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Audio-GD neophyte - Reference-7 vs Reference-8 + USB

post #1 of 9
10/24/10 at 5:33pm
Thread Starter 

Hi fellas, sorry I've tried to wade through the bible of Audio-GD threads but still need some help.

 

I understand the Ref-7 and Ref-8 are the top DACs....has anyone heard/compared both? What are the key differences?

 

Finally, the USB options for both units - are they inclusive of the new USB-S/PDIF "Digital Interface"? Or is that doohickey a better solution if using USB?

 

Really appreciate any summary / help!

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post #2 of 9
10/25/10 at 3:40am

Hi there, 1UP!

 

Yessss, good question...

 

I am looking for the same kind of answer. "Reference 7" is under the category of "neutral" sounding DACs (like RE5 and DAC-19), while "Reference 8" is one of the "musical flavor" / "diamond" equipped DACs (like RE9).

 

I am looking for people who have actually auditioned both types and can give us a useful comparison, and tell us, where the actual differences are...

 

So I had started another thread with this question:

http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/519510/

 

Looking forward to all useful answers smily_headphones1.gif !

 

Cheers!

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post #3 of 9
10/25/10 at 5:28pm
Thread Starter 

I'll do some more research to make it easier for folks to answer any remaining questions. Just such a wad of information to catch up on 

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post #4 of 9
10/25/10 at 7:42pm
Thread Starter 

Crikey, alright, I just extracted specs from the product pages. All units have optional USB inputs and configurable digital inputs.

 

All I can say is the DAC-19 looks the biggest bargain. No idea what the difference in neutral vs musical is meant to describe, really, other than it pegs off whether it uses their ACSS circuit or a diamond buffer output stage. The other price factor seems to be whether one wants balanced or just single-ended. Hope this helps!

 

dacs.jpg


Edited by 1UP - 10/25/10 at 7:45pm
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post #5 of 9
10/27/10 at 10:55am

Wait I thought the Ref 7 had the DIR9001 and feed its output to the DSP1. Otherwise what is limiting sample rates to 96k?

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post #6 of 9
10/27/10 at 9:34pm


 

Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverCans View Post

Wait I thought the Ref 7 had the DIR9001 and feed its output to the DSP1. Otherwise what is limiting sample rates to 96k?



pcm1704UK dac chip can process up to 24/96 bit sample rate but no higher. I think the DIR9001 is also limited to 24/96 (if you can call that limited). The DSP-1 module will accept 24/192 encoded files but will downsample to 96khz.

 

Peete.


Edited by Pricklely Peete - 10/28/10 at 8:33pm
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post #7 of 9
10/28/10 at 9:21am

That said, does the Ref7 use the DIR9001? I don't have block diagram in my head, is it DIR9001->DSP1->PCM1704UK ?

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post #8 of 9
10/28/10 at 1:44pm

Whole Reference series use DIR9001 as receiver. Table needs fixing.

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post #9 of 9
10/28/10 at 3:15pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by FauDrei View Post

Whole Reference series use DIR9001 as receiver. Table needs fixing.



That's what I thought. 1UP please correct your table

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