Chord Electronics Ltd. Dave Reference DAC / Preamp / Headphone Amplifier
- Brand:
- Chord Electronics Ltd.
- Availability:
- Ships from Manufacturer
- Delivery time:
- 3-6 days
$10,900.00
Excl. tax
DAVE is our flagship DAC, a true reference-level product, loaded with our latest-generation FPGA technology. Put simply, it is the most advanced DAC in the world. Free shipping to continental USA!
Dave is the most advanced DAC we have ever made. It features the very best conversion technology available, using proprietary techniques never seen before, making DAVE the most advanced DAC/preamp amplifier in the world. DAVE stands for ‘Digital to Analogue Veritas in Extremis’, a moniker that best reflects the product’s capability; a device so advanced and with so few compromises, that it is absolutely truthful in the extreme — a standard that all other DACs on the market simply cannot hope to match.
The DAC, which is also a reference-level headphone amplifier and ‘digital preamp’, distills twenty years of Chord research, development and advanced engineering into one device. At its heart lies a new version of the advanced Spartan 6 Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) with 1,000 x the processing power of the traditional mass-produced chip DAC. DAVE’s FPGA is loaded with over a million lines of code to confront complex timing issues head-on, with speed and precision.
The FPGA’s extraordinary capability enables a number of key sonic benefits, including significantly improved timing and the best noise-shaper performance of any known DAC. DAVE’s technology delivers music with unmatched reality and musicality, with an unrivaled timing response. The device’s lossless digital volume control outputs the signal direct to your power amplifier for the purest experience.
DAVE has a full-sized LCD display, showing input, sample frequency, volume and set-up configurations options, within Chord’s famous porthole design. On its fascia, DAVE also features a rotary encoder with a large stainless steel controller and ball buttons, enabling direct interactivity in addition to the supplied remote control.
Features
Digital Inputs:
- 4 x 75 Ω S/PDIF BNC Coax – 44.1 kHz to 384 kHz
- 1 x AES XLR – 44.1 kHz to 96 kHz
- 2 x Fibre Optic TOSLINK – 44.1kHz to 192 kHz
- 1 x USB Type B – 44.1 kHz to 768 kHz – PCM and DSD
Analogue Inputs:
- 1 x Stereo Pair of Unbalanced RCA
- 1 x Stereo Pair of Balanced XLR
- 1 x ¼” TRS Jack Headphone Output
Frequency response: 20Hz to 20kHz flat within +/-0.1dB (HF filter off)
THD + N: 127.5 dB (AWT)
Channel separation >125dB @ 1KHz
Dynamic range: 127.5dB (AWT)
Sample frequencies: 44.1 Khz – 768 Khz DSD64,128,256,512 native DSD + DoP (input dependent)
- Chord Custom FPGA DAC
- 768 kHz Type B USB Input
- 4 x 768 kHz BNC Coax Inputs
- 2 x 96 kHz AES/EBU Inputs
- 2 x 192 kHz Optical Inputs
- Expandable DXO Inputs
- 1 x Unbalanced RCA Outputs
- 1 x Balanced XLR Outputs
- 1 x ¼" Headphone Output
- Supports 800 Ω Headphones
- Configurable Crossfeed
- Standalone Preamp Function
- Galvanically Isolated USB
- Supports up to 768 kHz
- Native DSD Supported
- DSD 512 (8 x) Capable
- Solid Aluminum Chassis
Technical Specifications
Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 20 kHz +/- 0.1dB
THD +N: -127.5dB (AWT)
Channel Separation: >125dB @ 1kHz
Dynamic Range: 127.5dB (AWT)
Headphone Output:
1% THD 6.8v RMS with 300 Ω (154mW)
1% THD 6.8v RMS with 33 Ω (1.4w)
Output Impedance: 0.055Ω (short circuit protected)
Operating voltage: 90v AC – 250v AV auto switching 50 Hz – 60 Hz
Dimensions (including connectors): 333.5 mm (W) x 71 mm (H) x 154 mm (D)
Weight: 7 kg
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