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Cambridge DACMagic, anyone? (THREAD II) - Page 6

post #76 of 625
7/26/09 at 8:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Drubbing View Post
I'd have to agree with these, coming from a Corda 3Move. The first thing I noticed when my ears adjusted, after a couple of hours, was the separation; sound is more expansive, yet also more immediate. I found the DACmagic to have much greater clarity as well.

I got a little boost in the mids, even though my amp is lacking in this department, and it runs 'hotter' for volume through my amp.

Quote:
Originally Posted by roker View Post
great review, though I'm wondering what judgement your reserving with those enthusiastic impressions. Overall, I felt it was in line with my thoughts of this DAC.

I'd say this DAC shines with hip hop, electronic/rock, techno, etc. It seems to favor the beating drum, rhythm, and pristine vocals. The classic songs I listen to (from Motown to Beatles, etc.) don't sound as "live" or airy as they have with previous DACs, but still sound great nonetheless.
I think it is at least a few weeks before I get over "new toy" phase
Quote:
Originally Posted by stvn758 View Post
Richer Sounds have put the 840c price up to £899.95, a hundred quid rise.

Think the Dac Magic has anything to do with that?
Richer Sounds have put the prices up for a lot of things, from speakers to separates
Quote:
Originally Posted by thathertz View Post
TO LFC SL: Great review, thanks. I have the Edirol UA-1EX which I'm using
for USB > Optical conversion in the chain. I sent my DacMagic for mods
(which never happened) recently and was left with the Edirol unit.
IMO the DacMagic is in a totally different league...from memory the
UA-1EX had a compressed soundstage, lack of dynamics, and weak bass
and treble. I gave up listening and waited for my DacMagic's return.
Hmm well the UA-1EX is a lesser sound card than the UA-25. For a first time external offering the UA-25 has an excellent DAC inside the sound card. In all likelihood if my opinion of the Dacmagic is confirmed after more hours and new toy shine has worn off, then I will be moving on the UA-25 for around half the price I paid which makes it an incredibly good entry system
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post #77 of 625
7/26/09 at 6:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by anetode View Post
Poor analogy. Like comparing the difference in size between a hill and a mountain to that between an ant and a buick. Let's stick to audio and leave image resampling to the temporally challenged world of photoshop.
Well, you're certainly entitled to your opinion but i think there is a valid parallel with the example i stated and it really doesn't matter if i use tangerines to illustrate the point that all things are not equal just because the volume is matched. In fact, it's quite the opposite.

Simply put, as soon as you match the volume level between two sources, you are mis-matching the S/N ratio & distortion values because you are using more amplification gain to achieve the same audio output level. The comparison is therefore not apples to apples
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post #78 of 625
7/27/09 at 5:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by stvn758 View Post
Richer Sounds have put the 840c price up to £899.95, a hundred quid rise.

Think the Dac Magic has anything to do with that?
If they had put it up to £1000.95 then the statement made by Hi fi News magazine that the DACMagic is the benchmark below £1000 might seem less absurd.

So what are they trying to do here? Perhaps too many people were discovering how much better the 840C sounds with it's higher upsampling rate and killer transport. The pricing move might be an attempt to force people to settle for the DACMagic by pricing the 840C even further out of reach.
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post #79 of 625
7/27/09 at 7:58am
Part of the steep rise is market forces - RS evidently believe they can sell units at that price. But as I said, look at the rest of the website. Pretty much everything except for cables and racks have had minimum £20 added to it from a few months ago
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post #80 of 625
7/27/09 at 4:00pm
Done this test thrice over now

a) HP nc8430 notebook -> usb -> Dacmagic -> RCA -> Tomahawk -> HD600
b) HP nc8430 notebook -> usb -> Dacmagic -> RCA -> Technics stereo amp -> RCA from Tape Monitor out -> Tomahawk -> HD600

Now I was thinking Tape Monitor Out on the stereo amp should not matter. But sound stage is a sliver wider and expanded. And then a layer of muddiness from the bass is removed. Only a thin layer - I am talking using a grater to slice garlic (Goodfellas reference for those wondering). So not much difference, but I can tell the difference

Explanation?
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post #81 of 625
7/28/09 at 11:05pm
Hi, everyone. I started this thread last year and haven't been on Head-Fi for months. I've had my DacMagic for about a year now and I'm still happy with it. I use it in combination with a LD MKIV that powers my HD650s and serves as a pre-amp for an unmodded Trends TA-10.1 power a pair of Boston bookshelf speakers. Really happy with my setup. Now I better logoff Head-Fi lest I suddenly find myself unhappy.
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post #82 of 625
7/28/09 at 11:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by McPanse View Post
Now I better logoff Head-Fi lest I suddenly find myself unhappy.
the only thing that'll make you unhappy is your bank statement.
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post #83 of 625
7/29/09 at 2:31pm
Q: Will this work?:

Dacmagic -> 2x XLR ~ RCA cable -> amp with mini input

It seems some of you guys are doing this. I was under the impression balanced to unbalanced does not go but whatever. If so, do you need female or male XLR end? Thanks
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post #84 of 625
7/29/09 at 4:12pm
I'm using both sets of outputs from my DacMagic.
Single ended goes to my nearfield speaker rig preamp while the balanced output is connected to my SP PPX3 via XLR to RCA cables.

Works well so far.
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post #85 of 625
7/29/09 at 4:54pm
Can this unit take USB input and then output through the analog RCAs as well as through the optical digital out at the same time?
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post #86 of 625
7/29/09 at 5:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by advan031 View Post
It only has RCA (unbalanced) and balanced outputs...no optical out.
Huh? This picture of the back shows an optical out (and dig. coax too):

http://www.studio-22.com/cambridge/i...Magic_rear.jpg

?
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post #87 of 625
7/29/09 at 5:30pm
My most immediate purchase will be an optical cable to see how it compares to usb. Then probably around xmas, after it when I have money again I will buy a full sized headphone amp. It looks like I have to go XLR~RCA cable route as I hate cable swapping

...

My stereo amp has a pre-out on it but the manual speaks only of going to a power amp or sub. Indeed when connecting up my Tomahawk there is no sound
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post #88 of 625
7/29/09 at 6:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by phototristan View Post
Can this unit take USB input and then output through the analog RCAs as well as through the optical digital out at the same time?
I'm not sure what you're asking

but if you output it through the digital outs of the DAC it's just sending out the music. I think this is mainly used for recording purposes or something.

use either the digital out or usb out from your computer and send it to the dac, then use the RCAs or XLRs to your amp for your headphones or speakers.

easy, said, and done
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post #89 of 625
7/29/09 at 6:06pm
I want to send the audio out to my powered speakers (via the RCAs) as well as to another device (via the optical out). Can this be done? I don't care if the optical out is just a passthrough.


Quote:
Originally Posted by roker View Post
I'm not sure what you're asking

but if you output it through the digital outs of the DAC it's just sending out the music. I think this is mainly used for recording purposes or something.

use either the digital out or usb out from your computer and send it to the dac, then use the RCAs or XLRs to your amp for your headphones or speakers.

easy, said, and done
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post #90 of 625
7/29/09 at 6:23pm
^ yes. you can do rca out, xlr out, and 1 of the coaxial or optical digital out all simultaneously

though on mine, wheni use both the rca and xlr out, theres a bit of buzzing on the rca's
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