[JAnonymous5150]

Audeze MM-500<--4x 22AWG Neotech UPOCC solid core copper<--S.M.S.L SP400<--Cardas Clear Light XLR<--Gustard X18:

​

Great pick! I have The Kink Kronikles double album on CD and vinyl because I dig it so much. It's such an epic compilation. One of the best from any band, IMO.


Finally sitting down and enjoying a late lunch/early dinner before I throw down on the drum set for a couple hours. I've got the DCA Stealth plugged into the Ferrum Oor/Hypsos stack with the Holo Audio May KTE doing the DAC thing and decoding some hi-res audio from my locally stored collection.

As for music, this thread derailed my plans and started me off on a Nektar jag. Up now is their 1974 release, Evolution, which is such a solid album. By '74, Nektar had figured out their sound and were really hitting their stride as one of the leaders in the Central European prog scene. The low down walking bass lines and funky, syncopated drum beats alone are worth the listen!

 

[Davidzak64]

HD650 (Custom Can's UK modded)
< Luxman R-113 < Loxjie D30 < Amazon Music HD.

 

[fidshimmer]

Thanks for mentioning Nektar, listening to their most recent album "The Other Side" (2020) right now, it sounds excellent!



Tidal Hifi -> Tascam Model 12 -> Balanced -> Presonus HP4 -> AKG K612 (2k lowered using parametric EQ)

Btw, I see you have the SMSL D6, I ordered one on a whim as I've never used a dedicated DAC and it looks to have a solid set of features for the price. What is your personal thoughts about it? I see Youtubers are quick to point out "it's shouty", while measurement from ASR shows it's close to flawless and should be transparent. My own take is Youtubers must justify more expensive DACs to please those brands providing them review samples.

I really like the SMSL D6, for the money its a bargain, it has dual DACs inside. I think it was first to use the newest AKM 4493s chips since the fire. I had a Topping D10 Balanced in this listening station and find the D6 more musical and easier to listen to. I did see some mixed reviews on You Tube, Cheap Audio Man hated it. I honestly think for the money it can't be beat. It pairs very well with the SMSL HO100 head amplifier. Which has balanced inputs but not truly balanced outs though there is a 4.4mm out. I do occassionally get some interference from my iphone if it is too close. Moving iPhone a few feet farther away seems to cure it. Also this was seen when driving it using an older mac powerbook, I now have a new Mac Laptop with M1pro and not noticed it so far.

 

[Luckyleo]

I really like the SMSL D6, for the money its a bargain, it has dual DACs inside. I think it was first to use the newest AKM 4493s chips since the fire. I had a Topping D10 Balanced in this listening station and find the D6 more musical and easier to listen to. I did see some mixed reviews on You Tube, Cheap Audio Man hated it. I honestly think for the money it can't be beat. It pairs very well with the SMSL HO100 head amplifier. Which has balanced inputs but not truly balanced outs though there is a 4.4mm out.

personally, I didn't care much for it. I like a somewhat warmer sound. As always, sound is subjective to a large degree .......

Leo

 

[jonathan c]

I really like the SMSL D6, for the money its a bargain, it has dual DACs inside. I think it was first to use the newest AKM 4493s chips since the fire. I had a Topping D10 Balanced in this listening station and find the D6 more musical and easier to listen to. I did see some mixed reviews on You Tube, Cheap Audio Man hated it. I honestly think for the money it can't be beat. It pairs very well with the SMSL HO100 head amplifier. Which has balanced inputs but not truly balanced outs though there is a 4.4mm out.

You are experiencing the differences between the sound emanating from a AKM chip DAC and that from a ESS chip DAC. The top-of-line chip from AKM, I believe, is the 4499 series. If ‘musicality’ and ‘ease of listening to’ are important to you, somewhere further down Audio Avenue you might look into a R2R (resistor to resistor) ‘ladder’ DAC.

 

[rids57]

JRiver Media Center (PC) > SMSL SU9 > SMSL SH9 > Beyerdynamic DT1990 pro

Black Market Enlightenment by Antimatter - 2018 release from Mick Moss and just as good as the new one, same overall sound and mix of genres. It's strange, since I've started listening to his music I just don't want to listen to anything else, the pull it exerts is pretty strong. My favourite on this one is Partners in Crime but Wish I Was Here runs it a close second. Back with the Beyers again, I'm diggin' the details.

 

[Cheesebuggah]

Foobar2000 v2 > Magni 3+ / Modi 3+ > Sony MH750

Got a new toy. I never really liked the IEM/cable-over-the-ear style. I wanted the MH755 but got the MH750 since it was more available. IIRC, the only sonic difference is that the MH750 has more bass. After receiving them, they are smaller than I thought. The J-style cable makes you feel like you have a long ponytail and you are putting the ponytail over your left shoulder and in front of your body. In terms of sound, the tuning is good. That's about it. Quick A/B with the ER2s and the imaging, stage width, separation, and detail perception is better on the ER2s. Isolation is notably good.

To Kill a Living Book by Mili. I love the vocal work from Mili. Notably, the whispery (at times) and intimate vocals combined with their accent is great. I recommend Salt, Pepper, Birds, and the Thought Police plus Iron Lotus.

 

[jonathan c]

The Grado RS-1, the original Reference Series headphone, is on loan from a great Head-Fi friend.

[ECM, Editions of Contemporary Music: October, 1982.]

