[Nookt14]

Does any one know how these two dac/amps compare?
Both dacs are suppose to be excellent, but im also curious about the amp section.

 

[project86]

 
Quote:

Does any one know how these two dac/amps compare?
Both dacs are suppose to be excellent, but im also curious about the amp section.

 
Sorry, haven't heard the new Cambridge unit. I will say that the updated Yulong D100 MKII is a worthwhile improvement over the original model that it replaces. The amp section has been tweaked a bit to offer a somewhat warmer signature. Some felt that the original was a bit cold or thin with certain headphones, and Yulong has addressed that. It's still the same design with an opamp driving a diamond buffer made from discrete transistors. 
 
Also, the "Sound Mode" functionality is actually useful now. It will optionally reduce the sound by -3dB above 10kHz, which can help tame some shrillness with certain headphones or recordings. The original had the cutoff set at 15kHz which is way too high to do much good.
 
I know very little about the Cambridge unit, so I have no clue what the headphone out uses or how good it sounds. 

 

[Nookt14]

Thank You Project86 I read your review on the Yulong D100 and it defiantly helped a lot. There is so little known about the Cambridge that it seems like a gamble to get, better to wait until there is a good review on it.

 

[wlvca]

Here are links to a couple of professional reviews for the DacMagic Plus if you haven't seen them.
 
http://kenrockwell.com/audio/cambridge/dacmagic-plus.htm
 
http://www.avguide.com/review/cambridge-audio-dacmagic-plus-usb-dacpreampheadphone-amp-playback-55?utm_campaign=Weekly+Email&utm_medium=email&utm_source=email-371&utm_content=Audioengine+Speakers,+Velodyne+Earphones,+DAC/Amps+from+ADL,+Calyx+%26+Cambridge+Audio
 
What Hi-Fi gave a less favorable review on You Tube, their criticism was that it was bright.  
 
I have one on the way to me and I'll be checking it out.
 
I also have a Yulong Sabre D18.
 
Plan to use the DACMagic with my headphone setup (Burson HA 160 amp) and the D18 in a separate speaker rig.
 
Haven't heard the D100, either version but its also under consideration if I don't like the DACMagic.
 
The DACMagic can be used as a USB to digital switch and that was interesting to me.
 
 

 

[project86]

Per the Ken Rockwell review, the DacMagic+ seems like a better design than I had assumed. But I would be concerned about that output impedance being so high. It is far from ideal and would preclude use of low impedance headphones like Grados and most IEMs.

 

[Nookt14]

The high impedance could be a problem for me because I have the Denon D5000 with lawton audio mod and they are only 25ohms. Wlvca, when you receive the Dacmagic+ could u post a short review on it including the amp, I would be very interested in what you have to say. 
 

 

[project86]

That could be a problem then. 
 
Does anyone know what the DM+ is using for the headphone section? Opamps, discrete, combination of both? I'm curious now and I can't seem to find any info. 

 

[Nookt14]

The original Dacmagic used opamps as this website shows http://singlevalve.web.fc2.com/DacMagic/dacmagic.htm
Idk about the Dacmagic+ and if it differs.
 

 

[wlvca]

 
Quote:

The high impedance could be a problem for me because I have the Denon D5000 with lawton audio mod and they are only 25ohms. Wlvca, when you receive the Dacmagic+ could u post a short review on it including the amp, I would be very interested in what you have to say. 
 

 
The headphone output on the DacMagic wasn't a consideration for me but I will try the K702's and the HD650 as well as a couple of IEM's, too.
 
Please don't expert a Project86 level review - I would not even pretend to have his level of expertise!
 
The volume knob on the DacMagic Plus is not the most user friendly from what I've read so that may be a consideration as well.
 
Maybe the Yulong D100 would be your best choice between these two if the headphone output is important to you.

 

[project86]

The original Dacmagic used opamps as this website shows http://singlevalve.web.fc2.com/DacMagic/dacmagic.htm
Idk about the Dacmagic+ and if it differs.
 

Sorry, I meant in the headphone amp stage. Original model didn't have an am so I'm curious what they did to put that in.

 

[Nookt14]

Ya im starting to starting to lean towards the Yulong. I understand about the review, Project86 gives some of the best reviews around!
Honestly any review would help.
I've heard the same things about the volume knob, lots of people say its response is off.

 

[wlvca]

Nookt14,
 
I tried two headphones and two earphones in the headphone out of the Dacmagic Plus.  Haven't had the device running but an hour so far, so very preliminary
 
It was better than I thought, drove both the HD650 and the K702.  HD650 was better (and louder) as expected.  It wasn't bad with the K702, however.  Both got fairly loud, louder than my normal listening level but that's subjective.  Sound quality was solid but not superior.
 
It wasn't a fair fight  but the Burson HA160 was obviously better.
 
