CHORD ELECTRONICS DAVE

[lojay]

Yes!  Once the monitors are unplugged, you are safe.
In fact, you may want to A/B with an on/off to the monitor to see if you can pick up something with your headphones.  With something as revealing as the DAVE, you will hear it if those monitors are not shielded for EMF.

After the first 12 hours of operation, the DAVE reached 85F and I let it rest for the day.  Like you said, the DAVE is very musical.  The instruments are well defined and things like lips parting and audience noise were heard in the Jazz at the Pawnshop HIDEF download.  I did have trouble with my MBP feeding 2.8mhz files running Audirvana.
I am trying different settings and deleting some work programs to allow for more cache for the player.
Both MSB 4 and Nagra HD seemed more forgiving but I did not tried such high bits files when in my early days with those DACs.
Now, they play very smoothly, but they are into the thousands of hours.  They each have their set microcosms.

I have not tried really good headphones with the DAVE.  Been using an AKG K814, which I like as it is rather neutral.    
So have not experience the great imaging I read about.
I plan to do that with HD800S, HE1000 and SR009 after 200 hours or so.
Paul

Thanks Paul, I tried turning off the monitors but have not heard a noticeable difference. It might be that the other EMI sources in my room are still in play.

I generally find that the transducer plays the greatest role when it comes to imaging. But the DAVE is special not only for imaging but more importantly for the spatial depth heard between instruments. Not all recordings have this quality, in fact many (even live classical recordings) do not. Large scale orchestral works may well drown out the spatial depth cues on headphones - you may well need to hear this on a good two channel speaker system. I really enjoyed this aspect when listening to recordings of musicals on the DAVE just now, like Les Miserables and Phantom, where there is enough going on to hear depth but not too much to drown it.

But then again you are coming from the Nagra and MSB IV so those DACs may already be excellent in spatial depth!

 

[rkt31]

one suggestion for Dave owners is try movies in two channel set up. feed stereo downmix out from a blu Ray player to Dave. I watch movies with Hugo and it has been a great experience watching movies like inception, spr, master and commander, avatar and many more !

 

[ecwl]

I concur. I've been watching TV shows like The Amazing Race or Game of Thrones and movies like Good Dinosaur or Dark Knight or even Netflix shows like Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt or Chef's Table the same way via DAVE. The sonic upgrade is just tremendous (and that's upgrading from my old QBD76HDSD). It's amazing how much sonic details are captured on these shows.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[rkt31]

my query to some extent related to Dave too as some would like to use single ended out instead of xlr out of dave. I feed my power amp from Hugo. Hugo has rca only and my amp takes xlr only. I found that if I connect ground pin 1 of both xlr at amp end to sleeve of rca at Hugo end (via shield of balance cable) there is clear reduction in air and soundstage width. so kept shield free at rca end ie it was not connected to sleeve of rca but shield was connected to ground pin 1 of xlr. this way there is more width and better imaging. somewhere I read that connecting shield to sleeve of rca and pin 1 of xlr will also result ground loop hum. any ideas ?

 

[106099]

movie folks.  
 
I have found OOYH to be an effective software emulator for multi-channel experience with headphones.  I wrote briefly about it here:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/689299/out-of-your-head-new-virtual-surround-simulator/675#post_12511093
 
What does this have to do with DAVE?  A lot.  While the spatial effects may seem novelty when used out of a notebook computer.  OOYH scales deliciously up and into epic scale with reference level gear.  I have used it with my Nagra HD DAC and the simulated space is very accurate.  I heard many of my own theater production recordings and the OOYH bought nearly everything back, in terms of sound and room acoustics.
 
I imagine the DAVE will do likewise.  The fact that there is no outboard power supply makes the DAVE an ideal production audio player/monitor for me.  It could go in my kit with the Sound Devices 633 mixer/recorder.
 
@lojay
The acoustics interactions in a room even if visible is too complex to tame.  
I am not an audio engineer.  Those people know about room design and acoustics management.  It was a few of these engineers in NYC that taught me about interference avoidance and isolation techniques.  With the amount of cabling and electric gear in a recording studio, things like Shakti stone and others came into my understanding of their world.
 
They often tell me to start with an empty space.  Then pick each component for not only what it sounds but how it measures for the level of corruption to other parts in the room.  I once ask about my body type in the room, and she handed me an AKG K240.
 
Paul

 

[romaz]

  movie folks.  
 
I have found OOYH to be an effective software emulator for multi-channel experience with headphones. 

I tried OOYH with the DAVE and it sounded horrible.  All I got was distortion.  At the time, he also could not get it to work with Roon.  Darin tried to figure out a fix and could not so he refunded my money.

 

[isquirrel]

  To open or not open.
it's 2am ...
 

Congratulations Paul, its a fine DAC you have there, Roy has more experience than any of us do with this DAC so I would be guided by him 

 

[106099]

  I tried OOYH with the DAVE and it sounded horrible.  All I got was distortion.  At the time, he also could not get it to work with Roon.  Darin tried to figure out a fix and could not so he refunded my money.

 
I had the same beginnings but since I had the A8 Realiser for 5 years and know about the "benefits", stuck with Darin and finally got the Hugo and Nagra to work with OOYH through MBP running JRiver Media Center.
 
The Nagra + OOYH was actually better than the A8 Realiser.  For one, there are many choices of recorded room/speakers presets by Darin and his team.
The placement expansion with the HD800S,, Nagra and OOYH running media center was errie.  Watching Star Wars Awakens 7.1 had nearly the same feel as a real theater, without the extra tall guy kicking my seat.
 
