[hikaru12]

The R2R-11 Gen 1 is an amazing value. I haven't heard the Gen 2 but I trust Fred's excellent review that he posted earlier.

Anyway, if you want balanced and are willing to spend another thousand (it's only money after all) the R8 MKII is a fantastic DAC with a lot of connectivity.

Hmm that one is approaching the cost of a Master 11. Anything particular noteworthy about it?

 

[FredA]

Hey guys,

Two questions - Can you get the R2R11 in balanced configuration? and how is the bass slam on it? I'm looking for another secondary DAC since Schiit is out of stock out of all their stuff for foreseeable future.

I was speaking of the mkii though. This the one you meant?

 

[hikaru12]

I was speaking of the mkii though. This the one you meant?

Ah, didn't realize there were two different versions. What is the MKII going for?

 

[FredA]

Ah, didn't realize there were two different versions. What is the MKII going for?

668 with all upgrades, not cheap but really better than the original.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Sorry, broken quoting: @hikaru12 said Hmm that one is approaching the cost of a Master 11. Anything particular noteworthy about it?

Yes, if you look at the Audio-gd threads and how much love the gear and Kingwa, the designer/owner get, it's noteworthy that many of us started with the R2R-11. "Gateway drug to Audio-gd"

It's an NOS R2R DAC, it sounds great, and has a surprisingly good headamp. Really, killer value.

The build of Audio-gd gear is what I call Industrial 1960s and 70s Garage-Fi Nouveau but the more you use it the more you see how much thought was put into everything about it.

Ah, didn't realize there were two different versions. What is the MKII going for?

Well there is only one now, I think all the MKI (not called that at the time but rather just R2R-11) have all been sold by now.

 

[hikaru12]

The reason I ask is because I'm looking for a deskside setup to compliment my LCD-2 strengths which is a smooth, fatigue free listening experience coupled with really good bass slam. I'm not really looking for detail. Would you still say the MK2 fits that description? Are there any good US distributors of AudioGD or is ordering direct still the best way to go?

 

[gimmeheadroom]

The reason I ask is because I'm looking for a deskside setup to compliment my LCD-2 strengths which is a smooth, fatigue free listening experience coupled with really good bass slam. I'm not really looking for detail. Would you still say the MK2 fits that description? Are there any good US distributors of AudioGD or is ordering direct still the best way to go?

I haven't heard the R2R-11 MK2, I have the R8 MKII. I'll let Fred comment on that and he is also in America while I am not.

The thing about Kingwa's R2R is that they are very resolving while being incredibly musical, organic, and life-like. The R8 MKII has slam in spades but also air, shimmering cymbals... there is tremendous detail but it's not presented in an analytical way, if that helps. By comparison, I would not recommend the Brooklyn DAC+ to you after reading your comments.

 

[hikaru12]

I haven't heard the R2R-11 MK2, I have the R8 MKII. I'll let Fred comment on that and he is also in America while I am not.

The thing about Kingwa's R2R is that they are very resolving while being incredibly musical, organic, and life-like. The R8 MKII has slam in spades but also air, shimmering cymbals... there is tremendous detail but it's not presented in an analytical way, if that helps. By comparison, I would not recommend the Brooklyn DAC+ to you after reading your comments.

Thanks for the recommendations! I am currently looking into getting a Yggdrasil if I'm looking at the $2k price point but wouldn't be opposed to getting the R8 MKII if it meets certain criteria. Since my LCD 2's are in a secondary system I'd like to keep the cost of the dac/amp to about $1k if possible.

Mainly on the detail front how would you describe the microdetail on the R8 MKII? Is it easy to pick out without going overboard? Would you be able to compare it to the Yggy or any of Schiits higher tier offerings? Thanks!

 

[Pharmaboy]

Thanks for the quick response - is there a preferred digital input that sounds the best or is the USB competent?

I've preferred coax in (from a SPDIF converter or, more recently, a DDC) to USB in on every DAC I've had here.

I suspect it will be no different w/the R2R-11 MK2. So much so that I didn't bother paying for the upgraded USB input options (I'll almost certainly be using coax w/this unit, no matter which of my 2 systems it ends up in).

 

[Pharmaboy]

The reason I ask is because I'm looking for a deskside setup to compliment my LCD-2 strengths which is a smooth, fatigue free listening experience coupled with really good bass slam. I'm not really looking for detail. Would you still say the MK2 fits that description? Are there any good US distributors of AudioGD or is ordering direct still the best way to go?

