Maverick Audio DAC/Amp - Page 61

I may get chastized for this but I figured a WTB post isn't a conflict of interest. I'm looking to buy a D! new version of the Maverick to take to meets for others to compare it side by side with the Zero and Compass I already have.
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f42/wt...ac-amp-469834/

MODs please free to delete if you feel this is improper.
Boomy

I know there's only 2 opamps and one of them is for the DAC so... I'm not sure what you're saying. I don't think the analog out uses a opamp but I could be wrong on that.

& Hi Boomy Still got your Zero huh? I don't think the Maverick has been around long enough to have people wanting to re-sell theirs, I could be wrong though. There's either DOA ones (haven't heard of any) or people that are still listening to it. Good luck though.

Thanks.. Just thought I'd give anybody suffering from upgraditis a chance to sell me thiers before I have Ryan ship out a new one.

Ah, well, in case you haven't read the entire thread, there's technically 3 versions out.

The first is the basic unit without opamp sockets (probably the one you would receive if you bought a used one).
The second has a design change including a line-in jack in the front and opamp sockets (has been out for maybe a month and a half?).
The third has the gain mod added.

I believe the 3rd is shipping now but I would ask Ryan before ordering just in case he has a few of the old ones left.

I think I may just " Bite The Bullet" and get the newest version new from Ryan. I really want to be able to give the people at the meet a chance to hear the latest version side by side with the Zero and Compass.

I took my D1 to a SMAC(Southeast Michigan Audio Club) meet yesterday and there where 20 guys there that all liked it. I thought a friend of mine was going to bring over a Raytheon and WE 5670 tubes but he forgot them.

we A/B the D1 with a very expensive Rotel tube CD player. We were playing the CD and a laptop hooked up to the D1 playing the same song in FLAC. Everyone agreed the D1/laptop sounded better than the CD player.

Ryan: you should have some orders coming your way!!!

I am in the middle of designing and building a 6SL7/GM70 SET amp so the opamp upgrade will have to wait. That said, I'm not sure it needs it. I am digging this little guy as is. Cheers.

Thanks Danny. I am starting to understand what you said. I am an old vacuum tube guy so the whole digital music server is new to me. Also, I really like my headless computer next to my system going into my D1. Sounds better than my CD player. Didn't mean to be snippy. I just reread my post and it sounded that way.

Anyway, thanks for the explanation. Cheers.

Well, though I have not pulled the trigger yet, I have decided to stick with the maverick D1 as my first amp when I'm done saving up for it. Even after a lot of people gave me plenty of good suggestions it came down to this and the hifiman EF2. The deal breaker was the diversity of the D1 and the ability to be future proof. If I ever wanted another amp in the future, this could still be a standalone DAC. That and the combo of solid state and tubes gives me a chance to try two kinds of amp sound. The DAC in the D1 also seemed to have stronger approval than the EF2. All and all, I just couldn't say no to this beauty. Next step is the D1 and a new pair of headphones that offer me a different side of sound and a more "fun" listening experience.

Thanks for the input, I figured this much but I wasn't completely sure.

Update

I've been playing around with my D1 for almost two weeks now, and I'm ready to post my final conclusions. Hint: I like.

My "old" setup was a Sony DVD player patched through a Behringer equalizer and then input into my amp. The combination of my speakers and DVD player as my music system left the music a little wanting. It sounded dry, muffled, flat, and too bright. The sound stage was only as big as the speakers. So, I patched the equalizer so I could custom edit certain bandwidths to make the music more listener friendly. While this helped and was more tolerable, it wasn't what I would call accurate or pure.

So, then I added the D1. I ran the DVD player into the D1 to do the D/A conversion. This immediately helped, although small and subtle. When I hooked in the D1, I decided to still patch in the equalizer because it had a tone defeat button, so I thought I could just hit the button to hear a pure D1 signal and then compare it to my own custom edited sound.

The D1 did help. Sounds were more laid back. The sound stage was a little better. The D1 did make subtle changes. They were changes for the better, but still nothing to send home postcards about.

Then, this weekend, I was playing around with my system. I decided to put better audio interlinks between the D1 and my amp and speakers. Then, I decided to not run cables through the equalizer.

This made a huge difference. I did several other tests and configurations, including using the equalizer and not using it.

The bottom line is this: While the equalizer helped my system at first to make the best of a flat on board DVD DAC and bright speakers, the equalizer became the weak link in my D1-based system. It was literally a signal stealer. It noticeably degraded the audio signal.

When not using the equalizer, and running the tube-out into my amp, the sound is much better. It sounds more natural. It sounds more pure. While I'm still limited by not using $4000 speakers, I think my system is as good as it can be. The D1 really does bring out the best in my system.

The sound stage isn't wider from left-to-right, but it's definitely thicker. I can hear and feel all kinds of sounds between me and the speakers. Before adding the D1 (and then when using the D1 with the equalizer), the sound stage had no thickness. The sound was only "on" the speakers.

Voices are more clear. Before, they were buried in the background tones. Now, there is clear separation from the background music.

The bass isn't as overpowering. Before, I cranked up the 60 hz equalizer slider to hear some bass (it was a poor signal). Now, the bass is there, is more refined, but does not overpower. This is more musical. It's how the artists intended their music to be.

I don't have all the terminology and lingo, but in the end, the way my system is set up is more musical. More pure. More like what the artists intended it to. I did some comparisons, and it's now very close in sound to using headphones. Everything seems balanced and like it should be.

So, the take home lesson is this:
Signal-robbing devices like patched-in equalizers and lower quality interconnects really do make a difference. Ditch those possible sources of degradation to really get the most out of your D1. I never thought interconnects made a difference on sub-$4000 systems. I thought wrong. Now my system is singing.

As someone on this thread suggested many pages ago, mid-fi is a much bigger step up from lo-fi than from mid-fi to break-the-bank hi-fi. Good quality interconnects can make a very noticable difference from the crappy ones that come with consumer grade components. But the differences between $40 and $400 interconnects are probably much harder to hear.

I went from the $0.05 interconnects that come with consumer electronics to the "premium" $2.00 interconnects from Monoprice, which by all accounts are the same cable type and quality as those $40 "Monster" cables. I can definitely hear a difference. But, like you said, with my system, I would never hear the difference when using $400 interconnects.

Didn't know about Monoprice. Their products look pretty good. I saw that they sell the same optical cable that I got from Parts Express for about $5.00 and seems to be of rather good quality -- sounds great at least!

More like nonexistent.

I want to make this extremely clear. If you're buying interconnects to make your mid-fi system sound better, skip it.

I came across another thread where they made custom icons for Windows Vista/7's sound panel. I thought I would share the one I made for the D1:

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f46/wi...ml#post6364286


*EDIT*
Back on the topic. I was feeling crafty and decided I needed some nicer interconnects since the ones I had patched were ones that I had laying around. So I made a Markertek order and dropped $25 on parts to build me a DIY SPDIF with RG-6 and Neutrik RCA connectors, mini-RCA analog with Mogami Neglex and Neutrik connectors, and 12' headphone extension cable again with Mogami Neglex and Neutrik connectors. I don't know if they make a difference but in doing that I know I won't get upgradeitis at least for a long time since I know I not only spent money but time on them I mostly bought them since I had never really made cables before and thought it would be fun, also now I have cables the exact length I need.
Here's a pic of my D1 cable lines if anyone is interested:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/464376/websi...o/DSC05219.JPG