U-Control UCA202 : Incredible price/performance.

I always have a spare UCA202 with me.

I use this as main output when DJing with a MIDI-controller, or when playing background tunes from a computer without a good soundcard.

Pros:

Soundquality is great. I see no reason to buy another DAC. No noticeable coloration if your electrical environment is clean.

Headphone amp is surprisingly good, probably serviceable for < 100 ohm headphones. But get a "main" headphone amp if you're serious.

Cons:

- USB isolation is not very good, and ground hum from other devices connected to your computer often sneaks through. This is solved by properly grounding your equipment, or probably by applying a DI-box to the output.

- Plastic chassi - be careful.

- No gain adjustment on in or output. I find I get the best sound if I software limit the output to about 90%.