Douk Audio U2 XMOS XU208 Digital Interface, USB to TOSLINK Coaxial/Optical Audio Adapter, for DAC/Preamp/Amplifier, Support PCM & DSD64 (Upgrade Version)

Using this to convert Android USB audio to spdif digital to feed a Minidsp CDSP8x12 in a car audio environment. Tidal MQA streaming plays from Android (and iOS, I believe) without any other drivers, jailbreaking or odd USB settings. This unit can be powered through your Android device, though I modified a USB-A to micro-USB cable so that it can be powered by a 12-volt to 5-volt power converter. Just takes some basic soldering skill to reroute the power (red) from your Android device to an alternate 5-volt power source and tap into the ground (black) while still allowing the two USB signal conductors (green & white) to pass unaffected from the Android device to the Douk converter. Doing so can only help preserve battery life and capacity to your Android device battery. This setup sends a clean, unaltered digital signal to the Minidsp. There is a significant improvement in clarity and dynamics vs. the line level inputs and an easily noticable improvement over the bluetooth connection that uses the toslink input of the Minidsp. It also allows you to test the spdif digital input of the minidsp using REW and a Windows laptop. Very impressed with the new options this device has provided in my setup. 192kHz FLAC files are supported for the best available CD-quality output from just about any regular ole Android. Construction is great, metal housing, Tiffany-style RCA connector for the spdif output, compact size. Wish some sort of mounting option were available for unique installation needs. I did not need any drivers for use with Android OTG, though the driver instructions are a bit confusing. Drivers come on a "sketchy-looking" CD-R that looks as if it was borrowed from your uncle's cousin who also has every season of every show ever recorded from 1971-2008. He only stopped recording because he believes the government is watching him and are as focused on ending his reign as copywrite violator for old MASH episodes as they are fighting global terrorism. But we love him anyway, he's family after all, and nobody makes apple pie moonshine as good as he. Upate: Over 3 years of daily use in an autosound environment and this Douk converter has been solid and fault-free. It continues to sound great and just flat out works. I wish a more installation friendly form factor could be developed for future iterations, such as some sort of mounting tabs on the case and perhaps a dedicated 12v power input option to simplify autosound implementation. A great solution for various digital audio coverting and connectivity needs.

Every once in a while one comes across USB audio problems between various components such as DAC's and your PC, that for the life of you, cannot be remedied. These problems can range the gamut from things like a DAC not being recognized by your PC, or USB line noise that that you just cannot get rid of. I know, I've been there! As a user/audiophile and audio reviewer (mostly with desktop, near-field scenarios), I've encountered many issues regarding USB connections, and they either weren't easy to remedy, or were just not fixable. In many of those instances, you begin to wonder about "other connections, other than USB." In my case, my PC didn't have an optical output connection, so I didn't have many options available. After scouring various websites for information, I ran into this unique Douk USB to Toslink/Digital Coax converter on Amazon, and I figured, why not give that a try. The issue I was having is that one of my DAC's had a high-pitched constant RF type of noise (that none of my other equipment experienced) that just wouldn't go away and definitely interfered with my music listening experiences. And since my PC didn't have any type of optical outputs, I was left with having to connect via USB. After trying countless supposed remedies (that have worked in the past), I almost gave up. However, when I connected the Douk converter, connecting the USB end to my desktop PC, and then running a optical Toslink cable (or Digital Coax cable) to my FX-Audio DAC X6 Mk II, the issues disappeared completely - pure silence! But more so, there were no losses in audio quality. In fact, to my ears, I found the music a bit more dynamic. Now do keep in mind that if you are using a DAC (in my case here), when connecting the Douk USB to Toslink converter to your PC's USB connection, the PC will show the device not as a DAC, but rather, it will show up as the Douk unit and the max it can go up to is 24 Bit 192 kHz. So keep that in mind - and nothing is lost audio quality-wise (at least from what I could determine). The results were far better than I could have even imagined (along with the pure silence). Also, keep in mind that this Douk unit also has a digital coax output. In fact, you can have both a Toslink and Digital Coax cable attached - with both outputs streaming music simultaneously (I love that). If ever there was a device that could fix certain unique USB issues, this Douk converter is the fix. Now granted, it is essential that the device you wish to connect to the Douk must have an optical Toslink input (or a Digital Coax input), otherwise, you'd be wasting your money here. Some DAC units only have USB inputs, and you're left with few options on those. But most have at least a Toslink connection also - and some also have Digital Coax inputs on top of everything else. All in all, for what it does, the subsequent fixes it employs, and more so - you lose nothing audio-wise - I cannot help but assign it 5 full stars with no reservations. Plus the price is very, very reasonable. As with any review, these are based on my experiences. Your mileage may vary... Highly recommended...

Works great at first, but quickly develops a really annoying crackle/hitch

This Douk Audio U2 works perfectly with my Win 11 x64 desktop. You do have to install the driver on the included mini-CD for Windows or download it from Douk's google drive (link in paper manual). The driver gives you 16 to 24 bit and 41 to 192 kHz audio. Works perfectly with Foobar2000 (both 32 and 64 bit versions). The mini-CD includes two Foobar2000 components that allow WASAPI and SACD play (just drag the two component files into the Foobar2000 component window). If you want 32 bit 384 kHz HDMI audio output then buy the Douk Audio U2 Pro instead (about $6 more). Even on the U2 Pro the SPDIF outputs max out at 24 bit and 192 kHz but its HDMI output can do 32 bit and 384 kHz. You also have to consider the capability of your SPDIF receiving equipment. My high-end Schiit Audio Gungnir DAC's SPDIF tops out at 24 bit and 192 kHz.

