[alxw0w]

New speakers day!
Santa arrived earlier and brought a partner for my Dave: it was love at first Ohm.
A fantastic pair of Compact Alnico Monitors straight out of the RCA output of the DAC.
The match is fantastic to my ears, even before applying any acoustic treatment (on the way). I say this coming from the Utopias, so it's a big deal.
I was worried about them sounding too "light" in the bass section but I have to say I am positively surprised.
I feel very privileged, almost guilty...

Wow nice. Speakers look extremely nice. I'm jealous

 

[JamieMcC]

New speakers day!
Santa arrived earlier and brought a partner for my Dave: it was love at first Ohm.
A fantastic pair of Compact Alnico Monitors straight out of the RCA output of the DAC.
The match is fantastic to my ears, even before applying any acoustic treatment (on the way). I say this coming from the Utopias, so it's a big deal.
I was worried about them sounding too "light" in the bass section but I have to say I am positively surprised.
I feel very privileged, almost guilty...

Congratulations on the speakers and great choice of finish they look superb.

Listening to quality sensitive full rangers direct from Dave can prove very addictive.

 

[doraymon]

Congratulations on the speakers and great choice of finish they look superb.

Listening to quality sensitive full rangers direct from Dave can prove very addictive.

Yes I have to say it’s a first for me and I’m impressed.
I’d like to thank @KMann for the great advice.

 

[penguin69]

Hi

Apologies to the purists here for what may be seen as something of a heretical post, but is anyone using their Dave as part of an AV setup?

I ask because, until now, I have only used my Dave for stereo listening. However, I have just acquired my first AV surround system. Hearing Dolby Atmos surround is great for movies, but of course I want to have my cake and eat it, viz. have the quality of the Dave governing the left and right speakers whilst the surround system takes care of the rest.

Specifically, I would like to be able to decode a Dolby Atmos signal from HDMI into a (L)PCM signal acceptable to Dave. The set-up is as follows: JBL Bar 9.1 soundbar fed by an Apple TV source, with the bar feeding my Sony TV via HDMI ARC tv input. Note that the Sony TV is already connected to my Chord kit by means of the TV's optical out, but this PCM stream unsurprisingly stops working when the soundbar takes over surround duties.

My initial thoughts are that I could take an HDMI splitter/decoder with a Toslink output, and try to feed the Dave with that.

Anyway, feel free to ignore this post as it is better situated on an AV forum/thread. I just thought I would ask here as maybe one of you guys know how to enjoy your Dave for movie-watching as well as standard stereo listening.

Cheers
penguin69

 

[audio_1]

Hi

Apologies to the purists here for what may be seen as something of a heretical post, but is anyone using their Dave as part of an AV setup?

I ask because, until now, I have only used my Dave for stereo listening. However, I have just acquired my first AV surround system. Hearing Dolby Atmos surround is great for movies, but of course I want to have my cake and eat it, viz. have the quality of the Dave governing the left and right speakers whilst the surround system takes care of the rest.

Specifically, I would like to be able to decode a Dolby Atmos signal from HDMI into a (L)PCM signal acceptable to Dave. The set-up is as follows: JBL Bar 9.1 soundbar fed by an Apple TV source, with the bar feeding my Sony TV via HDMI ARC tv input. Note that the Sony TV is already connected to my Chord kit by means of the TV's optical out, but this PCM stream unsurprisingly stops working when the soundbar takes over surround duties.

My initial thoughts are that I could take an HDMI splitter/decoder with a Toslink output, and try to feed the Dave with that.

Anyway, feel free to ignore this post as it is better situated on an AV forum/thread. I just thought I would ask here as maybe one of you guys know how to enjoy your Dave for movie-watching as well as standard stereo listening.

Cheers
penguin69

I think the only way to do this fully transparently is with a processor such as the Trinnov Altitude 32 processor. This has single ended and balanced digital outputs for each channel. These could be connected direct to Dave's digital input and perhaps multiple TT2s for surround channels. The Altitude 32 processor would control the volume output on all channels. I considered getting one when Blu rays could be rented. I have given up on multichannel audio as there is now no readily available lossless software available. A good system would also be ridiculously expensive. A Trinnov Altitude 32, Dave & Mscaler, Hugo TT2 dacs and power amplifiers!

 

[penguin69]

Thanks for the tip! An expensive option but it's good to see that the tech is possible. A half-way house I was considering was an AV amp with pre-outs, which would at least allow me to bring good quality amplification and speakers into the picture, as it were. But it leaves out the digital processing.

 

[Ciggavelli]

I'm thinking about upping my DAC setup. This is a taboo subject, but for those of you that got external linear power supplies for your DAVE, what are your thoughts? Is it worth it?

Also, what exactly is the reason why Chord doesn't want you to add these linear power supplies? What are the risks?

 

[ekfc63]

The only one i’ve read about is the Sean Jacobs SR4 which is priced pretty heftily. I’d love to hear about others.

 

[Ciggavelli]

The only one i’ve read about is the Sean Jacobs SR4 which is priced pretty heftily. I’d love to hear about others.

That’s the one I’m interested in. I have the Innuos Zenith Mk3, which uses Sean Jacobs power supplies too. I’m impressed with his components

 

[Triode User]

I'm thinking about upping my DAC setup. This is a taboo subject, but for those of you that got external linear power supplies for your DAVE, what are your thoughts? Is it worth it?

