Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp

Excellent sound for a very attractive price

Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2014

Feb 2019 update

I have been using this DAC for 5 years now. I recently ripped all of my CDs to FLAC format and listen through USB connection. This configuration is much better than CD themselves and way better than MP3 format. One unfortunate consequence is that it is also a little harsher for my taste. Long story short, I ended up using an external passive pre-amp instead of using this DAC as pre-amp. In addition, I prefer "min" filter to be "better".

Original review:

I have a reasonably good audio system consisting of mostly Stereophile "B" grade components. The Theta DAC is still very nice but I was thinking things should have improved in the last 18 years. Came across this Cambridge Audio purely by chance as photography has taken most of my attention these days. The Parasound preamp I am using is probably the weak link since it does not have balanced output. I have been looking on and off for something just like this to bypass the preamp all together. I have heard of good comments of Cambridge Audio but never had a chance to listen to any components before.

Just received the unit but will have to wait till the weekend to hook it up to the main system. I am using it right now with my PC and listening through my AKG headphone. It is amazing and beyond by expectation. The sound is balanced and not harsh or fatigue. The sound stage could be a little larger but it has not been broken in I assume. It is definitely not PC sound and much closer to that of my main system.

March 15 2014 update:
Been listening to it for the better part of today after warming it for several days. The sound is very articulate and sweet. The old DAC and pre-amp was warmer, may be a little too warm in comparison. It is not analytic cold. So I'd say it is quite neutral. It allows the music to come alive. It reminds me of my old passive pre-amp (plain volume control between DAC and power-amp). While the sound stage is a little narrower than the Theta, it is deeper and more vivid like I could reach out and touch the artists. Bass is more substantial such that I had to turn my sub woofer way down. The old system is more lay back as far as musical attack is concerned but for this system, it is fast and yet not harsh at all. It is very enjoyable. The one thing I wish it had is a balance dial but lacking it is not a deal breaker. I can't imagine spending more unless the rest of the system (including the listener) is much more sophisticated.

10 people found this helpful

Helpful

Nossy

Pretty awesome...

Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2011

Verified Purchase

I have a massive collection of WAV files on my HTPC and I've been feeding them to my Denon AVR via HDMI for the past three years. I recently decided to build a "decent" sound system in my "man-cave" with a pair of KEF Q300 and an integrated amp - Marantz PM800. I was looking for a decent CD player with a USB input or networkable. I tried out various devices like the Marantz CD6004 with the USB input, but I felt it was lacking and didn't bring out the best of my speakers. I returned the CD6004 and decided different alternatives like SONOS.

I came across the DacMagic Plus on accident while looking at Musical Fidelity M1DAC A. I felt the DacMagic Plus offered more features for less cash. It seemed like a better alternative than the regular DacMagic although both shared the same Wolfson DACs with balance and unbalance out. The Plus offers a few other options that you may or may not need/want.

Plus vs Regular:

Plus cost roughly $150 USD more. For this you get the following.

Plus upconverts to 384KHz compared to 192KHz (Different digital filter chip). Not sure if you will notice any difference with mediocre gears.

Plus can act as a digital pre-amp stage that can drive headphones or be plug directly into an amp or powered speakers.

Plus is capable to stream from bluetooth device with the optional BT100 adaptor. I have not tried this yet as the BT module is not yet available. I am looking forward to this feature!!! I want to be able to stream from bluetooth capable devices like my laptop and smartphone.

Overall, this outboard DAC showed significantly wider soundstage, bass response, and imaging than the DAC in my Blu-ray player and Denon AVR - it's the real deal. It's also warmer and smoother and *gasp* it almost like my vinyls and closer to SACDs. I have a feeling my turntable will collect more dust except for the occasional listening session with recordings I don't have in digital format.

Ease of use: I got the device up and running in less than 30 minutes. About 2 hour after I got it from the UPS guy - as I gave the unit time to warm up to room temp.

Switching between USB2.0 and USB1.1 was a snap. If you are only listening to CD lossless recordings (CDs rip @ 44.1KHz) you could probably stick to USB1.1 and skip all the configurations needed for ASIO2.0.

Switching between pre-amp and fixed line level feed was very easy also. So it's a snap if you want to change from amp to headphones.

