[crmiller]

I don’t remember if you mentioned it. Were you able to compare the Bartok with the V2 upgrade to the Apex Rossini?

No. I’ve not heard an Apex Rossini yet. Knowing myself, I’ll probably do the Apex upgrade next year, but then I won’t have a Bartók on hand to compare it with.

 

[Gavin C4]

Well, it’s with some sadness that I boxed up my Bartók to ship out tomorrow. It’s been a fantastic component for the ~9 months I’ve had it, but the dCS bug has bitten hard and I’ve upgraded to Rossini.

The dealer I’m working with graciously let me keep the Bartók through the weekend (it’s being traded in) so I could compare it more closely with the Rossini, which arrived on Thursday. I knew going into this that the Bartók 2.0 release was coming out, so I was bracing for how close they might be (vs the considerable cost difference). I must say, the Bartók 2.0 upgrade certainly brings the Bartók close to the (non-Apex) Rossini. There still is a difference, but it isn’t worlds apart in my system. Of course I could very well be approaching other limiting factors in my system/room hiding more potential differences. I’m still happy to be doing the Rossini upgrade, but the Bartók 2.0 release is really something. The diminishing returns hit a little harder because of it.

Really well worth the upgrade, you will not regret it. With dCS continuously upgrading the software, their DACs will only get better and better. Although both the Rossini and Bartok have the same mapper and upscaling function, the Rossini does always have the upper hand in the hardware compared to the Bartok. Bartok only has 1 proprietary power supply box for both the streaming boards and ring DAC board. While the Rossini has two separate power supply boxes for the separate boards. This obviously gives higher quality power and causes less distortion between the digital and analog sections. I would say, with the Bartok 2.0 upgrade, you will have a closer performance to the Rossini because they share the same ring DAC technology. But Rossini is just a step more refined in terms of hardware and now with the Apex upgrade, it moves one step further.

 

[SuperBurrito]

It’s been a fantastic component for the ~9 months I’ve had it, but the dCS bug has bitten hard and I’ve upgraded to Rossini.

Congrats! I've got the Rossini DAC (soon to be Apex) and clock. The bad thing is now everything else in my system is the weakest link!

 

[Gavin C4]

No. I’ve not heard an Apex Rossini yet. Knowing myself, I’ll probably do the Apex upgrade next year, but then I won’t have a Bartók on hand to compare it with.

My Apex upgrade will arrive by mid-June. Can't wait to get the upgrade. But an entire new Ring DAC board will require a long time for run-in.

Congrats! I've got the Rossini DAC (soon to be Apex) and clock. The bad thing is now everything else in my system is the weakest link!

The same situation here, but synergy is more important for headphones, chasing the most expensive equipment in every category is not really the way to do it for headphones systems. Headphones are easier to power compared to speakers, and you don't really need the beefiest amp out there like a 1200w class A/B per channel monoblock, sized like a safe where you store your Rolex and Patek Philippe. Furthermore, most speaker amps out there are already engineered really well as there aren't much new technology invented for amplification. Companys are making speaker amps that last more than a decade and are still functional without issue. Moving up the summit-fi 2-channel and monoblocks are mostly moving up in raw power with Class A or A/B operation. I bet you won't need a pair of 1200w Class A/B monoblock to power a pair of Susvara, that would be suicide.

While streaming DACs are actually relatively new to both the 2-channel world, headphone world and even coming to in-ear monitors and portable players. They are putting more function to the box that holds the DAC, which makes the cost higher and requires more R & D. This is why we are paying a premium over traditional DACs with no streaming ability. In return we can have a more compact setup and elegant solution, getting a one-box solution for streamer and DAC.

Prices for headphones should reach their cap by now after a wave of price increases and inflation. Prices beyond that are out of reality for personal audio, let alone with such a niche community to support it.

 

[adrianm]

My Apex upgrade will arrive by mid-June. Can't wait to get the upgrade. But an entire new Ring DAC board will require a long time for run-in.

The same situation here, but synergy is more important for headphones, chasing the most expensive equipment in every category is not really the way to do it for headphones systems. Headphones are easier to power compared to speakers, and you don't really need the beefiest amp out there like a 1200w class A/B per channel monoblock, sized like a safe where you store your Rolex and Patek Philippe. Furthermore, most speaker amps out there are already engineered really well as there aren't much new technology invented for amplification. Companys are making speaker amps that last more than a decade and are still functional without issue. Moving up the summit-fi 2-channel and monoblocks are mostly moving up in raw power with Class A or A/B operation. I bet you won't need a pair of 1200w Class A/B monoblock to power a pair of Susvara, that would be suicide.

While streaming DACs are actually relatively new to both the 2-channel world, headphone world and even coming to in-ear monitors and portable players. They are putting more function to the box that holds the DAC, which makes the cost higher and requires more R & D. This is why we are paying a premium over traditional DACs with no streaming ability. In return we can have a more compact setup and elegant solution, getting a one-box solution for streamer and DAC.

Prices for headphones should reach their cap by now after a wave of price increases and inflation. Prices beyond that are out of reality for personal audio, let alone with such a niche community to support it.

Completely agree, which is why i'm considering the Lina stack + the Ferrum stack. I can't find anything in the Lina amp that would justify its price, especially as i only plan on driving the Meze Elites. The only reason i would get the amp is aesthetics, which is what I'm pretty sure dCS are counting on.

