[granodemostasa]

well, obviously... but that's not the notion i'm trying to counteract... i'm trying to say that not all opamp based output stages are junk or rip offs, some of them are quite well designed.

 

[regal]

I have been studying discrete I/V stages. I don't see how CI is doing I/V, buffering, AND performing a differential to unbalanced transfer with one transistor.

My best guess is they are doing passive I/V and not performing the balanced to unbalanced conversion. Passive I/V is probably fine with the PCM1794 but just pulling the + output from a differential is probably sacrificing a lot of SNR. Not saying it sounds bad just that it is probably best with balanced equipment.

 

[melomaniac]

My VDA2 arrived Wednesday and the Blue Jeans cables (coax and toslink) Thursday. I will take some time to listen more critically tomorrow, but for now, here's what happened right away: Maurizio Pollini grew some extra fingers, I swear, on those Beethoven piano sonatas. Massive Attack emerged from synthisoup and two vocalists were clearly placed in their own spots, sounding much more like chamber music cranked up than like car radio (though the bass was plentiful and subterranean, it was not very detailed - hope that will firm up as this tiny box warms up to its tasks). Miles Davis appeared as a holograph, vulnerable and turning his back to me, clad in silk, just as I remember him on stage in the late 1980s. Bidu Sayo now not only has a voice in the instrumental mix of her Brazilian tour de force, she has a body and a band. Zappa's best band we never heard challenged my speaker's speed and detail more than before. BrightBlackMorningLight will make you feel lightheaded, and the Future Sound of London is not a computer. Marc Johnson and Bill Frisell just got finer instruments, and Joey Baron is not the name for static but in fact a guarantee for a filigreed drumming performance. Future Pigeon sway more heavily in their East-LA shoes, and Basic Channel now really get the neighbors riled up. In short, whoever told me the Oppo universal players were just fine should be ashamed: the CIA DAC is a noticeable improvement right out of the mail-box, and I say this after just a little bit of testing.

 

[Jeff J.]

Can anyone comment on how the VDA-2 or the DL III compares to the Lavry DA10? From what i've read the VDA-2 and DL III are similar in character, but I've not read of either compared to the DA10.

 

[melomaniac]

what I've read online here and elsewhere in comparisons of the lavry and the vda2 is inconclusive: some prefer one, other the other, and the fact that the VDA2 is somewhat newer has made it less likely for many people to have auditioned both for the forums (some posts compare the predecessor VDA1 and the lavry). I haven't seen a systematic shoot-out. if someone finds one, please link it here.

 

[MaloS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cankin /img/forum/go_quote.gif There's one interesting line in your sig but 840c should be cheaper than 2 VDA2s and 2 VAC1s right??

Why 2 vda2's and vac1's O.o ...

 

[HiWire]

Balanced signal

 

[Fungi]

You can do balanced with a single VDA-2, read more about it on the CIAudio website.

 

[Cankin]

sorry, I thought 2 Vda2's are needed for balancing

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/cha...ystems-256397/

 

[SK138]

No... you need two VHP2/VAC1 and only one VDA2/VAC1. The VDA2 has two sets of RCAs on the back for 0 degree and 180 degree which you plug into two VHP2s to make it balanced. The hard part is to make the headphone cable balanced...depending on which headhphones you want to balance


Quote:

Originally Posted by Cankin /img/forum/go_quote.gif sorry, I thought 2 Vda2's are needed for balancing http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f5/cha...ystems-256397/

 

[Xcalibur255]

As a recent and happy VHP2/VAC1 combo owner I'm considering rounding out the system with a VDA2 as well. Can any owners comment on the additional benefit of adding another VAC1 for the VDA2? It seemed worth the money for use with an amp component, but supplying power to just a DAC I can't see how it can make much of a difference. If the improvement is there though I will not argue.

 

[HiWire]

If you've got a speaker system, you could try the VAC-1 from your VHP-2 to check for a difference.

Otherwise, you could just buy the VDA-2, listen to it, and save money for the second VAC-1 later.

 

[Fungi]

The consensus seems to be blacker blacks and lower lows, IIRC.

 

[Bazile]

Hi folks;

I've hesitated to post here because I'm a bit of a fanboy. I used Audio Alchemy gear for about a decade before I got the CI gear in my sig. (Dusty worked for AA before he founded CI) I love the stuff needless to say. I tried the DAC without the power source some time ago. Basically, I just thought the DAC without the power source sounded quieter (less volume)...and any time volume changes, comparisons are suspect. It seems to me that with a DAC, you either have the power to convert that bit to analog, or you don't.

Btw..the links in post 24 and 25 of this thread....I still use the Dac with the cheap tube amps shown in post 28 of the linked thread as my home system. It sounds amazing with HD580's or 600's balanced. With 650's..its a bit too warm/too much bass.

Bazile

 

[Nebby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bazile /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi folks; I've hesitated to post here because I'm a bit of a fanboy. I used Audio Alchemy gear for about a decade before I got the CI gear in my sig. (Dusty worked for AA before he founded CI) I love the stuff needless to say. I tried the DAC without the power source some time ago. Basically, I just thought the DAC without the power source sounded quieter (less volume)...and any time volume changes, comparisons are suspect. It seems to me that with a DAC, you either have the power to convert that bit to analog, or you don't. Btw..the links in post 24 and 25 of this thread....I still use the Dac with the cheap tube amps shown in post 28 of the linked thread as my home system. It sounds amazing with HD580's or 600's balanced. With 650's..its a bit too warm/too much bass. Bazile

Actually DAC chips in general, depending on their design, are somewhat sensitive to the quality of power provided to them by the power supply. Even though a DAC operates in the digital domain, it doesn't necessarily mean the output quality is a black or white situation

Not that many things are, especially in the audio world....there sure is a lot of gray out there!