[Stellabagpuss]

lt is certainly a interesting subject Jake, l think as time has gone by, there's been a few different methods used for the outcome we been looking for. l certainly wouldn't have buyers remorse at your end, from my end you inspired me for the second time, your idea sheilding of the separate sections using Copper works really well, and even better when you separate certain the different sections further.

That's what the hobby all about for me ,discussion, getting things wrong and right, but most importantly for myself helping others.

Back to the subject... l think MuMetal or Ultraperm 80, would be a great choice for separating the sides of any aluminium psu section, including the long aluminium divider sections in the R26.

 

[har7ok]

Hi everyone,
I have read many pages in this thread, I know that it is worth replacing the power cable in the Gustard, the fuse, you can add a device to "clean" the LAN input, and of course connect with good RCA cables (in my case) to the amplifier. When added up, all these add-ons can really cost a lot, so the question is: what gives the highest ratio of sound improvement to money spent?

 

[Jake2]

Hi everyone,
I have read many pages in this thread, I know that it is worth replacing the power cable in the Gustard, the fuse, you can add a device to "clean" the LAN input, and of course connect with good RCA cables (in my case) to the amplifier. When added up, all these add-ons can really cost a lot, so the question is: what gives the highest ratio of sound improvement to money spent?

Easy. Fibre media converters. You can get em for $20, and to begin with use with the cheap SMPS. The difference you hear will be an eye opener.

After that less clear cut…
For the network the improvement is twice as much with cleaner power, which may be $100-200 or more (or less if you can find a good deal). Then add ifi LAN iSilencer between FMCs and DAC.

Re power cable for Gustard I like the Flux-50 filters, v good bang for buck.

If you are brave $30 for MuMetal to shield your transformers is extremely high bang for buck.

Fuse is well down the list. Well expensive ones are, but a $30 AliX fuse is worth a go. See the AliX cables or ground box thread for recommendations.

PS - welcome. It’s a great DAC that scales very well with whatever level of tweaks you can afford.

 

[dacwizard]

Hi everyone,
I have read many pages in this thread, I know that it is worth replacing the power cable in the Gustard, the fuse, you can add a device to "clean" the LAN input, and of course connect with good RCA cables (in my case) to the amplifier. When added up, all these add-ons can really cost a lot, so the question is: what gives the highest ratio of sound improvement to money spent?

I’ve tried a few of these ‘improvements’. None have made the slightest difference. The R26 is a great dac, just enjoy it without worrying what the difference might be with power cords made of unobtanium by 14 year old Tibetan virgins.

 

[camrector]

Hi everyone,
I have read many pages in this thread, I know that it is worth replacing the power cable in the Gustard, the fuse, you can add a device to "clean" the LAN input, and of course connect with good RCA cables (in my case) to the amplifier. When added up, all these add-ons can really cost a lot, so the question is: what gives the highest ratio of sound improvement to money spent?

Fiber media convertors. It’s the best $200 tweek upgrade you can do for streaming audio. PERIOD

 

[Docharsha89]

I'm on the verge of acquiring a new DAC to pair with my burson Conductor 3XR. Which would suit me better Gustard R26 or Denafrips Pontus 2 12th-1 ?
I have a ZMF Verite Open. I'm very sensitive to sharp treble and raised upper mids. My music preferences : Mostly Acoustic, movies and Classical
FMs please give me a suggestion please.

 

[Jake2]

I'm on the verge of acquiring a new DAC to pair with my burson Conductor 3XR. Which would suit me better Gustard R26 or Denafrips Pontus 2 12th-1 ?
I have a ZMF Verite Open. I'm very sensitive to sharp treble and raised upper mids. My music preferences : Mostly Acoustic, movies and Classical
FMs please give me a suggestion please.

I've not heard the Pontus (though several here have), but from what I understand of their differences in character and your preference the British Audiophile on YT who has both would likely steer you towards the Pontus.

