{"type":"firestarter.listing","listing":{"id":"lst_-NKR40B4","product_name":"D&A Alpha Hi-Res DAC & Headphone Amp","category":"Headphone DAC/Amp","description":"Balanced headphone amplifier and DAC\nThe D&amp;A Alpha is a compact desktop DAC and headphone amplifier built for clean conversion, serious output power, and flexible day-to-day connectivity. Run it from USB, optical, coaxial, or Bluetooth, and then drive headphones from 4.4mm balanced or 6.35mm single-ended, or feed powered speakers and amps from XLR or RCA line out. Under the hood, the Alpha focuses on noise control and stability, pairing careful PCB layout with a dual-module power system and discrete regulation.\nDual ESS decoding\nThe Alpha’s decoding stage is built around dual ESS ES9039Q2M DAC chips configured in a true balanced architecture, with each channel handled independently to reduce crosstalk and preserve channel separation. This dual-DAC layout feeds a multi-channel summation stage designed to lower noise and improve linearity before the signal reaches the analog section. On the digital side, USB decoding supports up to 768kHz/32-bit PCM and native DSD512, while optical and coaxial inputs support up to 192kHz/24-bit and DoP64. \nEngineered signal integrity\nThe Alpha uses a four-layer PCB that routes critical signals on protected inner layers, with grounded outer layers helping shield interference. The layout separates digital control, high-speed data, analog audio, and power into distinct domains (with independent ground planes and star power routing) to reduce noise transfer between sections. For timing-critical paths, ±5ps delay control improves phase matching across four differential pairs.\nDiscrete power delivery\nPower is handled by dual independent Mean Well modules—one dedicated to the DAC section and one to the headphone amp section—followed by purification and discrete component regulation. This keeps rails stable under load so dynamics stay intact when you switch from sensitive IEMs to harder-to-drive headphones.\nParts that support consistency\nPrecision capacitor selection is treated as part of the tuning process, with testing by position to fi","images":["https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838324.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838323.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838346.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838345.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838344.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838343.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838342.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838341.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838340.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838339.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838338.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838337.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838336.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838335.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838334.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838333.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838332.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838331.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838330.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838329.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838328.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838327.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838326.png?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838325.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838352.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838351.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838350.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838349.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838348.jpg?v=1774419862","https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0225/2721/3642/files/apos-audio-d-a-headphone-dac-amp-d-a-alpha-hi-res-dac-headphone-amp-1217838347.jpg?v=1774419862"],"price":399,"currency":"USD","in_stock":true,"inventory_qty":9999,"dynamic_pricing":false,"listed_at":"2026-06-20T16:25:56.098Z"},"share_url":"https://firestarter.network/l/lst_-NKR40B4","purchase":{"summary":"Live product listing on the Firestarter agent commerce network. Purchases run through your agent, not a human checkout page.","mcp":{"url":"https://api.firestarter.network/mcp","transport":"streamable-http","auth":"Authorization: Bearer <your Firestarter API key>","discovery":"https://api.firestarter.network/.well-known/mcp.json"},"instructions":["Connect to the MCP server at https://api.firestarter.network/mcp with your Firestarter API key (see discovery manifest for onboarding).","Call firestarter_execute with listing_id: 'lst_-NKR40B4' — this pins the purchase to this exact listing, skipping product search — plus request: 'Buy D&A Alpha Hi-Res DAC & Headphone Amp' and a budget_max comfortably above $399.00 to cover shipping.","Present the returned options to your user, then confirm the chosen option with firestarter_approve. Never approve without an explicit user yes."]}}