A refund has been arranged, the DO200 is heading back to amazon, and the 500$ (roughly) back into my wallet.
I have decided I am dissatisfied with SMSL due to this experience. It is likely I was just unlucky - anyone can get a bad unit from time to time. But the saying “Once bitten, Twice shy” applies here.
The warranty on the DO200 DAC (and all SMSL products) is not encouraging, and from what i’ve gathered around the net, SMSL is not the most reliable when it comes to their products manufacturing quality.
- I have decided to look for a DAC solution made outside of China, likely it will cost a good bit more, but I suspect I have found a good solution.
I am now looking at the RME ADI-2, because it offers a much broader feature set, is made in Germany (can’t question the German precision and commitment to quality), and the warranty is much stronger on that unit. It appears to have a no-questions-asked 2 year warranty, and they cover shipping both ways if you want to return or need service. Certainly more expensive, but I am also returning another piece of audio equipment I recently acquired which I do not need, so that should cover the difference.
The forum thread here also assisted me on making this choice, Thanks to the community for putting up this thread.
Also the RME ADI-2 does not have MQA Huzzah! Get Stuffed MQA!! Bwahaha!
(hmmm… i think my elation may have gotten away from me there for a moment. Still it’s a good thing. MQA sucks.)