Also, what exactly is the reason why Chord doesn't want you to add these linear power supplies? What are the risks?

Chord and Rob have always been very clear that the SMPS inside Dave measures extremely well and say there is no need or advantage in changing to an external LPS.

Having said that, I have had the Sean Jacobs DC4 powering my Dave for about a year now. The sound is just divine. There are now quite a few of us using the DC4 for the Dave around the world and I am not aware of any who have not been completely bowled over by the sound. I personally would probably go for the DC4 before adding an Mscaler, it is that good. I say this in full knowledge of what Rob has said about LPS but it is me listening to the DC4 Dave and really at the end of it that is all that counts for me.

On my journey to deciding to go with the DC4, I first tried taking the SMPS out of the Dave and putting it in an external box. That did help the sound to be a bit smoother. I also tried only powering the analogue circuits with DC4 and having the digital circuit powered with the SMPS, also the other way around ie digital with DC4 and analogue with SMPS, and neither were anywhere as good to my ears as using DC4 for both the digital and analogue boards in the Dave.

As to the risks, the voltage output from the DC4 is very stable and is extremely unlikely to supply an overvoltage which might damage Dave. Remember that Sean's power supplies are inside the Innuos Statement which sells for more than Dave and Innuos have no qualms about using his LPS throught their range including the Statement. However, if the thought of using a third party power supply with the Dave is likely to give one sleepless nights then I would say this is not for you, do not even think about it and leave it for the rest of us because Rob will say there is nothing to be gained and Chord will say the warranty is voided etc etc. However, my Dave has been powered on 24/7 by the DC4 for almost a year with no issues and in my mind the risk is so close to zero that I don't even think about it.

The conversion is just a matter of unplugging the SMPS and plugging in the supplied umbilical to the external DC4 having taken the top off the Dave. This is fully reversible so it leaves behind no sign of ever having been there if it is removed. Be aware though that the DC4 is big and heavy! (45cm x 30cm x 12cm). And of course there is the cost which is substantial - £4400, (6000 USD for North America) but having heard it and having weighed up the extra enjoyment I get from my system I put it in the value for money category.

 

[Uncle Monty]

I'm thinking about upping my DAC setup. This is a taboo subject, but for those of you that got external linear power supplies for your DAVE, what are your thoughts? Is it worth it?

Also, what exactly is the reason why Chord doesn't want you to add these linear power supplies? What are the risks?

I intend to get a Sean Jacobs DC4 eventually (I have a DC3 powering my MScaler) but I recently acquired a Lessloss 64x Firewall and stuck it in the back of my DAVE to quite astounding effect. I'm no good at describing these things but it added 'air' and 'separation' (increased soundstage?) to my DAVE - really impressed.

https://www.lessloss.com/firewall-module-p-216.html

 

[Hooster]

Chord and Rob have always been very clear that the SMPS inside Dave measures extremely well and say there is no need or advantage in changing to an external LPS.

Having said that, I have had the Sean Jacobs DC4 powering my Dave for about a year now. The sound is just divine. There are now quite a few of us using the DC4 for the Dave around the world and I am not aware of any who have not been completely bowled over by the sound. I personally would probably go for the DC4 before adding an Mscaler, it is that good. I say this in full knowledge of what Rob has said about LPS but it is me listening to the DC4 Dave and really at the end of it that is all that counts for me.

Bravo, and many thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[Hooster]

Hi
Apologies to the purists here for what may be seen as something of a heretical post, but is anyone using their Dave as part of an AV setup?

I have abandoned HT long ago. It is my opinion that HT is the worst thing that has happened to good sound reproduction in the home and it is a source of clutter and wasted money. If I were you I would just listen to movies in 2 channels and enjoy the superior sound quality of DAVE. Someone suggested an expensive processor. Let me humbly suggest that the money spent on a processor like that, multiple amplifiers and speakers, would produce far greater bang per buck if it was simply spent on 1 pair of speakers and 1 good two channel amplifier.

I listen to movies in 2 channels. Do I miss the surround sound effects? No. If I must have that I will just go to a movie theatre. I have done that about once in the past 5 years and that just goes to show how little I care about having sounds coming from behind me.

 

[doraymon]

I have abandoned HT long ago. It is my opinion that HT is the worst thing that has happened to good sound reproduction in the home and it is a source of clutter and wasted money. If I were you I would just listen to movies in 2 channels and enjoy the superior sound quality of DAVE. Someone suggested an expensive processor. Let me humbly suggest that the money spent on a processor like that, multiple amplifiers and speakers, would produce far greater bang per buck if it was simply spent on 1 pair of speakers and 1 good two channel amplifier.

I listen to movies in 2 channels. Do I miss the surround sound effects? No. If I must have that I will just go to a movie theatre. I have done that about once in the past 5 years and that just goes to show how little I care about having sounds coming from behind me.

100% agreed. And without counting that after having spent hundreds (or thousands) of $ you will find out that what you are hearing is your room and not your gear, and you don't want to divorce for filling the living room with bass traps and absorbers.

I abandoned HT several years ago due to space constraints and travelling around the world for work. I haven't missed it a bit.
Now I live in a place where big houses are kind of the standard and I decided to buy the latest and greatest Denon AVR and some surround speakers.
Result: wasted money...

 

[penguin69]

I'm minded to agree. If I don't get it all working, I'll go back to 2 channel as quality is far, far preferable over effects.

But ... solving this problem has become almost an obsessive challenge over recent days.