I wouldn’t have thought that this was an uncommon situation, but I’m having a real hard time finding something to match my needs. I’m hoping someone can point me in the right direction.
My setup:
Digital Source -
| - ?DAC/Pre? - Powered Monitors
Analog Source -
So I need a unit to do/have, a volume knob, analog and digital inputs and a front switch to choose between the two.
The only thing I’ve found so far is the Fiio K5 Pro. I don’t have anything against it, but I don’t need a headphone out and was hoping for something a bit cheaper. Does anyone have any ideas?
Hmmm. The requirement for a bit cheaper is going to be hard to fulfill imo with the feature set you are after. You could get a passive volume controller or monitor controller and a dac, but that would prob end up at the same price as the k5 pro. There are cheaper options in terms of something that can act as a pre out with a dac, but the need to also take in an analog input can complicate things for a single unit in this price range
I guess you could get something like a schiit sys with a cheaper dac and that would be what you want, but it would be the same price as the k5 pro for the most part although it would give you a higher quality dac and no headphone amp