Thoughts and opinions on Citypulse DA7.2x II

[FinnishPower]

Does this DAC really rank up their with the Benchmark DAC?
What are other similar DAC's in the same price range?
Is there much in the way of tweaks for this DAC, if so what?

Citypulse DA7.2x

[mrarroyo]

Opinions vary amongst its owners, do a search it has been discussed.

[FinnishPower]

just did a search and found nothing

[mrarroyo]

I just did and got a few threads, to do the search go to the dedicated source forums and do a search under Citypulse DA7.2 and see what happens.

[FinnishPower]

Originally Posted by mrarroyo

I just did and got a few threads, to do the search go to the dedicated source forums and do a search under Citypulse DA7.2 and see what happens.

thats what i did, i have read every thread on DA7.2, there was only one post on mods to the DAC besides talk about the txco upgrade, there is zero mention of it comparing to the benchmark dac

[pompon]

I have a Citypulse DA7.2x + TXCO clock+ LM4562 opamp

I will qualify the sonority as:

- Warm
- bass is strong and go deep.
Not so much details in the bass
- Highs are a bit "digital" but level are ok. If I use the oversampling switch, it's smooth a bit the highs. I prefer OFF to have more details.
- Mids are a bit laid back. Lack clarity .. it's a bit confusing.

It's a fun dac to listen, if you want neutral presentation, look elsewhere ...

The unit react very well with better powercord and better coax cable.

I think, it's a good buy for the price.

I heard Fubar III + supply (300$)
RSA PRedator (500$)
Oritek OMZ4 (750$) (I own one)
Esoteric D-03 (14 000$)
CD Player AudioResearch CD3MK2 (6500$) (I own one)
Citypulse (330$) (I own one)

[FinnishPower]

Originally Posted by pompon

I have a Citypulse DA7.2x + TXCO clock+ LM4562 opamp

I will qualify the sonority as:

- Warm
- bass is strong and go deep.
Not so much details in the bass
- Highs are a bit "digital" but level are ok. If I use the oversampling switch, it's smooth a bit the highs. I prefer OFF to have more details.
- Mids are a bit laid back. Lack clarity .. it's a bit confusing.

It's a fun dac to listen, if you want neutral presentation, look elsewhere ...

The unit react very well with better powercord and better coax cable.

I think, it's a good buy for the price.

I heard Fubar III + supply (300$)
RSA PRedator (500$)
Oritek OMZ4 (750$) (I own one)
Esoteric D-03 (14 000$)
CD Player AudioResearch CD3MK2 (6500$) (I own one)
Citypulse (330$) (I own one)

thanks for the reply, what would you rank your cd players and dacs?

[spyderx]

I have the vII of this one. I like it. And, I think the latest version addresses much of the things that POMPOM calls out. After about 300 hours of use there was a noticeable smoothing of the highs.

Now, I don't use the headphone amp. I only use this as a DAC feeding a small tube amp with Usher bookshelf speakers.

I like it. I think the highs have very good clarity, the bass strong, and the overall imaging very good. It sounds signifcantly better than the DAC in my latest generation iMac. I think it also sounds better than the dac in my Rotel preamp. It sounds a TON better than the DAC in my mid-level Sony CD player.

I think this is a good mid-level device, and for those not wanting to mod the crap out of a Zhalou provides solid sound quality.

Give it a run, I think the 2 vendors offer pretty liberal return policies. I'm keeping mine. Remember, LET IT BURN IN at least 200 hours before you start to judge it!

[pompon]

Originally Posted by FinnishPower

thanks for the reply, what would you rank your cd players and dacs?

For me:

0.5 = It's better but it's close. I can say "well" after listen A and B. Need to relax with good recording.
1 = It's better but it's not night and day. On a blind test, I should be able to hear a difference. After a certain time, I can pick a winner when I know what is different.
2 = It's better, I am sure. Blind test should reveal me a significative difference.
3 = It's another league ... I will be shy to choose the cheeper one! 8-)


I have exagerated the step here to show what fealing I have in every step.

Esoteric D-03 DAC (14 000$) as reference for 8/10
(smooth and first time I hear DEPTH of soundstage at this level. The music is just big). This DAC have a "coloration" to my ears.

AudioResearch CD3MK2 (6500$) (6.5/10)
(I have no complain with the SQ .. it's good)

X-Meridian 7.1 soundcard +lm4562 (189$) (6.0/10)
(Possibly a clone of my CD3 in general. Just a little bit less of all aspects).

DAC Oritek (750$) (5/10)
(on the neutral side and lack bass. Soundstage is wider than deeper (I will prefer more balanced). Mids are very airy and it's clear. It's a good dac without objections for the price)

Citypulse +LM4562 (350$) (4/10)
(same sonority as my arc in general. Lack clarity and definition. Nothing is magic but it's fun for ambient listening).

Predator (500$) (3.5-3.8/10)
(it's portable ... no major issue .. it's fun to listen, dynamic, strong bass. Never done A/B with citypulse ... can be 4 but not more)

Onboard soundcard (0$) (1.5 to 2.5/10) (certain computer are a lot better to other ... )
(nothing special ... but just balanced sound. Music is slow, no definition, no deep bass ...)

Fubar III + supply (300$) (2.5/10)
(have potential to have something better to on-board ... but lack excitement in general. It's a bit frustring .. it's why I put it under certain soundcard).

Gina 3D professionnal Soundcard (300-400$) (2.5) .. look like fubar for me. No excitement, no special bass enveloppement, no special highs ... just boring to listen.

[mrarroyo]

pompon I am confused, you write that the Oritek V4.1 DAC costs $750. Yet I just went to Oritek's site and it has a $529 price, if you convert it to Canadian dollars it would be about $541. Even if you add S&H and PayPal fees you would still be under $600 canadian.

Where do you get the $750 from? Thanks.