DoukAudio PC DAC Headphone Amplifier Digital to Analog Converter with USB & Optical Input DSD256 for Amplifiers, Speakers, Mac, Computer (K5)

Old PC had given up the ghost and bought one of these new 'tiny' PCs that couldn't have extra cards inserted. As I used my PC to stream ripped audio through a high end sound board, I knew I would have to do something to bring the joy back to my 2500 ripped CDs on the hard drive, so bought this. WOW, just WOW! So simple t0 set up, one lead from DAC to AMP, one lead (USB) from DAC to min PC and working within a minute. Crystal clear hi fidelity sound, such detail and warmth (my tastes are almost exclusively classical) not a hint of the all too common 'harshness' from most Japanese products. (This is from China) and at only £90 a real snip when you consider that it feeds a HiFi system costing nearly £3000. Glad I had faith in the reviews. Lovely little unit, high quality feel to the manufacture and finish!

The background.This purchase came about from Amazon accidentally delivering my Creative Soundblaster X4 to the wrong address. It was on sale, the price was right, but it never arrived. By the time Amazon refunded me the price had shot up an extra £35. I wasn't happy.Feeling a bit sore I decided to see what else Amazon had in the same price range the X4 HAD been. I found this Douk Audio K5 PC DAC. It had a nice page, was just shy of £90. No ratings though and not much on the Google machine either to say if it was actually any good.I decided to chance it. Now I'm no Audiophile. There are just times I like to listen to some great music at high volume without distortions or background whines. I have a reasonable set of Anker headphones, nothing special and the built in sound of my Dark Hero 8 motherboard is okay, but limited.While this little DAC has plenty of connectivity options I connected the Douk Audio K5 PC DAC to my PC using USB. It nearly blew my head off. The amazing clarity regardless of how far I turned the volume knob , no distortions just crystal clear music blasting into my ears. It was exactly what I was after.I love it.

The Douk Audio K5 is a combination DAC and headphone amplifier. But actually does a lot more than that all in a compact desktop form factor. So when I was offered the K5 for review, I jumped at the opportunity to try it out as part of my desktop setup.The K5 comes nicely presented in a premium box. As well as the DAC, you get a PSU, an optical cable and some documentation. The manual, though small, is printed on quite thick card and feels great quality. The K5 itself feels and looks really nice quality. The enclosure is simple but is made of a good quality alloy. On the top there are 3 rotary controls, Volume(on/off), bass and treble, and LED indicators for the mode and sample rate. On the front there are 6.3 and 3.5mm jacks, and toggles for gain, tone/pure/ and spdif or USB. On the rear there are RCA outputs, optical in and out, a USB-C, and a power socket. The DAC can be powered by the PSU or USB-C, as well as acting as a USB DAC.So I set this up as part of my desktop audio setup. I connected the K5 to my PC via SPDIF, and the K5 to my SMSL amp via RCA, with the AMP feeding two Wharfdale Diamond 8.1s. Using the K5 as a DAC/ pre-amp, I was impressed with the overall quality of the sound. The overall EQ is quite flat in the "pure" position. Toggle the switch to tone and there is some subtle attenuation and a what sounds like a little bit of mid being scooped. The bass and treble control also become active and allow some adjustment of the EQ. Connecting up my headphones, audio doesn't mute and continues to be passed through the RCA connectors. Again I am pleased with the overall sound and there is reasonable amount of gain available. Either through adjusting the volume control or the gain control. The SPDIF out allows the optical signal to passed through to another device. And in combination with the USB DAC, it allows the signal to converted to SPDIF.The K5 offers a great range of connectivity and versatility in a compact package. I can't fault the audio or build quality at this price point, and is perfect for a desktop setup. My only real criticism is that you switch the RCA output to bypass. As it can be annoying setting the controls for the headphones after using it as a DAC. However this is a minor gripe and I would generally recommend the Douk Audio K5.