[The Fed]

Quote:

 
So we're all going to directly listen to 1's and 0's in 2 or 3 years and decode the information ourselves ? Awesome !

Come on Dude! I was talking about product life cycles, not Digital to Analog Conversion in general. If you're going to be a smart ass at least understand the statement you're being snarky about.
 
If you spent $1800 on a Wavelength Brick 4 years ago.... It was state of the art. Today a Wavelength Brick with Asynchronous USB is old news. 
Likewise if you spent $2500 or $5000 on a Theta Digital or Meitner front end a few years ago.... you could get the same specs plus asynchronous USB these days for 1/10th of what you paid back then.
 
My point being that digital audio is growing at a much faster clip than analog, similar to computer technology. So people that blow $10 or $17 grand on an MSB DAC "may" find that in 5 years their legacy DAC doesn't look like such a smart purchase. It looks like an outdated piece of kit. 
 
However a $5000 well designed Amplifier will be an outstanding amplifier for years and years. You buy a Luxman SQ-38 or a Leben CS300 and you've got something that will last you decades and can ultimately be handed down to your kid. I have a Pioneer SX 1050 that is worth more today than it was when it was new on the shelves. 
 
So purchasing an Arcam rDac that is looking a little dated is still a smart move since the $1000 Rega is looking long in the tooth itself.

 

[Baxide]

You are getting confused between technology and ability. Technology moves on as chip manufacturers try to dream up new specs that will make their components look even more advanced than that of the opposition. It has been happening in the mobile phone market for years. But just as with a phone one expects to be able to at least make a phone call and hear the other person speaking clearly, a DAC is just a tool to turn those digital bits into an analogue sound. How accurately it does it is similar to how accurate a phone works as a communication device.
All those extra bells and whistles that you can now find on a DAC hardly ever influence the sound. They are mere eye candy designed to keep you buying the latest DAC irrespective of if you already got a better sounding one.
Asynchronous USB is not state of the art, but a marketing attempt to sell us a closed shop solution to an imaginary problem. It's a common practice by advertisers to first get you to believe that you are the victim of a certain illness, and then sell you an expensive remedy. USB audio is still far from the kind of performance and flexibility of SPDIF, The cost involved to get USB to perform to anything near SPDIF is not cheap. But one would think that it is the only way to go if you wish to listen to digital music. It is not.

 

[nick_charles]

Quote:

 
the digital signal is transformed and amplified into something a speaker can work with, while never passing a DA-stage.

 
The DA stage is just before the speaker outputs where a set of FETs take the PWM signal and transform it to continuous analog voltage changes, it is very definitely still a DA stage just not the way it is conventionally done

 

[The Fed]

I agree with you on that.... My Rega is adaptive mode USB and I can't hear any audible change in the tone when I switch from Coax to USB.... even though it supposedly 'by status quo' has a compromised USB design.
 
There are old Phillips and Marantz DAC's (Marantz CDA 94) from the 80's that'd hold pride of ownership (with those original 1541 and 1704uk chips in them) . And anything with Burmeister, Macintosh or Levinson on it will hold a certain amount of value and probably would sound gorgeous next to the host of asynchronous USB implementations that have flooded the market in recent years. 
 
But speaking in terms of this modern digital audio explosion..... I think money is better spend on an analog piece.... Especially when digitally stored music is still in a sort of infancy. If USB is the port that people are going to use to access digitally stored music through.... then I don't think the development of that technology has reached its full potential. Which means the Rev 1 rev 2 iterations of different models render the last one defunct.
 
I don't think buying into the machines propaganda to run out and upgrade your DAC every two years is good. That is the antithesis of what I believe... but I think its honest to accept that my Rega DAC isn't going to be some legacy piece I can hand down to my children...... But my Carver pieces and Pioneer 1050 SX are. Maybe time will prove me wrong... I certainly don't have any plans to sell it.... and certainly don't have any issues with performance.
 
Maybe in 10 years a DAC from an authentically analog shop like Rega will still have some luster to it.... I hadn't mapped it like that.... but thinking about the old Phillips DAC 960 and the Marantz CDA 94 you may be right.  