I purchased this and it arrived today. My computer runs Windows 11 64 bit. The device was not recognized by my computer. I plugged it in using the supplied USB-to-USB C cable. Nothing happened. The disc supplied with the driver on it was not readable by my computer - it kept having difficulty with the installer. I went to the Google Drive folder mentioned in the instruction manual which was supposed to have the driver but it responded with “404 not found.” I went to the XMOS website itself and downloaded a demo driver which has temporarily solved the issue. The device works, for now. I need a permanent driver for Windows 11 to get real functionality out of this product. So watch out for this! EDIT: I emailed the Douk/Nobsound address listed in their contact info and they responded in a few hours with a Google Drive link to the correct driver. Everything works properly now and I’m pleased with it. Leaving the four-star rating in place because, while they were updating the USB-C port, they should have made sure they were updating their documentation too.

The sound quality of this box is really excellent. I'm using it to feed 24/192 PCM audio from a Windows tablet computer to a Benchmark DAC1, using a glass optical cable. That particular DAC is very sensitive to the quality of its input. I was using a SMAKN CM6631 audio interface, but I thought too much of the activity in the computer could be heard through it - particularly the beginning of each song was brighter and more forward than the rest because the player is using the computer a lot during that time. So I decided to try this box, and that problem is gone. The sound is uniformly good now. I thought the imaging was a little smaller though, so I tried some of the changes that had made the Smakn box sound better - a shorter USB cable, and external power supply. I originally set up the Douk box using the USB OTG cable that came with the computer, and the longish USB cable that comes with the Douk. The OTG cable has an input for external power to avoid draining the tablet battery to run USB devices. Using that improved the sound, but only a little. Disconnecting the computer power (with the OTG cable, both power supplies are really connected) and using a short cable finished the job. Unfortunately the Douk designers didn't allow for external power for their box. The Smakn box has a separate power input jack and a switch to choose external power or USB power, which made it really easy. For this box, I had to wire my own USB plug. What I made is a USB "cable" that's about an inch and a half long, with a micro USB male plug on each end, and a power wire coming out the side. The computer side is wired for OTG (pin 4 connected to pin 5), and no power (pin 1 not connected). The Douk box side has the power (pin 1 +) and ground (pin 5 minus) connected to the external power wire. The rest are connected normally. Using this "cable" and an external linear power supply makes the sound really great for me. The images are normal size now, and depth and clarity are as good as I've ever heard. I do wish the designers had made this easier by putting a power jack in the device, though. If you try this, I really recommend using a linear supply. Most power supplies these days are the switching type, and make a lot of electrical noise. Linear supplies use a transformer instead, and make less noise. I'm using a C-TON PW2-5 (5V 300ma linear, $16 at Digi-Key). It sounds VERY good. If your DAC has better jitter immunity than mine this may not make any difference, but it doesn't cost much to try it. Even if you don't try the external power, it will probably be worthwhile to place this device right at the computer's USB jack and use a standard adapter (with whatever connectors you need) to replace the cable. USB cables cause jitter on the signal, and pick up electrical noise too, so less is better, and none (just a short adapter) is the best.

To keep this short. The device is built well, and the quality of sound it produces is accurate digital audio which isn't hard to do, the standard is decades old now. The problem is simple. The way it integrates itself (with any windows I have tested) is so inconsistent I can't recommend this. I have had situations where it reverts to old drivers and the audio is forced full volume. The device refuses to do anything but max volume until I remove those drivers. I tested out Linux of course. But the issue there is either 5% volume or 100%, as the volume adjustments are too aggressive inside the device itself. I assume this product is defective. However I see enough reviews to also assume the users generally have yet to try enough situations to see this, or they had expected it to be full volume all of the time. I bought this and paid double over the competition for proper volume control. I don't have the time to reach out to get a replacement and have reverted to a interface for my digital audio for now. (which I was using for years before and the Douk was meant to be an easier alternative to)

Needed to plug two computers into Chord Mojo. Surprised at how good this sounds via Mojo coaxial input. I made a coax cable using RG316 mini coax to connect to the Mojo 3.5mm coax input. Toslink is OK too - I used a decent glass (not plastic) fibre toslink cable and it was OK for casual listening - a bit soft and cuddly, but nothing offensive. Be aware that ASIO interface is the only one that worked reliably for me across a range of player software and Roon endpoints. DoP works fine for DSD etc. Cannot comment on Mac, as I don't own one. Resolution is not state of the art by modern standards, but I have happily used up to 192khz and dsd 64 without problems (I don't have any content that goes beyond these resolution so cannot comment on that). Works seamlessly with my Raspberry Pi 4, too. The micros-USB Port is a bit fiddly with some cables. Also, I have a problem when I switch from Pi input (via USB) to PC Input (via Douk and coax) where the PC thnks it has the driver loaded but no sound is coming from the mojo. Unlugging the USB cable from the Douk and replugging fixes this. It might be a Mojo issue, and my use case is pretty unusual. Over all, pretty good sound and value. UPDATE August 2022 - I have discovered an issue with this converter that has caused me to reduce my rating to three stars. By accident I discovered that , with no music playing, and the volume on my desktop amplifier set to maximum, there is quite a lot of digital chatter in the signal. The chatter is there whether the separate DAC is switched on or not, suggesting that the problem may be on the earth line. The source of the problem appears to be the USB Bus on the PCIa am using, but the Douk is not providing any filtering at all on the coaxial output so this goes straight to the amplifier. I switched over to a different digital to digital converter which does not allow this digital hash through on the coaxial port. Doing this provided a significant improvement in sound quality as well. Obviously this does not have any impact on the Toslink connection, as there is no electrical connection. But the toslink connections does not sound as good as the coaxial. So I would say this is not an audiophile device, but perhaps a useful utility. YMMV.