[LoryWiv]

  I own X-Sabre Pro, and think that its biggest advantage is the "sync" mode through MCLK in I2S or clock synchronisation extracted from the input signal.
Connected with SU-1 via an HDMI cable, I can hear the difference cleary between "sync" and "async."  In "async," the internal 100MHz CCHD-957 is used, in "sync," CCHD-575 in SU-1.
X-Sabre Pro uses x1 ES9038PRO, whereas LKS MH-DA004 x2.  LKS, however, does not support the "sync" mode.  Pin No.10/12 in HDMI LVDS are void.  I wonder if a dual configuration without "sync" is superior to a singe one with "sync."  Of course, dual + "sync" is the best.
For other ES9038PRO DACs, Oppo Sonica DAC is with x1 and without "sync" mode.  I know nothing about Audio-gd products.
It seems that X-Sabre Pro is one of the few DACs that support "sync" mode.

MINORSUKE: Does the SU-1 require jumper switch adjustments to output correctly via IIS to the X-Sabre Pro? I am considering this combination as well and trying to line up the facts I need to utilize it to it's best potential. Thanks very much!

 

[MINORISUKE]

MINORSUKE: Does the SU-1 require jumper switch adjustments to output correctly via IIS to the X-Sabre Pro? I am considering this combination as well and trying to line up the facts I need to utilize it to it's best potential. Thanks very much!

Set all "off," the same as PS Audio.

 

[fon55]

Test Poland
http://hd-opinie.pl/7706,audio,uberdac-matrix-x-sabre-pro-edycja-2016-2-gen.html

 

[Whitigir]

No internal shot shared, like they are afraid of showing it....not my cup of tea for $1600 device

 

[LoryWiv]

We had the new X-Sabre Pro on display at the NYC CanJam. I thought I would share a few pics.

Will you be at CanJam SoCal upcoming in several weeks? I'd love to test this DAC.

 

[MINORISUKE]

No internal shot shared, like they are afraid of showing it....not my cup of tea for $1600 device

I opened the bottom plate of my X-Sabre Pro to swap the fuse for EUR 22, which had brought me a huge sound quality improvement.  This, however, has made the warranty invalid.  There is a sticker with "Matrix," under which a plastic screw is hidden.
After opening the bottom plate, I could swap the fuse, but all I could see was the bottom of the main circuit board.  Of cource, I could see no components on this side.
That is why nobody has tried to take a photo of the circuit board with components.

 

[Sanlitun]

Hopefully a reviewer will dismantle it soon. It was Project86 taking apart the original X-Sabre (http://www.head-fi.org/t/650686/matrix-x-sabre-dac-review-and-impression-thread) that was one of the deciding factors in my buying it. 
 
The thing about the X-Sabre Pro is that at $1700 USD you are in the Yggdrasil ballpark in terms of pricing and it's going to take a lot more information to make that purchase decision. So hopefully we will see more credible reviews and hopefully some objective measurements. 
 
I hope it does turn out to be worthy of its price tag. The original X-Sabre is a great DAC which I still use and even feel is a match for the Brooklyn (also ess9018). 
 
I'm sorry I missed the intro pricing on this, I would have bought it outright if I had known about it.

 

[Robert McAdam]

Thanks for that link fon55. The Polish review is excellent in favour of this Dac. Interesting read for anyone looking at a new Dac in this price bracket. I would suspect that the X-Sabre Pro(ESS9038) may beat the latest Benchmark Dac3(ESS9028) soundwise. Something I'm not able to compare unfortunately.
 
Another favourable review here: 
 

 http://www.headfonia.com/review-matrix-x-sabre-pro-reference

 
For me the contest is between the R2r Holo Spring and this Dac.
 
Now we just need a comparison of these two Dac's and using different inputs(usb, I2s) from someone.
 
The two things in the X Sabre favour is its ability to handle upsampled audio to 768 for PCM and it is a preamp.

 

[AxelCloris]

I've cleaned up some off-topic posts. Let's keep the thread on topic, please.

 

[Sanlitun]

  I own X-Sabre Pro, and think that its biggest advantage is the "sync" mode through MCLK in I2S or clock synchronisation extracted from the input signal.
Connected with SU-1 via an HDMI cable, I can hear the difference cleary between "sync" and "async."  In "async," the internal 100MHz CCHD-957 is used, in "sync," CCHD-575 in SU-1.
X-Sabre Pro uses x1 ES9038PRO, whereas LKS MH-DA004 x2.  LKS, however, does not support the "sync" mode.  Pin No.10/12 in HDMI LVDS are void.  I wonder if a dual configuration without "sync" is superior to a singe one with "sync."  Of course, dual + "sync" is the best.
For other ES9038PRO DACs, Oppo Sonica DAC is with x1 and without "sync" mode.  I know nothing about Audio-gd products.
It seems that X-Sabre Pro is one of the few DACs that support "sync" mode.