The one thing I dislike about this unit is that it doesn't have a power-on trigger.

Durabilty: Not sure yet. First Cambridge product and I hope it will last. The buttons on the unit seem somewhat flimsy and weak. Unit is pretty light so it's somewhat portable. It can fit my laptop bag. I can definetly see myself transporting the unit between work (Quincy Jones Q701 + Smartphone) and home (amp+computer).

So far I will give it my highest recommendation.

54 people found this helpful

Helpful

LSW

New way to play music

Reviewed in the United States on April 17, 2014

Verified Purchase

Haven't dabbled much in digital reproduction.

I've spent considerable time and effort putting audio gear and source material together. Still play vinyl and cherish the more than 3000 albums I've collected. Lot's of CD's, of course, too.

Capturing and playing music on/from the computer has taken some effort, both to make the leap from physical source material and to understand the playback issues that are so different from analogue. Decided to take the leap and purchased this DAC and some small powered speakers for a boat.

The boat came with a Bose system. I've used lots of Bose equipment and find that for small and convenient, those products are really very good very capable of producing background or party music.

But for really listening to music on the boat, (or anywhere, I'm guessing) the surround system left a lot to be desired. Imaging won't work, the subwoofer and speakers aren't ideally mounted and Bose seems to process music so much that, though it's clear and loud enough and most people are impressed, I just wasn't happy with a system that seems to sound different wherever you sit and never images well. Hell, you have to choose between 2, 3 and five speakers, even for playing music. The system is made for video playback.

Also, I use bluetooth or wifi with Apple TV, and all of the music on the boat is on the computer, so the source wasn't as good as it could be coming from the computer's limited electronics. A Digital to Audio Converter is designed to make up for the shortcomings of computer reproduction. This one performs as a pre-amp, too. Others are best used as a headphone amp, but this one has all the connections. I'm using XLR cables to drive the speakers.

I haven't installed this system on the boat yet, but I couldn't help unpackage everything and listen prior packing it all on to the boat.

I'll use the Cambridge as the source for the Bose system and reconfigure it with the powered speakers when I'm in port and want to really listen.

I'm using Yamaha HS5 speakers, mostly because they are small enough to use on the boat. They're made to be small studio monitors, so they should be accurate. Base rolls off significantly somewhere near 50 hertz, they aren't ever going to be the punchy choice. Small has it's compromises.

But the sound is really something. For small speakers the response is flat, accurate and clear. I've used both the Cambridge bluetooth receiver and straight USB 2.0 cable from my Mac. Imaging is strong and the combination of powered speaker with the DAC source is an eye (ear) opener. This combination will be stellar in any small room. Add the subwoofer and I'm sure you'd please most discriminating listeners.

Use the bigger Yamaha, or other powered speakers for a larger room and you'd fill in the smaller speaker's gaps quite well, I'm sure. The sub is expensive at $400.00. Half again what this little system cost.

Which leads to value. DAC and speakers is about $800. Significant, of course, but I'd venture that, other than the compromise on size of the speaker, that you'd struggle to find a cheaper way to get this much performance for a digital reproduction system, so I'd call it a bargain, as well as a discriminating music appreciator's solution. Short of the bass response and limitations of a small speaker system for volume, you will enjoy this, or a similar system

As a first look at digital source I'm quite pleased, it really sounds great. Flat response, Bass is good, you can hear where it rolls off, but that was a given.

It took some searching to figure out how to configure the Mac. (Go to sound in utilities) Obviously I'm no digital native, so I was frustrated for a while, but that was also a given. Set up took an hour or two. Bluetooth came right up without any fuss.

I'm happy.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Louis P.

