[oldson]

would like to see a poll on these!

 

[Stoin]

In the UK it's just swung away from the DacMagic. The price rose from £200 to £250. The V-DAC is still available for around £150. A one-hundred pound difference is a lot at the lower-mid end of the price spectrum.

 

[anoobis]

How did I not find this thread sooner?

This comparison is so difficult because of the variables.

I tend to agree that ~£80 extra (as I write) sounds too much at this price point, since both these DACs are well received for their SQ. But this is where it really is a value judgement call for each individual.

However, the CA has more connectivity. Balanced out and more i/p are the big ones, if you feel you're likely to want them. It also has a digital pass-through and different filters. So the cost is going somewhere.

For me the big doubt is about the USB quality of the DACMagic. It's difficult to get beyond buying a DAC primarily for the computer (I need USB), which is already more expensive, then finding that I'd really need a USB converter on top. It's as much finding one that's an improvement as the cost (I realise that's slightly contradicatory)

Given this issue, comparisons really need to spell out which inputs have been used.

The other issue is that both apparently get better with time, which may be significant variable when comparing new models.

This probably isn't the right thread but I'd argue that a comparison between the gamma1 and VDAC is more relevant, based on feature sets.

I'm hoping to listen to both the VDAC and DACMagic next w/e, so we'll see what comes of that. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to test each i/p type. And, they're likely to be new but I can't do anything about that.

 

[josep]

I had one DacMagic and have now V-Dac. They have not been here at the same time however, and both surprised me for their nice potential in sq.

If you need balanced outs, and do not like DIY or modding, the choice is obvious: Cambridge Audio.

If RCA is fine (no balanced headphone setup) and you like to play with a soldering iron sometimes, then go Musical Fidelity.
As they are, I agree MF is more forgiving and listenable on the long run. But the MF has the potential to be better, from the PSU (it takes DC power, the original wallwart is crap) to the internals (caps and output opamp/s).

For those not in any of this two camps, the price decides: MF wins. I use them with a computer (usb input), but tested and evalued them in the main rig (speakers) as spdif dacs. Here as I said they show a nice potential in sq but they fall short of a good nice CD player or high-end dac, this must be stated clear. Say, with my FLAC files, USB and heapdhones (hd600, k701, W5000) DacMagic may be at Benchmark DAC1 level, V-DAC even better (more listenable to me), but with speakers (802D)... no (less depth, less microinformations and 'ambient') even it we talk about minute differences here (!).

 

[anoobis]

josep, are you implying that a standard V-DAC may not be as good as DACMagic?

 

[oqvist]

Or that it can grow if you spend more money on it. A bit harder to change the transformator on the DacMagic I do believe. But well the Keces seem to be much better in this department for my eyes... Generally speaking the bigger and heavier of a a transformator the better. Often used for PC PSU:s... You can judge it some by how heavy it´s

As for DacMagics USB works fine with no major differences in sound compared to the digital inputs. I couldn´t get optical out to work on my DacMagic for some odd reason though. My Elite PRO has both coaxial and optical so no problem.

Also 80$ is not that big of a price difference... Especially since you may want to live with the same DAC for some years it may be better to research so you get the one that works the best for you? Will never know without hearing both of course but I would get the one I believe in the most regardless of the price difference

... I do believe you are at a point with these that you may get frustrated with the diminishing returns of more expensive DACs... I mean I was a bit frustrated by the fact it was even questionable that the DacMagic is better then my Elite PRO.

 

[josep]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oqvist /img/forum/go_quote.gif I do believe you are at a point with these that you may get frustrated with the diminishing returns of more expensive DACs... I mean I was a bit frustrated by the fact it was even questionable that the DacMagic is better then my Elite PRO.

This is an important thing to keep in mind, and why I said they can fall short of SQ respect to a decent CD player. Sometimes there are too... exagerations... here, about 'giant killers' et al. If you have a good CD player, probaly you do not need any of these DACs unless your are just exploring/playing. You may discover a slightly different sound, and it may be no better.

But when using a computer or crappy DVD as source, then this low(ish) cost DACs are very wellcome.

Anoobis, yes it may be, possibly is just a question of preferences. It seems to me if you like to analyse your music and you like dynamic styles, DacMagic is more likely the one for you. If on the other side you want a more forgiving style the V-DAC may be your DAC. To me however being able to play whit a soldering iron a bit is something of a too strong temptation, so the DacMagic make me unhappy. And... I already own a Benchmark DAC if I want analytic sound

 

[oqvist]

Well Elite PRO is a soundcard for a computer. I think it would be better to say onboard audio rather then dedicated soundcards unless you got issues with EMI... However as mentioned the only time I got issues with EMI was with an external DAC... Now an elite PRO cost as much as a DacMagic so maybe not a real shock that it performs just as well I might add. But there is cheaper soundcards that supposedly should sound as good or better like the Essence STX.

