I love this DAC. I loved it so much that I got two at one point of time. But I am downsizing my entire audio setup down to a small one-box solution, so this one needs to go.
If you do not know this DAC perhaps this is a great starting point:
SoundStage! Review, July 1996
Anyway, this is a reference-grade DAC in the late 90's that had an original price tag of $3895 for the balanced version. It has all the inputs and ouputs you will ever need, and the conversion is done by the venerable Crystal CS4328 chip which is now discontinued.
Let me try to summarize the sound signature of this DAC. My prior DAC for a long time was a NOS DAC based on 8x TDA1543 chips. When I first got the NOS DAC, I immediately knew this was it - everything sounded just right, and it had fantastic warm and liquid tone I could not find in any other modern DACs I have tried. There was a big difference in realism in the midrange that really stood out, and I could not go back.
Well, then I needed a DAC with balanced outs so I started looking and reading what everyone's been saying about the Timbre DAC I thought I should give it a try. When it arrived, I did a volume-matched comparison through my Audio-gd Phoenix between the Timbre and the NOS DAC. And I was shocked - the two sounded extremely similar! The basic "tone" and "texture" of the two DACs were very, very similar. It took me a few songs to find out what the difference was - the Timbre DAC is able to extract the finest details that the NOS DAC cannot, and in doing so provides a much more realistic soundstage and imaging. The more I listened, the more I felt that the Timbre was almost like a NOS DAC on steroids - all of the goodness of the NOS DAC's tone and texture, with resolution added on top. I could not find the kind of difference I found when coming from the world of modern oversampling DACs to the Non-OS land.
Anyway, without writing a full review (which I might later with my remaining Timbre), I think this DAC is a superbly musical DAC with a warm and realistic tone that anyone who has fallen in love with the NOS sound but wanted a little more in resolution and a darker background would really appreciate.
The DAC is in excellent condition, although there are some very minor signs of use from the 10 years or so of existence. But there is nothing glaringly wrong, and it looks quite stunning, as you can see from the photos:
Original full-res photos can be seen here.
The original user's manual will be included, as well as four rubber spikes as seen in the photos. I will also include an original Timbre-branded set of four adjustable metal spikes, complete with matching floor/furniture protectors. I also have the original box... If you think about that for a second, the DAC itself is pretty rare to begin with, it's even rarer to find one complete with the original box and packing materials! All the proper optical input covers are also present (as seen in pics). A generic AC power cable will also be included.
Finally - this amp is user switchable between 110V and 220V via the fuse box near the AC inlet.
Asking $OLD + shipping, fee-less PayPal or add 3%. I can ship internationally as well, please PM me for details on how much extra the shipping costs will be.
Thanks - and happy listening!
If you do not know this DAC perhaps this is a great starting point:
SoundStage! Review, July 1996
Anyway, this is a reference-grade DAC in the late 90's that had an original price tag of $3895 for the balanced version. It has all the inputs and ouputs you will ever need, and the conversion is done by the venerable Crystal CS4328 chip which is now discontinued.
Let me try to summarize the sound signature of this DAC. My prior DAC for a long time was a NOS DAC based on 8x TDA1543 chips. When I first got the NOS DAC, I immediately knew this was it - everything sounded just right, and it had fantastic warm and liquid tone I could not find in any other modern DACs I have tried. There was a big difference in realism in the midrange that really stood out, and I could not go back.
Well, then I needed a DAC with balanced outs so I started looking and reading what everyone's been saying about the Timbre DAC I thought I should give it a try. When it arrived, I did a volume-matched comparison through my Audio-gd Phoenix between the Timbre and the NOS DAC. And I was shocked - the two sounded extremely similar! The basic "tone" and "texture" of the two DACs were very, very similar. It took me a few songs to find out what the difference was - the Timbre DAC is able to extract the finest details that the NOS DAC cannot, and in doing so provides a much more realistic soundstage and imaging. The more I listened, the more I felt that the Timbre was almost like a NOS DAC on steroids - all of the goodness of the NOS DAC's tone and texture, with resolution added on top. I could not find the kind of difference I found when coming from the world of modern oversampling DACs to the Non-OS land.
Anyway, without writing a full review (which I might later with my remaining Timbre), I think this DAC is a superbly musical DAC with a warm and realistic tone that anyone who has fallen in love with the NOS sound but wanted a little more in resolution and a darker background would really appreciate.
The DAC is in excellent condition, although there are some very minor signs of use from the 10 years or so of existence. But there is nothing glaringly wrong, and it looks quite stunning, as you can see from the photos:
Original full-res photos can be seen here.
The original user's manual will be included, as well as four rubber spikes as seen in the photos. I will also include an original Timbre-branded set of four adjustable metal spikes, complete with matching floor/furniture protectors. I also have the original box... If you think about that for a second, the DAC itself is pretty rare to begin with, it's even rarer to find one complete with the original box and packing materials! All the proper optical input covers are also present (as seen in pics). A generic AC power cable will also be included.
Finally - this amp is user switchable between 110V and 220V via the fuse box near the AC inlet.
Asking $OLD + shipping, fee-less PayPal or add 3%. I can ship internationally as well, please PM me for details on how much extra the shipping costs will be.
Thanks - and happy listening!
