[General Accessories] Alberto96:
This is the Dodocool DA134 Hi-Res USB-C to 3.5mm Sound Card.

Unboxing

The item comes in a pretty small and slim packaging with no accessories at all, only an user manual and warranty card. I would have appreciated to see, at least, a Type-C to MicroUSB or to USB-A for PC and legacy devices support.

As you can clearly notice, the whole device is packed in a rather nice aluminum body. It feels solid and premium, and also works as a sort of interference shield.

Something that doesn't look premium at all is the internal board. For some weird reason, the USB cable has been soldered in a really bad way, and some wires are slightly scratched on the plastic side. I hope this is just a case, otherwise it is hard to define this board as durable.

The device appears to be using an AKM AK4430ET DAC with a Bravo SA9123 Audio Controller IC, datasheets linked below. I am not an audiophile, but based on my minor knowledge, this can be declared as a mid-range USB DAC, with decent components that could have been better (of course).

AK4430ET: https://www.akm.com/akm/en/product/datasheet1/?partno=AK4430ET

SA9123: http://archive.esmchina.com/forum.esm-cn.com/FORUM_POST_1000164011_1201276323_0.HTM

Built-in Multimedia Controls are working just fine, even on my PC, but they just handle the device's control, meaning that you can adjust the same controls (Play/Pause, Volume +/-) from the smartphone (or other device) directly. Personally i don't find them useful, but may be for someone else.

When it comes to compatibility, even though this is meant to be used with Type-C Android Devices, it works just fine on my PC using a Type-C to USB adapter, and even on Android Devices with a MicroUSB plug (using the adapter of course). Perfectly recognized, and working as should.

PC (Linux)

Android (Mi Note 2)

Sound Quality

As regards the audio quality, compared to my smartphone internal DAC, i can notice a slightly higher volume but, to be honest, not an huge difference. Nowadays most smartphones (excluding low-end ones) already come with a decent internal sound card, but the amplifier isn't that great most of the times.

Still, some extra punchiness to the sound is noticeable, even with low-end earphones known to have a pretty high resistance. Not impressive, but not disappoiting either.

If you know to have a device that provides a terrible sound quality via the headphone jack, then the difference will be really noticeable.

Conclusions

I always thought that an External DAC, even if not super high-end, would provide better sound quality compared to a generic sound source, but apparently this is not valid anymore nowadays.

Other than that, this is not a bad product, there is some room for improvements and the build quality is pretty decent (excluding the soldering issue) considering the price target.

For those who need a cheap workaround to a crappy built-in sound card, then this is a product that should be considered.

Pros:

- Premium Aluminum Chassis

- Decent Internal Components

- Excellent Compatibility (using an adapter)

Cons:

- No Adapters included

- Questionable internal soldering

Rating: 8.3

Packaging and Accessories: 6

Design and Materials: 8.5

Sound Quality: 9

Price: 9.5 (Amazon)

Official Website: https://www.dodocool.com/p-da134gy.html

You can find full-res images (I know, Quality isn't excellent) here: https://imgur.com/a/O2LdZ

You can buy it on many online shops. Official, and authorized, Retailers are listed in the Dodocool website.​