[sns109]

thx. needed this advice and will save up. Only concern currently is that I feel the 3k price would be 4 in a few months.

I would save for the 005, 004 not in same league. At time I had 004 also had Okto Dac8 stereo, the Okto, $1500 dac superior to 004 by a fair margin.

I've not seen price go up in over a year, although not sure anyone has purchased at $2600 I paid during 2020 Black Friday sale.

 

[FLguy]

Some have mentioned that the DAC chips are being run 'warm' in this DAC... Is it noticably a space heater? How hot does the case get? Could someone please take and post some case temp measurements?

 

[HermannS]

My 005 used to run warmer (no idea why that is), today it's moderate. If anything it is the Class A output stage with its power regulator that is warming up the case. The DAC chips not so much.

 

[FLguy]

Yeah could be. Class A but fairly low power, so hopefully not _too_ hot... If you put an out stretched palm 3" away, do you feel the heat?

 

[Lennym]

It was someone in the 004 thread that said that one of the reasons for better performance than others was that the chips were being run warm. In the 004 the chips actually had heat sinks glued on top. In the 005 the chips (like the FETs) are being heat-sinked to the bottom of the chassis. The DAC, that is, the whole unit, does not get very warm. It's well ventilated on the bottom and sides.

I'm not sure whether other DACs do anything like this.

 

[sns109]

Yeah could be. Class A but fairly low power, so hopefully not _too_ hot... If you put an out stretched palm 3" away, do you feel the heat?

I've had 005 running for about five hours today, hardly can feel the heat touching casing, top, sides bottom.

 

[FLguy]

Good info - thanks

 

[DBB1]

running a switch between the router and your streamer should give you an improvement, the DSG105 with and ifi 5v, is a really good solution and as you can get both from amazon its worth giving it a try, then if you dont hear a benefit you an always send them back. In my experience the £70 combo, is as good if not better than the likes of the EE8 and other "audiophile" switches around this price point. If you have any spare switch youre not using that you can try hear you should hear an improvement over running the streamer connected directly to the router. Hard wiring all the way is the optimum solution, but you can still get very good results using and extender as long as you run a switch in between the it and the steamer you should still hear and improvement.

Eg:

Extender > ethernet cable > switch > your best ethernet cable > streamer

Thanks for the recommendation. I tried the D-Link DSG105 with the Zen Stream today. I have not yet bought an improved power supply, but I did hear a definite increase in clarity. The switch made a nice incremental improvement for only $25.

 

[teknorob23]

Thanks for the recommendation. I tried the D-Link DSG105 with the Zen Stream today. I have not yet bought an improved power supply, but I did hear a definite increase in clarity. The switch made a nice incremental improvement for only $25.

Thats great news. There arent many bonafide bargains in hifi, but D-link has very well engineered board, which is why if you'll find it inside some very expensive "audiophile" switches. I would recommend getting hold of the Ipower as using it with this lifts it up to good £500 switches

 

[DBB1]

Thats great news. There arent many bonafide bargains in hifi, but D-link has very well engineered board, which is why if you'll find it inside some very expensive "audiophile" switches. I would recommend getting hold of the Ipower as using it with this lifts it up to good £500 switches

I also see there are some actual linear power supplies that are $50 more than the Ifi. It's tempting to just go with one of them. See Topping P50 for example.

 

[teknorob23]

I also see there are some actual linear power supplies that are $50 more than the Ifi. It's tempting to just go with one of them. See Topping P50 for example.

linear power supplies are not always better especially when it comes to network switches. I have tried more power supplies than I can remember in developing our own switch and with this d-link. It and the ifi are an excellent match. One other thing I forgot to mention, try earthing the switch, just attach any old wire to the earthing post and either stick a phono plug on the other end and plug into an empty socket on your amp, or attach to the eart pin on a mains plug. You’ll be surprised how much of a difference this makes

 

[DBB1]

linear power supplies are not always better especially when it comes to network switches. I have tried more power supplies than I can remember in developing our own switch and with this d-link. It and the ifi are an excellent match. One other thing I forgot to mention, try earthing the switch, just attach any old wire to the earthing post and either stick a phono plug on the other end and plug into an empty socket on your amp, or attach to the eart pin on a mains plug. You’ll be surprised how much of a difference this makes

Thanks for the tip. I just grounded the switch and the sound seems a bit more relaxed or smoother. I imagined that the sound quality of the 005 was close to being at its maximum when I added the streamer. I have just spent an addition 1/2 hour listening to familiar music with the switch grounded. I am surprised that adding a $25 switch and grounding it could bring what sounds like an even lower noise floor and smoother texture than the streamer alone. Especially noticeable is the revelation of clearer bass, longer decay time, and more hall ambiance. Normally I wait until I am sure of the improvement, but I think I can safely say, at least in my set up, that the improvement that has resulted is more than a minor tweak.

 

[teknorob23]

Thanks for the tip. I just grounded the switch and the sound seems a bit more relaxed or smoother. I imagined that the sound quality of the 005 was close to being at its maximum when I added the streamer. I have just spent an addition 1/2 hour listening to familiar music with the switch grounded. I am surprised that adding a $25 switch and grounding it could bring what sounds like an even lower noise floor and smoother texture than the streamer alone. Especially noticeable is the revelation of clearer bass, longer decay time, and more hall ambiance. Normally I wait until I am sure of the improvement, but I think I can safely say, at least in my set up, that the improvement that has resulted is more than a minor tweak.

fantastic you're hearing these improvements, bad news is there's even more to be had!

 

[allhifi]

We agree on the amazing information in 16/44 files! It seems we can fully extract it only since recent years. On burn-in: I always found it takes a few weeks to get to know the level of performance of a new device really well, by listening to a lot of music. Different words for the same process? Anyway, yesterday evening the 005 impressed me mightily again, on a varied menu of rock and classical. I never heard such spatial qualities, transparancy and fullness of sound.

Its been over one year since I heard of the then new Musetec/LKS 'DA-005'. It looked like an amazingly built/designed DAC,
easily worthy of its $3K price. And then the months rolled by, and almost no reviews ??

I doubt the $3K (USD) price-point was the reason; there are dozens of $3-$5K DAC's people consider.

Hello all. I have been running my 005 for about 200 hours. I assumed that it would be better than my EVS modified 004, but I was not prepared for the level of improvement. It is pretty much better at every point of comparison that I can think of. Highs, lows, detail, and richness. The speed of percussion impact is stunning. So much fun. Vocal ballad seem to appear out of pure blackness. The interesting news is that, as good as it is, it is still improving daily. I can't wait to see what the future holds.

No doubt, the '005' looks like an amazing DAC. Good to know you thoroughly enjoying it.

pj

 

[Lennym]

running a switch between the router and your streamer should give you an improvement, the DSG105 with and ifi 5v, is a really good solution and as you can get both from amazon its worth giving it a try, <snip>

Correct me if I'm wrong, but do you mean the D-Link DGS-105?
Thanks