--- product_id: 92691330 title: "Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules)" brand: "monoprice" price: "COP 119414" currency: COP in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.co/products/92691330-monolith-desktop-headphone-amplifier-and-dac-with-thx-aaa-technology store_origin: CO region: Colombia --- # THX AAA ultra-linear amp tech Dual AKM 4493 32-bit DACs True balanced stereo operation Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) **Brand:** monoprice **Price:** COP 119414 **Availability:** βœ… In Stock ## Summary > 🎢 Elevate your audio game with the Monolith THX AAA β€” where precision meets power. ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) by monoprice - **How much does it cost?** COP 119414 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co](https://www.desertcart.co/products/92691330-monolith-desktop-headphone-amplifier-and-dac-with-thx-aaa-technology) ## Best For - monoprice enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted monoprice brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - β€’ **Compact Powerhouse Design:** Sleek desktop form factor with versatile inputs ensures pro-level sound anywhere on your desk. - β€’ **Balanced & Single-Ended Outputs:** Seamlessly connect any headphone with true balanced operation for maximum power and clarity. - β€’ **Audiophile-grade THX AAA Amplification:** Experience the world’s most linear headphone amp tech for pristine, distortion-free sound. - β€’ **Dual AKM 4493 DACs with 768kHz PCM Support:** Unlock ultra-high-resolution audio with flagship 32-bit DACs delivering crystal-clear playback. - β€’ **Customizable Sound EQ & Dirac Sensaround II:** Tailor your audio with advanced digital EQ and immersive 3D soundstage processing. ## Overview The Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC combines revolutionary THX AAA 788 amplifier modules with dual AKM 4493 32-bit DACs, delivering ultra-linear, distortion-free sound with support for PCM up to 768kHz. Featuring balanced and single-ended outputs, customizable EQ, and Dirac Sensaround II for immersive soundstage enhancement, it’s engineered for audiophiles seeking uncompromising headphone performance in a sleek desktop design. ## Description The Monolith THX desktop headphone amplifier and DAC features cutting edge technology to bring out the best in your headphones, playback device, and music library. Featuring dual THX AAA 788 amplifier modules for best in class amplification, an AKM 4493 DAC for an exceptionally musical experience, and dirac sensaround II decoding for an out-of-your-heard, larger than life soundstage, The Monolith amplifier is engineered for the finest in music reproduction. A host of inputs and outputs, including balanced, unbalanced, and digital, ensures that you have plenty of ways to connect your audio devices. RCA Input Impedance: 10 kilohms. Review: Amazing amp, amazing dac, not perfect but who cares. - This isn't a perfect unit, it has flaws, namely the analog inputs are converted to digital then back to analog, so there really isn't a passthrough for just the amp (due to the EQ and DIRAC options). If you're a purist, then this is a pretty big red flag, but for the rest of us, it's really not that big of a deal, not even sure they've found change in the output after feeding analog into the device, so it's really only theory that the sound is altered by these 2 extra conversions, but if you have no plans to bypass the DAC, and instead are using it as both a dac and an amp, then there is no extra conversion happening, plus, the balanced dac in the unit is a very good dac, so just use it. The amp...well, it's basically a revolutionary technology developed by THX, and has the audiophile community losing their collective minds over these THX AAA amps. They truly are a wire with gain, the noise floor and THD are so ridiculously low, the power output so high, that you really shouldn't need another solid state amp after this. This may be the 788, inferior to the 789 in power output (not by much, I'm listening to it right now on 300 ohm sennheisers, and it gets loud enough to hurt, and still has a ton of headroom in the volume , like upwards of 40-50%, no chance I'm testing how high it goes, I'll blow the drivers for sure, I'm wincing at -17db, and I think it goes all the way to +16. No gain settings, which is a bit annoying, but whatever, however the biggest flaw of this unit by a long long ways, is the volume control. It is painfully slow, I'm really hoping they fix it in a firmware update, but I'm not holding my breath. Basically you have to spin the knob like 20 times to go down a significant amount, like from high listening volume, to hearing those around you when they're trying to get your attention. It's not really a big deal 90% of the time, once you are at a comfortable volume, minor changes are completely fine, you don't even notice it's slow, only when you need to change it more than like 10-15+ db at once, does it become an annoyance, overall though who cares, the flaws have no effect on the sound (unless you're trying to bypass the dac, in which case it might due to taking the analog signal from your exterior dac, converting it back to digital, and then back to analog, that is the only way you might hear any change in the audio caused by this amp. If you're using digital inputs, then you're golden, nothing but pure unadulterated source material is what you'll hear. Buy this amp, new 887, 888, and 889 units aren't coming until late november/early december at the earliest, unless you want to pay $3,000 for the Benchmark that has a THX AAA 888 amp already. This amp though a few revisions old already, is still state of the art, industry changing, and the measured improvements are so small they aren't even audible to us, as the "inferior" amp is already producing audio that is 99.9999% to the source, at least. It simply doesn't get any cleaner. Oh, and the value is insane, a balanced dac ($200 at least) and a THX AAA balanced amp ($400) for $500. It's a steal Review: My Holy Grail of sound. - OMG! This thing is an absolute dream. I initially oredered the massdrop THX AAA 789 but got frustrated after the second production delay and SMSL came out with their $289 THX sp200 so I returned the 789 and pre-ordered the sp200 which is supposedly shipping out on Oct. 27, 1019. Started looking for dacs and was leaning towards the SMSL su-8 balanced dac to pair with the sp200. So while I'm waiting for the sp200, I figured I'd give the monolith a shot. Cost is about the same as the SMSL stack, next day shipping, why not? Like many of you, I read both reviews by Amir of Audio Science Review and thought that the monolith THX AAA was quite a bit inferior to the the 789 and the monolith 887 and actually even the $289 sp200. But when looking at the graphs, I thought, that little bit of noise can't be audible enough to take this monolith thx out of consideration. With the exception of the SMSL stack, this seemed to be the best value. Two nice dacs, two 788 amps, and Dirac sensaround 2, line out for speaker amp, onboard peq with shelf eq even for $500. Okay, gotta try it. For reference, I have the akg k712 pro, Sennheiser 58x, Fidelio shp9500s, hifiman he5se, audeze el-8, Sennheiser hd579 and the v-moda m100. Before the monolith thx, I was driving them with a minidsp hd 2x4 over usb asio switching off with a Sennheiser gsx1000 for gaming, all amped by a monolith cavalli liquid spark. So nothing really high end. But even so, I never expected the THX to blow me away like it did. It was just symphonic bliss. The Dirac sensaround was awesome for gaming and pretty eye-opening for certain music tracks as well. That alone is worth the price of admission. The power is admirable too. I turned it up till it hurt with still 35 percent headroom for even the akg k712 pro which is surprisingly hard to drive to its fullest potential. I haven't even tried the balanced output yet but I can't wait. I'm completely smitten. To me this is by far the best value out of the 4 thx amps in existence as of the time of this writing. I suggest you at least try it before making a final decision. ## Features - The worlds most linear amp technology: the THX achromatic audio amplifire (THX AAA) ensures the ultimate no-compromise Headphone audio experience - True balanced operation: Each THX stereo amp module operates in a bridged configuration to maximize output power for each channel, each DAC operates in mono mode - Dual AKM 4493 DACs: new flagship 32-bit stereo premium DAC. It supports PCM inputs up to 768kHz and a direct stream digital input of 2. 8/5. 6/11. 2 MHz - Balanced & single ended Headphone output: Compatible with all headphones and items - Tailor your sound: Use the powerful digital tools to tailor the sound to your personal preference. Does your headphone have a little sibilance? Set a peq to tame that frequency peak ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | ASIN | B07KQW1WFX | | Customer Reviews | 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars (240) | | Date First Available | November 21, 2018 | | Item Weight | 5.1 ounces | | Item model number | 124459 | | Product Dimensions | 7.8 x 2 x 8.7 inches | ## Images ![Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51uHPDVjdLL.jpg) ![Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51MCaneM3xL.jpg) ![Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) - Image 3](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/5183PUeMYwL.jpg) ![Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) - Image 4](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51QyWVoy0rL.jpg) ![Monolith Desktop Headphone Amplifier and DAC with THX AAA Technology (Dual AKM 4493 DACs & Dual AAA-788 Modules) - Image 5](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51EDOUL3UNL.jpg) ## Questions & Answers **Q: 788 vs 789?