Reviews

DAC1 PRE - "A dramatic improvement in sound"

"You could use the DAC1 PRE in your office with your desktop or laptop, for a dramatic improvement in sound over your computer's built-in soundcard. And I do mean dramatic. You can drive a pair of powered speakers directly from the Benchmark. Or try a small power amp, maybe even a little single-ended tubed triode."

"As a headphone amp, the Benchmark DAC1 PRE really shone—even with fussy, difficult-to-drive headphones like my reference AKG K-701s, or my affordable faves, the Audio-Technica ATH-AD700s."

- Sam Tellig, Stereophile

ADC1 and DAC1 - "Benchmark’s reputation is well deserved"

"Many people I respect had lauded the DAC1, and I was interested to hear it in my home. Many reviews of the DAC1 had mentioned its headphone amplifier but had said little about it. Being an avid headphone listener, I wanted to see how well the DAC1 would stand up against my usual headphone amplifiers."

"Since then, months have passed during which I've used both the DAC1 and ADC1, and I can say with confidence that Benchmark’s reputation is well deserved. The three most important elements of any product -- build quality, sound quality, and customer support -- are all present in their designs."

"The ADC1 is the most powerful recording tool I've ever used, and is probably overkill for the casual recorder. But if you have a serious vinyl collection to archive, or are setting up a small digital recording studio, it should flawlessly perform to high standards."

"The DAC1 will have a wider audience and can serve many functions: headphone amp, digital preamp, and, of course, D/A processing."

- Eric Hetherington, GoodSound!

DAC1 - "If you are looking to improve your monitoring ...you really must audition the DAC1"

"Its performance is quite extraordinary for the UK retail price, and it competes favourably against units costing considerably more."

"It is a very neat, well-designed package with an excellent feature set, including an internal mains PSU, usefully clean and powerful headphone monitoring, and the provision to configure the analogue outputs for fixed or variable levels."

"If you are looking to improve your monitoring, or to hear what your A-D converters are actually providing, you really must audition the DAC1. I must warn you, though, that this will be hazardous to your wallet — because you'll have to buy it once you hear it. I did!"

- Hugh Robjohns, Sound On Sound