VentureCraft new DDC/DAC Go-DAP DD Socket 1 product - Page 4

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnakChan 

 

My gut feeling is "not". The DD is a dedicated iDevice-only of which I'm guessing somewhere in iOS, there will be code that will speak iAP to the DD. Do you know if rockbox has code in their OS to speak iAP?

Yea I think you are right, based on what I have search it doesnt. I will check it once I have it, it really doesnt matter as I use itune, I just was hoping to use my ipod video which sadly does not have the ipod classic cover flow feature. 

the unit arrived, commenting on size along it matches ipod touch 5 G (and I assume iphone 5) perfectly. It will go nicely paired with similar sized amp. 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by audionewbi 

the unit arrived, commenting on size along it matches ipod touch 5 G (and I assume iphone 5) perfectly. It will go nicely paired with similar sized amp. 

 

Congrats Audionewbi for your go dap dd1 with upgrade op amp muse 01

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudi0504 

Congrats Audionewbi for your go dap dd1 with upgrade op amp muse 01

Thank you :-) I am really excited, I need to buy the OPA627 in near future and upgrade my amp. 

What kind of battery life do you guys get with your unit while it is on "On" and not charging your ipod?

I have written a brief review and I though to share it with you guys:

Quote:

Originally Posted by audionewbi 

I have written a brief review and I though to share it with you guys:

 

Right now I am using the optical out of the DD socket 1 connected to styleaudio carat topaz signature which uses a pair of OPA2134 for headphone out. I find OPA2134 a bit bright, borderline sibilant. It has a PCM1792. I cannot compare it with AKM as I do not know if DAC have a specific sound characterstic of their own.

 

However compared to the line out of the venturecraftI love the AKM DAC more. I do not know if it is the MUSES 01 which have impact the sound or doe AKM DAC has a role. I feel I need a better amp to truly appreciate the MUSES power.

 

Improvements I like to see in future:

 

I am happy with my purchase however there are few key element which if were implemented i would recommend this in a heartbeat:

 

1. Lack of computer DAC feature: the AKM DAC can handle 24/96 without any problem. It just makes me wonder why ventureCraft did not go ahead with that. 
2. Charging unit while it is in use:  I cannot charge the unit while I am using it! I like to be able to connect the venturecraft to an outlet and use it at the same time keeping both my ipod and DAC charged however I noticed as soon as I try to charge the unit the DAC section and DD line out are all disabled. perhaps a future firmware can fix this?
3. Line out could be louder: Compared to my ODAC I find the line out vrm much lower. This is hardware related so I guess future revision can do that?
4. Unconventional screw: Using unconventional screw requires me to purchase a specific one. It is always wiser to use screws which are commonly used when you are designing a gear which has up gradable DIY features
5. Optical digital out is always on: I am not sure how much battery optical out uses but I am sure it does use considering it is always on. It would make more sense to have optical out disable when the user is using the line out feature. This way it will prolong the battery life. 

 

Conclusion:

I do not regret buying this at all. It is the missing link for me. It allows you to use the wonderful apple UI while avoiding not so pleasant apple internal DAC/amp. What make the DD socket 1 a keeper is the flexibility to swap line out opamp.

 

While I cannot comment on how it competes with CypherLab, fostex or the new sony idevice dac/amp since I do not have them I know for me and many others what makes this product special is its line out socket feature and this is what makes this unit special. 

 

Future plans for me:

 

I am planning to purchase a pair of OPA 627 and portaphile 627X and see the true potential of this unit. I think having MUSES01 on DD socket 1 while having a different opamp on your amplifier will not be a wise idea as ultimately the amp opamp will alter the sound. 

Nice informative summary.  I agree with 1 and 2 that need to be implemented and did not know about 5.  Very interested to hear how the 627 changes anything SQ wise for you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by shotgunshane 

 

Nice informative summary.  I agree with 1 and 2 that need to be implemented and did not know about 5.  Very interested to hear how the 627 changes anything SQ wise for you.

I would love to do that but portaphile is not going to be out till April. I do not know any amp which use that. What I can do now is just purchase a pair of OPA627 and use that with my O2 and arrow 4G. But as is it is really hard for me to tell the effect of MUSES01. When I swap between 4G and O2 there is a sonic differences but that proves the amp is what causing the change in sound not the line our or the IEM.

I think the only way we can know the effect of line out opamp of DD 1 is to have at least one amp which uses either MUSES01 or OPA672. This way we can tell how changing lineout opamp alters the sound and at the same time we can know how each opamp sounds like. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by shotgunshane 

 

Nice informative summary.  I agree with 1 and 2 that need to be implemented and did not know about 5.  Very interested to hear how the 627 changes anything SQ wise for you.

Indeed. Keep us informed with your impressions.

Line out: I wanted to add that i find the line out volume way too low for my liking. I find myself needing to use the gain I or II setting on my arrow 4G way too often on order to get the detail I need. For the same album I never have to do that when I am using my ipod 5G.

Sound quality: I still need to do more extensive listening but comparing it directly with my ipod 5G LOD there is an improvement however I cannot justify whether the improvement is worth almost 500 AUD. I find myself using the digital out of the unit way more than its line out. I am not saying the DAC sounds bad no, I think due to the line out I cannot hear the performance of DAC correctly. In my view what is causing the bottle neck in this case is the relatively low volume line out. In order for me to be able to judge the dac I need a more poweful amp.  I wonder if there is a way to fix that?