 

[Gavin C4]

Completely agree, which is why i'm considering the Lina stack + the Ferrum stack. I can't find anything in the Lina amp that would justify its price, especially as i only plan on driving the Meze Elites. The only reason i would get the amp is aesthetics, which is what I'm pretty sure dCS are counting on.

I really want to listen to the Lina Stack, but my local dealer does not have it yet or in the near future. Can't really comment any on it yet. Though, aesthetics is 10 out of 10.

 

[yagislav]

After updating to 2.0 I have been experiencing some issues. I am using the NETWORK input. Streaming Tidal via Roon. Now tracks are constantly getting skipped over, and I get the error "Tidal media loading slowly. This could indicate network or connectivity problem". Tracks play for maybe 5 seconds and then I get this error.

Ontop of this, every once in awhile I get popping noises from the left channel. The strange thing is it happens in both line out mode with my speakers, and also when I am in headphone mode I get the same popping noises in the left channel of the headphone.

Nothing has changed in my setup other than updating my Bartok to 2.0. Anybody else experiencing similar issues?

 

[Jon773]

You are the first person I have come across wtih issues. Head over to the dCS Community forum and ask for assistance. The dCS team are usually pretty helpful on there.

 

[Gavin C4]

After updating to 2.0 I have been experiencing some issues. I am using the NETWORK input. Streaming Tidal via Roon. Now tracks are constantly getting skipped over, and I get the error "Tidal media loading slowly. This could indicate network or connectivity problem". Tracks play for maybe 5 seconds and then I get this error.

Ontop of this, every once in awhile I get popping noises from the left channel. The strange thing is it happens in both line out mode with my speakers, and also when I am in headphone mode I get the same popping noises in the left channel of the headphone.

Nothing has changed in my setup other than updating my Bartok to 2.0. Anybody else experiencing similar issues?

You can get assistance from the dCS dev team, they might require you to sent then the log of your Bartok for diagnosis.

 

[SuperBurrito]

After updating to 2.0 I have been experiencing some issues. I am using the NETWORK input. Streaming Tidal via Roon. Now tracks are constantly getting skipped over, and I get the error "Tidal media loading slowly. This could indicate network or connectivity problem". Tracks play for maybe 5 seconds and then I get this error.

Ontop of this, every once in awhile I get popping noises from the left channel. The strange thing is it happens in both line out mode with my speakers, and also when I am in headphone mode I get the same popping noises in the left channel of the headphone.

Nothing has changed in my setup other than updating my Bartok to 2.0. Anybody else experiencing similar issues?

You can also contact dCS directly here: support@dcsaudio.com

 

[bluecar]

After a good, long listen, I'm enjoying DSDX2 + F3 with Map 3 - a marked improvement in soundstage for me. How about you folks?

 

[crmiller]

I’m currently preferring DXD upsampling, Map 3, and the filters as recommended in the Vivaldi manual (44.1: F5, 32 - 96: F2, 176+: F6). I was also trying this with Bartók before trading it in, but then back to the same on Rossini.

 

[Gavin C4]

As all dAC hardware has been upgraded recently with Apex for Vivaldi and Rossini and 2.0 software for Bartok. And even with Lina stack release. There are some speculation about what is next for FCS development. A possibility of a Mosiac app 2.0 for all dCS users? As not everyone is using Roon maybe?


If Mosiac app 2.0 is ever a thing in future, The dcs Mosaic should be competing in the area for sound quality and seamless integration with dCS DACs, instead of competing UI interface and user-friendly ability.


If there ever be a new version of the dcs mosaic app I hope It can perform better sound quality because it should have the best synergy with the dcs source code and ring dac. Although I know that dCS claims that the app sole aim is to sent the data to the DAC and let the ring dac do all the magic and does not affect SQ at all because it is just digital 0 and 1. But who knows, maybe dCS will find some new things in the network side of things in the future? We can never rule out any potential. Something like Nordost Qnet?


The dcs Mosaic actually performs well in it's function that imitate a CD transport playback but with more freedom in music selection and queueing. I have no complaints at all.

 

[Julius1]

For my part, I also opt for DXD upsampling, with filter 5, and Map 1. I mainly listen to ripped CDs, 16-44 and some high resolution files on a network NAS.

 

[chesebert]

in the review by third_eye (posted to the site today), he provides this comparison of the two.

++

Comparison with Bartok. In comparing the Lina to the Bartok, the most immediate and noticeable difference is the headphone amplifier. The Bartok’s internal headphone output is already excellent with the majority of headphones. However, there is a noticeable improvement with the Susvara and Diana TC when using the Lina Headphone amplifier.. The increased dynamics, provide a more intimate and visceral listening experience without a trace of sharpness or sibilance. The Bartok by contrast has a slightly deeper, and wider soundstage.

Conclusion. The dCS Lina stack is a flagship headphone system, and is also the finest solid state headphone system I’ve heard to date. The Lina DAC and Headphone Amplifier together compare well with the Bartok in a smaller form factor that is suitable for desktop applications, and the optional addition of the Master Clock only enhances the already excellent performance. Hard to drive headphones such as the Susvara and Abyss will clearly benefit from the additional drive of the Lina headphone amp, and in particular, I have yet to hear the Susvara sound better from a solid state headphone amp.

Useless and misleading.