[hototay]

hey Zaluss,
read your initial impressions on the Maverick on audioholics forum. Can't wait for your full review.

 

[vhaarr]

Maverick Audio Tube Magic D1 *Review* - Audioholics Home Theater Forums is the thread hototay referred to, if anyone else is interested (like I was, so I went searching for it).

 

[JustVisit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hototay /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm enjoying this DAC as the days progress. I A/B'd my Philips DVD player and my laptop as source. On Rebecca Pindgeon's Spanish Harlem, I notice the voice of Rebecca through the philips DVD to be somewhat muffled or something like she's miles away from the microphone. However, with my laptop using as a source via Maverick, the vocal is VERY much alive, clear, holographic and the resolution is quite stunning which I never hear from the Philips!

That's the beauty of USB connection --- get the raw digital audio signal without going through the sound card or DVD/CD player's decoder chipset.

 

[Zaluss]

Quote:

Originally Posted by vhaarr /img/forum/go_quote.gif Maverick Audio Tube Magic D1 *Review* - Audioholics Home Theater Forums is the thread hototay referred to, if anyone else is interested (like I was, so I went searching for it).

Thanks guys. Definitely a beautiful unit! I wish it came in silver (all my components are silver) but I think I'll live. Overall I'm very impressed with the sound, features, and aesthetics. One caveat is the blue light IS super bright

 

[lameduck]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zaluss /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks guys. Definitely a beautiful unit! I wish it came in silver (all my components are silver) but I think I'll live. Overall I'm very impressed with the sound, features, and aesthetics. One caveat is the blue light IS super bright

Just put a piece of tape on it hehe, Nice Onix Sp3 Zaluss. I plan to switch over to tube gear soon, not sure if the Maverick is up to snub tho. As it is right now I think my Rotel 1070 and B&W dm603 has poor synergy with the D1.
Oh btw you forgot to put copyright footnote on two pics LOL.

Cheer and happy listening!

 

[lameduck]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hototay /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Ryan, I was just wondering, which SHOULD yield a better sound: connecting a laptop via USB or via "ANALOG IN" using 3.5mm to RCA cable? I haven't tested it myself as I do not have the proper cable available. Cheers

Well the reason we get the D1 is to use external DAC as suppose to the "inferior" onboard DAC of most consumer devices. So it stand to reason that the USB ports yeild better sound. However I find that that the Coax input yield the best sound, not sure if it's because of the uncompressed signal from CDs or the Coax DAC section is better or just simply placebo effect.

BTW Ryan, do you recommend any cap replacement in D1, the two wima tube output caps seem kinda wimpy. I'm quite proficient with the soldering iron but without schematic kinda tough to know which to replace

 

[sp70]

Let me just say first off that I do not have much experience reviewing audio gear, so take it easy on me and take the review with however much salt you'd like, anyways - here goes...

Just out of the box now and hooked up, and I really think it sounds incredible. So much power! More than one would really need i'd think. First up, I tried the headphone out, and it sounded incredible and generally I was extremely pleased. My only complaint is that for now (seeing as it has yet to burn in) the bottom end seemed a bit ah, whats the word, "busy and somewhat lacking definition" is how I would best describe it. From what I hear this will go away with burn in.

Second, I hooked the tube-out directly to my Hitachi HMA-6500, powering a beautiful pair of JBL 4311b's. The sound was out of this world for me. Quite different sound entirely, and such power! The D1 drove my speakers to more than loud enough levels at just 12 o'clock. When no music was playing it wasn't quite silent, but I wouldn't call that much of an issue, it wasn't bad. Although strangely, I seem to be getting a small amount of intermittent feedback when no music is playing, almost like a very quiet hiss every now and then - possibly a power issue?

As I sit here listening to Aja, I can't help but be transfixed by the clarity. Once again forgive me for my lack of audiophile reviewing experience, but a word i'd use to describe it would be agile.

