Yulong Aurora
The Aurora is the newest DAC/Amp combo by a Chinese manufacturer Yulong. It's designed around the latest ESS ES9068AS chip, also offering a Class-A headphone amplifier. It's priced at $520.
Dac
SMSL DO100
The SMSL DO100 is the newest budget DAC from SMSL. It uses a dual ES9038Q2m chip and it's priced at $239.
EarMen Colibri
The Colibri is the newest dongle release by one of our favorite brands, EarMen. It is a battery-powered DAC/AMP using ES9281 PRO chip. The price is set at $333.
Cayin RU6
Cayin RU6 is the first, portable R-2R dongle. It features a balanced output, and it costs $249.
EarMen Tradutto
The EarMen Tradutto is the newest release from EarMen, which is a sub-brand of the well-known and beloved company called Auris Audio. It is a fully balanced, ES9038Q2M desktop DAC with MQA and Bluetooth functionality. The price is set at $799.
JDS Labs Atom +
JDS Labs has made a name for itself rather quickly, thanks to their idea of a product that underpromises and over-delivers. It’s cheap, it’s made in the USA and it kicks butts. Now, it has a „+” in its name. The Price is set at $208 for the combo, let's go!
Schiit Modi 3+
3+ is the newest version of the popular budget DAC by Schiit Audio. It is promised to deliver the "all you need" performance, and it is priced at $99.
SMSL M100 MK II
SMSL M100 MK II is a tiny desktop DAC based on SABRE9018Q2C and it has plenty of I/O for its size. It costs just $93.99
Palab M1-mini
Palab M1-mini is a portable and very powerful DAC/AMP based on ESS9038Q2M with full MQA decoding. The recommended price of the device is $449.
Mobile DAC or DAP – which one should I get?
I’m active on Facebook groups for years, and the question in the title is posted quite often. In this article (which isn’t obviously a review), I’ll try to help you choose the best possible option. At first, a few words…