T+A DAC 200 D/A Converter & Preamplifier with HDMI Module - Black - Ex Demo

Product Details

• Brand: T+A elektroakustik
• Model: DAC 200
• Finish: Black Anodised Aluminium (T+A finish code 42)
• Optional module fitted: HDMI, with 2 inputs and 1 ARC output

Condition Notes

In excellent condition. The black anodised aluminium casework is clean and unmarked across the fascia, top and sides, with no scratches around the control buttons or the volume wheel. Both analogue meters are clear and undamaged, the display window is unmarked, and the rear panel and connectors are in excellent order. Everything functions exactly as it should.

Supplied complete with the FM200 remote control, USB cable, power cable and original factory packaging.

The DAC 200 is T+A's answer to a question most converter manufacturers quietly avoid: PCM and DSD are fundamentally different signal formats, so why run them through the same converter? Here they do not. There are two entirely separate conversion paths inside this chassis - a Double-Differential-Quadruple-Converter using four 32-bit sigma-delta sections per channel for PCM, and a discrete True-1Bit converter that handles DSD natively, as a bitstream, without ever turning it into PCM first. DSD material goes through the DSD converter. PCM material goes through the PCM converter. Neither is compromised to accommodate the other.

The PCM side runs synchronous upsampling to 705.6 / 768 kSps with five selectable filter algorithms, from the linear-phase FIR options through T+A's Bezier-polynomial filters to a genuine non-oversampling mode - which is not a gimmick so much as an invitation to tune the machine to your own ears and your own recordings. After conversion, the analogue reconstruction filter is a phase-linear 3rd-order Bessel with a switchable 60 or 120 kHz cut-off, and the output stage is discrete Class A-HV in double-mono configuration.

It is also a full preamplifier. The volume control is a bank of gold-contact relays stepping in 1 dB increments from −90 dB to 0 dB - a physical attenuator rather than digital bit-truncation, so quiet listening does not cost you resolution. Both the XLR and RCA outputs can be set to variable or fixed independently, so you can run a power amplifier directly from this and still feed a fixed output elsewhere.

The headphone output deserves its own mention. It is a single 4.4 mm Pentaconn socket, balanced, fed by a discrete Class A stage running to 200 mA with a 6 Ω output impedance. There is no single-ended compromise stage - T+A simply built one good amplifier instead of two adequate ones.

This particular unit has the optional HDMI module fitted, which is the configuration worth having and the one that commands the higher list price. Two HDMI inputs plus an ARC output mean a television and a disc player can feed the DAC 200 directly, which turns a two-channel system into something that handles film sound properly without a separate processor.

Built in Herford, Germany, with the kind of engineering density that explains why 6.2 kg feels heavier than it should. At this price, pre-owned, it is in a different conversation to anything comparable sold new.

Main Specifications

• PCM converter: T+A Double-Differential-Quadruple-Converter, 4 × 32-bit sigma-delta per channel, 705.6 / 768 kSps
• DSD converter: T+A True-1Bit native bitstream converter, up to DSD1024
• Upsampling filters: FIR short, FIR long, Bezier/IIR, Bezier, NOS (non-oversampling)
• Analogue reconstruction filter: Phase-linear Bessel, 3rd order, 60 / 120 kHz switchable
• Output stage: Discrete Class A-HV, double mono
• USB support: PCM 44.1 – 768 kSps; DSD64 – DSD1024 native
• S/PDIF, optical, AES/EBU, BNC: 32 – 192 kHz, 16 – 24 bit; DoP DSD64 on S/PDIF
• Digital inputs: 2 × coaxial, 2 × optical, 1 × AES/EBU (XLR), 1 × BNC, 2 × USB-B, SYS IN
• HDMI (fitted): 2 × input, 1 × output with ARC
• Analogue input: 1 × RCA line, 250 mV – 4.5 V, 10 kΩ
• Analogue outputs: 1 × XLR balanced (0 – 5.0 V variable or 5.0 V fixed), 1 × RCA (0 – 2.5 V variable or 2.5 V fixed), 22 Ω
• Headphone output: 4.4 mm Pentaconn balanced, Class A to 200 mA, 6 Ω output impedance, headphones ≥ 16 Ω
• Volume control: Gold-contact relays, 1 dB steps, −90 dB to 0 dB, bypassable
• Frequency response: 0.1 Hz – 200 kHz (+0 / −3 dB)
• THD: < 0.001%
• Signal-to-noise ratio: 110 / 114 dB
• Channel separation: > 108 dB
• Power consumption: 30 W (standby < 0.5 W)
• Dimensions (W × H × D): 320 × 100 × 340 mm
• Weight: 6.2 kg
• Made in: Germany