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Zhaolu 2.0 ARRIVED!!! IMPRESSION INSIDE! - Page 7

post #91 of 858
5/8/06 at 7:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tianguis
All:
Received my stock 1752 2.0 today from Eddie
I assume you mean 1852?
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post #92 of 858
5/8/06 at 8:31pm
BRB:

Yup, the finger is quicker than the, um, whatdoyoucallit.

Larry
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post #93 of 858
5/8/06 at 9:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tianguis
All:
Received my stock 1752 2.0 today from Eddie (2 days transit time to New York City).
I've been using a modded Nixon Dackit, which I built, and have compared (A/B) to a number of DAC's, including Dodson, Stello, Bel Canto. Differences seemed minor.

Regards,
Larry Welsh
Do keep us updated on your progress. BTW which "Dodson, Stello, Bel canto" DAC's were you talking about? (Dodson 217/II-D/218, Stello 100/220, BC 1/2?)
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post #94 of 858
5/8/06 at 10:18pm
Jon:
The A/B's were done in a gathering of audio nuts. Dodson 218, Stello 220. The Dodson was the clear winner by a nose (a BIG nose, I guess). The Dodson had been used in the sytem. Next was the Stello, where we tried all sampling rates and most felt that NOS was best. Then came the Dackit, which remained in the system until the end of the gathering. Nobody asked to take it out. The other comparo was with a BC 2, but just a couple of folks.

Larry
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post #95 of 858
5/8/06 at 10:27pm
So does the knob in the front control change the volume of the output coming from the RCAs? I checked with the U.S. distributer and he said that he believes that is the case.
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post #96 of 858
5/8/06 at 10:34pm
High:

Oops! I guess it's still so new that nobody is familiar with it. The volume pot (100K) is only for the headphone output.

Larry
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post #97 of 858
5/8/06 at 10:58pm
Ah, that's too bad. I like keeping preamps out of the equation.
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post #98 of 858
5/8/06 at 11:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HiGHFLYiN9
So does the knob in the front control change the volume of the output coming from the RCAs? I checked with the U.S. distributer and he said that he believes that is the case.
There are two analog outputs. One is fixed straight from the DAC like any other regular old DAC has. The other analog output is controlled by the volume, the signal comes FROM THE HEADPHONE AMP, so essentially it allows you to use the unit as a preamp. (the final set of RCA's is a direct analog input to the headphone amp for use with another source)
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post #99 of 858
5/8/06 at 11:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HiGHFLYiN9
So does the knob in the front control change the volume of the output coming from the RCAs? I checked with the U.S. distributer and he said that he believes that is the case.
It controls the headphone jack and one set of RCAs in the back.

Filip
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post #100 of 858
5/8/06 at 11:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HiGHFLYiN9
Ah, that's too bad. I like keeping preamps out of the equation.
I'm confused here at what you are saying, bro. The unit has a pair of fixed level analog outputs from the DAC, completely 100% unaffected by the volume control. The volume control only controls the headphone jack output as well as an extra pair of RCA analog outputs at the back, where the signal comes from the headphone amp only, essentially allowing the unit to be used as a preamp. It's an awesome little feature, one could connect an amp to the Zhaolu and then a pair of speakers, using the Zhaolu as a preamp.
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post #101 of 858
5/8/06 at 11:12pm
I was considering using it in between my cd player's digital out and my monoblock amplifiers which don't have volume control. I wasn't planning on using headphones anywhere in the equation. From what you two have said it sounds like this would work just fine.
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post #102 of 858
5/8/06 at 11:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HiGHFLYiN9
I was considering using it in between my cd player and my monoblock amplifiers which don't have volume control. I wasn't planning on using headphones anywhere in the equation. From what you two have said it sounds like this would work just fine.
That's precisely a situation where it would work well. That would be cool. Gotta wonder though what the gain would be and if the Zhaolu would have any noise when used like that.
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post #103 of 858
5/9/06 at 3:37am
Eddie has updated his web page. The first 50 free upgrades are gone. He is giving free upgrades to another 50!

Some early birds for the first 50 will receive theirs soon. We should hear more about the D2.0 from these people!
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post #104 of 858
5/9/06 at 4:17am
Yeah mine should be here in a few hours, IF the customs didnt ****** up which means i would have to wait until tomorrow to pick it up at my local customs office.
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post #105 of 858
5/9/06 at 6:17am
It arrived!





Sorry for the crappy cellphone pictures

I dont have much experiences with DACs besides whats in the Aria and i listened to a Benchmark DAC 1 for a few days (which was last year).
For the price the Zhalou definately sounds wow, seriously It is very airy and expands soundstage quiet a nice bit. It just adds the airyness i missed with my K701.
Surprisingly also the K81 DJ sounds much better out of the zhalou compared to my ipod/soundcard.

If the CS4398 gives thick vocals like described i can see myself getting a 2nd CS4398 zhalou for the A900LTD as a PC setup and the AD1852 for my bedroom with the K701.. However that depends on how much the discreet headphone amp improves with the K701
But i stand with my opinion that source is more important. The Zhalou gives me more joy than the Aria did, however i only used the Arias internal DAC, which was clearly a limiting factor.
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