** A: 788 has more features, is truly balanced, includes a balanced DAC, is cheaper, and is wrapped into one box. 789 has lower noise/distortion, is truly analog, and has much more output voltage. The 789 is objectively a better amp, however for most people the 788 is a better choice. The difference in noise is basically inaudible, the 788 is still miles ahead of most amps. The 788 includes a solid balanced DAC and is truly analog while the 789 isn't technically truly balanced, and you'd need to buy a balanced DAC (or a DAC period) to use it. It also includes a lot of great features like parametric EQ and Sensurround. The 789 has almost substantially more output voltage however - but the 788 is still plenty for most people. Unless you're driving HE-6 or 600ohm cans you're not going to need the extra power more than likely. The 789 is also truly analog whereas the 788 converts the signal to digital and then back to analog to enable the EQ and other features it has. There's pros and cons to both. Again, the 789 is objectively better in almost every way, however I think the 788 is a better solution for most people as you're probably never going to HEAR an actual difference. If you want the best of the best, you can actually get your hands on one, and you don't mind spending another 200-300 on a balanced DAC, go with the 789. Only if you just really want/need to squeeze out every last drop you can. If you want to buy one box and be done with it for a lower price, want EQ features, and aren't desperate for the extra power, go with the 788. It's a better value and is the right choice for 90% of people. It's an amazing package all wrapped up into one so that you don't have to do the leg work. Both are amazing and you're not going to be unhappy with either. **Q: Why is this amp not recognized by my ps4 pro ? i have gone over tall the ps4 audio settings, and the the amp/dac settings and can't get any audio ?** A: If you're using the USB cable then it might require drivers for it, the ps4 won't have ASIO driver I'm not sure it's a driverless dac like the O2 dac's. That being said you should be able to use a an optical cable from ps4 to this amp/dac or use rca from the tv to it, just not the usb port to ps4. Hope this helps. **Q: Does the supplied power plug support 240V?** A: yes it is **Q: Can I add another amp like the Topping A90 into this device?** A: it's already an amp/dac but if you like to use the a90 for amp you can also. ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Amazing amp, amazing dac, not perfect but who cares. *by T***Y on September 27, 2019* This isn't a perfect unit, it has flaws, namely the analog inputs are converted to digital then back to analog, so there really isn't a passthrough for just the amp (due to the EQ and DIRAC options). If you're a purist, then this is a pretty big red flag, but for the rest of us, it's really not that big of a deal, not even sure they've found change in the output after feeding analog into the device, so it's really only theory that the sound is altered by these 2 extra conversions, but if you have no plans to bypass the DAC, and instead are using it as both a dac and an amp, then there is no extra conversion happening, plus, the balanced dac in the unit is a very good dac, so just use it. The amp...well, it's basically a revolutionary technology developed by THX, and has the audiophile community losing their collective minds over these THX AAA amps. They truly are a wire with gain, the noise floor and THD are so ridiculously low, the power output so high, that you really shouldn't need another solid state amp after this. This may be the 788, inferior to the 789 in power output (not by much, I'm listening to it right now on 300 ohm sennheisers, and it gets loud enough to hurt, and still has a ton of headroom in the volume , like upwards of 40-50%, no chance I'm testing how high it goes, I'll blow the drivers for sure, I'm wincing at -17db, and I think it goes all the way to +16. No gain settings, which is a bit annoying, but whatever, however the biggest flaw of this unit by a long long ways, is the volume control. It is painfully slow, I'm really hoping they fix it in a firmware update, but I'm not holding my breath. Basically you have to spin the knob like 20 times to go down a significant amount, like from high listening volume, to hearing those around you when they're trying to get your attention. It's not really a big deal 90% of the time, once you are at a comfortable volume, minor changes are completely fine, you don't even notice it's slow, only when you need to change it more than like 10-15+ db at once, does it become an annoyance, overall though who cares, the flaws have no effect on the sound (unless you're trying to bypass the dac, in which case it might due to taking the analog signal from your exterior dac, converting it back to digital, and then back to analog, that is the only way you might hear any change in the audio caused by this amp. If you're using digital inputs, then you're golden, nothing but pure unadulterated source material is what you'll hear. Buy this amp, new 887, 888, and 889 units aren't coming until late november/early december at the earliest, unless you want to pay $3,000 for the Benchmark that has a THX AAA 888 amp already. This amp though a few revisions old