Стримеры — TEAC UD-701N

The UD-701N is a USB DAC, network player, preamplifier and headphone amplifier from TEAC, the Japanese audio company. It is priced at USD 4,299.99 and finished in black or silver. At its core is a converter TEAC developed itself from discrete components instead of a ready-made converter chip, and the whole unit is built as a dual-mono, fully balanced design.

Key specs that matter

The DAC, called TRDD 7, is a discrete delta-sigma design built from individual circuitry and an FPGA running TEAC's own algorithms. It handles PCM up to 32 bit and 384 kHz, DSD up to 22.5 MHz and full MQA decoding. Variable line outputs reach 12 V RMS on XLR at 220 ohm and 6.0 V RMS on RCA at 180 ohm. Analogue inputs are XLR at 50 kOhm and RCA at 25 kOhm. The balanced four-pin XLR headphone output delivers 700 mW per channel into 32 ohm and the 6.3 mm jack 500 mW, for headphones from 16 to 600 ohm. Digital inputs are USB, coaxial, optical, Ethernet and a USB port for flash drives, and a BNC input accepts a 10 MHz external clock. Frequency response is 5 Hz to 80 kHz (+1/-5 dB), THD is 0.002% and signal to noise ratio is 108 dB A-weighted. The unit measures 444 x 111 x 334 mm and weighs 11.8 kg. Consumption is 40 W, or 0.4 W in standby.

Engineering and use context

A discrete delta-sigma converter replaces the integrated DAC chip with separate components, while the FPGA handles the digital filtering and modulation, which gives TEAC full control over the conversion process. The dual-mono layout uses four high-capacity toroidal transformers, with separate supplies for the left and right channels, so each side draws power without affecting the other. Volume is controlled by TEAC-QVCS, the Quad Volume Control System, which uses variable-gain amplifiers in four independent circuits for L+, L-, R+ and R- in 0.5 dB steps. The balanced headphone output can be switched to active ground operation. Network playback supports OpenHome, Roon Ready, Spotify Connect, TIDAL, Qobuz and TuneIn, and Bluetooth accepts LDAC, LHDC and aptX HD at up to 24 bit and 96 kHz. The external clock input lets an external master clock control the unit's timing.

Pairing

The high XLR output level drives power amplifiers and active monitors directly through the TEAC-QVCS volume control. Analogue sources such as a phono stage connect to the XLR or RCA inputs, and headphones connect to the front outputs.

Alternatives

The TEAC UD-505-X is a smaller USB DAC and headphone amplifier from the Reference 500 series.