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• Overview – Benchmark Audio DAC3B, released in 2018, is a reference-grade DAC and preamplifier featuring Benchmark’s UltraLock3™ architecture, delivering state-of-the-art transparency, ultra-low distortion, and studio-level accuracy.
• Digital Architecture – Engineered for professional and audiophile use, it provides jitter-immune digital conversion, exceptional dynamic range, and ruler-flat frequency response, ensuring faithful reproduction from high-resolution PCM sources and digital transports.
• System Integration – Benchmark Audio DAC3B functions as a DAC and analog preamplifier, offering balanced XLR and RCA outputs, precision volume control, and seamless integration with active monitors or high-end power amplifiers.
• Specifications – Utilises ESS Sabre ES9028PRO DAC, dynamic range up to 128 dB, THD+N below −125 dB, asynchronous USB, AES/EBU, coaxial, optical inputs, and Benchmark HPA2 headphone amplification architecture.
• Dimensions – Approx. 241 mm (W) × 44 mm (H) × 247 mm (D), housed in a compact half-rack aluminium chassis suitable for desktop, studio rack, or minimalist audiophile system installations.
• Weight – Approximately 2.9 kg, reflecting robust power regulation, precision internal shielding, and solid mechanical construction essential for maintaining noise-free digital and analog signal paths.
Quietly one of the safest-value reference DACs, this one looks fair to slightly attractive at S$1,900. New pricing on the DAC3 B sits around S$2,500 on the Benchmark site, so this ask is below retail but not a deep bargain; in the used market, a clean unit in like-new shape would usually be expected to land around the mid-to-high S$1,000s to low S$2,000s, so this is comfortably in range rather than ambitious.
What makes it worth buying is Benchmark’s usual formula: ultra-clean, low-noise conversion, solid preamp duties, and a no-drama interface that tends to disappear sonically and just get out of the way. The DAC3 B is especially appealing if you want balanced outputs and a compact, long-term keeper; like-new condition is the right kind of premium here if the box, remote, and original accessories are included.
Independent perspective — not a price guarantee. Always verify condition, accessories and provenance before purchase.
Benchmark Media Systems traces its roots to 1983, when founder Allen H. Burdick launched the company as Benchmark Sound Company from a garage in Dallas, Texas. Burdick, a lifelong audio enthusiast, built the brand around meticulous engineering principles, evolving it into a dedicated hi-fi operation. Today, headquartered in Syracuse, New York, where it engineers, manufactures, and ships products, Benchmark upholds over four decades of American craftsmanship focused on precision audio reproduction.
The company specializes in a focused lineup of high-performance components, including flagship digital-to-analog converters like the DAC3 series, transparent preamplifiers such as the LA4, and the acclaimed AHB2 power amplifier—named in honor of Burdick himself. This streamlined portfolio avoids speakers, turntables, headphones, or cables, concentrating instead on core electronics that prioritize signal integrity and minimal distortion.
Benchmark occupies a premium niche in the hi-fi market, revered by discerning audiophiles and measurement enthusiasts for its exceptional transparency, low noise, and top-tier objective performance. Positioned as a high-end boutique brand, it appeals to buyers who demand verifiable excellence over hype, consistently outperforming competitors in rigorous testing while delivering reliable, no-compromise sound.
See all Benchmark Media Systems listings on RADAR.
