[iDesign]

I'm toying with the idea of going for DAVE in the new year. All of my cans are relatively easy to drive, even the 600ohm Beyer T1.2.
My question is: I just love my HMS/TT2 combo. HOW much better can it be??

You should listen to any equipment you’re considering before purchasing it. No one can possibly predict how you will perceive sound and your individual preferences. This bit of advice will save you thousands. In my experience the difference is in the fluidity and holography of the sound that makes the DAVE so special.

 

[jarnopp]

I would not have bought Dave without HMS this May.

I recommend you to go for Dave rather than TT2 and Hms.

My Dac rating that I had auditioned for 2 years.

Point 100
There is nothing to criticize over MSB Select II except its high price around 100K$.
It has magical relaxed texture similar to top grade vinyl.

Dynamics, details, soundstage are all excellent.

Point 95
Kalista Dreamplay transport and Dac
It is excellent matching MSB Select II on almost every aspects.

The only down side is that it does not have relaxed texture similar to top grade vinyl although it still sounds silky.

Point 91.
Trinity Dac
This one is also all round player with hard to criticize.
But it falls slightly short of MSB Select II on details and relaxed texture.

Point 90
Lampiziator Pacific Dac
I had auditioned this Dac with same setup with MSB Select II.

This one is also all round player with hard to criticize.
It falls slightly short of MSB Select II on dynamics and relaxed texture.
But this one has a nice bloom and full bodied sound,
which make some people prefer this one to MSB Select II

Point 85
Chord Dave and Mscaler(or Blue II transport)
This one give transparent and 3D soundstage with excellent details.
But it need good system matching.
It could sound analytical or hot coupled with bright combination of speaker and amplifier.
Without upscaling using Mscaler, its sound is mediocre around 75 points.

Point 84
MSB Premier with one more basic power supply
I had auditioned this one side by side with Lampiziator Pacific Dac.
It matches Pacific Dac with Dynamics, details, soundstage but fall short of Pacific Dac in magical bloom and full body.
With improved power supply or clock, its performance have room to improve further.

Point 80
Formula XHD Dac
I auditioned this one side by side with Trinity Dac
This one is a very musical player with full bloom.
But it falls short of Trinity Dac by one notch in dynamics and bass slam.

Point 79
TotalDac 6 tube version
This one is also a very musical player.
But from the point of audiophile, its dynamics, details, soundstage are all one notch below the standard set by MSB Select II.

Point 78
MSB Discrete Dac with one additional basic power supply.
This one has similar sound signature to MSB Premier
But it is half notch below MSB Premier on dynamics, details, soundstage.

Point 75
EmmLab Dac2
I paid 9K$ for this on 2010.
It matches Chord Dave and Mscaler on dynamics with slightly more bass slam.
But Chord Dave and Mscaler give more transparent and deeper soundstage than EmmLab Dac2 while soundstage width are comparable to each other.
This one has slightly fuller sound than Chord Dave and Mscaler.
It is still working fine after 10 years of use.

Point 73.

Lyngdorf 2170
This one has Dac, pre and power amp, active crossover and room correction functions.
It’s Dac sounds very similar to EmmLab Dac2 but with slightly less details and bass slam.

There are many Dacs to audition but I could not audition all of them.

I had bought Chord Dave and Mscaler late May.

Recently I play musicals and operas very often enjoying excellent 3D soundstage.

But I do not believe that I can live with Chord Dave and Mscaler for my life.

If some innovative Dac better than MSB Select II come out under 50K$ in the future, then I will upgrade to it.

Otherwise, I expect to use Chord Dave and Mscaler for 3 years or longer.

Thomas,

Thanks for the comprehensive reviews. Is your reference point then vinyl and , if so, what is the ultimate vinyl setup you are comparing these DACs against? An additional question would be how might they compare to ,aster tapes or even live performances.

Thanks!

 

[thomaskong78]

Thomas,

Thanks for the comprehensive reviews. Is your reference point then vinyl and , if so, what is the ultimate vinyl setup you are comparing these DACs against? An additional question would be how might they compare to ,aster tapes or even live performances.

Thanks!

MSB Select Dac vs Vinyl


http://glv.co.kr/data/editor/201810/15395687063080.png
(This the same room with slightly different setup)


On Dec 6th, 2018 I had attended Launching event of YG Acoustics Hailey 1.2 speakers in Seoul, Korea.

MSB Select II Dac and Pre was connected to Viola Legacy Mono Amplifier to drive the speakers.

Nordost Valhalla cables were used.

The system gave wide and deep soundstage with tight and tuneful bass.

