I replied to a couple of folks here, but thought it'll be better to just post a separate thread. I've used udac5 since it was released a few months ago. I was looking for a little amp/dac for under $200 that would primarily drive my modded pair of Fostex t50rp MK3 cans at the office (and Senn 600 at home) and and tested a whole bunch of them when trying to decide: Fiio E10K, FiiO K1, DragonFly Red, DragonFly 1.2, Audioengine D3 and finally Cambridge Audio Dac Magic XS V2.
In the end, the sound signature, usb cable and a real volume knob did it for me. If anyone has any questions about this dac, shoot them here, I'll do my best to answer.
olbezJust to add, from all the tested dacs for me it came down to udac5 and Cambridge Audio DacMagic XS V2 for ~$120. Both sound VERY similar. udac is a tad more powerful and I preferred its volume knob to the buttons of DacMagic. It was still a little tough to justify $80 in price difference though.
olbezGreat info! Wondering if you've tried powering it from a phone? It'd be nice if there were multiple inputs to also use a power pack for portability.
AnentI did not. The USB port is same one on a printer - large and square one. I think even if I found a converter it would just make too bulky of a solution. For the phone I'd recommend DACs that have a built-in make USB port
ld100uDAC is quite a bit warmer, louder and presents a wider sound stage. To be honest, I didn't like Dragonfly Red or Black at all. Both sounded like they processed the sound heavily and it didn't come up as natural to my ear.
dr_decibelHey @dr_decibel, I've had it for a little longer than 43wks (got it in June 2016 from Amazon) and still use it daily at work. No issues at all, still going strong. Let me know if you have any questions.
In the end, the sound signature, usb cable and a real volume knob did it for me. If anyone has any questions about this dac, shoot them here, I'll do my best to answer.