 

[camrector]

I'm on the verge of acquiring a new DAC to pair with my burson Conductor 3XR. Which would suit me better Gustard R26 or Denafrips Pontus 2 12th-1 ?
I have a ZMF Verite Open. I'm very sensitive to sharp treble and raised upper mids. My music preferences : Mostly Acoustic, movies and Classical
FMs please give me a suggestion please.

I sold my Pontus 2 for the R26 and didn’t buy the Venus 2 I was also demoing.

 

[Docharsha89]

I sold my Pontus 2 for the R26 and didn’t buy the Venus 2 I was also demoing.

Hi,
Please share your setup and music preferences. Is the R26 too sharp in the treble ? Compared to the Pontus 2 what did you find better in the R26 ?

 

[camrector]

Hi,
Please share your setup and music preferences. Is the R26 too sharp in the treble ? Compared to the Pontus 2 what did you find better in the R26 ?

I was using the Silent Angel M1t as a streamer. Speakers at that time were Elac Unifi reference. R26 had more detail, air and bass weight. It was almost identical to the Venus 2. So close that the $2k extra for the Venus2 didn’t make sense.
I guess you might precieve the better detail of the r26 as sharp. It was sharper than the Pontus but to me that’s what the Pontus lacked.
I have zero idea what the 12th series of Denafrips can do and all the different firmware options they now have.
What the group here has done is taken every step to squeeze the very last ounce of sq from the R26. We’ve gotten it to where there really isn’t a better network cable dac under $6000 I could recommend. It’s that good.

 

[Docharsha89]

I was using the Silent Angel M1t as a streamer. Speakers at that time were Elac Unifi reference. R26 had more detail, air and bass weight. It was almost identical to the Venus 2. So close that the $2k extra for the Venus2 didn’t make sense.
I guess you might precieve the better detail of the r26 as sharp. It was sharper than the Pontus but to me that’s what the Pontus lacked.
I have zero idea what the 12th series of Denafrips can do and all the different firmware options they now have.
What the group here has done is taken every step to squeeze the very last ounce of sq from the R26. We’ve gotten it to where there really isn’t a better network cable dac under $6000 I could recommend. It’s that good.

Thank you for your detailed reply. I use a headphone only setup. I’m afraid the R26 may accentuate the highs. I guess I will evaluate the Pontus 2 for a few days and decide. My Burson Conductor 3 XR has a neutral-warm sound profile and the ZMF VERITE Open are not a sharp sounding HP per-se. let me see. Appreciate your response

 

[Jake2]

Btw I do agree with @dacwizard most buyers of the R26 don’t have to do anything at all to it get it sounding great in their system.

When I got my R26 I had a really imbalanced system with some newly acquired high quality but ruthlessly revealing speakers (I got a deal) in a reflective room, poor mains power and earth (old wiring) and a lean class D amp. Not great. The R26 made my system sound better than it was, but still leaned lean and a bit edgy, impressive but not relaxing. Started me off on a quest to tame the edginess and add more body which has got a life of its own over the last 18 months.

All totally optional for your average R26 owner but for me kinda essential, often rewarding, sometimes fascinating and mostly cheap (until it’s not ). There’s no substitute for doing, seeing what works and what doesn’t, theory vs reality. Made more than a few exuberant exaggerated statements and missteps along the way for sure, all part of the journey.

Clean power, grounding, vibration damping, shielding/isolation between sensitive and noisy components and power supplies (and signal chains).. or better yet moving power supplies further away (I’ve not done the latter), it’s all brought great returns to all my components I’ve applied em to, not just the R26. I’ve observed these things are often features of higher end DACs that cost multiples of the R26... increasingly heavy shielding between DAC sections (Holo Spring) and PS too (Audio GD R7) or even moving the toroidals into their own separate box (Holo May). It’d be cool to get a stock R26 in house one day and say a Holo Spring or May and see where my R26 sits between em…

Cheers guys

 

[Stellabagpuss]

So true Jake, and well put. Myself l'm on the final hurdle with the transformer sheilds.
But on the flip side,modding is not for everyone. But you're correct, my R26 is so far ahead,compared to a stock unit, l don't have a urge to even think of another purchase,l call that a result.