Allnic/ZL Technologies D-10000 OTL/OCL DAC
The D-10000 OTL/OCL DAC brings vivid, full-bodied tone and low-noise dynamic freedom to digital replay, pairing vinyl-like scale with unforced detail. Alan Sircom found its dimensional, harmonically convincing presentation deeply engaging, while PCM-to-DSD conversion, high-rate upsampling, and balanced or RCA outputs add serious system flexibility.
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Nicely Roasted
Sound Quality
94/100
Build Quality
93/100
Features Connectivity
78/100
Value for Money
85/100
Pros
Delivers a vivid, full-bodied, large-scale sound that avoids sterile digital character while retaining detail.
Exceptionally low-noise, dynamically free presentation with strong tonal richness and dimensional organisation.
Premium, classic valve-inspired finish, plus versatile USB, optical, AES/EBU, coaxial, RCA, and XLR connectivity.
Cons
Less forgiving of thin, heavily compressed, or poorly produced recordings, which are exposed rather than softened.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 94/100
The D-10000 is described as unusually vivid, full-bodied and involving, combining large-scale presentation with strong tonal credibility. It also preserves detail and a notably low-noise presentation rather than trading resolution for its organic character.
Tonal Balance and Musicality
95/100
Alan Sircom calls the sound “big and bold,” with vinyl-like scale and size, while music becomes more vivid, real, full-bodied and enjoyable rather than cool. He also calls the DAC a natural with tone and says it brought out the best in almost every piece of music.
Resolution and Detail
92/100
The review specifically contrasts the D-10000 with organic-sounding rivals that sacrifice detail, stating that this Allnic never does. Its ability to give music structure and dimensionality “hard to beat at any price” further supports its resolving, well-organised presentation.
Digital Performance
93/100
The DAC is described as exceptionally low-noise and powerfully engaging from the opening bars, with none of the cool or sterile character often associated with digital replay. It also offers PCM-to-DSD conversion and PCM upsampling to 352kHz or 384kHz, though the review focuses more on the resulting musical ease than on technical measurements.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
93/100
The review says the D-10000 is finished to an exceptional standard throughout, comparing its presentation to classic valve amplifiers of audio’s golden era. Reviewers provide little further detail on its internal construction, component selection or long-term durability.
Features Connectivity
78/100
Connectivity is strong for a dedicated DAC, with USB, optical, AES/EBU and two coaxial digital inputs, plus both RCA and balanced XLR outputs. PCM-to-DSD conversion and PCM upsampling are available, but the supplied information does not indicate a headphone stage, variable-output preamp function, network streaming, remote control or support for specific high-rate PCM and DSD formats.
Value for Money
85/100
At approximately $21,845–$22,100, the D-10000 occupies a rarefied high-end segment. The review is emphatically positive about its performance, including its dimensionality at any price, but does not directly compare its value against similarly priced competitors or explicitly judge whether the asking price is justified.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
Online Reviews & Mentions
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Specifications
- Inputs
- One (1) X optical (Toslink) digital One (1) X USB One (1) X AES/EBU digital (XLR) Two (2) X coaxial digital (RCA)
- Outputs
- One (1) pair X unbalanced (RCA) One (1) pair X balanced (XLR)
- Output RMS Voltage
- 4 volts
- Output Impedance
- 50 Ω (Constant)
- Power Consumption
- 70W at 230 V / 110/120 V / 50 / 60 Hz
- Fuse
- AC 3A, 250V for 110/120 volt regions; AC 2A, 250V for 230/240 volt regions
- Dimensions
- 430mm (16.93 inches) x 320mm (12.5 inches) x 170mm (6.7 inches) (W x D x H)
- Weight
- 13.06 Kg (28 lbs.) unpacked 17 Kg (37.4 lbs.) in original packing
Manufacturer's Description — Allnic/ZL Technologies
OTL/OCL (Output Transformer-less/Output Capacitor-less) analog output designs to the very best of today’s DAC technology.
In common circuits, output capacitors or output transformers are these two coupling devices also introduce their own influences on the transmission of the musical signal, adding their own character (colouration), increasing distortion, and consuming small signals, all as predicted by physical efficiency theory. In addition, they also limit signal dynamics.
