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Danish audio brand Copland has been absent from these pages in terms of new product launches for some time, but now it’s back with its long-awaited DAC 215 USB DAC/headphone preamp fed by a pair of ECC88 tubes. Described as a “Universal high-resolution DAC, preamplifier and headphone amplifier” it can be used as a headphone amp, preamp or as a pure DAC – the choice is yours. 

The Copland DAC 215 looks set to be bang on trend with its retro styling thanks to the rotary front panel controls for the volume level and input selection, and the faint glow of the valves from the headphone amp output section lurking behind the slatted grille will undoubtedly enhance any likely old-school feel for potential purchasers. But at the heart of the DAC 215 is a digital-to-analogue converter with multiple S/PDIF inputs, PCM, and DSD capabilities using the ES9018 Reference 8-channel DAC used in double-differential mode. The Class A buffering technology of the analogue filtering sections is said to be borrowed from the brand’s acclaimed line of CD players, which helps it to produce what Copland calls “unconstrained sound quality”.

In terms of connectivity, the DAC 215 incorporates an asynchronous USB input, 1 coaxial and 2x Toslink digital inputs, an analogue input, 2x analogue outputs (fixed and variable) and a 6.35mm headphone jack output. 

The USB input supports hi-res PCM 32-bit/384kHz and DSD64 and DSD128 formats, and input sample rates are indicted by two columns of red lights on the front panel showing the incoming rate. 

The regulated power supply for the USB input section has its own power transformer winding. Models are on sale now and available finished with black or silver front panels. Available to buy now for £1,998, you can find out more about the DAC 215 by clicking here.