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnakChan 


Drop VentureCraft a mail. Or I can ask them when I get back to Tokyo next week.

However you have the Muses01, correct? That's already 9V out & still not enough?

I've got the OPA627 & had the Muses01 briefly. Both were more than enough for the Ortofon MHd-Q7, RSA SR-71b, & ALO Rx Mk3. No idea about the Arrow 4G. Did you try with other amps? What other DACs have you tried?

I've got the old & new CLAS too & the CLAS -dB to me is a lot weaker than the DD (& old CLAS too for that matter).

Hey, yes I do have the Muse01, that is that is what I ordered, I did not open the case to check it but i am sure they have installed the muses01 opamp for sure.

I was just reading the CLAS thread and I noticed the issues they are having with their unit. I will try my unit with O2 tomorrow. The cheapest DAC I have which I think is far to compare with Socket 1 is ODAC. ODAC has a 2.0 vrm and using arrow4G the same album sound plenty loud on the normal setting. I know the stock venture craft has a 0.8 vrm and i am assuming the 9V will have a considerably louder lineout.

I think I need to open my unit tomorrow to check if I have the right opamp installed. 

Now you can you hear where the AU$500 has gone? That doesn't seem like much in headfi world.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AJHeadfi 

Now you can you hear where the AU$500 has gone? That doesn't seem like much in headfi world.

NOTE: I have the Go-Dap DD Socket1 MUSES01 Line Amp ±9V VUP Tune

case 1 )ipod touch 5G--> stock lightning cable -->Ventrecraft -->oyadie3.5 to 3.5 cable -->arrow4G-->ACS T15 | ER4S

case 2) ipod touch 5G--> stock lightning cable -->Ventrecraft -->oyadie3.5 to 3.5 cable-->O2 -->ACS T15 | ER4S

case 3)ipod video (wolfson verson)-->Fiio L9-->arrow4G-->ACS T15 | ER4S.

case 4) ipod touch 5G stock

case 5)PC-->ODAC-->oyadie 3.5 to 3.5 -->arrow 4G-->ACS T15 | ER4S

case 6) PC-->ODAC-->oyadie 3.5 to 3.5-->O2-->ACS T15 | ER4S

Why ACS T15 and ER4S?

I find ACS to be relatively sensitive and it is not overly sensitive. I use this to check for channel imbalance and hissing issues

I use ER4S as I know its sound well, i love its sound characterstic and it is one of the most used and well known industry standard IEM.

case 1 vs case 2

O2 improves the detail and resolution a lot. The gain issue of venture craft is gone and I can use my ACS by having the O2 around 8-9 which is my reguler listening level. ACS at this condition has amazing bass quantity, the treble is nice and crisp and it seems arrow4G was the cause.

Not audible hiss is present

case 1 vs case 3

To my ears this two set up are very much identical in soud. ER4S sound a lot better using arrow 4G as the treble and bass switch gives the bass which ER4S needed for most jazz and modern music and the treble switch increase the resolution. Why I liked the 4G treble and bass switch is that when used with ER4S nothing is exaggerated, it adds just the right amount of bass and treble. I am not a bass head at all. 

(case 1 vs case 4) and (case 2 vs case 4)

This one is an easy one, it shouldnt surprise anyone to hear me saying both case 1 and case 2 stomps all over case 4. The reason why I bought and keeping venturecraft is to overcome ipod touch 5G short coming which is its DAC and amp section. I find the new ipod touch DAC boring and its amp is just lacking the required power to make both ACS T15 and ER4S sing. The reason why I kept the ipod is its perfect UI. It is crazy good and there is nothing in the industry which can come close to it. 

Please not that ipod touch 5G output impedance is less than 1.

case 1 vs case 5
I perfer case 5 over case 1. ODAC higher (2.0 VRM? ) output gives much more detail across all frequencies. ER4S in case 5 is the best I have heard so far. 

case 1 vs case 6

I once again prefer case 6 over case 1. Once again the ODAC is the reason for this. 

case 5 vs case 6

I prefer case 5 over case 6 simply because of arrow 4G bass and treble switch. While O2 and arrow 4G make no difference to ACS T15 once again arrow 4G treble and bass boost improved the ER4S quiet a lot.

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Summary:

Buying DD socket 1 for ipod touch 5G is a no brainer if you want to go down the ipod UI portable setup however there are much cheaper and better sounding combination if you want something to use around the house via your laptop, however not been stuck at one spot. Now days you can purchase a laptop with 500 GB of storage for around 300-400 USD .

My review is not really fair as non of the combination above are iDevices DAC. In order to have a fair review I need to compare DD socket 1 against cypher labs product. However reading from the dedicated cypher lab  thread cypher labs new updatea seems to have a major issue in terms of matching with certain amps and I need to say they cost a lot more than DD socket 1 stock which is 375 USD (OPA 275 version). Having said that cypher lab extra cost is due to been a PC dac and it comes with a lot more accessories than what we get with venturecraft.

On the other hand what makes venturecraft special is its socket feature. I really welcome this feature and I really hope the future revision keeps this feature. Right now as its stands there is no other product in the market which does this and this is why venturecraft is so special right now. 

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Sorry for any grammar issue, I will re-read it later, typed it on my tablet so editing is somewhat hard.