Dethonray Dtr1 Prelude high resolution player
Oct 21, 2019 at 5:08 AM Post #826 of 2,313
Ah well, I didn’t mean for it to descend into an argument. I think it’s extremely difficult for any of us to really be objective about sound, and maybe we disagree on that front. But it seems we agree that if you want to know which is best for you @Cat Music you’ll just have to hear it for yourself.

For what it’s worth, I found similar to the impressions of @teknorob23, the timbre and weight of the notes wasn’t what I was after (or expected based on reviews) and it veered towards too brassy at times. The DTR1 certainly has an abundance of detail and great soundstage, but I had the same experience as I’d had previously with the DX200 - there was an abundance of details but it felt like it was all thrown at you and somewhat uncontrolled, without the right sense of coherency of pulling all those instruments and notes together into a whole. So I found it quite fatiguing, and since I’d felt the same with DX200, after owning it for a few months, I pretty quickly realized the DTR1 didn’t tick the right boxes for me.
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 5:13 AM Post #827 of 2,313
For what it’s worth, I found similar to the impressions of @teknorob23, the timbre and weight of the notes wasn’t what I was after (or expected based on reviews) and it veered towards too brassy at times. The DTR1 certainly has an abundance of detail and great soundstage, but I had the same experience as I’d had previously with the DX200 - there was an abundance of details but it felt like it was all thrown at you and somewhat uncontrolled, without the right sense of coherency of pulling all those instruments and notes together into a whole. So I found it quite fatiguing, and since I’d felt the same with DX200, after owning it for a few months, I pretty quickly realized the DTR1 didn’t tick the right boxes for me.

Having owned for a while DX200 too, I now "a posteriori" understand what happened.. tnx :)
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 5:30 AM Post #828 of 2,313
I don’t see how SQ and personal preference can be different topics, as your preferences (and ear structure, physiology of your hearing receptors and how it’s all processed in your brain) will determine how you perceive the sound, and therefore which is of better quality for you.

If some particular gear gives a better resolution, transparency, blacker background etc. etc., then it has a better SQ. But it might not be your choice, because the overall SQ doesn't mean you'll like it. Or it doesn't mean it will sound good for your headphones or earphones. Your personal taste is your final factor when choosing to buy something.

I have also never been aware of set of industry agreed rules, metrics, parameters by which sound quality is to be measured against. As most reviews dont seem to rely (thankfully) on measurements and graphs, surely even the factors you list are open to subject interpretation, personal experience not to mention being skewed partnering kit and as @someyoungguy says the physiology of your hearing. I dont like vague terms like musicality, or neutrality which totally open to interpretation, but is it not the case in HiFi at least (as opposed pro audio) that these metrics are still important in assessing and usefully communicating sound quality performance, not just resolution and blackness of backgrounds. I appreciate as a pro reviewer you will be trying to retain as much objectivity as possible but you are human and so its surely impossible to eliminate the influence of personal preferences. I dont have problem with reviewers having preferences in any form reviewing whether its films or hifi, i just try to get to know what they are and then take them in to consideration... sorry i know this is taking us even further off topic :wink: :)
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 5:35 AM Post #829 of 2,313
Ah well, I didn’t mean for it to descend into an argument. I think it’s extremely difficult for any of us to really be objective about sound, and maybe we disagree on that front. But it seems we agree that if you want to know which is best for you @Cat Music you’ll just have to hear it for yourself.

For what it’s worth, I found similar to the impressions of @teknorob23, the timbre and weight of the notes wasn’t what I was after (or expected based on reviews) and it veered towards too brassy at times. The DTR1 certainly has an abundance of detail and great soundstage, but I had the same experience as I’d had previously with the DX200 - there was an abundance of details but it felt like it was all thrown at you and somewhat uncontrolled, without the right sense of coherency of pulling all those instruments and notes together into a whole. So I found it quite fatiguing, and since I’d felt the same with DX200, after owning it for a few months, I pretty quickly realized the DTR1 didn’t tick the right boxes for me.

I followed this thread for a while, and I was curious about the findings. But these are different form my own, I own both the Mojo / Dethonray / Hugo 2 / Cayin N6II / and have experience with larger two channel HiFi. I tested the Dethonray line out in a 20.000 euro setup with Bryston amps. As well as a direct MoJo vs DTR1 comparison. All chord DAC's are exceptional, but having said that. For most use cases I prefer the DTR1. The Dethonray is very open, clean, fast . When I use the Mojo together with a laptop / Mac / PC there is always more issues with the sound related with the player/usb/power/cables etc. Using the DTR1 feels much easier and more relaxt. Most of the time I play with the DTR1 together with a Noble Encore

Its a different use case, In a bigger setup the Hugo 2 is a better device, but the Hugo 2 beats probably all DAP's regardless the price.

Comparing the DTR1 with other DAP's i havent found any DAP that comes at the same level for less than 1500/ 2000 euro, So to me the Dethonray DTR1 is a pretty good deal.
 
