MK2 is the 2nd version of various DACs, not just the R2R-11
I have the 1st generation of the R2R-11 and I love it. You can buy the R2R-11 MK2 and enjoy thoroughly. Sure, as you go up the line things improve, but even the 1st gen R2R-11 is damn good. It is how a lot of us became fans of Audio-gd
Not sure which higher order AGD DACs you mean...current ones? Older ones?
I can only tell you my own experience w/the MK2:
I use it only in NOS mode. Tried that first and liked it to the point that I'm not even curious about other modes (I'm a real fan of NOS to begin with)
This MK2 DAC in NOS mode is clearly better than either standalone Audio GD DAC I've owned (DAC-19/10th anniversary edition; NOS 19). The main differences are the higher level of clarity and resolution w/no loss of musical tone/timbre; plus a blacker background (which really means slightly lower perceptible distortion)
I'm not set up to do a head-to-head comparison of the MK2 w/my "better" DAC, the NOS MHDT Labs Orchid w/the best of the roled tubes in the buffer circuit (these DACs are in 2 systems ~5 ft apart). But I can tell that the Audio GD DAC is in the same sonic neighborhood of the Orchid (a very fine, musical DAC), differing primarily in that slight tube sound imparted by the buffer circuit of the Orchid.
All in all, I got way more operational and sonic goodness from this AIO device than I could have expected for the price. I really feel like I lucked out and got way more than I paid for.
BTW, a month or so I did a lot of listening to the new ZMF Atrium headphone (300 ohm dynamic design), and I did ~80% of my listening using the 2 headphone amps that run off of this MK2, which has 2 RCA output pairs (Liquid Carbon v2; Monoprice Liquid Gold X). I also did some listening to the Orchid + Violectric V281. What I heard across these systems was entirely consistent, similar, no big quality delta w/the "better" DAC & amp vs the MK2 I gave the Atrium a rave review and still prefer to hear it on this less expensive system. That's a heavyweight TOTL headphone, so it obviously liked the MK2 a lot.
It has same type of sound (which I called a high-end sound, as it carries natural properties dificult to find elsewhere in this price range), just less refined. Speaking of the old R2R-11 with upgraded later DIY with Crystek oscilators. You should be aware that in the MK2 isolator on the USB port is not feed-back, therefore inferior to the solution found in R-8/R-7. There will be some added jitter on the R2R-11, while R-8/R-7 is jitter free. On the S/PDIF connection it will be smaller difference. It is a known fact that the old R2R-11 typically sounded better on the S/PDIF connection. It is because USB performance can be good or very disappointing. A basic MK2 model is expected to behave the same way. The isolator option is not ideal, but brings more predictable results.
I intentionally didn't mention R1/R28 yet, as these models do not have isolated USB port. If you search for comparison with the old R2R-11 (it will be similar to the current basic mk2 model), you will find notes of a significant improvement in SQ. However I would even buy R28 just for features alone. Missing isolator on USB port can be bypassed by adding a DDC, it gives better upgrade path than R2R-11 which has none.
I've never listened to the R2R-11 MK2, or any AGD DAC, via USB, except on rare occasions. 99% of all my listening has been via a good coax cable either from a SPDIF converter or a DDC. Of the 5 or 6 DACs I've had, all but one sounded clearly better sound via coax vs USB.
This may be part of the reason that I hear such a clear, pleasing sound from the MK2. The sound I'm getting is clean and detailed, yet not in the least fatiguing or "digital" sounding. The MK2 doesn't sound particularly "analog" (like vinyl); IMO the sound is closer to a good reel to reel tape than anything else, minus the tape hiss and grain.
At least for me, digital audio was problematic for 30+ years. I could never stop being aware of sonic issues with digital sources. Then I heard my first NOS DAC (Audio GD NOS 19), and everything changed. Now both my DACs (2 desktop systems ~5 ft away from each other) are NOS & I'm no longer hearing those subtle but annoying things digital audio did used to do wrong for me.
I've never listened to the R2R-11 MK2, or any AGD DAC, via USB, except on rare occasions. 99% of all my listening has been via a good coax cable either from a SPDIF converter or a DDC. Of the 5 or 6 DACs I've had, all but one sounded clearly better sound via coax vs USB.
This may be part of the reason that I hear such a clear, pleasing sound from the MK2. The sound I'm getting is clean and detailed, yet not in the least fatiguing or "digital" sounding. The MK2 doesn't sound particularly "analog" (like vinyl); IMO the sound is closer to a good reel to reel tape than anything else, minus the tape hiss and grain.
At least for me, digital audio was problematic for 30+ years. I could never stop being aware of sonic issues with digital sources. Then I heard my first NOS DAC (Audio GD NOS 19), and everything changed. Now both my DACs (2 desktop systems ~5 ft away from each other) are NOS & I'm no longer hearing those subtle but annoying things digital audio did used to do wrong for me.
I had an audiophile turntable + everything else set up in my LR from ~1986 onward. The sound I got from that TT + a top Grado MM cartridge was divine.
Around the same time I got a much recommended Philips CD player and had it modded by a much-recommended fellow in North Carolina. I was already buying CDs (lots of them), so it was easy to buy doubles of my favorite demo LPs. And so I set up head-to-head comparisons of that modded CD player + my analog system on the same music.
It was a bloodbath from day-1. The CD never, ever sounded better than the LP in any indicator that mattered to me with the sole exception of the very deepest bass frequencies on some CDs (I could easily hear that on the subs). But all the sonic characteristics that mattered to me then and still do were vastly in favor of LPs. Yeah, perfect sound for a couple nanoseconds.
In the decades that followed I no longer had a TT and it was all desktop audio using DACs. The early delta-sigma DACs sounded like ass, just like my 1st CD players. It wasn't until I got my first non-delta/sigma DAC (Audio GD NOS 19) that I finally turned the corner on digital.
I think, just as importantly, Kingwa has done incredibly well with his R2R designs in general. What is more, while other companies are hyping SINAD and low THD, it bears repeating that you get actual sound-quality-focussed engineering inside the R2R-11. I mean, who in this price range programs their own FPGAs for the USB and ladder boards?
I shot a section of video just talking about the inside for this reason.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
It is only recently that digital audio has achieved musicality (under certain circumstances: NOS R2R DACs, e.g.).
