Audiolab M-DAC Digital to Analogue Converter

Winning a combination of 4 What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision awards in a row, its no secret that the Audiolab M-DAC is one of the best ever sounding DACs ever made.

Alongside the USB input with Asynchronous data processing, there are two each of coaxial and optical digital inputs, and one each of coaxial and optical digital outputs. Audio signal is provided via RCA single-ended and XLR balanced audio outputs.

Description

Adaptable Hi-Res Performance High-res 24-bit/192kHz music files can be played on the M-DAC via the coaxial input, while optical and USB inputs support 24-bit/96kHz data. While enjoying the high resolution audio via its digital inputs a wide choice of filters are available to optimise your listening experience for a variety of audio formats and personal preferences. • Optimal Spectrum This filter implements sampling theory and is designed for near perfect technical response in the frequency domain. • Optimal Transient This filter exhibits no ringing and the transient nature of the music is preserved. Although exhibiting ‘lesser’ performance in technical measurements, sound from this type of filter has a purity and ‘naturalness’ that more than compensates for the lack of technical specifications. There are three optimal transient folders which produce identical frequency and time domain response but the internal structure of the filter varies for subtle sonic nuances.

Technology

• Sharp Rolloff
This filter typifies industrial standard characteristics (-6dB at 1/2 Fs with significant time-domain ringing) and is included here for comparison purposes.

• Slow Rolloff
The slow rolloff starts rolling off at a lower frequency than the sharp rolloff but has a gentle rate of attenuation and significantly less ‘time domain ringing’

• Minimum Phase
The minimum phase filter has a gentle attenuation slope similar to the slow rolloff option, however it exhibits no pre-ringing in the time domain. It can be likened to an analogue filter applied in the digital domain.

Specifications