When you listen to digital audio it is the DAC that converts the ones and zeros of the digital audio stream into the analog sound that you hear… which is why the DAC you choose has such a major impact on sound quality. When it comes to playing digital audio, the DAC is literally the heart and soul of your audio system.
If you already have an analog audio system, then you probably think of a DAC as the source component that adds high quality digital audio inputs to your existing system. Or, if you only have digital sources, then you may look at your DAC as the control center of your whole system, taking the place of the preamplifier in an analog system. Our new XDA-3 offers the features you need and the sound quality you crave to fulfill either role superbly, while offering some exciting and interesting new features and capabilities you may not have even thought possible before.
The USB input on our new XDA-3 supports all of the important two-channel digital audio formats, including PCM at sample rates and bit depths up to 32/768k, and both DoP and native DSD (DoP up to DoP256, and native DSD up to DSD512). The four S/PDIF digital audio inputs support sample rates up to 24/192k and are ideal for connecting devices like CD players and audio streamers. The HDMI-ARC input enables you to send digital audio directly from your TV to the XDA-3. And, unlike most other DACs, the XDA-3 also has both balanced and unbalanced analog inputs you can use to connect analog devices like a phono preamp.
While it is predominantly a digital product, the XDA-3 was designed from the ground up with all of the analog features you would expect from an Emotiva Differential Reference product. The signal path for digital inputs is fully balanced and fully differential, from the balanced outputs of the DAC chips to the XLR connectors on the rear panel; and the signal path for the balanced analog inputs is fully balanced and fully differential from input to output. And, since the XDA-3 features digitally controlled analog ladder network volume control, the analog inputs have a fully analog signal path and are never converted into digital. In case you were wondering, the XDA-3 has both balanced and unbalanced analog outputs, with the unbalanced outputs being derived directly from the balanced signal, via a separate balanced to single-ended converter stage.
