DCAudioDIY.com

The Khadas is in and housed. I drive my main amp plus a pair of subwoofers so I wanted two outputs without having to use Y cables. I ended up mounting the DAC on some perf board cut to slide in on the lowest grooves in the enclosure.

I removed the three RCA connectors that came on the board and put four new ones on one of the panels. Mounting the Khadas to the perf board proved to be more challenging than I thought. I have a lot of hardware, it's mostly even sorted, but I didn't have enough #2 or 2.5mm to pull it off. I ended up using the hardware that came with the card and two washers under each of the screws to stand the DAC off the perf board.



This is one side with the USB-C connector poking through.



And here's the other side



I should have put another RCA on the other side for SPDIF, but I don't really use it so I didn't think of it. It will be easy to add later. If you use this enclosure note that the screws are #1 pozi-drive. It will be much easier to get them seated if you use the correct bit.

First impressions of the sound are excellent. I've spent more time getting it in the box than listening to it. More listening is in order.

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I have too much stuff - https://www.pleasebuymystuff.com

What does the power supply look like? Seems like it must be USB bus powered. If that is the case, and you like the DAC sufficiently, then a split USB cable and separate linear 5VDC supply may yield another significant improvement.

Power is via USB. Since any noise on the power supply is common mode it should not affect the sound. I know this is contrary to the general opinion around these parts.

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I have too much stuff - https://www.pleasebuymystuff.com

I’m planning on trying the Khadas, but would like the option to use Toslink from a Chromecast Audio (in addition to coax and usb). Does anyone have experience with any Toslink to coax converters? I see them listed inexpensively on eBay and Amazon, but I don’t know if they are any good, haven’t found other other options.
Thanks in advance.

With prices in the $13 to $16 price range I would go for it. I think the biggest limitation is Toslink itself.

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Walt

Thank you for the reply. Unfortunately, the little Chromecast Audio device, which is pretty useful, only outputs analog or Toslink; hence my inquiry. I will also use coax and usb on the Khadas, but would like to give it a try with the Chromecast Audio as well.

Thanks to the link you provided I found a much higher quality-looking item than what I had previously seen. https://www.markertek.com/product/gtv-d ... -converter

Thanks again,
Pete

Yes, that's what I was thinking. Online reviews suggest it's in the nature of a disposable item. And as you and Walt point out, Toslink is the issue. Now I just have to decide if I want to be a cheapskate, or go for the more solid looking Gefen item I found on Markertek.

Thanks for the help,
Pete

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Walt

Yes, the Chromecast Audio is convenient for casual streaming sources, and I'll hook up a good CD player/transport and a computer for better quality options.

Now you're causing me to look up the Toshiba link (pun!) to optical audio - down the Google rabbit hole!

Thanks again,
Pete