 

[nicoch46]

The rega nice difference are here :
http://www.wolfsonmicro.com/documents/uploads/misc/en/Ultra_High_Performance_DAC_whitepaper.pdf

like meridian -Ayre apodising filter... in hw by wolfosonmicro n°5 filter for 44/48k n°4 for up

PS and no digital noise at out !!!! very good analog filter and discrete output stage

 

[nicoch46]

stopband rejection is really perfect !!! (ie no harsh digital noise ,fatigue for brain)

no pre echo/ringing

 

[nicoch46]

look how bad 2300€ N. dac do !

 

[Baxide]

Quote:

I agree with you on that.... My Rega is adaptive mode USB and I can't hear any audible change in the tone when I switch from Coax to USB.... even though it supposedly 'by status quo' has a compromised USB design.
 
There are old Phillips and Marantz DAC's (Marantz CDA 94) from the 80's that'd hold pride of ownership (with those original 1541 and 1704uk chips in them) . And anything with Burmeister, Macintosh or Levinson on it will hold a certain amount of value and probably would sound gorgeous next to the host of asynchronous USB implementations that have flooded the market in recent years. 

The over-marketing of async as a better solution has had a profitable effect for many, irrespective of whether the claims are overly exaggerated or not.
It somehow reminds me of GM food.

 

[phandrew]

Does anyone know how the Rega DAC compares to Luxman DA-100?

 

[highfell]

With the arrival of the new Rega DAC , I picked up a new original Rega DAC for half price after scouring the net for reviews of it and comparable models. I am feeding it via an Ibasso dx90 coaxial into the Rega and then into a Fatman 202 Valve Amp (with NOS Tungsol 6550s) into Revolver 3 speakers.

Wow - it sounds good, really good, straight out of the box.

Organic sounding, warm analogue but never muddy and very transparent. Great separation.& more detail being discovered in recordings that I have "known" for years. Step change in sound quality.

I am not surprised that it has had such good reviews and that it bettered many more expensive machines.

It isn't a flashy machine, simple interface but it just seems to do what it should do, ie reproduce music in a very natural manner and there is nothing to dislike with it.

Grab yourself a bargain, while you can.

 

[nicoch46]

Is the new model just out or the "old" model ? at half price the older I thinks ... use the filter 5 is the better for safe digital gremlins....
 
Rega make a really musical stuff at human price ,try the amp or headamp last model..... turntable too!

 

[highfell]

Is the new model just out or the "old" model ? at half price the older I thinks ... use the filter 5 is the better for safe digital gremlins....

Rega make a really musical stuff at human price ,try the amp or headamp last model..... turntable too!

Old model. Thanks for the advice.

I have a 35 year old Rega Planar 2 -, although that needs a bit if TLC to bring it back to life. So I like Rega.

headphone amp - I have a IBasso PB2 and a Leckerton 6Mk11 , so good in that sphere for the moment

 

[nicoch46]

PS the same filter  is n° 4  for 88-192khz file...... is that filter that is the same as in  top Meridian and Ayre stuff.....

 

[alvinmate]

Hi Guys,
 
Need assistance here..... I thought going the streamer route would be ideal but someone suggested  just get a dedicated quality DAC and plug and play between my Rega Apollo R and also use computer as a source..... as with streamers I need to spend more to get a better SQ? Not sure????? Well I might consider streamer option later down the line if my preferences change.
 
With DACs I'm confused so need some suggestions guys....
 
My confusion is should I just get the Rega Dac or consider other options in a similar price range.
 
Currently I have Violectric V281 with Rega Apollo R and HD800.
 
Was also thinking about Yulong D200 and Concero Dac....
 
If I decide from the above options how much difference interms of SQ would that bring to my current system and also interms of synergy in my system. Anyone with a similar setup or considering dedicated a dac  and what other options are out there that might work with the gear suggested above.
 
 
Thanks

 

[elad]

  Keep us update please. Rega makes great product......except Rega Ear

 
don't know what you mean..
i have the rega ear mk2 and it sound superb