Love the simplicity

Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2020

Verified Purchase

I replaced a defective Outlaw 'monster' preamp with this unit. Even when the Outlaw worked, it had so many features and setting, it was confusing to operate without consulting the manual. And most (all?) of the setting you never use anyway. I wanted a preamp with a DAC and didn't want to remortgage my house, and this one fit the bill. It has all the controls and inputs I need (I also bought the Bluetooth dongle), except a balance control. Normally you wouldn't even need that, but one of the panels in my Martin Logan Aerius speakers was fading ($$$) and requiring a little more attenuation than the other one, which has since been addressed with new Definitive Technology speakers for my front speakers. The ML's are now relegated to rear speakers which run through another amp I can balance. Power is provided by a Parasound HCA-2200 ii. The source I used to listen to mostly was a CD player (Cambridge Azure 851C), but now I stream a lot through my TV. And yes, 2 DAC's in a system is redundant and I could have routed the TV through the 851C for the DAC, but it's more convenient with the DacMagic. I'll spare you the audiophile techno-talk and just say it sounds great, even using the TV as a source. It sounds exceptional with the CD player. So if you're looking for a simple preamp with a DAC at a reasonable price, you've already narrowed down the market. And a DacMagic should be one to consider. One other note, I had questions about this unit before I ordered so I called Cambridge. An actual person answered (that I could understand) and I was transferred promptly to a technician that answered my questions. That alone sold me on their brand!

Helpful

G. Harris

Good upgrade for older CD player

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2015

Verified Purchase

I decided to try a new DAC for my >10 year old Musical Fidelity CD player. At the time it was one of the best sounding players out there, so I was interested to see if the advances in DAC technology really made a difference. As soon as I connected it up (using the Coax not optical output, Audioquest Forest) I noticed more detail and a more solid-sounding presentation. The treble was clearer, and cleaner, with reduced harshness.
I left the existing direct connection to my Emotiva preamp from the CD player to do direct A/B comparisons and the difference was very clear.
I m finding i listen at higher volumes now since the reduced harshness means less fatigue (not crazy loud though). As it has broken in I have noticed more improvement, with increased solidity and detail in the midrange and bass as well. Drums are crisper, better separation of instruments and vocals. So why is this ? Well the main improvement in DAC technology has been much-educed jitter which would seem to make sense of what I'm hearing.

It also has balanced outputs; I'm using my Harmonic Tech Truthlink interconnects I used to connect to the CD player directly, but since my preamp has balanced inputs I'm liking the look of Better Cables balanced interconnects.

This DAC has different filters; I find the linear is most natural with CDs.

I have also used it with my laptop and Spotify premium, using a Belkin Gold USB cable, and sound is fine, though at 320 kbps not as good as a CD. The other filters can help here with some material. I'm still using the USB 1.0 driver.

So overall if you have an older CD player where the transport is still good I would recommend this DAC as a definite upgrade

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

B. Johnson

Poor quality

Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2019

Verified Purchase

I bought a Cambridge Audio Sonata AR30 receiver and Sonata CD30 CD player and the DacMagic Plus in 2012 (all from Amazon). The CD player lasted a few years before it would no longer recognize disks. The receiver stopped working with a puff of smoke a few weeks ago and the DacMagic died this last Sunday (it's either silent, produces a high pitched tone or puts out static when I press the power button--I guess depending on its mood).

If you Google "DacMagic High Pitched Sound" you will see I am not alone.

Even before the DacMagic failed, it was highly finicky--requiring multiple restarts before it would recognize the USB connection.

Cambridge Audio customer support will respond to emails, but all they will tell you is to send the component to a third-party repair facility (PanurgyOEM) for evaluation ($65 fee). And once you look at the Google reviews for PanurgyOEM, you'll probably decide it's a waste of $65 plus shipping both ways.

So, I spent about $2,000 on Cambridge Audio equipment and it all failed within 7 years. Maybe some of you think 7 years isn't bad. I think it is bad.

Fortunately I had in reserve a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 (also purchased at Amazon) which I had used for recording. It is also a DAC and so I hooked it up--sounded way better than the DacMagic.

24 people found this helpful

Helpful

Keith Finkel

Fantastic sound and string value for the price

Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2018

Verified Purchase

This is a really great sounding unit that is built well and an amazing value for the money. In my other rig I use a MOON Simaudio 230HAD headphone amp/DAC. It goes for 1500 and opens up a whole new world of resolution and detail to my Tidal streaming service. The Cambridge Audio DAC Magic Plus goes for 350. Admittedly, it doesn't have quite the detail or heft that the 230HAD does, but it sure doesn't sound like 1/4 of it. In fact, the DAC Magic Plus is easy to use, built like a tank and allows me to just enjoy the music instead of obsessing about the width of the sound stage. I highly recommend this unit as a way to dramatically improve your computers ability to reproduce sound.

