Categories: Blogs & Little Things

JJ’s Now-and-Then Blog: Using a High End DAC for Reproducing Virtual Instruments

For those of you who not only listen to music, but play music as well, and if you play virtual instruments such as electronic drums or piano, you probably use your computer’s own audio chipset as the sound output.

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Since you invested quite a bit in the MIDI instrument, computer, and virtual instrument software that plays the sounds, it would be wise to consider upgrading your DAC to one that will have very low distortion, and thus, be more accurate in reproducing your instrument.

We reviewed the AURALiC VEGA DAC some time ago, and it is one of the best DACs we have ever tested.

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All you need to do, in using this DAC, is to connect it to a USB output on your computer, and the USB input on the DAC.

Here is a photo of the AURALiC DAC.

Shown below is a diagram of the layout.

I used this setup with a Roland V piano, and there was a significant improvement compared to just using the audio chipset built into the computer’s motherboard.

The AURALiC VEGA retails for $3,499, but I invested $17,000 in my virtual instrument MIDI sources (Roland Drums and Roland V Piano), and I really wanted to have the best sound quality possible when playing these instruments. The $5 audio chipset on the computer’s motherboard just doesn’t make the grade.

John E. Johnson, Jr.

Editor-in-Chief Emeritus. John E. Johnson, Jr. founded Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity in 1994, shortly after publishing a hardcopy book of the same title. He served as Editor-in-Chief of Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity until 2022. John has been involved in audio and video for more than 50 years, having built radio transmitters, amplifiers, turntables, and speakers from scratch. He was also one of the founders of the Northern California Audio Video Association, now The Bay Area Audio Society. John holds four university degrees, including a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, and has published numerous scientific books, along with dozens of scientific articles on biomedical research topics as well as imaging technology. He was the founder and Editor-in-Chief of two medical/scientific journals for 20 years. John holds several patents, including one on high resolution image analysis and one on a surgical instrument. He has been affiliated with NASA, The National Institutes of Health, The Johns Hopkins University, Stanford Research Institute, and The University of California at Berkeley. He is President of the consulting firm Scientific Design and Information, Inc., which is based in Redwood City, California. John resides in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and multiple kitties! His daughter, Cynthia, who was an integral part of SECRETS for many years, resides in San Francisco.