[expatcortona]

I am not a head-fi audiophile. I listen to floorstanding open baffle speakers. But since this thread is dealing with Denafrips, I thought I would post here anyway. Because, at the end of the day, when it comes to sound reproduction the principals are the same.

I own a Denafrips Terminator which has not yet arrived to me yet. I ordered it a couple of days ago and Alvin tells me that it will be sent out to me on Monday Sept 17.


However, even though I don't have my Terminator in my possession as yet, I can comment on the Terminator's performance as compared to my AMR DP 777 SE because for the last 8 days I have had a demoTerminator in my house that is touring here in Italy. I was the second on the list to receive this unit and by the time it got to me it had about 300 hours on it... so it was well broken in.

My AMR DP 777 SE is a wonderful DAC. In nearly every parameter it is the equal of the Terminator. Both present a wide deep soundstage with excellent holographic imaging. I am talking about the kind of sound stage that goes not only beyond the speakers, but beyond all three walls. Instruments and voices are well defined and well placed within that soundstage. Both DACs present a lush sound and warm sound... but not overly warm... which is very smooth and analogue... nothing digital about the sound that either produces. I can listen to either of them for hours on end without ever suffering any listening fatigue. And while both manage to present lots of detail they remain musical... never sounding analytical.

Where the Terminator surpasses the AMR, where it truly shines, is in its ability to reproduce the sound of real instruments. Instruments as reproduced by the Terminator are simply more accurate.

I think I understand the ''why'' of this difference. A vibrating note produces a fundamental tone to which are attached harmonic tones which are higher in frequency and more subtle than the fundamental. It is these harmonics that the brain picks up and uses to distinguish the differences between instruments. They are what distinguishes the sound of a violin from a cello, from a guitar... an oboe from a clarinet, from a saxophone... etc. This is what we hear when listening to real acoustic instruments, non amplified, in real world settings.

As I hear it, the DP seems to produce the fundamental note with less of the harmonics... The Terminator produces the same fundamental note with more of the harmonics... thus gifting me with a more complete sensation of hearing a real instrument.

And that, for me, is a very satisfying... an emotionally very satisfying... experience. The Terminator provided me with a more emotional connection to the music.

And that is why I had to buy one.

While I had the Terminator here, I listened primarily to it, using the AMR only when I was effecting a real comparison. The Terminator would not let me read while listening. It demanded that I pay attention... and I did, even up to 3 or 4 in the morning.

And even then I had a hard time tearing myself away...

''just one more song... just one more song.''

 

[T Bone]

NECROTHREAD!

I was trying to do a little research on the Denafrips Terminator and thought I'd bring this thread back from the dead.

I own & enjoy the Holo Spring R2R DAC. I have been contemplating the Denafrips Terminator as a potential upgrade. I have been a bit wary as I wasn't familiar with the manufacturer and the lack of a US based dealer. ....all of which has nothing to do with the units performance.

Have any of you luck Terminator owners compared it to the Holo Spring?

 

[hyperdanny]

I have a question for US owners of a Denafrips DAC: how does it work with customs fees for appliances from Singapore? How much did you pay in % of the value?
is there a difference depending on the State where you get the shipment?
Thanks!

 

[vtvu]

For those who are interested in the different models of Denafrips, here are a couple of threads of interest on Audiogon:
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussi...l-discussion-que?lastpage=true&page=3#1540226

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussi...nd-schiit-yggdrasil-evaluation-and-comparison

Also, the full line of Denafrips will be featured in Room 1524 (Gingko Audio and Danacable) at AXPONA on April 13-15.
Vinh Vu

 

[Reggy]

Hi there from sunny Italy!
We have quite a big community of Denafrips owners here. I bought the Ares this year on April the 1st, but apparently I was not a fool
It arrived quite quickly on April the 10th, and I paid the shipping expenses (now included in the price list) and the customs (not included in the price list).

Just out of the box the Ares sounded, well, dull and cheap. I had to wait for at least 100 hours of burn-in time to hear good sound, but still lacking resolution in the top end and weight in the low end. Everything got better after 150 hours, and even better after 200 hours. This is the first time that a piece of gear took it so long to really open up and sound at its full potential. After 250 hours of burn-in time I officialy declared the Ares fully burned-in and went on to listen unabashedly to all my favourite records. All sounded natural and pleasant, both musically and sound-wise. The Ares response is quite ruler flat and everything sounded unstrained, the dynamics are HUGE and the soundstage is really wide but *naturally wide*, so to speak. It does not sound like a Special FX, it sounds more like real musicians playing in a real space. Everything was better with the Ares than with my former Dac, a PS-Audio Nuwave DSD (that costs twice as much than the Ares). Quite a statement, since before listening to the Ares I though that the Nuwave DSD was the best buy in his league. Now it's the Ares, and you can even save a lot of money. Eventually, I sold my PS-Audio Nuwave DSD to a friend of mine for more or less the price I paid for the Ares.

