BrainSalat
100+ Head-Fier
Could you please elaborate more?Sorry to tell you but NOS R2R is the least accurate way to convert digital to analog. If your goal is to recover the original analog music, NOS R2R is not it.
Could you please elaborate more?Sorry to tell you but NOS R2R is the least accurate way to convert digital to analog. If your goal is to recover the original analog music, NOS R2R is not it.
Yes, but notice how R2R DACS have a reputation for being more natural sounding than Delta sigma.IMHO oversampling is not necessarily a bad thing in fact it is at core of all Delta Sigma DACs.
I sometimes switch OS on May for a minute or two just to remind myself why I spent all that money on a great NOS DAC :>Yes, but notice how R2R DACS have a reputation for being more natural sounding than Delta sigma.
Agree if compared with D/S chip based DACs, but one thing I noticed is Chord DACs even though delta sigma design is more natural than chip based ones, I guess it gets even better with higher end DCS and MSB DACs though haven't heard yet, so implementation maybe key here.Yes, but notice how R2R DACS have a reputation for being more natural sounding than Delta sigma.
Isnt MSB also R2R? Chord is not a typical delta sigma, it's their proprietary approach, so is DCS.Agree if compared with D/S chip based DACs, but one thing I noticed is Chord DACs even though delta sigma design is more natural than chip based ones, I guess it gets even better with higher end DCS and MSB DACs though haven't heard yet, so implementation maybe key here.
You can certainly get a very lively sound out of Cayins with HA300 being the daddy (Im also waiting for mine ... ) : ) just be prepared to roll some tubes to find your sound.
That being said I use Bliss a lot, as a pre into HA6a and also into a power amp for speakers and I love the sound I'm getting in both cases. Very refined, holographic, full, dynamic and relaxed and easy at the same time.
Could you please elaborate more?
Ah thanks for correcting.Isnt MSB also R2R? Chord is not a typical delta sigma, it's their proprietary approach, so is DCS.
Also worth mentioning Mola Mola, tube based DACs like Audio Note, Weiss etc. The field is pretty crowded around 6-8k with lots of options for every taste.
Sample and hold - hence the step function. This is a typical R2R dac output. Practically speaking you can think of NOS R2R as an EQ filter of negative treble shelf.
My point has nothing to do with personal preference in audio reproduction. I roll different dac architectures depending on my listening mood and I treat NOS R2R just like a different form of EQ.
Sorry but this is absolutely wrong. From where did you get that info?Practically speaking you can think of NOS R2R as an EQ filter of negative treble shelf.
To my knowledge there is generally no reconstruction filter on the NOS R2R unlike Delta Sigma. I suppose NOS dacs can always use some analog LPF which is not really idealRight, this is the unfiltered output of a R2R network stage of a R2R DAC, not the final output of a R2R DAC. I saw you took this image from this tutorial
https://www.tek.com/en/blog/tutorial-digital-analog-conversion-r-2r-dac.
and in order to compare apples with apples this is how it looks the unfiltered output of a Delta Sigma DAC.
For NOS R2R true, you are right!, but they could use output capacitors (passive filtering) and the output of nowadays top R2R DACs doesn't look like your sample picture above that represent a 4-bit R2R DAC (or a 16 levels DAC resolution) where you clearly see steeping which musically transforms to a very compressed dynamic range.To my knowledge there is generally no reconstruction filter on the NOS R2R unlike Delta Sigma. I suppose NOS dacs can always use some analog LPF which is not really ideal
I believe most use analog LPF, so yes, no actual stepped analog output. This is why most NOS output has a negative treble shelf, which I said before was not desirable.For NOS R2R true, you are right!, but they could use output capacitors (passive filtering) and the output of nowadays top R2R DACs doesn't look like your sample picture above that represent a 4-bit R2R DAC (or a 16 levels DAC resolution) where you clearly see steeping which musically transforms to a very compressed dynamic range.
Previous R2R DAC generations used 16-bits (65536 levels), or today's entry level R2R DACs, where you almost won't see the steps on a oscilloscope. With these there was still some slight perception of lack of resolution compared DS DACs, but nowadays top R2R DACs like HoloAudio May/Spring3, Rockna Wavelight are 24-bit (16,7 Million levels) R2R DACs.
The Spring3 KTE with a SINAD of 116dB has 19-bits of effective resolution (free of noise)
This is the frequency response of the Holo Spring (1) KTE (already discontinued, current version is Spring3, quite more advanced) and all 3 curves you are showing here are NOS mode (not only the green one). The difference is the frequency of the input signal, green is 44khz, magenta is 96Khz and red 192Khz. This graph shows that in the worst case (input signal 44Khz) the attenuation at 20Khz is ~1.7 dB which is quite OK. When you design a pass band filter you expect the filter to reach -3dB at the cutoff frequency. For 192Khz input signal the attenuation at 20Khz is ~0.9 dB, excellent!. Right, with Delta Sigma DACs you have the advantage you can build sharper filters (with not so long decay like in the previous graph) , but at the cost of ringing, which is also not desirable, just compare the impulse response of a R2R DAC, against a DS DAC.I believe most use analog LPF, so yes, no actual stepped analog output. This is why most NOS output has a negative treble shelf, which I said before was not desirable.
That 19bit figure you quoted is the dac in OS mode, correct?
Holo spring KTE. Green is NOS mode.