I’m looking to upgrade my current stack. It’s a Topping D10 and a Monoprice Liquid Spark. I work now and I have my work laptop and home laptop side by side, and I want to easily switch between both while using my DAC and Amp stack.
I’m looking for a way or a new stack that has the following:
With just a toggle I can switch back and forth the inputs to the DAC (either one of my laptops via USB or another less clunky way)
This “switch” can happen on the DAC input or Amp input, whatever works
Enough power to drive high end planars like an Arya (I don’t have one yet but I have a Modhouse YUP Argon)
Low noise floor for sensitive IEMs
I was looking at the Topping E50/L50 stack, Monoprice THX AAA 788 combo, And Schiit Modius & Magnus Stack but the inputs aren’t really suited for what I’m looking for I think.
I’m trying to avoid using optical from either of my laptops because I don’t want to use extra space if I can avoid it. Any help is appreciated
Whats your budget? For dual USB input the usual way to go is to just get a KVM tbh. Not many dacs will have multiple USB input. The ADI-2 does but thats not exactly cheap. Whats your total budget?
For the switch part, it can be done with a KVM. I haven’t used one in ages, but I know they have some simple USB-2 versions like this that would probably work fairly well.
For the DAC and Amp pieces I would defer to others, I tend to use my laptop as portable devices, so I tend to like good portables. I currently use a Fiio BTR5, but I would probably go with the Qudelix-5K, or if I needed more power maybe the Topping NX7, and use an Apple dongle for the DAC.
I’m using the same USB switcher @John_W_Clark linked and it works great no issues. I use it to go back and forth between a pc and an iPad. There is a clicking noise when switching back and forth but no need to worry about it being too loud and blowing your ears out, it’s a very very faint sound.
That is good news, because that would be my biggest concern on a KVM.
In one that will date me, I haven’t done a USB model, but I have done a PS-2 version before. In addition to the basic three hookups, it also audio, so my desktop speakers were on it, and I used to turn them down before I changed, probably out of habit. Those old KVMs were very expensive and required pricey cables, so the current USB 2 gear seems really cheap.
No age shaking here, i still have my PS2 and even took it apart last year and cleaned it up.
If that clicking noise on the ugreen was even twice as loud I would still be ok. If any more than that I would have returned it and conisidered something more costly.
