スピーカー環境ではどうだろうか？MacBook ProをトランスポートにDAC3 BとLA4を組み合わせ、パワーアンプにAHB2を用いて、モニターオーディオPL300Ⅱに接続した（図：接続④）。ヘッドホン環境での好結果に期待値が上がるが、想像通り同傾向のサウンドが得られた。

帯域バランスについては聴感上フラットで、全帯域の音のスピードが整っている。ホセ・ジェイムスでは、等身大のヴォーカルが前方に定位して、マスタリングのクセと思われる音像の小さな移動感さえ秀逸に表現する。ジョン・ウィリアムズは、奥行や高さが正確に表現されたサウンドステージが眼前に現れる。しかも適度な抑揚表現も兼ね備えており、分析的一辺倒に聴こえないのは興味深かった。

今回試した5機種に共通する最大の魅力は、リファレンスとして絶対的な信頼がおける音質であること。スペックだけではオーディオ機器の音質を推し量ることはできないが、ベンチマークの製品が出すリファレンス的なサウンドは、多くのオーディオファイルや筆者のように基準となる音を求める者にはこれ以上ないほどにフィットする。

　その中でもDAC3 HGCは、DACとヘッドホンアンプが一体型なのでシステムをコンパクトにしたい方に向いているし、DAC3 BとHPA4の組合せはセパレート志向の音質を求めたい方におすすめできる。LA4とAHB2の組合せはリファレンス的なクセのないサウンドをスピーカーシステムで実現したい方におすすめだ。

Link do recenzji: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereo Sound

There is a bit less to say about the Benchmark DAC3 B beyond the fact that it is a finely executed example of a modern ESS-based digital to analog converter. It’s specifically designed to be used with Benchmark’s HPA4 or LN4 preamps since it has no other type of volume control and the DAC’s output levels (set via internal jumpers) can be used at the maximum settings when paired with either of those units. The full 12.3 Vrms output (XLR jacks) instead of the consumer standard 4 Vrms is said to allow higher SNR capability through the audio chain. I find that it’s hard to tell meaningful differences between well designed DACs when listening through speakers unless you are dealing with DACs having aggressively tuned or tube-based analog stages. I usually have to use headphones to help me lock in on differences in sound quality, and from what I could discern from using the HPA4 as the headphone amp and switching between pairs of DACs, level matched at the XLR inputs, the Benchmark DAC3 B’s sound is as clear and neutral as they come.

It should come as no surprise that, when the Benchmark DAC3 B, HPA4 preamplifier, and AHB2 power amplifier were used together they performed especially well. I dare say that they produced as clean and noise-free a stereo playback chain as I have ever come across. I found this type of transparency and neutrality very appealing but I realize that others may not necessarily agree because it is thoroughly revealing of any less-than-stellar source material. I have heard speakers and equipment in the past that I considered ruthless in their ability to reveal recording flaws but there really is no wiggle room with this Benchmark stack. Case in point, listening to vinyl through the HPA4 was not always an enjoyable experience as it laid bare the medium’s dynamic range and noise limitations more often than not.

Probably my favorite Wes Montgomery live recording. The engineers did a great job not only capturing the sound of Wes and his band, but they also captured a great sense of the concert space, the balance is very complimentary. The Benchmark stack’s transparent and revealing nature did a fantastic job of letting me enjoy the subtlest details of both the performers and the space they were in. During the opening of “Jingles,” both Montgomery and his piano player Harold Mabern play identical repeated phrases together to set the tone and pace of this instrumental. With my trusty Bryston/Class D Audio setup, the tone and ring in the piano portion of these little duet parts got buried/smoothed over when listening on a few different speakers. In contrast, the Benchmark trio of components allowed me to hear the two distinct instruments completely during those same passages. The jazzy ring of the guitar strings and the ring of the piano notes were no longer blending together into one tone. Even the Anthem STR preamp and amp combo weren’t quite as revealing of these details. Better than the Bryston/Class D Audio combo but not as all-seeing as the Benchmark.

When used as a system the resulting synergy was even more revealing. I found the system to be an extremely neutral reference point that allowed me to hear more of what a connected speaker or headphone was actually doing and, in turn, how much my existing electronics were adding to the sound that I was hearing in my reviews. I had thought that I already had equipment that afforded me a consistent and reliable reference point from which to judge and compare other gear. It wasn’t cream-of-the-crop high-end stuff but it was good quality and enjoyable equipment. Through the extended period that I had the Benchmark “stack”, I began to realize that I could do better. The HPA4, AHB2, and DAC 3B soon went from being review samples to becoming essential lab gear. I genuinely do enjoy listening to accurate, transparent (some may call it analytical) equipment. That however doesn’t mean I can’t like and appreciate the sound of good tube equipment, the sweetness of my vinyl collection, or even some very colored sounding solid-state equipment. But every reviewer needs a touchstone to work from and this equipment is now mine as I will be purchasing the review set. Is it perfection? No. But as the name says, it is my new benchmark.

Link do recenzji: Benchmark DAC3 B – Home Theater High Fidelity

Since for substantial portions of the review period I used the DAC3 B in tandem with the LA4, comment on its “sound,” or lack thereof, is in effect folded into what I’ve said so far. In the areas of tonal neutrality and transparency, the B sounds like every other Benchmark I’ve heard, which is to say neutral and transparent. But the DAC3 also has new conversion processing, which is said to make for a 3.5dB increase in headroom above 0dBFS, in turn preventing the DSP intersampling overloads “that commonly occur in other D/A converters.” This increase in headroom, plus lower noise and distortion figures than previous Benchmark DACs had, is said to result in subtly improved sound. 

When I told a friend I was reviewing Benchmark’s new LA4 preamplifier and its latest DAC, he said, “Damn good company, damn good products—but they take all the fun out of it.” I sounded this idea, somewhat obliquely and from a different perspective, four years ago in my review of the AHB2 power amp, where I wrote that I wasn’t sure I could in good conscience recommend it to a certain kind of audiophile. This is because it is “only” a “precision instrument designed to perform the precisely defined task of reproducing music and sound accurately, which it does essentially to perfection,” a statement that also applies to these two new products. There are no tonal anomalies you can enthuse. 

Link do recenzji: Benchmark DAC3 B – The Absolute Sound

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – hi-fi+ – 2025 Award DAC

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity – 2021 Best of Awards

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity – Recommended Gear 2022

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2025

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2024

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2024

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2023

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2023

Link: Benchmark DAC3 B – Stereophile – Recommended Components 2025