I will be testing OOYH after the DAVE burn in.
 
Paul 

 

[106099]

 
Congratulations Paul, its a fine DAC you have there, Roy has more experience than any of us do with this DAC so I would be guided by him 

 
Yes! The good doctor makes house-calls!
Thank you @romaz!!!

 

[romaz]

  If I were to nit-pick, the only issue with the DAVE is it is tuned to sound exciting and engaging. The DAVE is not sibilant or a treble-maniac, but the forward and engaging nature may be fatiguing for long periods of listening. Perhaps that is the Chord house sound...

It didn't take long at all to get used to presentation qualities of the DAVE.  I would agree that it sounds more "forward" compared to the relaxed qualities of the R2R TotalDAC I had (and probably the MSB Analog that you have) but I don't find it to sound artificially lit up nor has fatigue ever been an issue, especially as the DAVE is so naturally smooth.  For me, the purpose of a DAC is simply to be faithful to the recording.  If the performance was meant to be forward and aggressive, then so be it.  Not warm or cool but neutral and transparent.  Not sweet or pretty or lush at the expense of distortion or tipped to accentuate the bass, midrange or treble but clear, coherent and tonally balanced.  We talk about accuracy of tone and timbre but also space and depth, qualities that are all tied to time resolution.  I have yet to hear a DAC that checks off all of these boxes so effortlessly and without fuss.
 
I agree, however, that sometimes you're not looking to be 5th row center at Carnegie Hall but instead listening casually on your easy chair by the fireplace but that's why we own different headphones.

 

[romaz]

   
I had the same beginnings but since I had the A8 Realiser for 5 years and know about the "benefits", stuck with Darin and finally got the Hugo and Nagra to work with OOYH through MBP running JRiver Media Center.
 
The Nagra + OOYH was actually better than the A8 Realiser.  For one, there are many choices of recorded room/speakers presets by Darin and his team.
The placement expansion with the HD800S,, Nagra and OOYH running media center was errie.  Watching Star Wars Awakens 7.1 had nearly the same feel as a real theater, without the extra tall guy kicking my seat.
 
I will be testing OOYH after the DAVE burn in.
 
Paul 

I certainly found the concept attractive.  If you figure out how to make it work and sound good, let me know.

 

[romaz]

 
Congratulations Paul, its a fine DAC you have there, Roy has more experience than any of us do with this DAC so I would be guided by him 

Thanks, but there are others here who have owned the DAVE longer than I have.  As always, I defer to Rob's guiding wisdom. 

 

[romaz]

one suggestion for Dave owners is try movies in two channel set up. feed stereo downmix out from a blu Ray player to Dave. I watch movies with Hugo and it has been a great experience watching movies like inception, spr, master and commander, avatar and many more !

I have my Oppo Bluray player connected to my DAVE and indeed, the downmix sounds wonderful.

 

[romaz]

  DAVE runs at a warm 82F but emits the lowest EMI/EMF among my elite DACs. Less than 1 milligauss. Previously, that was the MSB Plat 4 at >2. Nagra at 2.5.  While the others were measured at 6 inches, the DAVE (see photo) is on the machine.
At 6 inches, absolutely no EMI/EMF readings.  What can be ascertain is that there will be no ill effects audio-wise from EMI/EMF.  In terms of organic tissue effects, anything under 3 is safe.
 

 

At Paul's leading, I bought one of these Trifield meters (model 100XE) from Amazon (about $150) and it has been interesting and even a bit of fun to see the type and amount of radiation each of my components emits.  I can verify that the DAVE emits almost none.  My 2-channel amp and all the High Fidelity magnetic equipment I am testing all emit very negligible levels.  I get the highest readings from my inexpensive HD Plex linear PSU that I use to power my optical network isolators but at my listening position, nothing is in the red zone.  I do have a large LED monitor in front of me just like Lojay but the radiation it emits is also fortunately low.  Whether on or off, I have not noticed any SQ issues.
 
The exact health risks related to this exposure is uncertain.  There are some that equate this type of exposure as responsible for the brain cancers reported by frequent cellular phone use.  As a physician who periodically performs procedures under fluoroscopy (x-ray), I have to wear a "radiation" badge that monitors my monthly exposure.  While it doesn't happen to me as much these days, I have Radiology colleagues who reach a high enough level of exposure in a certain month where they are mandatorily excused from work for the rest of the month.  The concern is real and has been linked to a variety of both soft tissue and bone cancers.  So far, and correct me if I'm wrong, Paul, but the biggest offenders seem to be power supplies.  It's best to keep these as far from you as possible.

 

[esimms86]

I had the same beginnings but since I had the A8 Realiser for 5 years and know about the "benefits", stuck with Darin and finally got the Hugo and Nagra to work with OOYH through MBP running JRiver Media Center.

The Nagra + OOYH was actually better than the A8 Realiser.  For one, there are many choices of recorded room/speakers presets by Darin and his team.
The placement expansion with the HD800S,, Nagra and OOYH running media center was errie.  Watching Star Wars Awakens 7.1 had nearly the same feel as a real theater, without the extra tall guy kicking my seat.

I will be testing OOYH after the DAVE burn in.

Paul 

I previously owned a Smyth Realiser and, since, have purchased the full set of OOYH presets that I've used with a Geek Out V2 via my MacBook Pro(in boot camp mode, of course). I have never tried using OOYH with Dave, mostly because Dave on its own is so enjoyable. I wonder how the landscape will shift for Darin Fong Audio and others when the Realiser A16 hits the US market next year at an msrp of 1495 USD.