CEntranceāsDACport Prois a portable tool designed by people who understand the needs of working engineers. Laptop audio outputs offer up questionable quality ā assuming your maker deigns even to include one. One of the engineers here at Treelady Studios swears by a USB stick that combines DAC and headphone amp. Are those better than stock outputs? Yes. Can it drive all of the headphones I want to use? No. Will I break it off on a plane or in fit of clumsiness? Almost certainly. I need something sturdier, better sounding, and full-featured. TheDACport Prois more than a consumer-grade flimsy headphone amp. The aircraft-grade aluminum enclosure is built to withstand the jostling of travel. The case has some heft, and is slightly larger than a double deck of playing cards. While the DACport Pro is more sizable than some micro portable interfaces, the added thickness enables CEntrance to include XLR outputs. Thatās right ā real, grown-up, balanced outputs from which to run your studio monitors.
But wait, thereās more: theDACport Prois a monitor controller you can take with you. The front panel includes six-stage stereo LED VU meters, a Mic/Line toggle, and a 1.5-inch Volume knob. The XLR output jacks live on the top cap. The opposite end panel contains a USB-C input, a meter brightness dial, a 1/8-inch headphone jack with an impedance (Hi or Lo Gain) switch, and an XLR Fix/Var control (i.e., use Variable for monitor outputs).
I found that theDACport Proāssound qualitydestroysaftermarket DAC āsticksā ā both in terms of the conversion quality and ability to adjust impedance to drive any of the test headphones I auditioned. But I must confess, the combination of output meters and a gain knob is the real dealmaker. Knowing that a signal is actually reaching the DAC is invaluable when youāre in a crunch, especially since digital audio often misbehaves under deadlines.
When using theDACport Proas a headphone amp, most of the relevant hardware connectivity is on the same side. However, the XLR jacks live on the opposite side. In use, I was left with cables running from both ends. CEntrance thought of this and included a standard .25-inch female mounting thread on the back panel. I purchased an aluminum camera mount on the internet and kept everything happy that way. On a Mac, digital connectivity just works (class compliant). For Windows, theDACport Prosupports ASIO, which is my preferred protocol. Operation is not limited to 16-bit/44.1 kHz āDACport Procan manage up to 32-bit/384 kHz, plus DSD ā another hallmark of professional gear. Not too small to get lost or damaged, and not too big to be unwieldy, theDACport Prois a device working engineers need ā especially if youāre traveling or working away from your studio.
($369 MSRP;centrance.com) -Garrett Haines treelady.com