[HamilcarBarca]

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I agree. The ODAC and O2 are definitely not the only neutral devices on the market. They're simply the ones I chose.
 
Unfortunately, by attempting to point out a series of misconceptions, I seem to have blasphemed against someone's  "I don't know but I must be right" religious cult. Again.

What the heck are you talking about?
religious cult? A little bit over dramatic aren't we?
What's just as bad are those that think all neutral devices must sound exactly the same if they measure flat.
Then they claim they know exactly what something sounds like without actually having tried it.
FYI nobody here is claiming they're right, but just trying to figure out what causes all the changes we're hearing. Nothing wrong with that.
What's more cult-like are those that think the ODAC is so transparent that everything that sounds very slightly different must obviously be colored.

 
You said you're you're "just trying to figure out what causes all the changes [you're hearing]", but then reject obvious, correct explanations. To avoid future disagreements, I'll stop replying to your posts. I apologize for offending you.

 

[tdockweiler]

Quote:

 
You said you're you're "just trying to figure out what causes all the changes [you're hearing]", but then reject obvious, correct explanations. To avoid future disagreements, I'll stop replying to your posts. I apologize for offending you.

No, you've been helpful and I wasn't rejecting any of your ideas. I'm not trying to argue. You mentioned the soundstage differences could be due to distortion and this seemed strange because the Modi has such low distortion as it is. Probably similar to the ODAC. In my previous posts I actually mentioned this could be possible. I can't say it's the correct answer until I know for sure.
 
The problem I have is that sometimes I'll never be able to figure out the exact reasons behind all the differences I'm hearing. I'd much rather figure them out instead of simply blaming it on not volume matching or placebo.
 
Anyway, none of this is important. Both of the ODAC and Modi are very transparent, so that's all that matters. I'd probably fail a blind test between the two. With the ODAC vs HRT MSII (not + version) it'd be quite easy.
 
You could be right that perhaps the Modi is less transparent, but measurements show it completely flat and it sounds almost identical to the ODAC. The mids of the Modi do seem a little more "relaxed" than the ODAC which makes no sense at all. The differences are so small it's not worth mentioning though.

 

[LoveKnight]

Alright. Today after the Sennheiser meeting, I borrowed my friend's USB power hub which is Kensington 4 USB ports and it is more than $30 on Amazon. Plugging or connect my ODAC C421 2227. I could not believe what I am hearing. Everything is so smooth, details, sound-stage is bigger and more correct and especially the mid-range is fuller than normal without USB hub.
 
I do not know what the hell is going but now I have believed in +-5v for ODAC. It certainly can boost ODAC to it's full potential. Sure. Ha ha ha now I am considering Vaunix USB power hub and Moon Audio Black Dragon V2, which one should I buy first seriously?.
 
I take back my words. With or without USB Power hub. ODAC sounds the same. It was just my imagination because I was a bit tired after a long trip.
 
Sorry guys.

 

[HamilcarBarca]

Quote:

Alright. Today after the Sennheiser meeting, I borrowed my friend's USB power hub which is Kensington 4 USB ports and it is more than $30 on Amazon. Plugging or connect my ODAC C421 2227. I could not believe what I am hearing. Everything is so smooth, details, sound-stage is bigger and more correct and especially the mid-range is fuller than normal without USB hub.
 
I do not know what the hell is going but now I have believed in +-5v for ODAC. It certainly can boost ODAC to it's full potential. Sure. Ha ha ha now I am considering Vaunix USB power hub and Moon Audio Black Dragon V2, which one should I buy first seriously?.

 
For that $400+, you get nothing or real value.Your money is better spend on another pair of headphones or lots of new music or both.

 

[adydula]

Well,
 
I had the Had the HRT MSII for a few months and then bought the MSII+.
 
I really did not hear anything that told me that one was any better than the other with the speakers and cans.
 
But I feel better knowing I have a asynchronous usb dac!!!
 
and the ODAC being synchronous...the best of both worlds!
 
They both do the job...
 
I find my mood and brain interactions have more to do with how they sound than they actually do!
 
LOL
 
Later
Alex

 

[JakeJack_2008]

I've read the last few pages about the ODAC's vs. Modi's sounstage depth and height.
No width was mentioned.

 
 
 
 
Anyway, as far as I remember,  I've read (perhaps in the UHA-6S MKII thread) that a guy was saying:
 
 
 
Quote:

the UHA6S-MKII soundstage was focused on depth whereas the ODAC's soundstage was focused on width.

