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Designed & Made
in the UK
5 Years of
Warranty
Ideal for
Audiophiles
Ideal for
Indoor Use
3-Pin XLR
Balanced Output
FPGA DAC
Chip
Connect With USB
BNC, AES & TOSLINK
Pair with Laptop
via USB
6.8v RMS @ 33Ω
Power Output
Aluminium
Build
Remote
Controls
DESCRIPTION
MEET THE MOST ADVANCED DAC/PREAMP AMPLIFIER IN THE WORLD
The Chord DAVE has the very best conversion technology available. It stands for ‘Digital to Analogue Veritas in Extremis’. Experience unrivalled reality and musicality with unmatched response time. It supports up to 768kHz & DSD 512 (Octa-DSD) playback and can drive headphones up to 800Ω. This DAC is the result of over 20 years of R&D.

SPARTAN 6 FPGA DAC FOR BETTER SOUND
The DAVE features the advanced Spartan 6 FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) with 1,000 times the processing power (at 164K taps) of the traditional mass-produced DAC. To handle complex timing issues head-on, this FPGA has over a million lines of code. This gives you significantly improved timing, multiple sonic benefits and the best noise-shaper performance of any known DAC.


MULTIPLE CONNECTIVITY OPTIONS
The DAVE can be used as a DAC, Amp or standalone Pre-Amp. It has multiple input options like 4 BNC Coax and 1 Galvanically Isolated Type-B USB Inputs that support up to 768kHz; 2 AES/EBU and 2 optical inputs that support 96kHz as well as Expandable DXO Inputs. You also get Unbalanced RCA, Balanced XLR and ¼' headphone outputs. The included IR Remote & volume controls allow for easy usage.


HIGH-QUALITY, FUNCTIONAL AND DURABLE BUILD
The DAVE uses Chord's famous porthole design which consists of a full-sized LCD display on a solid aluminium chassis, showing sample frequency, volume, input and set-up configuration options. A remote control, as well as the large stainless steel controller and ball buttons on the fascia, makes it easy to use. It comes with a rotary encoder.

SPECS
FREQUENCY RESPONSE | 20Hz to 20kHz |
THD +N | -127.5dB (AWT) |
CHANNEL SEPARATION | >125dB @ 1kHz |
DYNAMIC RANGE | 127.5dB (AWT) |
HEADPONE OUTPUT | 1% THD 6.8v RMS with 300Ω (154mW) 1% THD 6.8v RMS with 33Ω (1.4w) |
OUTPUT IMPEDANCE | 0.055Ω (short circuit protected) |
OPERATING VOLTAGE | 90v AC – 250v AV auto switching 50Hz – 60Hz |
DIGITAL INPUTS | 4x 75Ω S/PDIF BNC Coax – 44.1kHz to 384kHz |
1x AES XLR – 44.1kHz to 96kHz | |
2x Fibre Optic TOSLINK – 44.1kHz to 96kHz | |
1x USB Type B – 44.1kHz to 768kHz (16 – 32bit) – PCM and DSD | |
ANALOGUE OUTPUTS | 1x Stereo Pair of Unbalanced RCA |
1x Stereo Pair of Unbalanced RCA | |
1x ¼” TRS Jack Headphone Output | |
TAP LENGTH FILTERS | 164,000 |
SAMPLE FREQUENCIES | 44.1Khz – 768Khz (16 – 32bit) and DSD64 to DSD512 native DSD + DoP (input dependant) |
DIMENSIONS | 7.8cm (H) 33.5cm (W) 15.2cm (D) |
WEIGHT | 5kg |
BOX CONTENTS | 1. Chord DAVE |
2. DAVE Quickstart guide | |
3. Safety instructions | |
4. 10A Mains IEC cable | |
5. IR Remote control | |
6. Type-A USB to Type-B USB cable | |
7. Optical cable | |
8. 2x AAA batteries |
User Guide
Learn how to make the most out of your Chord Dave with information on how to protect and clean your device from time to time. Get information on battery life indicators and configuring these with other devices.
Warranty & Media Reviews
5 Year Warranty
Don't sweat it, this Chord DAVE comes with a 5 year warranty from Chord that covers manufacturing defects. All products featured on Headphone Zone are backed by an original manufacturer's warranty.
Read more about Chord's warranty in India.

Product of the Year
What-HiFi Award
Oct, 2016

Product of the Year
Headphone Guru
Dec, 2017

Best Buy Winner
HiVi Award
Dec, 2017

Best USB DAC Winner
AVTech
Dec, 2017
'If you’re looking for the best DAC money can buy, the DAVE is a superb place to start. We haven’t heard anything that sounds so natural or insightful.'
Read More'The DAVE isn’t just a high-end DAC. It lays the foundation for a desktop-friendly, high-end headphone system; and it is within a desktop context that I approached the DAVE.'
Read More