Hi all Sifu and senpai(s),

Newcomer/Noob in the audio corner here, i am here for a DAC (or DAC/amp combo) recommendation.

past 3 months i have been looking into audio stuffs, as I am moving to a larger house and i want to plan my renovation.

I have already overblown my budget already by way more than few hundred percent.

It is not really worth mentioning and i am abit embarrassed about the ocipalaness of my items but here are my audio equipments.

I started out from gaming and evolved to the point that i am quite lost:

1. Razer Leviathan
2. Razer Kraken Pro V2
3. Razer hammerhead pro V2
4. Audiotechnica Air AD900X (open back)
5. Kanto YU6 + Sub8


I might buy some high ohm headphones down the road but currently i am thinking about dacs and amps and whether i need them or not.

My PC is an ASUS Maximus IX Extreme (Z270 board with i7-7700K)
(OR)
I might use the Kanto YU6 for my living room.

Here is the thing, i have TONS of wifi devices throughout the new house:
1. WiFi CCTVS (6 units)
2. Wifi Robot Vacuum
3. Wifi boosters here and there
4. family of 6 with each person at least 2 wifi device.
5. 4 smart tv and raspberry pi to run kodi on each tv. (8 device)
6. Mi water purifier, Mi Baby milk mixer, Mi toothbrush, Mi smarthome etc.

easily up to 30+ device or more at any 1 time.

Optical cables eliminates those annoying buzz and hums from audio device which is why i have the leviathan replace my old 2.1 logitech speakers. Also another reason why i choose the YU6s.

I understand that having an external DAC will improve the whole listening experience. BUT if i go back to RCA cables will it be hostile ?


So the most important question now is:


Which of the following dacs suits me ? (both PC and Living Room)

1. Audioengine D1
2. Fiio E10K
3. Schiit Modi 2 & Magni
4. JDSLabs The Element

or are there any other recommendations.

Thank you all sifus in advance.

(afterthought: i didn't realize my reply would be this long when i started, lol)

No, not really, from my leviathan and YU6 (Through my cousin's YU5, i was impressed by it and ordered mine but it is still on the way)

The old Altec Lansing 2.1 & Cheap Logitech 5.1 speakers can suck it and i am sick of listening to that annoying humming static whenever calls or messages came in through them when my phone is on the table, just that i have never used a dac/amp and being reading all over that people are claiming the difference is night and day.

All that humming disappear when i switch to the razer leviathan (first time using toslink optical input) which made me so glad. I am unsure whether this is due to the optical cable or the low quality speakers which i can only afford during my student and fresh grad days.

Another reason for the leviathan because i have a Triple monitor setup and it sits perfectly below the middle monitor facing me.

My cousin had the YU5 and sit them on speaker stands on their sides, the stands goes high above his iMac and tilts down facing the middle. Was thinking of copying him (which is why i buy the YU6) but unlike him, i have 2 kids so i might end up spending more of my non-gaming leisure time in the living room rather than in the PC room.

Yes you are right the YU6 are power speaker that have DAC (only if you connect it via optical in)

But in actual reality i am unimpressed by the performance of all 3 headphones i have. But using them is a must for any serious PUBG/Overwatch sessions.

So my dilemma is that since i am going to spend money anyways i was looking for an easier way to switch between Headphone and PC Speakers, and while doing so give the headphones a bump up in performance or whatever everyone in the audio community is going on about.

Right now my routine to switch between Speaker & Headphones is to:
1. Right click volume icon in bottom right corner of the screen.
2. Select playback device
3. on the popup window drag down to Either A. Digital output or B. Headphones
4. Select "set as default device"
5. Right click and select test to ensure its the correct one.
6. Click "OK".

(Or use the asus motherboard software which would reduce 2 steps, but sometimes crashes, asus makes great hardware but their software just plain suck)

Now repeat the above step every time. whenever i play non fps game or browse the internet.

THERE MUST BE A SIMPLER WAY ! (a BIG RED BUTTON or a left/right switch ???)

As for why the headphones suck, i like the intensity coming from the speakers and clarity feel from it. By comparison the sounds through the headphones i dont know how to say it, feels dull.

Speakers are connected through toslink optical to the motherboard while headphones are just normal 3.5mm jack to the green hole jack, both on the back of the motherboard IO.

Thank you again for hearing me out.

Thank you sifu for your prompt reply, you've cleared my doubts, i will go for the D1 then, maybe down the road i will get the element for that sexy knob or whatever is trending then.

THANKS AGAIN!