skullguise
Headphoneus Supremus
I've wanted to try out an ipod dock that allowed digital out.
We all know the Wadia 170i does this. The DLo Homedock HD has a TosLink digital audio out. I haven't dug too deeply, but I don't know if this is true digital out, or if it take the iPod's analog line out and A/D's it.
So for $203 delivered (ABT Electronics), I decided to try out the DLo.
I had already bought an open/unused Wadia 170i for ~$300 (I paid more, but the deal included a pretty nice RCA cable set from MIT).
The Wadia has great sound, I've been enjoying some WAV and even MP3's on it. The only probelm with it, and this may be why you see some on sale regularly on Audiogon, is that the remote is limited in functionality. IE, you lose some of the flexibility of the menu system when docked and outputting digital.
So enter the DLo. It allows much better menu functionality from the remote.
I set up both docks in a small system, consisting of my Oritek OMZ v4, feeding a Virtue Audio Two amp with upgraded PS. Those feed a pair of AV123 ELT525T towers (remind me a bit of some Totem speakers I've heard. Maybe 80% of the sound for a lot less $). I used a Ven Haus coax cable from the Wadia, and a eBay-bought glass Toslink cable from the DLo.
I ripped a couple tracks as WAV files from a nice reggae CD from Mapleshade music, and copied them up to my iPod Nano (not latest generation, one before it).
I played the tracks on both docks, in the following configurations:
- Wadia digital out to OMZ
- DLo digital out to OMZ
- DLo analog out to amp
Based on the VERY limited listen, the Wadia sounded the best to me. A very nice full sound, top to bottom, with tight bass, great mids and highs.
The DLo optical out, though, held its own apparently quite well. It ended up being a little bit leaner sounding in the mids to me, and a TINY bit sibilant at times. Nothing bad by any means, just not as smooth as the Wadia with coax out.
There was an output volume difference between DLo-->OMZ-->Amp compared to DLo analog out-->Amp, so I can't say for absolute sure about the differences. But after turning the volume up and trying to get about the same output, I still thought the DLo digital out to OMZ was more resolving and had better bass. The lessened bass of the analog out made it even leaner sounding. Because the music is so well-recorded, it was still enjoyable. But there definitely seemed a good difference with the OMZ from either dock.
I hope to get more time this weekend on the units, not sure how much I'll get. But wanted to put it out there that the DLo may be a good alternative to the Wadia. You can get the Wadia for $300-$325 used, though they often go pretty quickly at that price. The DLo seems to be out of stock in several places, but I got mine for $203 shipped from ABT. Note: I read one review that said there were some QC problems with the DLO, some were DOA. Mine has been fine, though it's been used perhaps 10 hours only so far.
The sound from the Wadia was marginally better to my ears based on the quick listen, but as mentioned you lose some remote functionality that the DLo offers.
I'd be curious if anyone has heard for sure if the DLo is pure digital out like the Wadia, or if it's iPod analog out converted to digital again. Even if the latter, I do praise the overall sound quality based on what I heard so far.
Thanks,
Todd - skullguise
We all know the Wadia 170i does this. The DLo Homedock HD has a TosLink digital audio out. I haven't dug too deeply, but I don't know if this is true digital out, or if it take the iPod's analog line out and A/D's it.
So for $203 delivered (ABT Electronics), I decided to try out the DLo.
I had already bought an open/unused Wadia 170i for ~$300 (I paid more, but the deal included a pretty nice RCA cable set from MIT).
The Wadia has great sound, I've been enjoying some WAV and even MP3's on it. The only probelm with it, and this may be why you see some on sale regularly on Audiogon, is that the remote is limited in functionality. IE, you lose some of the flexibility of the menu system when docked and outputting digital.
So enter the DLo. It allows much better menu functionality from the remote.
I set up both docks in a small system, consisting of my Oritek OMZ v4, feeding a Virtue Audio Two amp with upgraded PS. Those feed a pair of AV123 ELT525T towers (remind me a bit of some Totem speakers I've heard. Maybe 80% of the sound for a lot less $). I used a Ven Haus coax cable from the Wadia, and a eBay-bought glass Toslink cable from the DLo.
I ripped a couple tracks as WAV files from a nice reggae CD from Mapleshade music, and copied them up to my iPod Nano (not latest generation, one before it).
I played the tracks on both docks, in the following configurations:
- Wadia digital out to OMZ
- DLo digital out to OMZ
- DLo analog out to amp
Based on the VERY limited listen, the Wadia sounded the best to me. A very nice full sound, top to bottom, with tight bass, great mids and highs.
The DLo optical out, though, held its own apparently quite well. It ended up being a little bit leaner sounding in the mids to me, and a TINY bit sibilant at times. Nothing bad by any means, just not as smooth as the Wadia with coax out.
There was an output volume difference between DLo-->OMZ-->Amp compared to DLo analog out-->Amp, so I can't say for absolute sure about the differences. But after turning the volume up and trying to get about the same output, I still thought the DLo digital out to OMZ was more resolving and had better bass. The lessened bass of the analog out made it even leaner sounding. Because the music is so well-recorded, it was still enjoyable. But there definitely seemed a good difference with the OMZ from either dock.
I hope to get more time this weekend on the units, not sure how much I'll get. But wanted to put it out there that the DLo may be a good alternative to the Wadia. You can get the Wadia for $300-$325 used, though they often go pretty quickly at that price. The DLo seems to be out of stock in several places, but I got mine for $203 shipped from ABT. Note: I read one review that said there were some QC problems with the DLO, some were DOA. Mine has been fine, though it's been used perhaps 10 hours only so far.
The sound from the Wadia was marginally better to my ears based on the quick listen, but as mentioned you lose some remote functionality that the DLo offers.
I'd be curious if anyone has heard for sure if the DLo is pure digital out like the Wadia, or if it's iPod analog out converted to digital again. Even if the latter, I do praise the overall sound quality based on what I heard so far.
Thanks,
Todd - skullguise
