[Kal525]

you were right.....deathly silent with the volume knob turned all the way up, i like it

As for the quality of the source i can't really comment on that one since i can't tell the difference between any of the various setups that i've tried so far, amp, no amp, computer source, dvd player source, etc... Maybe i'm deaf or something, ah well, hopefully it will hit me eventually that the pretty $200 box on my desk was a good investment. But for $60 i don't think i'm gonna get anything better than the sonica. I would recommend it, no downsides so far, and it's definitely less noisy than the GTXP setup, even quieter than my DVD player.

The only thing is that the signal is VERY weak. I have to turn my volume knob 3/4 of the way to the max to get a good listening level and i have my gain set at +10. With all the other sources i'd only turn the knob half way and get loud enough sound. I'm wondering if this is affecting the quality in any way, but hey, it's not like i could tell the difference anyway

.......at least it looks pretty, the META42 and the Sonica side by side with their blue LEDs, very nice.

 

[Kal525]

 

[NuclearFusi0n]

Quote:

Originally posted by andrzejpw The DAC would help, but probably only when you're listening to DVDs. Remember, mp3s will still be mp3s, will still be mp3s. I know this is overused, but "garbage in, garbage out." Nothing will bring that missing sound quality back to the mp3s.

Not all MP3s are horrible. Try an MP3 made with LAME's --alt-preset standard setting, it'll be fine, but i personally use monkeys audio.

 

[NuclearFusi0n]

IMHO, you could have done better with the GTXP and the external DAC.

 

[Kal525]

I am using monkey's audio as well..... as for the external DAC, i don't have $120 to blow on an ART DI/O after spending $400 on my headphones and amp. Plus i would need to get a digital cable, and decent interconnects which would add at LEAST $60 to that and all this is assuming the digital signal coming out of my GTXP is clean ( if not than add another $100 to that for an M-audio Revolution), plus i'm only using the signal for headphones, so it's not like the bandwidth matters, all i needed was a clean signal, and the sonica gave me that. In the future i will invest in an SACD player, something that i will be able to hear make a difference, cause i know if i had went out and bought a DAC i wouldn't have been able to tell any difference between that and the sonica.

 

[NuclearFusi0n]

if you built the meta42, why not build the DAC?

and digital cables are cheap if you look in the right place, or build it yourself, RCA + 75 ohm coax

 

[Kal525]

haha, i have no more money, that's why. What you got against the little Sonica anyway? It is a DAC you know, i don't see how a more expensive one would help me with only headphone use, besides another pretty box on my desk

....Maybe they'll come out with a USB 2.0 or firewire one, that will blow any sound card out of the water....maybe we could even use it to listen to SACDs....once someone "mods" an SACD player to hook up to your computer through USB 2.0 of course, it could happen. Oh how the RIAA would LOVE that.

 

[Xeno7651]

Glad you liked it, and holly crap you got the Sonica so fast. Anyways, the Sonica is already a DAC and its sound quality is pretty good, so no point of upgrading if you're short on cash. About the low signal, did you try increasing the volume of the program playing the mp3s on your computer? I heard quite a big difference from the Sonica, don't know why you still couldn't tell the difference. You shouldn't try too hard to spot the difference, it's there and you'll notice it later on. The good thing about it is that you won't get any interference from the computer, and it's signal is extremely clean, something that is hard to beat for a $60 investment.

 

[Kal525]

Quote:

...holly crap you got the Sonica so fast.

yeah, i've been sitting at my desk with a DVD player because of the hiss coming from my GTXP, i needed something to listen to my amp with and compusa is right down the street

Quote:

did you try increasing the volume of the program playing the mp3s on your computer?

Yeah, the volume is all the way up in all software apps controlling the sound. I mean the weakness of the signal is not a problem as the amplifier definitely makes it more than loud enough, i was just wondering if using the amp with the volume knob 3/4 of the way to maximum had any effect on the quality, that is pretty important.

Quote:

I heard quite a big difference from the Sonica, don't know why you still couldn't tell the difference. You shouldn't try too hard to spot the difference, it's there and you'll notice it later on.

I definitely noticed that it was cleaner, and maybe a tad crisper and more defined, but i really can't pick up anything specific, and i think my problem is that i am trying to pick up specific improvements, i'm just no good at listening for such minute differences, as you can tell from my previous posts. I really hope i will notice a difference later on, especially with my META42, as i blew the most cash and time on that one. I'm thinking that i might not be noticing the difference because my headphones aren't fully broken in, time will tell.

As for bang for the buck, the sonica is definitely it. All i wanted was a simple DAC and i found it, thanks for the pointers.

Just out of curiosity, is there any way i could have hooked up the current source incorrectly (i.e. IDSS values of the jfets aren't different enough, or i mixed up Q1 and Q2) so that it would actually be hindering the op-amp instead of helping it. I just want to completely rule out an error on my part, and i think messing up on this part would still make good sound, just not great sound.

 

[Xeno7651]

Having the volume 3/4 won't affect the sound quality. I had a Meta42 before and I had it on 3/4 volume most of the time without noticing anything bad. About your source, I think they are fine. As long as you hear a difference with the Sonica is good enough. Don't put yourself in a situation trying to pick out little things in the music as it will make you frustrated if you can't hear them. If you think the sound is good, then enjoy it and maybe get something better when cash allows

.

 

[Kal525]

ok, i hear a slight difference with the sonica, but the lack of noise alone is worth keeping it, and it does sound good. When i have enough money i'll probably go out and get a SACD player. Thanks for the help Xeno.


Does anyone out there who has added a current source to the meta know what the effect is of improperly configuring the JFETs?

 

[Voodoochile]

I have never had trouble with putting the jfets into the wrong positions on the META42 board, but this talks about the cascode and the benefits of a pair vs single jfet (which is what swapping them basically gives you... the same benefit as only one jfet). It also discusses other current sources.

 

[Kal525]

Thank you, that is a very helpful article, and it answered my question.