All's well that ends well? Not quite. In July I hosted a small meeting of Denafrips owners and enthusiasts in my small-ish listening room. Fellow Denafrips owner Paolo brought his Pontus Dac, and so I was really eager to listen to it, since the Pontus is more in the price range of my former PS-Audio Dac. Well, I was in for a real treat. If you start listening to the Ares, the Pontus is the proverbial More Of The Same. The Ares has ruler flat response and the Pontus sounds, well, not flatter but more extended in the very low and the very high end. And is still ruler flat, no artificial bass oooomph and sparkly treble. The Ares sounds natural and unstrained, and the Pontus sound even more natural and unstrained. The Ares has HUGE dynamics, and the Pontus has... well, after listening to the Pontus, I should probably say that the Pontus has HUGE dynamics and the Ares has (only) very impressive dynamics. I wonder what kind of dynamics could the Terminator possibly have... scary! The Ares has a really wide soundstage, and the Pontus has a wider soundstage. Musically moving records (like the excellent 2L's Magnificat record at its full resolution, a whopping 352.8 KHz/24 bits) are even more musically moving. The bass weight of the Pontus is incredible.
So, I am just waiting for the right occasion to upgrade to the Pontus.

Conclusions:
The Ares is still the best buy in its price range. I could never hear, or imagine, a piece of gear sound so good for about 600€, plus customs.
But, if you can afford the Pontus, my advice is that you should definitely go for it. It sounds just like the Ares, but twice as good, as well as twice as expensive. Quite unusual!

Both Dacs sound at their best with DSD music, but Hi-Res Wav music and standard definition music sound just as good, let's just say that you can really hear solid improvements as you get higher resolution music. Their USB input is really good. The Ares has XMOS and the Pontus has Amanero. Bot chips are very high quality ones, but I think that the Amanero has an edge over the XMOS. Even listening to old-school CDs with a CD transport is quite an experience and if you are not interested in liquid music you can still enjoy the Ares or the Pontus. Try, for example, the last track "Nada" of the wonderful standard resolution CD "Haruka" from Gaia Cuatro (Abeat Records) with a good transport. I used an old but trusty Teac P-700 VRDS transport through old school coax SPDIF and got excellent results.
Just think what a modern transport like a CEC, connected via AES/EBU, could do with the Pontus.

Regards, Stefano

Hi Stefano, great post and explanation. Quick question, what kind of preamp are you using? Thanks, I have the Late 2017 Ares.

Reggy

 

[NoNameNPC]

Maybe someone can tell me what point to buy denafrips DDC if all denafrips Dac make reclock all input signals? Maybe we can make petition to denafrips and they add function to choose between external or internal clock?

 

[divertiti]

I've owned both the Venus and Terminator. I would say Venus is about 80% of Terminator. Moving from Venus to Terminator I remember the attacks and transients were better defined, tones were bolder, and timbre color was more correct, sound stage was bigger in every way as well.

 

[rajubhai55]

I am loving my Denafrips AresII. It is smooth and sweet. This is another after DACs based on famed TDA1541 which present music which very engaging. I have not heard may DACs but have heard DACs based on PCM1704 and some AKM chips. Still Denafrips is way better.

 

[DestroyerzCT]

Thank you kindly for the offer! I may take you up on that at some point as I live in Western Ma. in Deerfield. I have been quite convinced based on my research and the testaments of owners and those who've heard these units that they are the real deal. I have decided to go for the Venus as I believe it will be the final component to complete my system. It is a touch above what I budgeted but given that is identical to the Terminator with the exception of the power supply I don't see how I can go wrong. We're talking about a 60VA x 2 vs 250VA + 60VA O type power supply and a slightly different circuit with additional capacitance. There's also the additional i2s connectivity for the Terminator which I don't need. Aside from this, the units share all the same technology and hi end parts. I know the Terminator is better, but I need to stay within the budget I set and and additional grand isn't worth the 5-10% improvement. I also have to consider the wife factor! As much as I would like to go all out I don't think this could be seen as "settling" as these units all get rave reviews worldwide by those who have heard them. I plan to take a little of the difference and pair the Venus with a Singxer SU-1. I will modify the Singxer myself and may add some sound coat to the Venus. I still have a couple sheets here from other projects so might as well put them to use. Thanks Greg! I'll take a look at the Facebook page too.

Hi there Benny,
Did you ever buy the Venus? Getting ready to place the order and was curious if you bought one and if so what you thought? BTW, I'm up here in Avon, CT.
KJ

 

[DesignTaylor]

I had an Ares II and really liked its smooth, natural character but ultimately moved onto Chord products to get more detail and definition. Now I'm missing that more organic sound but I've also become addicted to better resolution. Seems like the Pontus might be the answer (within my price range). I saw one post early on comparing the Ares and Pontus. Curious if anyone else can add their experience. Also curious if anyone has sampled the Qutest or TT 2 against the Denafrips line?

 

[rajubhai55]

I have Ares II and love it. Pontus is very tempting. But sometime I think there will always be a better DAC than current one. When will this chase end?

 

[DesignTaylor]

I hear ya. I should have quit long ago. Each morning when I sit down and put on my headphones I think "this sounds amazing" and by the end of the day after I've swapped headphones a few times or swapped between DACs or amps I think "this should be better." Once you get a taste for finding something "better" it's hard to quit.