There is no doubt it was top notch system in every way with the total cost of component over 200K $.


http://glv.co.kr/products/MSB/images/top_image_06.jpg


http://www.kronosaudio.com/images/kronos pro big-crop-u963_2x.jpg?crc=3796245212




At the end of show, we decided to do interesting comparison between MSB Select Dac II (85K$) and vinyl system using Kronus turntable.

Kronus turntable was fed to Octave phono amp and Viola Pre amp,

MSB Select was used as Pre and Dac.


https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51hvAKhEyIL.jpg
We selected above Vinyl and 24/96 network media.


I got surprised to find that MSB and Kronus gave very similar sound.

MSB Select provided slightly more dense sound with little bit more details.

Kronus gave slightly more relaxed sound.


If I had to choose one, I would take Kronus over MSB on this music since I like relaxed sound as I get older.


But it could change with different music.

Unfortunately we could test only one music.

Other people may have different opinion.



Despite this conclusion, MSB Select II gave one of the best sound from any DAC that I had ever heard.

 

[rkt31]

MSB Select Dac vs Vinyl


http://glv.co.kr/data/editor/201810/15395687063080.png
(This the same room with slightly different setup)


On Dec 6th, 2018 I had attended Launching event of YG Acoustics Hailey 1.2 speakers in Seoul, Korea.

MSB Select II Dac and Pre was connected to Viola Legacy Mono Amplifier to drive the speakers.

Nordost Valhalla cables were used.

The system gave wide and deep soundstage with tight and tuneful bass.

There is no doubt it was top notch system in every way with the total cost of component over 200K $.


http://glv.co.kr/products/MSB/images/top_image_06.jpg


http://www.kronosaudio.com/images/kronos pro big-crop-u963_2x.jpg?crc=3796245212




At the end of show, we decided to do interesting comparison between MSB Select Dac II (85K$) and vinyl system using Kronus turntable.

Kronus turntable was fed to Octave phono amp and Viola Pre amp,

MSB Select was used as Pre and Dac.


https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51hvAKhEyIL.jpg
We selected above Vinyl and 24/96 network media.


I got surprised to find that MSB and Kronus gave very similar sound.

MSB Select provided slightly more dense sound with little bit more details.

Kronus gave slightly more relaxed sound.


If I had to choose one, I would take Kronus over MSB on this music since I like relaxed sound as I get older.


But it could change with different music.

Unfortunately we could test only one music.

Other people may have different opinion.



Despite this conclusion, MSB Select II gave one of the best sound from any DAC that I had ever heard.

To me tt2 +HMS sounded more relaxed than Kronos tt at Singapore. HMS contributes a lot for making sound stress free.

 

[kelly200269]

You should listen to any equipment you’re considering before purchasing it. No one can possibly predict how you will perceive sound and your individual preferences. This bit of advice will save you thousands. In my experience the difference is in the fluidity and holography of the sound that makes the DAVE so special.

Thanks for this. Good advice.
And yes, as with any upgrade/change YMMV.
I’ve just been amazed with the improvements moving ‘up the chain’ of Chord DAC’s has brought. Moving from Hugo => TT1 => TT2 => TT2/HMS have all brought a massive smile to my face.
But you’re correct, I think I would need to audition DAVE in my system to see if the benefits are realised in my relatively modest system.

 

[FunkyBassMan]

Thanks for this. Good advice.
And yes, as with any upgrade/change YMMV.
I’ve just been amazed with the improvements moving ‘up the chain’ of Chord DAC’s has brought. Moving from Hugo => TT1 => TT2 => TT2/HMS have all brought a massive smile to my face.
But you’re correct, I think I would need to audition DAVE in my system to see if the benefits are realised in my relatively modest system.

I spent the better part of 6 hours listening at a dealer to Hugo2, TT2 and Dave, with and without M-Scaler on every conceivable recording I could think about. I posted about it a while back, but long story short, the DAVE + MScaler literally made the others unlistenable to me. It was like there was a "musicality IN/OUT" button.

TT2+MScaler sounded better technically in terms of purity of tone and timing than Hugo2+MScaler but added nothing musically to my ears. Since I've lived all my life in recording studios and grew up listening to NS-10s, I respond 90% to musicality and 10% to purity of tone, so between the H2 the TT2, I could take either one over the other.

However the DAVE brought the music. It was addictive like a delicious meal you can't stop eating.

If Chord put the DAVE and the HMS in one box, they would rule the world.

 

[ekfc63]

If Chord put the DAVE and the HMS in one box, they would rule the world.

Along with the TT2's more powerful headphone amplifier

 

[kelly200269]

I spent the better part of 6 hours listening at a dealer to Hugo2, TT2 and Dave, with and without M-Scaler on every conceivable recording I could think about. I posted about it a while back, but long story short, the DAVE + MScaler literally made the others unlistenable to me. It was like there was a "musicality IN/OUT" button.