 
 
 
 
Yes, he used the verb 'focus'.
 
So, he emphasized that the ODAC's soundstage wasn't as deep as the UHA6S-MKII's one!
 
P.S.
That is, as far as I remember.
 
EDIT
Maybe  this was the post or maybe not 

:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/602493/new-leckerton-uha-6s-mkii-portable-headphone-amplifier-announced-update-user-impressions-added-july-20th-2012/975#post_8905326
 
But I think that I've seen something about the ODAC in the above mentioned thread or somewhere else.
 
Anyway, ain't it interesting?

 

[LoveKnight]

Yeah with ODAC and C421, I can feel the width sound-stage that they delivery but the depth maybe not too good, just average I think and I do not have other DACs to compare.

 

[HamilcarBarca]

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Yeah with ODAC and C421, I can feel the width sound-stage that they delivery but the depth maybe not too good, just average I think and I do not have other DACs to compare.

No, the ODAC doesn't create, eliminate, enhance, or reduce 'soundstage' depth, width, or height.
 
The message to which you're replying was sarcasm..

 

[yifu]

Quote:

No, the ODAC doesn't create, eliminate, enhance, or reduce 'soundstage' depth, width, or height.
 
The message to which you're replying was sarcasm..

No, but it does enhance/improve soundstage dept when compared to the onboard DAC, among other things like noise. Point is it does generate an audible improvement for someone coming from onboard audio.

 

[lorriman]

No, but it does enhance/improve soundstage dept when compared to the onboard DAC, among other things like noise. Point is it does generate an audible improvement for someone coming from onboard audio.

Well....that depends. From my experience (subjective), the onboard audio can be impossible for me to distinguish from my ODAC/O2 combo. My suspicion, which I've mentioned elsewhere, is that the mature cheapo soundcards, that are not doing anything special, have been producing hifi for a few years now (excepting huge variations in output impedance).

The O2/ODAC designer has already proven that developing both transparent amplification and transparent DAC does not need billions of dollars of investment and that there is little justification, in this modern era, for very expensive kit. Take economies of scale in to consideration then there is a possibility that anyone with a modern, mature, cheap onboard Sigmatel,Realtek etc sound has already got hifi (excepting the issue of output impedance, and perhaps detectable, under test conditions, but practicably irrelevant: noise).

And so personally I am not, these days, surprised to often see people reporting their disappointment at not getting the delight they expected when using external DACs/USB-sound-cards.

 

[Hi Rez]

[size=11pt]My ODAC showed up in the mail yesterday.  Pleasantly surprised – not just by the size.  Music details come through pretty nicely considering it gets it’s power from USB. [/size]
 
[size=11pt]I personally found fine music textures to be mostly missing, and voices to not be as natural sounding as they are on my other DACs, but it seems a fair musical value for the price.[/size]

 

[Airstripone]

I've been using O2+ODAC combo for 2 months, it's clean. I often turn it on High Gain when listening to HD600. It also works really well with my JH16.

 

[HamilcarBarca]

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[size=11pt]I personally found fine music textures to be mostly missing, and voices to not be as natural sounding as they are on my other DACs, but it seems a fair musical value for the price.[/size]

 
You've reached the wrong conclusions. Since the ODAC is neutral, your other DACs must be adding non-existent textures and an unnatural sound through their particular brands of distortion. But if you find them pleasing, you should stick with them as neutral equipment isn't to your taste. Price has nothing do to with it.

 

[Hi Rez]

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You've reached the wrong conclusions. Since the ODAC is neutral, your other DACs must be adding non-existent textures and an unnatural sound through their particular brands of distortion. But if you find them pleasing, you should stick with them as neutral equipment isn't to your taste. Price has nothing do to with it.

I agree that the ODAC is neutral if you mean it has a flat measured frequency response.  But pretty much every DAC measures a flat frequency response, and by that would also be considered neutral.  Nothing against the ODAC - I just didn't find it to resolve the fine details as well as my other DACS, pretty much throughout the frequency spectrum.  With the ODAC, bass notes weren't as resolved, plucked guitar strings weren't as sharp, voices had more sibilance, brushed cymbals were less clear....  
 
Interesting that you are saying that it must be distortion that is adding this fine detail to the music with my DACs.  In my experience, distortion tends to smear fine detail, not enhance it.

 

[adydula]

"Considering it gets its power from USB??"
 
Here we go again....
 
Alex