SMSL PS100 Review: A $29 'Audiophile' DAC - Can't Be Good, Right?

It's wise to investigate a product's performance before deciding if its price is reasonable. If it is, then it's a good purchase. If the price is even lower than expected, it's an excellent value. However, this time we will do things differently, as the product we're taking a closer look at is one of the cheapest on the market - which is its biggest selling point.

The SMSL PS100 is a DACDigital-to-Analog Converter, a device that translates binary audio data into an analog electrical signal that can be amplified and heard. that costs below $30, which can already make some people buy it without giving it a second thought. DACs that cheap are something we rarely see on the HIFI market.

Build: Corners Cut in the Right Places#

It's a small black box with three RCA plugs sticking out from the back. There's an SMSL logo on the top. Almost every piece is made out of black matte plastic, but on the front they went for glossy black plastic, which is a fingerprint magnet - so if you touch your DACs as often as I touch my cables, it's going to require cleaning pretty often to remain clean.

Speaking of the front, there are individual white LED input indicators plus a single button that acts as an input selector. The button feels okay - I don't think it's going to fail you with normal use.

We've got four rubber feet on the bottom that are very effective at making it stay in place - unless there's a stiff, heavy cable hanging off of it, then its weight is just unable to keep up and it's going to float.

Generally, it's made pretty decent. You can hear some rattling inside while shaking it like crazy, but for a product this cheap, you don't expect it to be made out of brass or gold, do you? What's most important is that it doesn't feel like it could break easily - it's just solid for what it is.

They had to cut corners heavily to make this product, and I think that the build quality is where they decided to do that. I would say that they did it perfectly, without sacrificing anything important like the ports' quality too much.

Inputs and Outputs: Five Inputs Under $30#

While we're on the topic of the ports, let's see what inputs it's equipped with.

Going from the left, there's USB Type-C, HDMI, Optical ToslinkSay: TOSS-link /ˈtɒs.lɪŋk/An optical S/PDIF digital audio interface using a plastic fibre and a red LED, common on TVs, soundbars, and consumer DACs. Limited to 24-bit/96kHz stereo PCM in practice; longer runs need glass fibre for stability., and Digital Coax. On the very right side, we've got left and right RCA analog outputs. There's also Bluetooth built in - but no fancy codecs, sadly. Their licensing costs wouldn't allow this device to be so affordable.

Specifications: 16-Bit Limits, Honest Numbers#

Technical specifications listed by the manufacturer mention the output level to be 1.9V RMS, which I think is a bit lower than regular - but it's understandable, since with a higher DAC output voltage and no level control, you could be distorting your amp and have no way of fixing that, since the PS100 has no volume control.

Going down the spec sheet, the total harmonic distortionDistortion products at integer multiples of the input frequency; even-order harmonics (2nd, 4th) are generally less audible than odd-order (3rd, 5th). plus noise (THD+NTotal Harmonic Distortion plus Noise, a more complete distortion measurement that includes both harmonic products and broadband noise.) is 0.005%, or -85dB. It's not a measurement monster, of course, but for the price I think it's doing very well.

The dynamic rangeThe decibel span between a system's maximum undistorted output and its noise floor; 16-bit audio has ~96dB, 24-bit has ~144dB of theoretical range. is 96dB, as the maximum supported bit depthThe number of bits per sample, which determines dynamic range (approximately 6dB per bit, so 16-bit gives ~96dB, 24-bit gives ~144dB). is just 16 bits. For the sampling rate, the maximum value depends on what we use as the input - with USB it maxes out at 48kHz, and with optical and coaxial it goes up to 192kHz, which is very good. Why is there this discrepancy between USB and other inputs? I would assume it's because they wanted to save a little bit on the USB chip, as they can be costly with higher specs.

For the DAC chip, they're using one of the ESS solutions - namely the ES9023.

Sound Impressions: Decent, and That's the Point#

Did replacing a high-end DAC with this one make my headphones or speakers sound terrible, unusable, or unpleasant to listen to? Let me surprise you - it didn't.

DACs don't make as big of a difference as amplifiers, and far less of a difference than the actual headphones or speakers. The sound was decent, however - it didn't shine in any aspect. The clarity was fine, nothing spectacular, same for the soundstageThe perceived three-dimensional acoustic space in a stereo recording, width beyond the speakers, depth front-to-back, and sometimes height information. and imagingThe ability to place individual instruments in precise, stable positions within the soundstage. Good imaging means you can "point" to a violin in the mix.. The bassSay: BAYSS /beɪs/The low-frequency foundation of audio, roughly 20-250 Hz - felt as much as heard, carrying a track's weight, warmth, and impact. (Said "BAYSS", like the guitar, not the fish.) amount was seemingly increased, but it wasn't more impactful or anything. I experienced a little bit of dryness in the sound, and the instrument separation wasn't too distinct.

But just because this DAC doesn't sound amazing, doesn't mean that it can't make your system sound better. What do I mean? When you have a set, limited budget for source gear (DAC + amp), you could pick up this DAC, saving some money here that you could put into a better amp - which is going to make a bigger positive sonic difference to your audio system.

I believe that's the best thing you can do in a situation like that - saving on the DAC to put more money into the amp, or even better, if possible, into your headphones or speakers.