 

[anoobis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by oqvist /img/forum/go_quote.gif As for DacMagics USB works fine with no major differences in sound compared to the digital inputs. Also 80$ is not that big of a price difference... Especially since you may want to live with the same DAC for some years it may be better to research so you get the one that works the best for you?

That's interesting because there have been quite a few reports of S/PDIF sounding better, even with CD quality. I suppose I wouldn't be too put off if the USB sounded a bit worse than the S/PDIF, provided it sounded better than the inputs of another DAC. Probably still feel a bit cheated though.

Actually it's more like £80 difference but I take the point. I'm not averse to paying the extra if I can justify it with SQ. It does become harder to justify if I need a converter on top, to offset a poor USB implementation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by josep /img/forum/go_quote.gif they can fall short of SQ respect to a decent CD player Anoobis, yes it may be, possibly is just a question of preferences. It seems to me if you like to analyse your music and you like dynamic styles, DacMagic is more likely the one for you. If on the other side you want a more forgiving style the V-DAC may be your DAC. To me however being able to play whit a soldering iron a bit is something of a too strong temptation, so the DacMagic make me unhappy.

Depends on what you mean by a decent CD player. Given the DACMagic should sound very similar to a CA 740C, I think it's a better way to go for me.

I like to think I'm getting decent sound out of the box. I can sometimes be tempted to tinker if I think it will make a large improvement but in general I prefer a better starting position (cost dependent).

Given your analysis of the DACs, it looks as though it could be a synergy issue as much as anything. Worth bearing in mind.

It's looking more like SQ isn't the decider between these two. They both sound good (I'm reading) but one has more functionality at a greater price.

 

[anoobis]

Busy week, I've only just got round to posting an update.

Unfortunately I was only able to listen to the DACMagic and not extensively, or even through headphones!

Therefore, the only comment I can make is that by itself, I wasn't disappointed by the sound. It seemed reasonably tight and had a decent soundstage. This was with the coax input. The only comparison I had was an Onkyo HD DVD player (hey, I didn't set it up!) and it was a noticeably less muddy and with a wider sound.

Huge disappointment as far as comparative testing though.

 

[Lilac1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shampoosuicide /img/forum/go_quote.gif However, What Hi-fi did give the DacMagic 5 stars, while the V-DAC received 4 stars.

Being british automatically earns you 1-2 bonus stars in whathifi, regardless of category. They'd be like top gear if top gear didn't admit to bias.

 

[lecky]

I've nothing to add in terms of comparison, but I too have a V-DAC and I can say that if I'd auditioned it new I'd have been happy but not amazed, perhaps I'd have bought something else. However burn in has made it a lot better. I hadn't expected significant change in a DAC. It's better in numerous ways, but most pleasingly I now have a consistently wonderful sense of soundstage now (of course synergy has a part in this too).
No doubt the DacMagic also changes, and is probably a nice piece of kit for the price, but my point is - you can't really trust a shop audition of this kit. I wonder how many hours the test models that the hifi mags use have too.

 

[DeViTTo]

I am amazed at the VDac after at least 800hrs or more I use it every day gaming and music feading HD650 I also feed a cyrus 1 amp and Epos speakers when not wearing phones and it blows me away how good it now sounds I am using a better PSU though. I was going to buy the DacMagic based on the review, but I am really glad I stuck with the VDAC I have a Music Fidelity Xray and the sound is so similar with this DAC.

Having said that I haven't heard The DacMagic but I dont regret not having heard it.

+1 for VDac

 

[jilgiljongiljing]

I dont quite agree with Dacmagic's weakness being midrange. Midrange and treble are super smooth and lovely.

If theres a weakness I'd say its the bass, it can definitely have slightly better definition, can tend to be slightly unrefined at times. I compared it to the Benchmark and Stello. The Benchmark had slightly better bass imo, but the overall sound wasnt as smooth as the dacmagic. Besides I saved quite a bit choosing the dacmagic over the other two. I havent heard or even seen the V-dac so cant comment on a comparison.

Oh and the Dacmagic's USB input is definitely inferior to its digital counter parts. There have been lengthy discussions and articles regarding this, a little bit of searching should tell you why it is so.

 

[jsplice]

I'm interested to hear some more comparisons here. I'm considering ditching my DacMagic for a V-DAC, but I'm not sure it would be a wise decision...