The majority of the time, I use the unit as a pre-amp of sorts. The USB output of the PC into the DAC Magic Plus into a set of Blue Sky powered monitors. You can select between fixed output or variable - controlling the volume from the DAC itself. It is also a great looking piece of kit that doesn't take up very much desktop real estate.

I am extremely satisfied with my purchase.

9 people found this helpful

Helpful

Tylan Troxel

The product itself is amazing, going from a gaming headset to a truly ...

Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2015

Verified Purchase

The product itself is amazing, going from a gaming headset to a truly quality headset and a cambridge dac/amp combo you can't go wrong. Easily drives my PM-3 Headset and is crystal clear.

*CAUTION*

The customer service is retarded. Not even in the joking sense of the word, they have mental issues. Out of the box the Cambridge Magic Plus does NOT offer 192khz audio, it only goes to 96. In order to fix this you must update your system, which most likely will have you talking with customer support. I sent in a ticket and got a reply same day, after that the second reply came a WEEK later asking me if I unzipped the file to update the system with properly. I gave up trying to get the 192khz as 96 is good enough for me, but others may be put off at how useless the CS is and how some may have such a bad experience (as myself) that they give up on updating it.

14 people found this helpful

Helpful

Kevin S. Craig

Sounds great. Very happy

Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2017

Verified Purchase

Sounds great. Very happy. At first, I didn't have any sound and then I noticed that I failed to select the USB source on the front panel of the DAC. Duh. Had to set up my stereo receiver digital coax input port as enabled. I went with the digital coax between the DAC and stereo and am saving my optical fiber cable for something else. The Cambridge Audio website said (if that's where I read this) that a USB 3.0 cable would work between the computer and the DAC but the USB-b side is larger than normal on the newest 3.0 and so did not work. They need to fix that on their site info. Thankfully, the DAC comes with a USB 2.0 A-B cable. Purchased and downloaded J River Media Center to use as a player instead of my PC Itunes that I have used forever. Then spent a few days re-ripping my old CD collection to my hard drive in FLAC format. All in all, new electronics and systems take some tweaking to get them set up and working right. Had to go into computer sound settings and select the DAC as a source. Much better sounding than the sound from my Hi-res graphics card and onboard sound. I still take the video from the graphics card over HDMI but the sound is wired as described above. Oh, the length we music lovers will go to enjoy good music. Well worth it.

9 people found this helpful

Helpful

MIKE

Decent DAC - not 'reference' quality but good enough.

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2018

Verified Purchase

Pretty good feature set and a very competitive price.

Sound is not as transparent, sound stage is not as 'deep' and the high end (voice, cymbals, other percussion instruments) are slightly rolled off compared to my 10-year old PS Audio Digital Link III (which itself has to be output to a preamp before the power amp. The Cambridge DAC Magic Plus functions as its own 'digital' pre-amp of sorts).

I can hear very little difference between the RCA and balanced XLR outputs going to a fully balanced power amp. Normally you'd get a gain of a few dBs (i.e. louder and more presence) - but perhaps that is due to the fact I'm using it in pre-amp mode. I scanned the reviews here and elsewhere (Crutchfield) before I bought it and couldn't find anything about 'burn in' but perhaps I'll re-visit this review after a few months of play time. I do understand that the Digital Link III is (or was) a reference quality DAC (and used they still sell for more than $500), but I expected the 24-bit Wolfson DACs in the Cambridge to sound comparable.

All of that out of the way, there is very little to complain about at the price point, but if for you absolute sound takes priority over convenience, there are other new and used options out there for roughly the same price with noticeably better performance IF used in a high-end audio system. I suspect that most people here will simply be using it for PC audio with a receiver or basic integrated amp or active speakers. For those uses, the DAC Magic Plus is highly recommended. You're not going to get better sound AND a feature set like this for the same price.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star

Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp |...

›

Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp | Black

Top positive review

Top critical review

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From the United States

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

Questions? Get fast answers from reviewers

Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp |... › Customer reviews

Customer reviews

Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp | Black

Top positive review

Top critical review

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

From the United States

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

There was a problem loading comments right now. Please try again later.

Questions? Get fast answers from reviewers

Cambridge Audio Azur DacMagic Plus Stereo DAC, Headphone Amp, Preamp |...

›

Customer reviews