amazon Nuforce uDAC 2 reviews
NuForce uDAC 2 is the most popular product of NuForce, selling for about $100. The product targets the mass market with the goal of improving sound from a laptop, but has the qualities of a serious audiophile device.
This is one of the smallest audio decoders on the market (68 x 38 x 21mm), just a little more than the size of a Zippo light. The uDAC 2 can make anyone’s hand grimace because it’s hard to figure out how complicated a technology device can be. Although, small but uDAC2 has a thick and solid aluminum shell. The front of the machine has a volume knob and mini headphone jack, which is also the source switch. The back side of the machine has a USB port for connecting to a computer, a coaxial port for connecting external DACs and an RCA output to connect to the amplifier.
Removing the case for internal observation, the first impression is the admiration of the intelligent design of this DAC circuit. The machine has two tiny boards stacked, can be disassembled thanks to two rows of flexible connectors. The two largest components occupy the third area of the boards as USB clusters and volume potentiometers. Due to its compact size, most of the components inside the DAC are stickers (SMDs). The super-small size of the board and the maximum use of stickers make it technically productive, which is the path of the ultra-short signal, a key requirement for the device digital audio.
The soul of a decoder is always in the DAC chip. NuForce uDAC 2 uses Saber’s 32-bit decoder chip. Although the company deliberately did not disclose the information and on the back of the DAC chip does not mark the manufacturer’s name but only the characters of NuForce, but when using the test equipment, compare the document (datasheet), the DAC chip used in the NuForche uDAC2 is Saber’s ESS9022.
Saber is a hit maker with hi-end DAC products that have the best specs up to now. A Saber DAC chip is being widely used in the expensive, consumables of the equipment appraisers, the ESS9108 used in the Bluray Oppo 95 and expensive DACs. On the market, the ESS9018 is a 32-bit DAC that is rated as unrivaled for superior sound quality compared to other DAC products on the market.
where can you get a Nuforce uDAC 2 online
Nuforce ICON-UDAC2-BLACK Headphone Amplifier and USB DAC: Buy it now
Nuforce ICON-UDAC2-RED Headphone Amplifier and USB DAC (Discontinued by Manufacturer): Buy it now
NuForce Icon uDAC-2 (Red) Special Edition (with Asynchronous USB): Buy it now
Although cheap Saber products, the ESS9022 also brings together the technological strengths of the new 32-bit DAC. With its outstanding advantages of integrating multiple functions into one compact and easy-to-execute construction, the ESS9022, along with its brother ESS9023, has been care by many manufacturers. In recent times, these commercially available DAC-based audio devices, such as the Hiface MK3, have been sold at nearly four times the cost of uDAC 2.
Back to uDAC 2, this DAC uses 5V power from the computer via USB. This power is supplied to independent voltage regulators for each part of the circuit. Nearly every active component has its own voltage regulator for power supply in order to minimize interference between different components of the circuit. The components in the machine are of audio standard, such as volume Tocos potentiometer, high-precision clock pulse, gold-plated RCA jacks, audio source filters … the uDAC2 circuit is designed in dark style. Simple Analog output is output straight, without overcapping to avoid negative effects on the “color” of the capacitors.
The Nuforce DAC 2 is a plug and play device that does not need to be installed when connected to a computer. Using a popular Sony Vaio laptop as a source, with sound sources as FLAC audio files stored on the hard drive, uDAC 2 is combined with a fairly inexpensive device, the Sennheiser HD598. The sound of this combo is quite convincing.
At first, the initial impression was the details, the ability to peel off, reproduce the layers of music tracks of this tiny device. Vivaldi’s “four seasons” instrumental when listening to this duo is quite attractive, with no sense of “blur”, as in some popular sets. The midrange of uDAC 2 is quite inspirational. Selena Jones’ voice in You light up my life depicts the sobbing mood of a girl who has stolen his heart. As you listen to it, the downside of the product is that it looks a bit dazzling in the female voice. However, when changing to Sennheiser’s top-of-the-line headphones, the HD800 changed the sound of “strong”. Of course, it’s hard to compare the Sennheiser HD800 to the Sennheiser HD598 because it’s too haphazard, but compared to some expensive DACs and expensive headphones dedicated to the HD800, the uDAC2 not inferior.
Test uDAC2 with a midrange, taking the analog signal from the RCA line connected to the amplifier. The sound quality of uDAC2 is slightly better than that of the Sony CD player, which costs up to $500 when playing the same track.
If the purpose of NuForce is to create a popular device to upgrade the sound of the onboard sound card on the laptop, then of course, that goal was achieved. Unquestionably, uDAC2 delivers better sound quality than any integrated sound card. But, not just here, this is a complete USB DAC that can be compared fairly with other types of dedicated sound cards and other USB DACs on the market, even with more expensive DACs.
Advantage
– Compact, lightweight, portable, powered by a laptop.
– The sound quality is good.
– Easy to coordinate with many types of headphones (16-300 ohm).
– Affordable price
Disadvantages
– Slightly exaggerated in the high strips.
– At low volume, the sound is not really balanced between the two channels.