[akwok]

Alright.. I don't read or write Chinese, but my dad can and I spent a good hour surfing up iwdiy.com's forum for DAC38 vs. DAC68 vs. DAC60 impressions.

The founder of iwdiy, supposedly a very respected person (a Jude-like person), posted that the DAC38 was way better than Theta DSP Basic III.

Also, in another thread, the same person posted that :
1.) A Preamp + DAC68 would be the best choice in a balanced system. It SUCKS for unbalanced.
2.) The DAC38 would be the best choice in an unbalanced system (regardless)
3.) The DAC60 the warm brother of the DAC38, both use PCM1704
4.) The DAC38 is the best overall, the preamp function in the DAC68 is not good enough.

That's about all I got. There were lots of other talk regarding the DAC38 + CD10. This should be good enough for me.. it's basically a straight swap with the VDA-1 + VAC-1 if I choose to do it, which I will, once I move back to my University house.

I'll lurk around on those forums a bit more later..

 

[RogerWilco]

The DAC38 does look nice---not much info on it?

 

[akwok]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RogerWilco The DAC38 does look nice---not much info on it?

Right now I'm trying to figure out more info between the DAC60 and the DAC38, because both use PCM1704 (BB's top chip).. the DAC38 looks pretty ugly in my opinion, I would be happier with the DAC60 .

But I'm still lurking iwdiy.com for more info on the DAC60..

It seems some people are pro DAC60, some are pro DAC38. The DAC60 is warmer and more musical.. so I might go for that. Plus it's in a nicer case and it's cheaper.

 

[RogerWilco]

Hello

What i meant by ==looks nice== was the inside guts.Myself i am really not concerned with the outside of an item as i am the inside.

 

[bg4533]

Quote:

Originally Posted by WK446 bg4533: The caps don't really have markings or a name I can make out. Do you have a photo of your DAC-Ah's interior I can ponder? BTW, what are you mods? I have seen some DAC-Ah's with OPA627s and Multicaps. I still think there is quite a bit of tweaking available. However, heat can be a factor especially if voltage is increased to the DACs. I think the power supply to the digital/analog section could use some modding.

I don't have any pics after mods I have done. Here are some stock Pics

I started off the mods by replacing the opamps with OPA627s and the coupling caps with Blackgate NXs. Next I replaced all of the electrolytic caps with slightly larger Panasonic FMs. I played around with bypassing the output stage and found out I like it better bypassed. My final configuration has power disconnected to the output stage. Output is taken directly from the TDA1543s and I still have Blackgate NX coupling caps. I also inserted a steel shield between the transformer and PCB.

With an opamp output stage I found the soundstage to have an odd concave quality. Without the opamp a little bit of dynamics are lost, but the DAC sounds a lot more natural to me. The steel shield seemed to help kill a little bit of the hum I was getting from the DAC too.

I have never had the opportunity to compare this DAC to anything better so I can't comment much. The stock DAC was similar in performance to the E-MU 1212M in my opinion. It was better in some areas and worse in others. Overall I would say the DAC-AH was a little better. When modded I think the DAC is significantly better than the 1212M.

The best part is that the mods I did are cheap (around $15) and easy to do.

 

[bg4533]

...

 

[strohmie]

<<it looks as if the DIY forum is seeping out to the ded. sources one...>>

I just bought the DAC-38 set that was being sold in the sources FS forum -- I built a TDA1541A based (non-oversampling) DAC for my CD player, and thought this would be a good oversampling alternative. I am very much a believer in the abilities of non-OS DACs, despite what my DSP knowledge tells me. But this'll be my first oversampling build, and I might putz around with the output stage on the DAC-38.

 

[akwok]

Quote:

Originally Posted by strohmie <<it looks as if the DIY forum is seeping out to the ded. sources one...>> I just bought the DAC-38 set that was being sold in the sources FS forum -- I built a TDA1541A based (non-oversampling) DAC for my CD player, and thought this would be a good oversampling alternative. I am very much a believer in the abilities of non-OS DACs, despite what my DSP knowledge tells me. But this'll be my first oversampling build, and I might putz around with the output stage on the DAC-38.

Keep us updated when you finish up the DAC-38!

Quote:

Hello, The DAC-38 using a more precise filter stage (GIF)after the PCM1704, with balance output, better voltage regulators than the DAC-60. The sound is different due to the filter stage one and the I/V stage one is tube and one is semiconductor. Regards Johnny

Just got that e-mail from DIYClub.. looks like I'm going to get the DAC-38.

Actually.. it looks like a toss-up between the DAC-60 and the DAC-38 at the moment.. sigh.

 

[RogerWilco]

I just got an e-mail from DIYCLUB also.I had asked for a Comparison between the dac-38 and the cd-15 they sell---here is his reply


Hello,
The CD-15 sound quilaty is better than DAC-38, I have a client in Hong
Kong he sold his Naim Audio CD-player after he take the CD-15 back home
and A B testing.
Regards

Johnny



I have been wondering about the cd-15

 

[akwok]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RogerWilco I just got an e-mail from DIYCLUB also.I had asked for a Comparison between the dac-38 and the cd-15 they sell---here is his reply Hello, The CD-15 sound quilaty is better than DAC-38, I have a client in Hong Kong he sold his Naim Audio CD-player after he take the CD-15 back home and A B testing. Regards Johnny I have been wondering about the cd-15

Hmm.. CD15 might be a good idea too.. but CDs are just so damn inconvenient you know..

DAC38 vs. DAC60 as it stands.. are you going to go for the CD15?

 

[RogerWilco]

Not sure---there is hardly no info on the cd-15---it;s hard to jump on that bandwagon with hardly no info.

 

[bobeau]

If you guys venture into CD territory why not just get the EastSound? That thing slaughters everything up to like $7k or so according to the large thread in this very forum, lol.

No way I'm going back to CDs though.

 

[Borat]

Agree with bobeau. I'm sure the CD-15 is nice, but at that price point ($460 + ~$100 s/h) I'd rather bite the bullet and spring for the EastSound E5. By all accounts it's in the same league as Meridian/Wadia/Levinson.

But I really want a DAC so I can hook up a transport and soundcard at the same time. It's kind of surprising that nobody here has one of these Lite DAC's. According to the DIYclub website, they've been offering them since early last year.

I'm almost set on getting the DAC-60 or 72. I have concerns about durability though (tubes). Is there a significant difference between 20-bit and 24-bit?

I've been e-mailing the eBay dealer where the poster on AudioAsylum bought his unit from. I asked about a 110v unit to work in the US and he indicated that the 220v works here. Is that right?

 

[akwok]

Hm.. I've been thinking either DAC60 or DAC38; I'm scared that the DAC60 might be a bit too lush for my tastes..

 

[iamdone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bg4533 I have never had the opportunity to compare this DAC to anything better so I can't comment much. The stock DAC was similar in performance to the E-MU 1212M in my opinion. It was better in some areas and worse in others. Overall I would say the DAC-AH was a little better.

Looks like I made the right choice in getting the Audio Mirror because in it's stock form, it is significantly better than the e-mu 1212. I don't know anything about mods, so for me this works out better. I guess if you have some DIY knowledge, you might as well save money and get the dac-ah.