 
This is interesting and I can imagine there are sonic advantages to using a common clock. One thing that that I have always felt is that there is little advantage to using a DDC if you are just going to connect it via SPDIF. In many DACs the SPDIF implementation is pretty minimal as compared to the quality of modern USB interfaces. For the most part when I use my Singxer via coax I feel it is not an improvement, but rather an alternative.
 
What kind of difference do you hear between the stock USB input and the SU-1? 

 

[project86]

My apologies, I haven't been keeping up with this thread. Just wanted to chime in with a few thoughts.
 
 
First, let's be very careful not to conflate the perceived complexity of the design with the actual resulting sound quality. This is a bad idea for a number of reasons. Just because something looks densely packed with parts does not necessarily make it a good design. Conversely, something that appears sparse or overly simplistic may have an absurd amount of engineering involved. See the HeadAmp GSX mk2, Pass Labs HPA-1, Berkeley Alpha Reference, and KGSShv as a few examples. None of these are jam-packed with components, but all compete at the highest echelon in their respective categories. Then again, something like an Audio GD Master 7 has tons of stuff going on inside, and also sounds quite impressive. Meanwhile my old Accuphase DP-55 looked pretty complex inside, but sounded decidedly bland imho. So it really comes down to design rather than looks. Or price, to some extent (the Accuphase wasn't cheap).
 
Next, just for the record - I had a rather difficult time getting the original X-Sabre apart in order to show all the internal components. Of all the gear I've reviewed and disassembled, it was among the most complex to access. I was actually somewhat surprised when it all came back together and worked without issue on the first try. So I can certainly understand why reviews of the new version don't show much. When I had it here, I didn't really feel up to tackling that aspect either. It's a lot more effort than most DACs.
 
Lastly, just remember that DACs aren't computers. They can't be compared in the same way. So while you pretty much know what to expect from 2 different PCs if each has a 6600K and GTX1070 and NVMe SSD, that doesn't mean you can go down a checklist for DAC components (ES9028Pro, Femto clocks, U208 XMOS, discrete output stage, etc) and expect the same results from one device to the next. Some DACs have everything going for them on paper but just don't sound very good. Others seem pretty underwhelming until you hear them.  

 

[Whitigir]

I don't know about the KGsSHV Carbon to not have complicated parts to you. But to me, it is very-very-very complicated in parts and design. Now, even GSX, Susy, Kitsune, all of them carry very complicated design in comparison to this



This is merely one board of the Kgsshv Carbon, and like you said, for an amplifier but not any computing processing at all, if this is not complicated ? I don't know what is



People can debate and believe anything they want. So do I, and the exact board, which was shown here for a DAC of this level of cost/performances ratio, was the reason why I chose to buy another device instead. Still, as a new device, I will keep an eye on this Matrix to observe the impressions and performances. Who knows if it really can perform so good with it build, there is no one that stop me from buying it.

 

[project86]

I guess complexity is in the eye of the beholder (and the angle of the photo for that matter). But here are a few shots to show the relative simplicity of the things I mentioned.
 
 
KGSShv (this is the special Carbon CC version). Look at all that empty space! I expect more for my $5600!

 
 
 
Pass HPA-1. Nothing too amazing here. You could fit a bunch more components on that PCB!

 
 
Berkeley Alpha Reference. There's hardly anything there!

 
 
GSX MK2. Booooooring! Empty spaces all over the place!

 
 
 
 
I know, it sounds absurd to those of use who understand the nature of these advanced designs. But I really do think people judge things unfairly based on perceived complexity, which has a lot to do with how packed the enclosure seems to be. Contrast the above with this Audio GD:
 

 
It costs significantly less, and based on appearances and buzzwords you get way more for your money. And that tells us nothing about the sound. Do you see where I'm going with this?
 
Anyway, I very much enjoyed the X-Sabre Pro when I auditioned it, and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it over something like a similarly priced Mytek Brooklyn. The X-Sabre Pro is not for everyone though, and I love the fact that we have so many great options these days. 

 

[LoryWiv]

Set all "off," the same as PS Audio.

Thank you. The SU-1 has a jumper (#5, I believe) for MCLK versus WCK. Should this also be off (MCLK) as well to allow SU-1 clock to be used rather than the X-Sabre Pro clock when latter is set to sync mode?
 
Thanks for all your help,MINORISUKE!

 

[jieranli]

Recently acquired SXPro, I'm using this with Tidal and Roon. Roon seems to only go up to385khz in PCM upsampling. Anyone more informed knows how to get the DAC to upsample to 768khz?