Reviews by eldus
Upon handling the device, it is immediately clear that the Playmate 2 has good build quality. The large aluminum chassis acts as a heatsink allowing for a Class A experience that remains warm to the touch and not hot. In a world of black boxes, it is very refreshing to see a stately silver affair that calls back to the earlier days of hi-fi. Among the items included in the box are a spare fuse, headset mic/headphone out adapter for the 3.5mm headset jack, and a short USB C cable. The cable is very short. I opted to use my own USB C to C cable, while not much longer, allowed me to place the Playmate 2 where I needed it on my desk. The Playmate 2 that I received is in the stock configuration.
As someone who appreciates a smooth analog potentiometer and finds frustration with the volume stepping and feel of most digital volume control knobs, Burson’s implementation feels right. The knob is easy to turn with just the right amount of attack and release in a muted yet wide “clicky” feeling, not sound. However it does occasionally register a value in the opposite direction when turning the knob rapidly. This does not bother me as much as it might bother someone else. The volume is incapable of being adjusted rapidly as the max changing speed seems to be capped. [EDIT] Newer units implement a fully smooth rotation without the "clicks".
The soundstage and positioning are well presented with instruments living in their own respective spaces. The overall tonality of the device is fantastic. To me, it really affords the sense that the source I am listening to is, for the lack of a better word, “analog” in all the right ways (no pops, hiss, audible distortion) It does not have any “digital harshness” or grain with my headphones often associated with “neutral” sources. However, the AP Fast filter does bring out some glare to my ears. I would still call the PM2 fairly neutral, with a tad of mid range warmth without a hint of muddiness. I am given the sonic impression that the music is being supported by a strong (Class A) stream of power. Almost like a kite or bird being supported by an air stream. The wind supports the wings of the music. Supplying Burson’s Class A design is their ‘MCPS’ (Max Current) power supply. Many traditional power supplies implement a long stretch of wire referred to as a “power transformer”. This introduces impedance. This power supply “uses transistors and as such it has less than 1 ohm of resistance. It means delivering electric current instantly to meet any demand. The resulting music reproduction is detailed and dynamic”. It also takes the standard 60/50hz sine wave that comes in from your house mains and converts it to 170khz, far beyond the range of human hearing. This mitigates noise that may be introduced by the use of inferior power supplies. To my ears, the MCPS feeds the PM2 nicely.
The menu allows you to switch between the Optical and USB inputs, and Pre-Out/Headphone Outputs. The Playmate 2 does not have any analog inputs. The low gain mode was sufficient for my gear. The ESS DAC has several FIR filters available to select. In my subjective listening, I found myself going back to the LP (Linear Phase) Fast filter. To my ears, it presented the best transient response. I love the rising “snap” sound of percussive instruments and this filter presented them nicely. For a different presentation in soundstage, the MP (Minimum Phase) Fast provides a different flavor with slower transients and slower bass being the tradeoff. Music with layered vocal harmonies in focus sound nice with this filter. To me, the Apodizing (AP) Fast filter seemed to lower what I would call microdetails particularly in the decay of sounds. This gives a slight sense of glare. To my understanding, the AP Fast filter is a slightly tweaked version of the LP Fast filter. However, any difference between the filters is very subtle and the others did not grab my attention in the way the 3 above did. I would expect the largest differences to be between the Linear Phase filters and the Minimum Phase filters. The CMFR is a Hybrid Phase filter. If you cannot discern any differences between the filters or just want to set it and forget it, LP Fast is my recommendation.
Next in the menu are two sets of “DPLL” options. One for DSD and PCM audio respectively. This setting adjusts the amount of jitter correction and signal locking the DPLL algorithm uses. The 3 levels are Low, Med, and High. From the ESS9038Q2M datasheet PDF,
“By default, the DAC works in Jitter Eliminator mode allowing the audio interface timing to be asynchronous to MCLK. A DPLL
constantly updates the FSR/MCLK ratio to calculate the true 32-bit timing of the incoming audio samples allowing the ESS
patented Time Domain Jitter Eliminator to remove any distortion caused by jitter.”
“For best performance, the DPLL bandwidth should be set to the minimum setting that will keep the DPLL reliably in lock”.
As your sample rate increases you may find that the Low setting might be inadequate as your audio will drop out as the DAC loses the signal. Leaving them both on High would be fine. I would imagine a very long USB cable could introduce some signal loss. The next option “Emphasis” is described in Burson’s documentation as being for cassette tapes. This was a very confusing feature to me to have in a DAC. In the ESS9038Q2M datasheet PDF this setting is described as being used with specific older CDs that need a “de-emphasis” filter to correct their bias. Without it, the treble is very harsh. This technique is old, outdated, and hasn't been used for a long time. Most CD players and CD rippers worth their salt like EAC will have this filter built into them and automatically switch them on when needed. You could turn this on to roll off the treble for fun if you wanted. I left it off.
There are few things that keep the Playmate 2 from perfection. Being limited to digital inputs does constrain usability with other devices. If I wanted to use a turntable or external DAC with Playmate2 I would be out of luck. The on-screen digital-signal-type indicator icon flickers. To my understanding this is expected behavior as this icon indicates when the Burson checks to see if a digital signal is present. A small detail, but one that catches the eye in peripheral view. Additionally, I find the screen to be too bright. Also when the unit is off there is a blue “standby” LED that is also pretty bright. A dark sticker or two would mitigate the intensity. There are threads here on Head-Fi dedicated to mitigated bright lights on audio equipment. While the menu navigation is fine, I would love to have a dedicated button or an auto-detect feature for switching between outputs or even inputs. I would imagine that the remote would fill this need, however the fact that it is not included in the base model leaves a gap in the experience for me.
I do enjoy the sound, and after all isn't that what it is all about? If you are in the market for an all-in-one digital input only device in this price range, I recommend you try the Burson Playmate 2.
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rattlingblanketwoman
And a high contrast "69" makes it to the front page. Well played!