 

[elee703]

Amazon HD > Aune X8 > xDuoo TA26 > BD T1 Gen 1

 

[fidshimmer]

You are experiencing the differences between the sound emanating from a AKM chip DAC and that from a ESS chip DAC. The top-of-line chip from AKM, I believe, is the 4499 series. If ‘musicality’ and ‘ease of listening to’ are important to you, somewhere further down Audio Avenue you might look into a R2R (resistor to resistor) ‘ladder’ DAC.

I have a fairly wide collection of Dacs/DAPS these are what is in current use:

Gustard DAC-X26 pro, Gustard DAC-X16, Gustard DAC- X-18, SMSL D6, Topping D50, E30, E10 Bal, ibasso DX-300 w AMP 12,ibasso DX-170

These have chips from Cirrus Logic, AKM, and ESS. I am not sure the difference is in the DAC itself, logically a well designed delta-sigma dac should produce a clean unbiased signal. What differs the most from one to the other are output filters, how they are implemented, and the phase coherence they apply to the signal. Also important are the components in the audio output stage, are they op amps, or discrete transistor designs, and if there is a pre-amp style output is it class A with a resistor ladder network in the volume control. Although I am an avid listener of all good things musical, and an amatuer musician, I am not entirely sure I could tell ESS or AKM or Cirrus Logic in direct ABC type comparisons. Working around jets for 6 years in USAF did nothing good for my hearing.

I so far have resisted the urge to try R2R dac. To me the technology seems obsolete, and full of possible distortions in its basic design, it all boils down to how tight in tolerance the resistors are(and how much your willing to pay). I do enjoy the musical distortions a tube amp offers, but for huge S/N ratios I prefer class D or good class A designs, My JOLIDA speaker amp is getting dusty, as is my Darkvoice headphone amp.

 

[Luckyleo]

Qobuz > Bifrost 264 > Valhalla 2 > GS3000X

 

[jonathan c]

I have a fairly wide collection of Dacs/DAPS these are what is in current use:

Gustard DAC-X26 pro, Gustard DAC-X16, Gustard DAC- X-18, SMSL D6, Topping D50, E30, E10 Bal, ibasso DX-300 w AMP 12,ibasso DX-170

These have chips from Cirrus Logic, AKM, and ESS. I am not sure the difference is in the DAC itself, logically a well designed delta-sigma dac should produce a clean unbiased signal. What differs the most from one to the other are output filters, how they are implemented, and the phase coherence they apply to the signal. Also important are the components in the audio output stage, are they op amps, or discrete transistor designs, and if there is a pre-amp style output is it class A with a resistor ladder network in the volume control. Although I am an avid listener of all good things musical, and an amatuer musician, I am not entirely sure I could tell ESS or AKM or Cirrus Logic in direct ABC type comparisons. Working around jets for 6 years in USAF did nothing good for my hearing.

I so far have resisted the urge to try R2R dac. To me the technology seems obsolete, and full of possible distortions in its basic design, it all boils down to how tight in tolerance the resistors are(and how much your willing to pay). I do enjoy the musical distortions a tube amp offers, but for huge S/N ratios I prefer class D or good class A designs, My JOLIDA speaker amp is getting dusty, as is my Darkvoice headphone amp.

…nothing ventured… I agree that output stages (and robustness of power supply) also impact sound quality.

 

[JAnonymous5150]

Foobar2000 v2 > Magni 3+ / Modi 3+ > Sony MH750

Got a new toy. I never really liked the IEM/cable-over-the-ear style. I wanted the MH755 but got the MH750 since it was more available. IIRC, the only sonic difference is that the MH750 has more bass. After receiving them, they are smaller than I thought. The J-style cable makes you feel like you have a long ponytail and you are putting the ponytail over your left shoulder and in front of your body. In terms of sound, the tuning is good. That's about it. Quick A/B with the ER2s and the imaging, stage width, separation, and detail perception is better on the ER2s. Isolation is notably good.


To Kill a Living Book by Mili. I love the vocal work from Mili. Notably, the whispery (at times) and intimate vocals combined with their accent is great. I recommend Salt, Pepper, Birds, and the Thought Police plus Iron Lotus.

These two Sonys are quite decent, but the latest hype around them and most of the claims that it's based upon are totally hyperbolic. It's good/acceptable tuning and quite inoffensive. For what they cost that's a pretty good achievement. I don't understand this need folks have to overhype everything. In the end specious claims just end up hurting the product's reputation while relying on solid performance and accurate praise would ultimately serve it best. The MH755s/MH750s are certainly worth their regular asking price and you can definitely do much worse for the money.

Just my two cents. The overhyping thing is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, in case you couldn't tell.

 

[Cheesebuggah]

These two Sonys are quite decent, but the latest hype around them and most of the claims that it's based upon are totally hyperbolic. It's good/acceptable tuning and quite inoffensive. For what they cost that's a pretty good achievement. I don't understand this need folks have to overhype everything. In the end specious claims just end up hurting the product's reputation while relying on solid performance and accurate praise would ultimately serve it best. The MH755s/MH750s are certainly worth their regular asking price and you can definitely do much worse for the money.

Just my two cents. The overhyping thing is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, in case you couldn't tell.

I see. Were they hyped recently? I decided to buy them since I thought they survived past the hype a while back. I also based the purchase off Precogvision's review on the Tanya (which I was interested in) and how he thinks the Tanya doesn't beat the 755.

 

[Luckyleo]

GS3000x "Touch" by Patricia Brennan.....