MP 7,1 Is the pre-installed sound out port good quality ?

[ViperX100]

Hey guys,

New to the forum. I have a MacBook Pro 16 and I just got the Kef LSX speakers and really like them. They sound good over Airplay but there's latency when it comes to watching videos (in VLC) and even YouTube as we all know. I imagine that if I get the Schiit Modi 3+ I could have the MacBook Pro connected to Moda via USB and then Mode to LSX via RCA to 3.5mm, correct? I suppose I could also just get the Reiyin DA-03 as suggested above and just go straight from that to the 3.5mm on the LSX. Do you see any benefit from a complete DAC like the Element or Schiit over the Reiyin simpler converter? I am not thinking about saving money per se, but more in terms of sheer necessity since I want to use the LSX internals.

 

[ZombiePhysicist]

Hey guys,

New to the forum. I have a MacBook Pro 16 and I just got the Kef LSX speakers and really like them. They sound good over Airplay but there's latency when it comes to watching videos (in VLC) and even YouTube as we all know. I imagine that if I get the Schiit Modi 3+ I could have the MacBook Pro connected to Moda via USB and then Mode to LSX via RCA to 3.5mm, correct? I suppose I could also just get the Reiyin DA-03 as suggested above and just go straight from that to the 3.5mm on the LSX. Do you see any benefit from a complete DAC like the Element or Schiit over the Reiyin simpler converter? I am not thinking about saving money per se, but more in terms of sheer necessity since I want to use the LSX internals.

I suspect that would work, but suspect this would be less hassle and probably work even better:

Reiyin DA-03 USB-C DAC Audio Converter 192kHz 24bit Toslink Optical 3.5mm AUX Output External Sound Card

DA-03 is a audio converter with USB 2.0 High-Speed audio codec, it doesn’t need to install driver and license, plug and play. This converter supports up to 192kHz 24bit digital audio, supports USB digital audio input, supports analog and optical digital audio output.

www.amazon.com

Do NOT forget to set the midi settings for the KEFs. By default macOS sets KEF settings to poop.

I have the LS50wireless (ironically hooked up via USB) and had to max the bit rate etc to native KEF settings. It sounds WAY better once you change the settings. It defaulted to 2ch 16bit/48khz, while KEF native is 2ch 24bit 192khz. I think the new LS50Wireless 2 spec ears are 32bit 384!

 

[ViperX100]

I suspect that would work, but suspect this would be less hassle and probably work even better:

Reiyin DA-03 USB-C DAC Audio Converter 192kHz 24bit Toslink Optical 3.5mm AUX Output External Sound Card

DA-03 is a audio converter with USB 2.0 High-Speed audio codec, it doesn’t need to install driver and license, plug and play. This converter supports up to 192kHz 24bit digital audio, supports USB digital audio input, supports analog and optical digital audio output.

www.amazon.com

Do NOT forget to set the midi settings for the KEFs. By default macOS sets KEF settings to poop.

I have the LS50wireless (ironically hooked up via USB) and had to max the bit rate etc to native KEF settings. It sounds WAY better once you change the settings. It defaulted to 2ch 16bit/48khz, while active is 2ch 24bit 192khz. I think the new LS50Wireless 2 spec ears are 32bit 384!

Thanks for your input, Zombie. I ended up gong with a Schiit stack - Modi 3+ and Magni 3+ to control the volume. Pardon the igorance, but with the Schiit stack, do I still need to set the midi settings if the Schiit will bypass the MacBook DAC now?

Thanks.

 

[ZombiePhysicist]

Thanks for your input, Zombie. I ended up gong with a Schiit stack - Modi 3+ and Magni 3+ to control the volume. Pardon the igorance, but with the Schiit stack, do I still need to set the midi settings if the Schiit will bypass the MacBook DAC now?

Thanks.

I don't know first hand, but I would suspect the Modi 3 also has "native" rates it runs on and I would check that the apple Midi settings guessed it correctly. My bet is it guessed wrong, and you probably want to set it to the max rate of the Modi3.