AudioTrak Prodigy Cube USB Audio & Headphone Amp
Pros: Quality, Mic and OpAmp replacement.
Cons: Color do not match my surroundings :)
I have had this unit for over 6 months now, so it is time for a review.
First thing I did was replace the OpAmp to one that I prefer to my liking. I used the LME 49720NA.
Lets go over what Prodigy Cube is.
It is a external USB soundcard and headphone amp, one of the main feature is supports mic function.
One the front you have 6.3mm and 3.5mm headphone jack. (6.3mm is best to use), 3.5mm Mic jack, Push Button Switch for the 3.5mm headphone jack and Rear RCA jacks and volume for the headphone jacks.
Rear Optical/Coaxial Jacks, each one runs separately, USB Port and RCA Jacks.
Some may say 24bit / 96kHz is not enough to be a good soundcard. Most times when you listen to music or games it is at 44kHz. Which is fine.
I need a soundcard with mic support for gaming sessions. Everyone I have spoke too said I sounded great. With no distortion and clear words.
I have the coaxial connected to my Denon receiver with Tannoy Speakers. The sound is great on it.
Optical is on my Edifier S330D, again the sound is great.
Headphones and gaming headset all have a great sound with them using the original and replaced OpAmp.
For $100 US the Prodigy Cube is a great buy for what this offers, directly from AudioTrak.
Features and Specs, found at website, I'll list them here.
http://www.audiotrack.net/products/PDCUBE/
USB-based D/A converter
TENOR chipset, the 24bit / 96kHz USB Audio controller, is mounted as well as Wolfson’s high-performance D/A converter. PRODIGY CUBE is powered enough only by USB connection and is the best USB audio solution requiring no driver installation.
Powerful headphone amp
Dual headphone output does not require the conversion gender by supporting both stereo-mini and stereo-phone standards, performs well enough even with 150 Ohm headphone, and offers clear and high-resolution sound through the D/A converter and the high-performance OPAMP. The protection circuit for a low-impedance earphone is installed on an output port of the stereo-mini standard headphone to optimize various headphones for PRODIGY CUBE.
High-quality digital output
24bit/96kHz Bit-Perfect lossless PCM digital output is supported. Both Optical/Coaxial ports are installed for connection with various digital devices. AC3(Dolby Digital)/DTS Pass-Through realizes 5.1 channel surround system by connecting with a receiver and a decoder-embedded home theater speaker.
The best-quality condenser
OFC condensers are mounted on all the critical points on circuitry. OS-CON(the best SP Series) of SANYO, Low-ESR type LXV Series and AHS Series(for HiFi Audio only) of SamYoung, and high-quality film condenser of WIMA formed on an LPF(Low-Pass-Filter) are mounted to maximize analog output quality.
High-performance microphone amp
With HI-Fi audio sound output provided, the high-performance microphone amp is mounted for PC voice chatting, internet phone, and internet music broadcasting. The high-performance microphone amp is completely separated from the output port to prevent interference between input and output of sound for high-quality input and output of sound.
Specs
Analog-Out -- Line output (RCA), Dual headphone output (Stereo phone, Stereo mini)
Analog Input -- Microphone Input (3.5mm, 24bit / 48kHz)
Digital Output -- Optical / Coaxial
Digital Output Method -- PCM, AC3 PassThrough
Dynamic Range -- 108dB
Interface -- USB Interface (1.1 / 2.0 compatible)
OPAMP Circuit -- OPA 2134 x 1 (Socket-type) THD+N : 0.00008%(Max)(2kΩ@1KHz)
D/A Converter -- Wolfson WM8776
Headphone Impedance -- 16∼150Ω
Frequency Response -- 24bit / 96kHz
Power Supply OPAMP -- 5V(Dual power supply Max10V)
First thing I did was replace the OpAmp to one that I prefer to my liking. I used the LME 49720NA.
Lets go over what Prodigy Cube is.
It is a external USB soundcard and headphone amp, one of the main feature is supports mic function.
One the front you have 6.3mm and 3.5mm headphone jack. (6.3mm is best to use), 3.5mm Mic jack, Push Button Switch for the 3.5mm headphone jack and Rear RCA jacks and volume for the headphone jacks.
Rear Optical/Coaxial Jacks, each one runs separately, USB Port and RCA Jacks.
Some may say 24bit / 96kHz is not enough to be a good soundcard. Most times when you listen to music or games it is at 44kHz. Which is fine.
I need a soundcard with mic support for gaming sessions. Everyone I have spoke too said I sounded great. With no distortion and clear words.
I have the coaxial connected to my Denon receiver with Tannoy Speakers. The sound is great on it.
Optical is on my Edifier S330D, again the sound is great.
Headphones and gaming headset all have a great sound with them using the original and replaced OpAmp.
For $100 US the Prodigy Cube is a great buy for what this offers, directly from AudioTrak.
Features and Specs, found at website, I'll list them here.
http://www.audiotrack.net/products/PDCUBE/
USB-based D/A converter
TENOR chipset, the 24bit / 96kHz USB Audio controller, is mounted as well as Wolfson’s high-performance D/A converter. PRODIGY CUBE is powered enough only by USB connection and is the best USB audio solution requiring no driver installation.
Powerful headphone amp
Dual headphone output does not require the conversion gender by supporting both stereo-mini and stereo-phone standards, performs well enough even with 150 Ohm headphone, and offers clear and high-resolution sound through the D/A converter and the high-performance OPAMP. The protection circuit for a low-impedance earphone is installed on an output port of the stereo-mini standard headphone to optimize various headphones for PRODIGY CUBE.
High-quality digital output
24bit/96kHz Bit-Perfect lossless PCM digital output is supported. Both Optical/Coaxial ports are installed for connection with various digital devices. AC3(Dolby Digital)/DTS Pass-Through realizes 5.1 channel surround system by connecting with a receiver and a decoder-embedded home theater speaker.
The best-quality condenser
OFC condensers are mounted on all the critical points on circuitry. OS-CON(the best SP Series) of SANYO, Low-ESR type LXV Series and AHS Series(for HiFi Audio only) of SamYoung, and high-quality film condenser of WIMA formed on an LPF(Low-Pass-Filter) are mounted to maximize analog output quality.
High-performance microphone amp
With HI-Fi audio sound output provided, the high-performance microphone amp is mounted for PC voice chatting, internet phone, and internet music broadcasting. The high-performance microphone amp is completely separated from the output port to prevent interference between input and output of sound for high-quality input and output of sound.
Specs
Analog-Out -- Line output (RCA), Dual headphone output (Stereo phone, Stereo mini)
Analog Input -- Microphone Input (3.5mm, 24bit / 48kHz)
Digital Output -- Optical / Coaxial
Digital Output Method -- PCM, AC3 PassThrough
Dynamic Range -- 108dB
Interface -- USB Interface (1.1 / 2.0 compatible)
OPAMP Circuit -- OPA 2134 x 1 (Socket-type) THD+N : 0.00008%(Max)(2kΩ@1KHz)
D/A Converter -- Wolfson WM8776
Headphone Impedance -- 16∼150Ω
Frequency Response -- 24bit / 96kHz
Power Supply OPAMP -- 5V(Dual power supply Max10V)
