[H5N1]

To all the Mini-DAC owners out there, I am ordering the Mini-DAC pretty soon. I just wanna hear some impessions from y'all before I make the final decision. Would you recommend buying it?

Thanks

 

[Little J040]

I heard Salty Peanuts Apogee at the boston meet, the thing was killer, had it on a SACD (I believe) -> gilmour lite -> allessandro MS-1s. The detail it brought out vs. straight from gilmour made me poop. Congrats on your soon to be purchase.

 

[H5N1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Little J040 I heard Salty Peanuts Apogee at the boston meet, the thing was killer, had it on a SACD (I believe) -> gilmour lite -> allessandro MS-1s. The detail it brought out vs. straight from gilmour made me poop. Congrats on your soon to be purchase.

how would you classify this DAC? fast, warm; detail or natural ???

 

[jpelg]

I love mine. I've had it for over a year now, after owning a Benchmark DAC1 for nearly as long before that. I find the Apogee smooth where the Benchmark was too bright. Others may perceive the Apogee as lacking in dynamics in comparison to the Benchmark though. I don't agree. I find the Apogee has greater dynamic range. And that's what makes a horserace

.

Mine is the non-USB version, and I use the optical-in from my CD transport. But if I were to create a PC-based system, I consider the USB Mini-DAC at the very top of my list.

The headphone-out is very decent. I found it powered Grado's perfectly, and it's slightly warmer tonal signature matched that brand of headphone the best also. It's headphone-out is more powerful (read: louder) when the power switch is set to headphone-only (middle position). Depending on the headphone you use, there is a noticable level drop when switched to the right. Sound from the 1/8" jack and the XLR-outs in the back are more neutral (not as powerful, nor as pleasantly warm, nor full in bass) than the front headphone-out. Those back-panel outputs are best used with external amplifiers. But you may find you don't need anything more than the included headphone jack. It's nice to have options. And flexibility is what these devices are all about. Quote:

Originally Posted by Little J040 I heard Salty Peanuts Apogee at the boston meet, the thing was killer, had it on a SACD (I believe) -> gilmour lite -> allessandro MS-1s.

If you did, you were hearing the redbook output of the SACD player. Still, I find well-recorded redbook from the Apogee to be absolutely enchanting.

 

[dshea_32665]

I have had mine for about four months and it sounds pretty spectacular. When you get it, you are going to feel as if you have arrived and become a firm believer of Team Source first.

One the great things about this unit, as jpelg stated, is you can listen to the headphone out and be blown away. Knowing what I know now, I would have skipped the amplifier stage first and gone straight with this unit. However, when you plug a good amplifier into the back, you can flavor your sound the way you like. I recently plugged my SR-71 into the unit and it sounds incredible. Talk about a nice transportable system with my iBook!!

Nobody ever seems to really have anything bad to say about the unit, and most are impressed. It is easily a player with the Benchmark and Bel Canto. Enjoy!!

dshea

 

[H5N1]

That's it! I am getting mine!
One more question, is it worth it to get the USB option and get rid of my U24. (I suppose so...) ???