I would have gladly bought my MK2 from the U.S. distributor. But they don't stock this unit. I bought mine straight from AGD in China, and all is well.

PM me if you want more details.

 

[FredA]

The Mkii has indeed some good slam. Good drive. I tried the Music Master E1000 which are sort of a Chinese lcd-3. The bass is very good. Staging is awesome too. It should drive the lcd-2 very well.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Thanks for the recommendations! I am currently looking into getting a Yggdrasil if I'm looking at the $2k price point but wouldn't be opposed to getting the R8 MKII if it meets certain criteria. Since my LCD 2's are in a secondary system I'd like to keep the cost of the dac/amp to about $1k if possible.

The R8 MKII is a DAC, there is no headamp. See the product page here at http://audio-gd.com/R2R/R8mk2/R8mk2EN.htm

Mainly on the detail front how would you describe the microdetail on the R8 MKII? Is it easy to pick out without going overboard?

I think the best way to describe it is organic and transparent. My RME is musical, my Brooklyn is a bit cold, sterile, analytical. My Oppo is technical perfection.

The R8 just gets out of the way. It's the closest thing to feeling like there is no recording and no system, rather just the live or studio performance. And to me this is the goal of audiophilia. I wrote a review here https://magnahifi.com/audio-gd-r8-mk2-discrete-balanced-r2r-ladder-fpga-accusilicon-dac/#reviews under Czech Buyer.

Another thing I would add, the R8 MKII is a NOS DAC but also has 4 OS modes. And it has a phono/vinyl simulation mode which I didn't try. It would be surprising if anybody couldn't find a setting appropriate to his use case.

Would you be able to compare it to the Yggy or any of Schiits higher tier offerings? Thanks!

I cannot. I have not heard any of their DACs and I'm not a fan of the company. You can see what gear I have in my signature. I have been a hifi hound since before I was a teen but I only got into digital music recently.

As far as the R2R-11 MK2 I think it's worth paying for the USB upgrade. First of all @FredA says it's good. Secondly, if you ever wanted to sell it (unlikely!) having the full-spec version would probably help.

I think the R8 MK2 would be fine over USB although I run it either ACSS or IIS out of my DI-20 or AES over my Mutec. I don't like toslink or coaxial S/PDIF and all the rest of my shelf gear support AES so that's what I use. AES is not an option on the R2R-11 though.

 

[sajunky]

I think the R8 MK2 would be fine over USB although I run it either ACSS or IIS out of my DI-20 or AES over my Mutec. I don't like toslink or coaxial S/PDIF and all the rest of my shelf gear support AES so that's what I use. AES is not an option on the R2R-11 though.

I have to add that USB implementation is top quality, it answers an original question. However @Pharmaboy made important comment on S/PDIF, many users confirm the same. USB connection SQ is very dependent on the user configuration. When driven from PC it needs in most cases ground loops redirector devices like iDefender. And there are many devices that do it wrong. DDC doesn't help, as there is no I2S port in a DAC. An option that adds galvanic isolator makes R2R-11 performing consistently in most systems without additional devices, similar to BF2 which also has an isolator on USB port. Question is: would an upgraded USB sound better than S/PDIF? I doubt so, as isolator adds some jitter, probably more than 50ps on the S/PDIF receiver.

@hikaru12, I have no doubt (as @FredA stated) that lack of balanced output is not an issuse with LCD-3. The biggest problem is whether you are familar with NOS sound. BF2 you are perhaps more familar is not NOS. If you are not sure, R2R-11 may not be the best for you. In such case R-8mk2 is a recommended option (as it has both), unless you can borrow R2R-11 for two weeks.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Yes, but the problem is most people are running off PCs that don't have any other form of interface than USB.

 

[sajunky]

Yes, but the problem is most people are running off PCs that don't have any other form of interface than USB.

U2 Pro will convert USB to S/PDIF, there are more such devices. Before I upgraded clocks on my R2R-11, converter was giving me slightly better SQ than direct USB on my most noisy laptop, similar to other reports. It was DIY upgrade, ordinary users have no option than ordering a full mk2 upgrade with isolator. But I am sure Kingwa will do it when asked during ordering.