, and you’ll certainly see improvement in sound quality over built-in DACs. I also feel you see improvements up to the typical $100 DACs that are pretty much ubiquitous from all audio companies. After that….

As stated in the video, I have not tried anything real high end yet, so maybe my opinion will change after that, but I am skeptical. I do have a SMSL SU-9 on the way, so look for a review of that in the future.

Here’s some of the DACs I’ve tried / mentioned in the video (affiliate):
SMSL Sanskrit: https://amzn.to/3bnG4Tn
SMSL M300 mkii: https://amzn.to/3y4kzRc
SMSL SU8: https://amzn.to/33zKHFB
Topping E30: https://amzn.to/3hlvKPi
Modi 3+: https://amzn.to/3uITpwW
ES100: https://amzn.to/3obFwVy
Fiio e10k: https://amzn.to/3hhMBT9
Fiio K5 Pro: https://amzn.to/3w12D89
Micca Origen G2: https://amzn.to/3frS3AD
Cheap Behringer: https://amzn.to/3vTQ0f0
Cheap Optical: https://amzn.to/3oc7GzL
Chord Mojo: https://amzn.to/3tDT39O

Here’s links to some headphone amp comparisons I’ve done:
Solid State Comparison:    • Solid State Amp Showdown (Magnius vs ...  
Hybrid Tube Amp Comparison:    • Hybrid Tube Amp Comparison (CTH, Vali...  

As usual, I’d also recommend looking for used options at:
Head-Fi: https://www.head-fi.org/
HifiGuides: https://forum.hifiguides.com/