DAPpower
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Anyone compare the A26 to the X26 Pro?
Gustard DAC-A26 - AK4499EX DAC :: Impressions Thread
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monkey4054
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Yes, they are quite similar overall in sound. A26 is handy with the streamer functionality of course. Also, it has a bit nicer and more streamlined chassis. I see you already have the X26 Pro. If you're looking for an upgrade in sound quality I think you'd be disappointed. It's only worth it if you want the streaming functionality. It also runs a bit cooler than the X26 Pro if that matters.
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DAPpower
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Yes that's what I was wondering too ahah. The X26 Pro runs hot, sometimes too hot.
The A26 is a AK4499EX implementation, so I'm guessing it will sound more "musical" than the X26 Pro somehow.
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monkey4054
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Hmm I don't know about 'more musical' necessarily. The main thing I noticed was the A26 was slightly less bright and harsh than the X26 Pro (not that it was particularly bright and harsh though). Listening to music on the A26 with the streamer (Roon) is noticeably better quality than with USB from my PC. Not a night and day difference, but not subtle either...
milkdudd
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This was the reason I decided to stick with my A22. That, and I love the way it sounds. Whether I stick with the A22 or go with the A26, combined with my C18 and U18 (all purple fused) I think I may have reached my end game for the next two or three years. Maybe longer. Tempted to make one final change by adding the tubulus i2s cable, but damn that price!
MAURO16164
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An Italian engineer friend of mine builds I2S cables in pure silver at a third of the price, 1 meter around 250 euros. Before I had the Wireworld platinum starlight and compared I didn't notice any differences so I sold the Platinum and kept this one in pure silver of my friend.
DAPpower
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I've also seen people buy the cheap solid "sterling silver" cables from AliExpress, there are some counterfeit Nordost Odin cables as well but most are generic branded.
Anyone have any experience with the sterling silver cables from AliExpress?
adeadcrab
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thats silver plated copper. not bad. i prefer optical
DAPpower
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No apparently these Chinese pure silver cables, as they advertise are actually sterling silver cables.
Here is an example,
https://m.aliexpress.us/item/225580...3f38daYUdLWS&mp=1&gatewayAdapt=gloPc2usaMsite
https://m.aliexpress.us/item/325680...3f38daXIUHb6&mp=1&gatewayAdapt=gloPc2usaMsite
I have a 0.75 m I2S pure silver cable from AVPlay. It is inferior to the 1.5 m I2S cable that Gustard discontinued. The difference is far from being subtle.
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DAPpower
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Inferior sound quality wise or build wise? Thanks for the insight!
Have a search on the U18 thread for 'AVplay' - there's a number of comparisons of it to other cables including the modestly priced but reputedly more balanced sounding BJC / Belden FE. Some do rate the AVplay highly though, and to be fair to it @Dandoudou 's Gustard cable was by all accounts an exceptional cable that performed at the level of USD400+ cables, so that's a tough comparison.
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milkdudd
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I've noticed that Moon Audio is selling Furutech HDMI cables. One is $212 and one is $387. Far from cheap but still much less than the Tubulas. Only available in 1m length. Wish they were available in 0.5m length. Has anyone tried these? Also noticed a Cayin i2s cable in 0.5m length for $55. I wonder if this might be a rebanded AV play cable
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Palyodgree
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Regarding i2s cables a couple of years ago I was given to try out an all silver i2s cable commissioned by the North American importer of Rockna by an unknown source . I had just purchased a Rockna WaveDream dac and WaveDream Net server I believe this company were the first to introduced the i2s connection to the world of audio .
The North American importer commented what was on the market for i2s cables the ones they tried over the years were pretty much mediocre veiling the performance of this Rockna pair though one brand stood out they liked delivering that tiny fragile signal to the dac un-molested .
The I2S cable lent to me was a meter length I asked him about the length that I read shorter was said to better I remember he smerked shaking his head no without much of any explanation . At the time I also owned another Rockna product using i2s a AudioByte Hydra Vox dac combination headphone amplifier the silver cabled used in my headphone system improved the performance.
Anyway maybe pure silver is the way to go with the Gustard brand if you’re using i2s connection, the importer told me they are not marketing that i2s cable for sale I believe Rockna now sell‘s one maybe ? a spin off of the one the importer had commissioned .
The North American importer commented what was on the market for i2s cables the ones they tried over the years were pretty much mediocre veiling the performance of this Rockna pair though one brand stood out they liked delivering that tiny fragile signal to the dac un-molested .
The I2S cable lent to me was a meter length I asked him about the length that I read shorter was said to better I remember he smerked shaking his head no without much of any explanation . At the time I also owned another Rockna product using i2s a AudioByte Hydra Vox dac combination headphone amplifier the silver cabled used in my headphone system improved the performance.
Anyway maybe pure silver is the way to go with the Gustard brand if you’re using i2s connection, the importer told me they are not marketing that i2s cable for sale I believe Rockna now sell‘s one maybe ? a spin off of the one the importer had commissioned .
Inferior sound quality. The I2S cable of Gustard is excellent, and it's a pity that they discontinued it. Its built quality is also very nice. It's thick and heavy like a power chord.
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