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V-Dac or Keces 131, any comparison?

post #1 of 19
11/20/09 at 1:48am
Thread Starter 
I know this subject was discussed in a previous thread but the answer was not clear.

I want to pair one of these DACs to a WA6 amp with HPs Grado SR325is and Senn 650 (the Senn in a near future )

I would like to know which one is better. I assume the Keces is better by looking at its construction and the fact that it has a good quality power supply, but people is amazed by the performance of the V-Dac so I am confused.
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post #2 of 19
11/20/09 at 2:15am
There is this review

I was surprised by his comparison.
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post #3 of 19
11/20/09 at 2:30am
Looks like the V-DAC stomps all over any competition in the price category. I couldn't help but feel the reviewer was biased in some way. Might have been the awkward translation from French. Is this hyperbole, now that the V-DAC's been around and tested for a while, or is the V-DAC trully the giant-slayer that some say it is?
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post #4 of 19
11/20/09 at 2:45am
I honestly wouldn't read too much into that review, despite the amount of gear he appears to have. The V-Dac is still pretty popular but people have said that the Dacmagic stomps all over it. Few people have heard both but reading some impressions from Head-Fi meets, one fella said that the differences were extremely small. Meh, you have those who say that the source isn't crazy important whereas others call it the second most import component besides headphones.

So read it as this. One guy thinks it's better than the Dacmagic. What is surprising is the 151 which he says is pretty much the same as the 131 with his set up and song selection. It's only 250USD, a fair bit cheaper than the V-Dac and Dacmagic. The 131 is 350USD and at that point I think I'd just step up to the Dacmagic due to the flexibility. I'm currently in such a situation too and am not sure what to get.
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post #5 of 19
11/20/09 at 3:24am
Thread Starter 
The more research you do, the worst it gets

Thanks for your replies, I will keep balancing my options and add the DacMagic to the equation.
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post #6 of 19
11/20/09 at 3:31am
I agree. It's mind-boggling. At least I am strapped for cash right now, so I have time to form a well-researched, hopefully irrefutable opinion (I hope) before I make my purchase. Is it true that the DacMagic doesn't couple well with Macs? I read somewhere that there are volume issues, where one cannot properly adjust the sound from the laptop. I would be using this with a Gilmore Lite, but I'd still be interested to know. Also, it appears that the DacMagic is prone to malfunction. Should I be cautious with a used one? Finally, is there a decent source for a V-DAC on the cheap (less than $299)?

Sorry to get a bit off topic...
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post #7 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:05am
Thread Starter 
If I remember correctly, I read somewhere that if you plug a DAC to the optical output of the iMac you will not be able to control the volume (like you do when connecting an USB DAC) from the computer. If this is the case I don't see it as a problem because the volume will be controlled by the amp.

Regarding the source for the V-DAC, according to Amazon, people who bought it, also bought the Pyramid PS3 3-Amp; it is only $17!!! Not sure how good it is. Also, the guy from the link MomijiTMO posted, seems to be using one of those cheap adapters that look like cellphone chargers.
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post #8 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:16am
How would one hook the V-DAC to the Pyramid amp? Looks like the Pyramid takes raw wires, or is that banana clips?
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post #9 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:20am
Thread Starter 
Those look like banana clips.
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post #10 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:26am
So how does one hook it up to the V-DAC? Do you have to take apart the wall-wart cable, then attach banana clips on there? Looks kind of dicey.

Also, just checked whether or not amazon.com will ship to Canada. It's a no-go. Dang amazon.ca not having their act together!
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post #11 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:46am
I'm pretty sure that the amount of happy dacmagic folks outweigh the unhappy ones by a lot. Still, there are some people who got unlucky. As for power, I think the various reviews out there [gilmore lite for example] tell you that the impact isn't on an epic scale.

The V-Dac is about the same price as the Dacmagic. The 131 is 30% cheaper than the Dacmagic. The 151 is 47% cheaper than the Dacmagic. Prices are from where I would buy things, not always the cheapest place.
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post #12 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:19pm
Still no source for a V-DAC after searching... scratch that: scouring the web for hours.

If anyone has a "spare" that they no longer need, PM me. I'm good for it!
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post #13 of 19
11/20/09 at 4:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by MomijiTMO View Post
The V-Dac is about the same price as the Dacmagic.
No they don't have the same price. In the UK you can get the V-DAC for about 160 GBP, while the DacMagic is 230 GBP (used to be 200). And in the States I have seen their prices are ~$250-300 and $400 respectively.

About 2 weeks ago, I compared my V-DAC and the DacMagic in UK Meet. There wasn't much different, I can confidently say that they are in the same league.
While the V-DAC has more forward mids, a bit clearer as well, the bass is slightly tigher and I felt it has slightly better dynamic. On the other hand, the DacMagic is warmer, has smoother sound, might have slightly less speed, but still, the bass on DacMagic rocks! Its soundstage also a bit wider than the V-DACs. For my preference, I slightly prefer the V-DAC, though the DacMagic is certainly no slouch, and I enjoyed listening to it.
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post #14 of 19
11/20/09 at 6:00pm
"the DacMagic has a hair more than potatoes..."

Onecall.com has open box V-Dacs for $260. Don't know if they ship to Canada though.
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post #15 of 19
11/20/09 at 8:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by nhat_thanh View Post
No they don't have the same price.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MomijiTMO View Post
Prices are from where I would buy things, not always the cheapest place.
Hi I live in Australia. My prices, my percentages
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