I now have the buffalo II with legato output and I need to say, wow! The difference is huge, yet subtle.
I use a bottlehead SEX amp with akg k702 for my phone rig, and a tube amp and my dynaco a-25's for my speaker system.
I have NEVER tried any other DAC's then the V-dac and buffalo.I'm planning to get the anedio just for the sake of it.
Okay, well my reaction to my new dac was:" Darling, this is ridiculous".
And yes, the difference is ridiculous. In every area, the sound has improve quite dramatically. The first thing I need to point out: the music breath! Every section (bass, mids and highs) have clearly their place. I don't need to focus on anything to hear it. Everything is right in my ears.
With the V-dac, without realizing it, there was a huge effort I needed to put in order to hear the bass, the vocal for example and the highs in harmony, doing something together, at the same time. With the v-dac, I was concentrating my attention to what was important in the music, heck! all my life I was only "trying" to focus my attention to what was great about what I liked in a song. I thought that the v-dac, that I had for about 3 month, was giving me the details I needed, and by getting the bufffalo, I thought I was just going for more detail, but thats not it. If I can explain to people that never experience anything "high-end", the first thing you'll hear, is how easy it is to actually hear the music, and every part of it, the bass, the highs and the mid. They are not struggling to get to you, they are all there and there to listen.
And then there's the details songs I've heard all my life that I never noticed. In dream from fleetwood mac, theirs a slight chore between the singers at one point,which is super evident on the buffalo, but never heard it in my life.
Anyways, the buffalo sounds great, amazing from my restrict point of you.