already, is still state of the art, industry changing, and the measured improvements are so small they aren't even audible to us, as the "inferior" amp is already producing audio that is 99.9999% to the source, at least. It simply doesn't get any cleaner. Oh, and the value is insane, a balanced dac ($200 at least) and a THX AAA balanced amp ($400) for $500. It's a steal ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ My Holy Grail of sound. *by M***S on October 24, 2019* OMG! This thing is an absolute dream. I initially oredered the massdrop THX AAA 789 but got frustrated after the second production delay and SMSL came out with their $289 THX sp200 so I returned the 789 and pre-ordered the sp200 which is supposedly shipping out on Oct. 27, 1019. Started looking for dacs and was leaning towards the SMSL su-8 balanced dac to pair with the sp200. So while I'm waiting for the sp200, I figured I'd give the monolith a shot. Cost is about the same as the SMSL stack, next day shipping, why not? Like many of you, I read both reviews by Amir of Audio Science Review and thought that the monolith THX AAA was quite a bit inferior to the the 789 and the monolith 887 and actually even the $289 sp200. But when looking at the graphs, I thought, that little bit of noise can't be audible enough to take this monolith thx out of consideration. With the exception of the SMSL stack, this seemed to be the best value. Two nice dacs, two 788 amps, and Dirac sensaround 2, line out for speaker amp, onboard peq with shelf eq even for $500. Okay, gotta try it. For reference, I have the akg k712 pro, Sennheiser 58x, Fidelio shp9500s, hifiman he5se, audeze el-8, Sennheiser hd579 and the v-moda m100. Before the monolith thx, I was driving them with a minidsp hd 2x4 over usb asio switching off with a Sennheiser gsx1000 for gaming, all amped by a monolith cavalli liquid spark. So nothing really high end. But even so, I never expected the THX to blow me away like it did. It was just symphonic bliss. The Dirac sensaround was awesome for gaming and pretty eye-opening for certain music tracks as well. That alone is worth the price of admission. The power is admirable too. I turned it up till it hurt with still 35 percent headroom for even the akg k712 pro which is surprisingly hard to drive to its fullest potential. I haven't even tried the balanced output yet but I can't wait. I'm completely smitten. To me this is by far the best value out of the 4 thx amps in existence as of the time of this writing. I suggest you at least try it before making a final decision. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ It's all been said already, but I'll say it again... *by D***Y on October 14, 2019* I may be a bit of an audiophile. I only recently discovered this fact, after years of slowly building up various wireless and wired audio equipment throughout the house. I've been around the block a few times, so to speak, when it comes to listening to my music collection on various pieces of equipment and in various rooms. Some of them certainly sound great, while others sound good, and nothing really sounds "bad". And now along comes this... headphone amp + dac. I resisted for years even considering buying such a device. I already "have it all" as they say when it comes to ways to listen to music. But late at night, when things quiet down, and I'm left to just listening on my Sennheiser HD650s, something was always missing. Some punch. Some oomph. Some presence. And clarity. Oh my, the clarity. You see... all of those qualities, things I wasn't missing too much, are all represented on the Monoprice Monolith Headphone Amp. No, not represented. Defined. Perfected. Impeccable? Yes. In fact, one might even say that this device is like aural... er... that word that rhymes with "lex". Wink wink, nudge nudge. This device is simply put the best money I have ever spent on music gear. Yes, it needs to be paired with quality headphones. But my oh my, the absolutely purity of sound at any volume that comes through this thing is just unmatched. I'm really, really glad I bypassed the lesser quality / lower priced gear out there. Time in a sense is money, and it would have been a lot of money wasted in search of this. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - πŸ›’ **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** β€” Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** β€” Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - πŸ’° **No Hidden Fees** β€” All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - πŸ”„ **15-Day Free Returns** β€” Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - πŸ”’ **Secure Payments** β€” Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** β€” Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co/products/92691330-monolith-desktop-headphone-amplifier-and-dac-with-thx-aaa-technology](https://www.desertcart.co/products/92691330-monolith-desktop-headphone-amplifier-and-dac-with-thx-aaa-technology) --- *Product available on Desertcart Colombia* *Store origin: CO* *Last updated: 2026-04-26*