- No colouration of the musical signal
- Extremely detailed expression, natural harmonics, and subtle musical decay
- The lowest possible distortion
- The widest musical dynamics
The sound was perfectly clear. The stage was endlessly transparent and clean, like a day completely without dust, smoke, or cloud. I thought, “This is the kind of sound you should hear with an OTL/OCL circuit applied to a vacuum tube DAC!” This is the story of the D-10000 OTL/OCL DAC recently introduced by Korean manufacturer ALLNIC.
“This is the kind of sound you should hear with an OTL/OCL circuit applied to a vacuum tube DAC!”
OTL/OCL (Output Transformer-Less/Output Capacitor-Less) is a circuit that literally removes the transformer of the vacuum tube amplifier output stage and the capacitor in the signal path. The output transformer lowers the high output impedance of the vacuum tube, and the capacitor in the signal path has the heavy duty of blocking DC, so omitting both of them has been a fairy-tale dream for manufacturers.
However, ALLNIC determined that these devices are the main culprits for distortion, coloration, and energy loss, so they spent years developing OTL/OCL circuits for their high-end preamplifiers, the L-10000, L-9000, and L-8500, and the HPA-5000XL headphone amplifier. The results have been a great success. As the output transformer and capacitor disappeared from the signal path, unimaginably pure and fresh sound flowed out like a wave. This is why foreign media praised the ALLNIC OTL/OCL preamplifiers as “Less is so much more”.
“Less is so much more”.
https://www.whatsbestforum.com/threads/announcing-the-d-10-000-otl-ocl-dac-an-industry-first.35157/
The most eye-catching front panel features are the Conversion (Conv) and Upsample buttons in the middle of the D-10000’s face. When the Conversion button is pressed, the input PCM signal is changed to a DSD signal and the DSD LED illuminates. When the Upsampling button is pressed, the user can select from a range of choices to upsample the PCM input signal all the way to 352/384kHz.
On the top plate, across both sides at the rear, there are separate power transformers for the digital circuits and the analog circuits. The vacuum tubes involved in the converted analog signals are arranged along the middle for each of the left and right channels. From the front, there are two pentode/triode 7258 tubes, two twin-triode 12AU7 tubes, and four 6C19P triodes. The 6C19P has a low internal resistance of just 400Ω, making it ideal for a preamplifier or DAC output.
From http://www.audioht.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=17783
Technical Specification
ANALOG BOARD
OTL/OCL (Output Transformer-less/Output Capacitor-less) analog output designs to the very best of today’s DAC technology.
In common circuits, output capacitors or output transformers are these two coupling devices also introduce their own influences on the transmission of the musical signal, adding their own character (colouration), increasing distortion, and consuming small signals, all as predicted by physical efficiency theory. In addition, they also limit signal dynamics. For these reasons, the elimination of output transformers and capacitors has been considered the best solution for the design of the most accurate amplifiers. Removal of these two coupling devices from the signal path achieves the best results possible:
- No colouration of the musical signal
- Extremely detailed expression, natural harmonics, and subtle musical decay
- The lowest possible distortion
- The widest musical dynamics
TUBES
- Two (2) x 7258
- Two (2) x 12AU7
- Four (4) x 6C19P
DIGITAL BOARD
- DoP : DSD 64, DSD 128
- PCM 44.1 KHz, 48 KHz, 88.2 KHz, 96 KHz, 176.4 KHz, 192 KHz, 352.8 KHz and 384 KHz.
Verified Dealers
Online Dealers
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Authorized dealers for Allnic/ZL Technologies D-10000 OTL/OCL DAC
- Audioplus Hi End — in-store — San Benedetto del Tronto, Marche, Italy (website)
- East End Hi-Fi — online and in-store — Brookhaven, New York, United States (website)
- Kronos Audio Visual — online and in-store — Staplefield, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Live Fidelity — in-store — Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands (website)
- Moorgate Acoustics — online and in-store — Woodseats, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Norsk Audio Teknikk — in-store — Sofiemyr, Akershus, Norway (website)
- Perfect sense Audio — in-store — Stockholms län, Sweden (website)
- Rennaissens — online and in-store — Boulogne-Billancourt, Île-de-France, France (website)
- SALLINGBOE AUDIO — in-store — Svebølle, Denmark (website)
- Salon One Audio — in-store — Ormond Beach, Florida, United States (website)
and 6 more verified dealers