S.M.S.L SU-1 MQA MQA-CD Audio Decoder AK4493S XU316 768kHz/32Bit DSD512 Hi-Res DAC

Update: March 13, 2024 (previously 1 star rating, now I give it 5 star rating). After several exchange of messages between Leaudio seller and myself, it was suggested that I install SMSL SU-1 driver from smsl-audio.com official website, which I did. To my surprise that fixed my DAC! Now I am finally able listen to music from my PC sent to SU-1 by USB cable, which is connected to my SMSL A300 by RCA. It seems the driver installation to my Windows 10 fixed whatever issue I was having with SU-1 DAC. As result of this, I'm updating the previous 1-star rating to 5 stars. As for the sound quality from SU-1, as stated below, it's an improvement over my SMSL A300 amplifier by 15 - 20%, but more specifically, it is the sonic clarity and separation that are the most notable. Though a minimal audio improvement over my amplifier's internal DAC, the sound clarity and instrument separation are noteworthy, and for that I give a 5-star rating. Also, through this DAC, vocals seem to be slightly more forward and clearer. March 6, 2023, initial review, I gave it 1 star rating due to the DAC's failure after 10 days of use. Bought this SMSL SU-1 DAC in November 2023, but I couldn't use it since I didn't have a pair of RCA cables to connect it to my class D SMSL A300 amplifier that I purchased from Amazon at the same time. The DAC was on Black Friday sale, so I figured to try it with my new amplifier. Fast forward to Feb 2024, I finally ordered a pair of CESS 163-4i RCA cables, connected the DAC to my amplifier. The SMSL SU-1 DAC improved the quality by about 15% over my SMSL A300 internal DAC. I used the DAC on and off for about 10 days, then today it simply failed on me. It simply fell dead silent while playing a music file from my PC (PC to USB cable to SMSL SU-1 DAC to RCA cables to SMSL A300 amplifier). I tried another RCA port in the back of my SMSL A300 amplifier, but that too didn't work. The DAC simply does not work at all. I also tried powering down my amp completely, unplug RCA cables between the DAC and the amp, then powered both up again, and toggled between various input options in the DAC to no avail (USB, coaxile, and optical just in case the internal circuit's connectivity had glitched and that toggling among input sources might reset it). The source-light LED still functions on the DAC, but I get absolutely no audio signal going into my amplifier. Heck, I even rebooted my PC just to see if that may be causing an issue, but it was futile. After 2 hours of wrestling with the connections and toggling between input sources and settings, I gave up. Now I'm back to connecting my PC directly to my SMSL A300 amplifier by USB cable, which works fine. As far as SMSL SU-1 DAC is concerned, it was a decent DAC for the price (while it worked). However, the unit I got simply failed after about 10 days of usage. I'd instantly return it for a refund, but the Jan 31 deadline return date is closed, so sadly it's not an option for me. A good-sounding, affordable DAC with a high quality DAC chip, but in my case, I must have received a lemon, so quality control seems questionable. Maybe it's just bad luck on my part, but I still wouldn't recommend this DAC to anyone. You'd be better off to spend a bit more money on a high quality DAC with its own power supply built in. Update On March 11, 2024 I emailed with photo attachments of the failed SMSL SU-1 DAC to [email protected]. According to their site, they'll honor their product warranty up to 6 months with either a repair, replacement, or refund if their product proves to be defective. Hopefully they'll reply in a timely manner with a resolution. As others may encounter a product failure after the Amazon's 30-day free return policy, I'll post further updates for reference. Update, March 11, 2024, 8 hours later, shenzhenaudio.com support staff replied my to my email, asked for the Amazon purchase invoice and order number. I forwarded them the necessary information. According to their reply, they'll forward my case to their Amazon Support Team. I hope this will be resolved asap as I'll need to either get a replacement DAC or get a refund and buy another DAC, so for now I'm stuck in a limbo with 70 bucks tied up in a failed DAC unit. For now I'm stuck to using the internal DAC of my SMSL A300 amplifier, which is quite ok, but I did like the somewhat improved audio fidelity of SMSL SU-1 DAC. Update March 12, 2024. Got a reply from Leaudio requesting detailed info on what's wrong with my SMSL SU-1 DAC. I forwarded an account of how it simply stopped working while playing music from my laptop connected to it by a USB. Also forwarded 3 photos of the DAC. Hope this matter will be dealt with either a refund, replacement, or repair soon, because at this point, the DAC is useless.

Dac seems to built well. It feels like a quality item in hand. The recent reviews on Amazon are spectacular. For me it didn’t work. No sound. When I tried to download the drivers for my device listed on the SMSL page they would not install? There is no customer service no. Thank goodness for amazons easy return policy. As a footnote when adding a third party dac into an existing audio environment a lot can go wrong. From wiring to software conflicts and so forth. When searching online for other buyers with similar problems I found very few posts as SMSLs products seem to work pretty well out of the box.

S.M.S.L SU-1... a compact DAC with a HUGE sound !!! I was using two Prozor DAC's PST158a to send my TV and Blu-ray sound to a vintage Amp (TV sound specially because of QOBUZ, Spotify and YouTube). Prozor DAC's did the job and are extremely compact (way more than the SU-1) . But I've heard about this SMSL SU-1 and because it could handle with my two sources, I decided to try it. Honestly, I was not expecting that much. First, SU-1 is compact but extremely robust. Second, the DAC conversion is completely from another level, by comparing it with Prozor PST158a. Would I ever be unhappy with the Prozor? No, because they are great value for the money... and also... if I ever didn't try this SU-1. But for my application, after compare them, I cannot go back... SU-1 with no doubt at all. So, summarysing: If you want a distinguished DAC to high level Hi-Fi function, for sure you must have this SU-1. If you just need a simple DAC conversion with proper function, or if extremely low size matters, go with a Prozor (also, they have a versatile range of models, with specific incorporate functions, like Bluetooth, HDMI eARC connectivity, etc). NOTE: If you need to convert 5.1 channels to Stereo, SU-1 does not do it. In that case, your source must be able to send PCM digital encoding signal. So, for instance, if you send your TV Dolby sound by optical cable to SU-1, it won't convert it. In this case, you must select the "TV speaker + Optical" option in your TV, so the optical output send PCM digital data to SU-1. And then, just put the tv speaker level at zero). This is not a problem at all, for my specific needs. I'm only highlighting this, because in case of need to convert 5.1 channels to RCA Stereo, Prozor PST158a does the job.

product ok

Trochę nie wierzyłem, że tak tanie urządzenie może coś poprawić. U mnie jakość dźwięku z podstawowego streamera (TagaHarmony) zdecydowanie się poprawiła - dzięki głębszym basom i większej selektywności.