But what about it do you believe? I mean, it kind of makes sense to think that the cones on a dynamic headphone will loosen up with time and therefore change the sound slightly, but what in a solid state amp will loosen up with time and change the sound?
But what about it do you believe? I mean, it kind of makes sense to think that the cones on a dynamic headphone will loosen up with time and therefore change the sound slightly, but what in a solid state amp will loosen up with time and change the sound?
The capacitance can change, which in turn alters the sound. The properties of the electrolyte can also change and alter the sound. From new the electrolyte is a lot denser and needs to become a lot more fluid in form before it performs well. The elctrolyte can soliddify if an amp is not used for a while. So when you switch on the amp after a period of zero usage the sound will be harsh. You need to play the amp for a while before the caps are back to their operating form. One specific fault that can hit electrolytic caps is commonly referred to as the motor boating effect. It is hum that is generated by a faulty cap.
Get a can of freezer spray and spray a couple of caps in the audio signal path whilst music is playing. You should hear the sound change as the caps cools down and heats up.
That sounds like an apt description of the placebo effect.
Now, with so many believers in burn ín, why don't they believe in burn out? Maybe the capacitors change a bit, but how exactly does gear dial in to better performance, then suddenly stop and magically never drift from it? And the designers plan this all perfectly in advance?
I will agree that the perceived sound changes. But I think the change is in the brain cells, not the gear. Some kind of learning effect. We can distinguish by measuring the output signal (pre- ear/brain) before and after.
Maybe it's placebo... maybe it's not. But I am looking for other's opinion on whether or not they've noticed any signs of burn-in with THIS SPECIFIC dac. It's not necessary to go into a debate as to whether or not burn-in exists outside of the sound science forums.
Burn in during manufacturing of electronic devices is mainly to test for failures of components in the first 24 to whatever hours, before shipping out the products for sale. It is well known that bad components are very likely to fail early in use, so doing this saves a lot of headaches because less stuff is going kaput in the hands of the consumer, less returns and warranty repair actions, etc. You can catch a lot of duds early this way. I've been to the Moog factory and they do this with all their synthesizers, they are sitting stacked in giant racks just turned on, and burning in, dozens of them.
I have never personally observed "burn in" sound changes with something like a DAC, CD player, or whatever. I seriously think these observations come from the near-neurotic obsession over minute qualities of sound that characterize the typical "audiophile." New sounds are shocking at first, but, you become accustomed to them rather quickly and thoroughly over time.
It's a little different with speakers, because, the cones I think, and the surrounds, voice coil spider, do start out "stiff" fresh out of the box, and loosen up over time. These are actually moving parts. Solid state electrical components do not "loosen up," and they don't move, they simply continue to pass electrical current with no change in their physical or electrical properties.
One thing you will notice over years and years, not days or hours, is that components will "drift" or deviate from their original value, and this will affect performance. This is why no two U47 microphones will sound the same today, etc.
I did have an amplifier technician tell me once that a large electrolytic capacitor will "de-form" to a smaller value if run on smaller power for a long time. I wonder if that is true?
I'd rather talk about the Emotiva DC-1 if possible. I guess not many people have one yet.
I have not focused on the headphone amp, but I have been listening a lot on headphones. I like the SM Pro M Patch 2 better as a volume controller than the built in one on the DC-1, so I'm not using the Emotiva's headphone amp. It does sound fine. I just don't prefer the DC-1's preamp section.
Other than that, wow, what an amazing sound. Somebody mentioned "dynamic slam" or some such thing? This thing has SO much of that. It's a truly powerful sound. Anything that punches will punch right to the chest. The bass is strong, also, in this way, but not unbalanced. It makes my speakers seem better than they are with a cheaper DAC.
There's still a couple more days left on the Winter sale, what a value!
Can't wait to build a CK2III amp from AMB and really see what happens!
why is it that I need a separate dang component for every dang thing
I jumped on the sale and got DC-1 and Mini-a X-100 for my HE-500
They'll arrive tmr.
I was really curious how the DC-1 would sound as it seems everyone here seems to be having a hard time describing the sound signature.
So I decide to hear it for myself.
If I don't like it I'll return it for the bifrost Schiit I originally planned.
Don't have anything to compare to but some old ass cheapo gear, but I'll try to post some impressions after me finals.
Using a Dac 1/ Bottlehead Crack/ Sennheiser HD600. Never heard recorded sound like this before. Improved highs , lows . Very musical. Can't stop smiling. Fabulous !
chanwhk, let us know what you think of the combo. I current have the Dragonfly DAC/preamp and the mini 100x. I'm thinking of upgrading to the Stealth. Not sure if it is worth it. Oh well ...
I am currently using a Sound Blaster ZxR in my PC as my dac.
Running rca out from the zxr into a nano patch for volume control then into a krk10s sub and m-audio Bx5 D2's.
Would the stealth DC-1 be any improvement over the ZxR or are the older chips a downgrade?
I cannot find any comparisons online. I am looking at adding a headphone amp into my setup to power a set of hd595's and hd650's. Would the DC-1 be a good all in one solution? Trying to find the perfect setup to easily switch between active monitors and sub and then switch to headphones is a bit tricky. I NEED physical volume control.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
Thanks for the insights.