TT2+MScaler sounded better technically in terms of purity of tone and timing than Hugo2+MScaler but added nothing musically to my ears. Since I've lived all my life in recording studios and grew up listening to NS-10s, I respond 90% to musicality and 10% to purity of tone, so between the H2 the TT2, I could take either one over the other.

However the DAVE brought the music. It was addictive like a delicious meal you can't stop eating.

If Chord put the DAVE and the HMS in one box, they would rule the world.

Thanks for this. This is really helpful.
I think that you’ve ‘hit the nail on the head’ when you talk about ‘musicality’.
I know many non-Chord DAC users might balk at the cost of Chord DAC’s. and argue that they’re no better than off-the-shelf Delta Sigma DAC’s. And technically, that may be true. After all, they probably all display ruler-flat frequency response, distortion etc, and probably ‘measure’ very similarly.
However Rob’s genius bestows Chord DAC’a with the magic ingredient - musicality, something that can’t be ‘measured’.
Consideration of bass, treble, mids ‘quality’ etc is nonsensical when evaluating a Chord DAC against a stock Delta Sigma DAC.
The HMS has been a revelation to me. It makes MUSIC. I’ve said previously on the HMS thread that the TT2 sounds relatively crude and uncouth without HMS.
This makes me think that DAVE will be even more musical, and it’s impact in my relatively modest Linn Aktiv system will be felt in the same way that previous moves ‘up’ the Chord DAC range have been felt in the past.
Something to look forward to in the New Year!

 

[rkt31]

Thanks for this. This is really helpful.
I think that you’ve ‘hit the nail on the head’ when you talk about ‘musicality’.
I know many non-Chord DAC users might balk at the cost of Chord DAC’s. and argue that they’re no better than off-the-shelf Delta Sigma DAC’s. And technically, that may be true. After all, they probably all display ruler-flat frequency response, distortion etc, and probably ‘measure’ very similarly.
However Rob’s genius bestows Chord DAC’a with the magic ingredient - musicality, something that can’t be ‘measured’.
Consideration of bass, treble, mids ‘quality’ etc is nonsensical when evaluating a Chord DAC against a stock Delta Sigma DAC.
The HMS has been a revelation to me. It makes MUSIC. I’ve said previously on the HMS thread that the TT2 sounds relatively crude and uncouth without HMS.
This makes me think that DAVE will be even more musical, and it’s impact in my relatively modest Linn Aktiv system will be felt in the same way that previous moves ‘up’ the Chord DAC range have been felt in the past.
Something to look forward to in the New Year!

I mostly use tt2 fed by HMS but one day i used tt2 alone via phone's Bluetooth. It sounded too good even with Bluetooth input. I don't know how you found tt2 alone crude !

 

[kelly200269]

I mostly use tt2 fed by HMS but one day i used tt2 alone via phone's Bluetooth. It sounded too good even with Bluetooth input. I don't know how you found tt2 alone crude !

I used the word relatively!

 

[musickid]

So given all of this new information if one has to live with a solo dave or hms/tt2 which way do you go? Assuming here the tt2/hms owner i.e. me cannot afford to add another mscaler to a newly acquired dave anytime in the foreseeable future if ever.

 

[Triode User]

So given all of this new information if one has to live with a solo dave or hms/tt2 which way do you go? Assuming here the tt2/hms owner i.e. me cannot afford to add another mscaler to a newly acquired dave anytime in the foreseeable future if ever.

I thought you had asked that and I thought that a number of us had said go with solo Dave as being the better option.

but really, shouldn’t you be listening and making that decision yourself? Do you have a good relationship with your chord dealer? Having bought TT2 and MScaler many would loan you a Dave for a home demo if they thought that ultimately there might be a sale in it.

 

[musickid]

Yes nintronics have quoted me a good figure but i'm undecided between the musicality of hms and magical transparency of dave. i have heard dave solo twice through my PM1's and it is excellent. I'm waiting for the spark which will divert me one way or the other. Anyhow a second opinion here never hurt anyone.

 

[marhol]

Yes nintronics have quoted me a good figure but i'm undecided between the musicality of hms and magical transparency of dave. i have heard dave solo twice through my PM1's and it is excellent. I'm waiting for the spark which will divert me one way or the other. Anyhow a second opinion here never hurt anyone.

Oppo Pm1 were one of the most musical headphones I have heard by themselves. I was listening Pm1 with Oppo Ha-1 (neutral Dac/amp) and it was magical pairing. IMHO transparency, neutrality and holographic presentation of Dave would bring the best from Pm1 as it is an efficient and warm/musical sounding headphone.

 

[musickid]

have you heard tt2/hms vs dave?

also is anyone out there using chromecast audio connected to dave to stream roon? this has to be one of the most minimalistic rf free setups possible. for headphone use.