It also drove both earphones well.  Tried the Audeo Phonak PFE 121 and the Panasonic HJE 900.  No hiss with either phone.  The Panasonics sounded better.
 
Regarding the volume knob, it was better than I thought it would be, not hard to turn.  Maybe they've changed the design a bit.  Takes about 2.5 revolutions from lowest to highest volume.
 
It is hard to know where you left the volume level.  I even put a sliver of white label as a marker on the dial and that helped a little but there's still some guessing.
 
Have never heard the Yulong D100 so I cannot compare the two for you.
 
The DacMagic wouldn't be my first choice if it was going to be my only headphone amp.  Haven't had enough time to judge its capabilities as a DAC.
 
 
 

 

[elrod-tom]

I owned the MagicDAC Plus...it's a very nice DAC IMHO.  The Asynch USB-2 improves the sound dramatically IMHO.  As a headphone amp, it's not bad.  I really didn't use it too much, as I do mostly balanced headphone rigs these days and had better alternatives.  The volume pot seemed to be a digital pot to me, which also makes it useable as digital preamp with active monitors.  I played around with this a little and found it did a very nice job.
 
I think it's one of the great values out there in a DAC. The only reason I got rid of mine is that I'm buying a Wadia 121.
 
I have ZERO experience with any of the Yulong products, thought a lot of folks speak pretty highly of them.  I get a bit goosey about dealing with Chinese companies directly, as the hassles in the event that service is ever needed to me outweigh the pricing benefits....but that's just me.  I have a strong - perhaps irrational - bias for dealing with companies where I can (if needed) pick up the phone and speak to someone relatively local about my issues, and not have to be concerned about international shipping.  To me, that makes all the difference...but again, that's just me.

 

[project86]

 
Quote:

 
 
The headphone output on the DacMagic wasn't a consideration for me but I will try the K702's and the HD650 as well as a couple of IEM's, too.
 
Please don't expert a Project86 level review - I would not even pretend to have his level of expertise!
 
The volume knob on the DacMagic Plus is not the most user friendly from what I've read so that may be a consideration as well.
 
Maybe the Yulong D100 would be your best choice between these two if the headphone output is important to you.

 
 
 
Quote:

Ya im starting to starting to lean towards the Yulong. I understand about the review, Project86 gives some of the best reviews around!
Honestly any review would help.
I've heard the same things about the volume knob, lots of people say its response is off.

 
Thanks guys but I'm just a headphone geek with some time on my hands to write (less and less these days).... my opinions are just as valid as the next guy. 
 
Quote:

I owned the MagicDAC Plus...it's a very nice DAC IMHO.  The Asynch USB-2 improves the sound dramatically IMHO.  As a headphone amp, it's not bad.  I really didn't use it too much, as I do mostly balanced headphone rigs these days and had better alternatives.  The volume pot seemed to be a digital pot to me, which also makes it useable as digital preamp with active monitors.  I played around with this a little and found it did a very nice job.
 
I think it's one of the great values out there in a DAC. The only reason I got rid of mine is that I'm buying a Wadia 121.
 
I have ZERO experience with any of the Yulong products, thought a lot of folks speak pretty highly of them.  I get a bit goosey about dealing with Chinese companies directly, as the hassles in the event that service is ever needed to me outweigh the pricing benefits....but that's just me.  I have a strong - perhaps irrational - bias for dealing with companies where I can (if needed) pick up the phone and speak to someone relatively local about my issues, and not have to be concerned about international shipping.  To me, that makes all the difference...but again, that's just me.

 
Thanks for the impressions! I agree that Async is the best thing to happen to USB in quite a while. 
 
I know how you feel about buying from overseas. Until recently, you had to buy Yulong through 3rd party dealers. There are some really good ones out there but you are still dealing with someone overseas and it doesn't inspire tons of confidence. Now however, Grant Fidelity is the North American distributor, so it's a lot more of a traditional purchase. Call them (or stop buy if you live in the area in Canada), and take advantage of their in home 30 day trial. I love that aspect of internet direct companies. Frankly, if a company doesn't have something like that, I have a harder time ordering these days - it's become something of a standard. 
 

 

[wlvca]

I tried the headphone amp on the DacMagic this morning.  Its growing on me.
 
I shut off the preamp function of the volume control so I didn't have to futz with it when I used my other headphone amp.
 
Once you get more accustomed to how the volume control works it gets easier to use.
 
Its driving the HD650's quite well and is doing a good job with the K702's.
 
Didn't try the IEM's this morning.
 
I will say that I do like it so far as a DAC.  Some have claimed it is bright but I am not hearing that.  I tried several different female vocal recordings last night - no sibilance, no distortion and not grating.
 
That's using both the onboard headphone amp and my standalone headphone amp.