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Review of the Audio-Gd DAC-19 DF / MKIV - Page 3

post #31 of 128
3/16/10 at 11:04am
About to pull the trigger... For you who have reasonable neutral gear with good dynamics you would say it isn´t bright, It will show errors in recordings but not pronounce it? It will sound natural and not to analytical? I am no fan of excessive warmth though I want it to sound real but easy on the ears. Good soundstaging but still sound full and rich and not to thin?

A lot of these are kind of slight contradictions I am fully aware that you can´t get it all
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post #32 of 128
3/16/10 at 11:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by oqvist View Post
About to pull the trigger... For you who have reasonable neutral gear with good dynamics you would say it isn´t bright, It will show errors in recordings but not pronounce it? It will sound natural and not to analytical? I am no fan of excessive warmth though I want it to sound real but easy on the ears. Good soundstaging but still sound full and rich and not to thin?

A lot of these are kind of slight contradictions I am fully aware that you can´t get it all
If you want the most neutral and faithful sound balance, go for the dac19DSP version. In highly resolving set ups, the DF1704 can sound a little bit on the bright side and it takes a lot of trial and error (transports, digital cables, ...) to get the best tonal balance from the DF1704.

On less resolving systems, both the DF and DSP version should be fine.
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post #33 of 128
3/16/10 at 11:58am
Quote:
For you who have reasonable neutral gear with good dynamics you would say it isn´t bright
It's not bright, but it does have quick dynamics though, you might want to pair it with a slightly warm amp.

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It will show errors in recordings but not pronounce it?
That's how I'd describe it, it's nice for songs where recording flaws are actually put in deliberately.

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It will sound natural and not to analytical?
audio-gd stuff I tried are all unanalytical (ie, not dry), they have the crazy RMAA measurements to prove it .

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I am no fan of excessive warmth though I want it to sound real but easy on the ears.
Sound real and easy on the ears is the stated mission of audio-gd

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Our products deliver neutral and slightly sweet sound with well expressed dynamic details. Acknowledged and supported by our users, we have achieved continuous development. If not specially required, we give priority to a neutral and slightly sweet sound. We guarantee a strong analyzing ability with high-speed circuit and this enables our users to get a clearer and more detailed sound.
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Good soundstaging but still sound full and rich and not to thin?
Always good soundstage if it's in the recording. Giving a full and rich but not thin is a tough question, these aren't things that dac19 tries to do sound signature-wise. It's neither thick nor thin, if you want a thick sound audio-gd has dac's designed specifically for that.
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post #34 of 128
3/16/10 at 12:19pm
Thanks a lot
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post #35 of 128
3/16/10 at 12:35pm
If you think I'm just joking, I wasn't when I said you should consider one of audio-gd's musical dac's if that's what you're looking for. I thought pro 900 and compass with moon hdam to be very enjoyable, if you don't mind the colored emotion.
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post #36 of 128
3/16/10 at 12:45pm
Compass the best option in such case? Well I do have a great "musical" DAC in the Elite Pro already so that is covered. I always have my equalizer to play with so I think the DAC19 DSP should be a more solid base I hope then the compass?

Colouration is nice but it´s a gamble too. DX 1000, Pro 900, Edition 8 all improved on the GHP which for me is more transparent then my old amps
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post #37 of 128
3/16/10 at 12:56pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by oqvist View Post
I always have my equalizer to play with so I think the DAC19 DSP should be a more solid base I hope then the compass?
I had the Compass and it's nowhere close to the DAC 19, believe me.
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post #38 of 128
3/16/10 at 2:02pm
Maybe wait the new dac that are meant to pair with the roc.
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post #39 of 128
3/16/10 at 2:06pm
dac19 is much different than compass, but I hear the new FUN dac section is an improvement over the compass dac section. I was thinking more like the dac-3SE.
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post #40 of 128
3/16/10 at 4:00pm
What new DAC. And what is roc? They seem to be continuously releasing new dacs... So either you have a choice waiting forever for the new and bigger version or get in early.

I am in a bit of a dilemma. I want 2 rca outputs but it would get a bit cheaper and probably quicker ordering from their european retailer at ampcity.co.uk if I would have to pay vat and custom fees.

Anybody done business with ampcity if they are good to deal with?
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post #41 of 128
3/16/10 at 4:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sk3383 View Post
Look forward to hearing about the m2tech hiface paired with the DAC-19.

I am not sure if I want to use any connection that goes through USB. I would rather obtain a bit perfect signal through the coaxial output of my soundcard.
I use HiFace with my DAC19Mk3. Before HiFace I had ESI Juli@ with optical output and M-Audio Audiophile 192 with coaxial output. I can say that your assumption about USB < Soundcard is wrong. HiFace simply destroyed both of my soundcards in sound quality. Better dynamics, blacker backgrounds and overall more alive sound. HiFace is clearly a better option. Both of the soundcards mentioned cost about the same than HiFace so there's no reason not to try out HiFace.

Oh and HiFace also solved my problems with electricity. With pretty much all of my soundcards, I used to have pops and cracks in the sound when turning on/off lights in my apartment. With HiFace, this problem is gone. I guess it's because HiFace is galvanically isolated.

I must admit that I had exactly same feeling before I decided to try out HiFace. That's mainly because I had tried out some weaker USB to spdif converters like Bel Canto USBLink. That one didn't impress me at all.
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post #42 of 128
3/16/10 at 5:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by oqvist View Post
What new DAC. And what is roc? They seem to be continuously releasing new dacs... So either you have a choice waiting forever for the new and bigger version or get in early.
The roc is a audio gd pre-amp/headphone amp : н¨ÍøÒ³ 1

I don't know about this DAC but it should be better and closer to their flagship DAC.
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post #43 of 128
3/16/10 at 5:39pm
Estimated cost? Is it a single ended or balanced DAC? I have no need for balanced. I am not going to mate it with the roc or anything.. I am done on the amp front after getting my Goldpoint upgraded to V5.
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post #44 of 128
3/16/10 at 8:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega17TheTrue View Post
The roc is a audio gd pre-amp/headphone amp : н¨ÍøÒ³ 1

I don't know about this DAC but it should be better and closer to their flagship DAC.
As Roc owner I'm eagerly waiting this DAC: the last time I spoke with Kingwa he said will be released by the end of the march. It's a balanced DAC, with the same chassis of the Roc, and it should cost around $1000
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post #45 of 128
3/17/10 at 12:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by realmassy View Post
As Roc owner I'm eagerly waiting this DAC: the last time I spoke with Kingwa he said will be released by the end of the march. It's a balanced DAC, with the same chassis of the Roc, and it should cost around $1000
Shoot, I didn't know about this. I just purchased the DAC-19DSP, but couldnt really afford his Reference 1 plus the size was just too large. Now he is building a fully balanced DSP DAC for around 1000 in a small chasis. Damn..... Wish I waited...
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