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Oct 21, 2019 at 5:43 AM Post #830 of 2,313
I followed this thread for a while, and I was curious about the findings. But these are different form my own, I own both the Mojo / Dethonray / Hugo 2 / Cayin N6II / and have experience with larger two channel HiFi. I tested the Dethonray line out in a 20.000 euro setup with Bryston amps. As well as a direct MoJo vs DTR1 comparison. All chord DAC's are exceptional, but having said that. For most use cases I prefer the DTR1. The Dethonray is very open, clean, fast . When I use the Mojo together with a laptop / Mac / PC there is always more issues with the sound related with the player/usb/power/cables etc. Using the DTR1 feels much easier and more relaxt. Most of the time I play with the DTR1 together with a Noble Encore

Its a different use case, In a bigger setup the Hugo 2 is a better device, but the Hugo 2 beats most probably all DAP's regardless there price.

Comparing the DTR1 with other DAP's i havent found any DAP that comes at the same level for less than 1500/ 2000 euro, So to me the Dethonray DTR1 is a pretty good deal.
Agree it is definitely a good deal (and even better to the person who bought it off me!). I’m old school and don’t do streaming, prefer to just load up music onto a DAP and hit play. So I really appreciate what Anson’s doing with the minimalist approach of the DTR1, especially since it’s also powerful enough to use with about anything. I was hoping it would be love, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be.
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 9:42 AM Post #831 of 2,313
Finally, I can see that some are happier with Mojo and others with the DTr1, I just wanted to know if the difference between the two is abysmal in sound quality ... reading their opinions gives me the impression that DTr1 sounds better, but DTr1 is $ 549 and Mojo $ 399, is a difference of $ 150, my curiosity was to know if paying that difference in favor of DTr1 was justifiable if the only thing that matters to me is sound quality, in conclusion: both are good, and that one Be better than another are personal decisions.
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 9:51 AM Post #832 of 2,313
Finally, I can see that some are happier with Mojo and others with the DTr1, I just wanted to know if the difference between the two is abysmal in sound quality ... reading their opinions gives me the impression that DTr1 sounds better, but DTr1 is $ 549 and Mojo $ 399, is a difference of $ 150, my curiosity was to know if paying that difference in favor of DTr1 was justifiable if the only thing that matters to me is sound quality, in conclusion: both are good, and that one Be better than another are personal decisions.

don't yet miss the BIG variable in your "potential rig" :) Mojo needs a transport, a good one possibly, and good connections.
Won't open another "pandora's vase" on this one, but take into account the difference you have to put for those two items, as you discover they are not that obvious (smartphones i.e.) nor cheap (good cable i.e.). :)

As I stated previously, DTR1 is a good experience in convenient, small, quick, long lasting form factor. Mojo has to be accounted for a dedicated "environment" you should build around it (check dedicated thread, I recently managed to get interesting results via optical cable and Xduoo X10 T II transport; the sum of money for this rig comes close to the DTR1, so it is somehow comparable).
 
Oct 21, 2019 at 12:53 PM Post #834 of 2,313
don't yet miss the BIG variable in your "potential rig" :) Mojo needs a transport, a good one possibly, and good connections.
Won't open another "pandora's vase" on this one, but take into account the difference you have to put for those two items, as you discover they are not that obvious (smartphones i.e.) nor cheap (good cable i.e.). :)

in the same breath the DTR1 cant be used as an external DAC which means should you ever want to use it to stream from desktop or phone you cant. If you dont ever want to do either of those and then yep the DTR1 is all good. If this is possible update through firmware, this would change everything :wink:
 
Oct 26, 2019 at 5:53 PM Post #836 of 2,313
Has anyone compared DTR1 with Onkyo DAC HA-300, Teac HA-P90SD or Shozy Alien+ in SQ?
I have heard good things about the Shozy Alien+. Do you have one ? If yes, how could you describe its sound?

The DTR1 is a clear, powerful and detailed device. Beware with IEM matching.

If you don't mind a hint of warmth and like a good bass, the Final E5000 is a very good starting point. I highly recommend that combo for its musicality and detail retrieval.

The DTR1 is able to bring your IEMs to their full potential if they stand its power.

IMG_20191027_003903.jpg
 
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Oct 27, 2019 at 2:33 PM Post #838 of 2,313
I have heard good things about the Shozy Alien+. Do you have one ? If yes, how could you describe its sound?

The DTR1 is a clear, powerful and detailed device. Beware with IEM matching.

If you don't mind a hint of warmth and like a good bass, the Final E5000 is a very good starting point. I highly recommend that combo for its musicality and detail retrieval.

The DTR1 is able to bring your IEMs to their full potential if they stand its power.



I have just purchased a pair of Final E5000's this weekend to partner my DTR1, based on your feedback as well as many other positive reviews. I also made contact with Anson (really great guy) and ordered the official case directly from him. I am travelling for another week, but will have a lot to listen to when I return :)
 
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Oct 27, 2019 at 5:33 PM Post #839 of 2,313
I have just purchased a pair of Final E5000's this weekend to partner my DTR1, based on your feedback as well as many other positive reviews. I also made contact with Anson (really great guy) and ordered the official case directly from him. I am travelling for another week, but will have a lot to listen to when I return :)
Enjoy that amazing combo. Please report your impression
 

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