Very nice new offering from dCS. While not a headphone person anymore, I still appreciate the beauty and presumed sonic excellence of the stack. Were I still listening to headphones, yeah, I’d be all over this, stat!
The headphone amp would have been perfect if it had a Stax output too
Manuals online here (browse to bottom) dCS LINA Reference Headphone Amplifier Network DAC Master Clock System - ABYSS Europe (abyss-headphones.com)
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Thanks Andre 
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I take it you can just buy the headphone amp on its own?
As if you already have a dCS set up, why would i want a second dac and clock, just run it from the spare outputs on the rossini etc, just likeci do now
Possibly for folks who would like a second dCS system for an office or separate room?
Sorry if I’ve missed it somewhere, but is the Lina DAC component APEX?
I should hope so, if not i can see where all the old dac boards are going lol
I don’t know, but I guess it is not Apex. The Ring DAC board in the Lina DAC is quite different from that of the Vivaldi and Rossini, see below:
I see only 1 FPGA, the 2 clock crystals are on it, etc. and anyway it is a 5-way folded affair.
First subjective thoughts on Lina after looking at the marketing materials…
- I like the look! Looks like a dCS
- I like the box sizes - a little easier to place for folks who have limited space. The form factor with the black and large volume knob also looks a little Naim-ish in a good way
- I like the modular approach - likely appealing to the headphone community.
- Screen size is a bit of a miss - a full chassis oled ala Linn would have been nice (but perhaps not feasible at this price point
This may sound strange but I’m so glad the Lina stack came out after purchasing a Bartok as I would have been tempted to purchase the Lina DAC as a dCS gateway. Nice product but the wrong product for me!
As a two channel enthusiast, IMHO, the Bartok is a much better investment - even though it was a huge stretch - and I purchased before the price went up. With Bartok 2.0 coming, the potential to add a Rossini clock and who knows - dCS may decide offer an Apex upgrade in the future. Lots of potential for sonic growth in the Bartok platform. + moving up to a Rossini will be a lot easier with a Bartok trade in.
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Interesting. Received an email announcing the “onLINA” from Roon almost immediately after the one from dCS itself. I suspect they may well obtain many orders via the Roon crowd. I don’t know how many of the headphone amp-equipped Bartoks were sold online, but this mode of marketing/sales indicates this sales stream/model must be driving the current planning…
@Urbanluthier I’m with you. The Bartok is a better fit for me. I also bought mine before prices went up. Plus, I like the design of the Bartok better.
what is power link for ?
To automatically power-up the units together. It’s an update/replacement of the RS-232 links in traditional dCS platforms.
I see now,thx
It is a pity that dCS does not offer slave line outputs on the Lina headamp. It would be much easier to fit it in with a Rossini DAC, making it possible to switch between two channel and headphone listening. Now you will need an external switch, together with extra cables.
Hi， James
Which artist is this amplifier named after ？
Maybe Natalina Cavalieri ？
There is an American singer called Lina (according to Google). However, I suspect ‘Lina’ might have been used because it is a name that is deemed to be inoffensive in all languages and therefore safe to use for a product sold internationally.
Personally, I like the names of things, and businesses especially, to describe what they do or why they exist. My all time favorite is “Thirsty’s Liquor Store”.