ARCAM rDAC

For more than two years now, Arcam’s rDAC has been our go-to DAC of choice. We’ve loved it since we first tested it in 2010, and when we gave DACs their own category in the 2011 What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision Awards, the rDAC won itself a place among the decorated equipment. 

In fact, until very recently we’d have been hard pressed to recommend another DAC that delivers such fantastic value for money. When it comes to creating a natural bridge between your digital music collection and your existing hi-fi set up, the rDAC still  reigns supreme. 

So what makes the rDAC so special? Simply put, it is one of the most musical and engaging DACs we’ve ever heard at this price. Whether you’re playing a 320kbps file from Spotify, a WAV recording or that elusive 24-bit/192kHz hi-res song, the rDAC faithfully delivers a smooth and engaging performance. 

Key to the rDAC’s performance is the combination of the Wolfson WM8741 DAC chip and asynchronous USB technology, which aims to significantly reduce the level of jitter (timing inaccuracies) that can be found in computer-based music. 

Play a WAV recording of Regina Spektor’s The Flowers using the USB connection, and there’s a wealth of detail
on a confident and authoritative soundstage. The piano notes are struck with appropriate weight and agility, and Regina’s voice is conveyed with plenty of subtlety and attention to the various nuances of emotion. Silences are handled with aplomb, and there’s a depth of engagement that’s hard to find elsewhere at this price.

Hi-res, high quality 
Switch to streaming more hi-res files using the coaxial input (which handles up to 24bit/192kHz, while the optical and USB inputs are restricted to 24bit/96kHz) and the rDAC revels in the high-quality files, with the increased clarity and detail definition working in the rDAC’s favour. 

Stream Elephants by Them Crooked Vultures over Spotify, and the rDAC maintains its melodic approach, with fluid dynamics and agile timing that make it easy to listen to for hours on end. It’s a testament to the Arcam’s talents that it can apply the same full-bodied and dynamically subtle sound across all types of music files. 

The rDAC itself is a compact and good-looking box: the cast aluminium chassis gives it a sleek look, and the power supply and connections (coaxial and optical inputs, type-B USB input and a pair of line-level RCA outputs) are hidden away on the rear panel. A single button on top selects the input, with corresponding indicators hanging over the edge of the box lighting up neatly. Our only gripes are that there is no headphone output, and that it may not be as winningly portable as some of the other DACs in this test. On the other hand, Arcam does make a wireless option for around 80 quid more. 

There’s no stopping the rDAC – it’s an entertaining and superbly capable DAC that we’d proudly display as part of our desktop music set-up.

It’s a testament to the rDAC’s talents that it can apply the same full-bodied and dynamically subtle sound across all types of music files

Rating ★★★★★ 
FOR Good build and design; fluid dynamics; subtle with detail; agile timing; engaging and enjoyable sound
AGAINST No headphone output
VERDICT Melodic and engaging, this Award- winning rDAC remains a top-notch performer

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