Overall, I feel the unit is unbeatable for the price. A solid headphone amp, and a tube amp that was more than I expected. My only complaint at the moment (which I hope will clear up) is the bass which I described above. Besides that, this has been a tremendous improvement in sound, and i'm quite happy with it thus far. In the future, I think i'll replace the tube, and experiment with OPAMPs (soon as I figure out where I can get some without ordering 100...)

A week or so, once its burned in a bit, i'll post more perspective, I feel like I have a few comments to add about the exterior too...but thats all for now, hopefully this review didn't turn out too bad.

 

[TheBigCW]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hototay /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi Ryan, I was just wondering, which SHOULD yield a better sound: connecting a laptop via USB or via "ANALOG IN" using 3.5mm to RCA cable? I haven't tested it myself as I do not have the proper cable available. Cheers

USB connection without a doubt. The laptop already has a built in amplifier, the USB connection would do all the conversion inside the D1, and then amplify it itself.

 

[TheBigCW]

Sorry for the double post, but I finally pulled the trigger on the D1. :]

Expect a review as soon as I can do it :]

 

[JustVisit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lameduck /img/forum/go_quote.gif Well the reason we get the D1 is to use external BTW Ryan, do you recommend any cap replacement in D1, the two wima tube output caps seem kinda wimpy. I'm quite proficient with the soldering iron but without schematic kinda tough to know which to replace

The two wima caps are rated 0.1uF/400V, you can try to replace it with some better caps of 0.1uF/(100V-400V). Don't forget also change the two small caps next the wima cap on the left ( C48, C47), they are rated at 4.7-6.8uF/100V.

 

[Raez]

Anybody that has this care to do a comparison against some of it's rivals? Zhalou, Zero, Compass, Kicas, Musiland MD-10, Pop-Pulse, etc etc etc?

 

[Remains]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raez /img/forum/go_quote.gif Anybody that has this care to do a comparison against some of it's rivals? Zhalou, Zero, Compass, Kicas, Musiland MD-10, Pop-Pulse, etc etc etc?

Moodryn has already mentioned a few of those here.

 

[Raez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Remains /img/forum/go_quote.gif Moodryn has already mentioned a few of those here.

Aha! Brilliant! Thanks mate, I missed it.

 

[grokit]

It seems very versatile as well as great sounding. Mine will be used to mix sources into a more powerful headphone amp, and to pass those signals through to a home theater receiver, as well as an amp for my more efficient headphones. Also to monitor my Fubar ADC if possible. Supposedly shipping tomorrow, the new version with the American tubes. I have heard the version with the Chinese tubes, and thought it sounded great with lossless files and my ATH-ESW9As.

Henceforth to be known as the "missing link" in my sub-system.

 

[CANiSLAYu]

Well, I got my unit today. It actually came Friday, but I wasn't available to sign, so DHL came back today. I'm in Southern California, so like many others, shipped from China Monday, arrived Friday.

Like sp70 above, I'm no expert when it comes to reviewing audio equipment and sound is so subjective, so I doubt my impressions will be useful anyone experienced, but I am doing this more for the casual audio "enthusiast" (for lack of a better word) such as myself who will probably be considering this unit due to the price.

First impressions are very good. The unit feels substantial, which I like. No surprises about the physical appearance as the photos are an accurate representation of the unit. I have it plugged into my Mac Pro via USB and am listening on Sennheiser HD595s and Beyerdynamic DT770 80ohms. Source is a mix of MP3s, some lossless, some not (next thing to upgrade). Mainly rock and hip-hop/rap. As mentioned elsewhere in the thread, the amp is very powerful. My headphones are not high impedance by any means, but on the HD595s for example, 9 o' clock position on the volume dial is already about the max I'd consider for extended listening.

As for the sound quality, this is my first experience with an external DAC. Previously I was using a custom pimeta amp commissioned from MisterX about 5 years ago via analog out on the Mac Pro. I don't recall the full specs of the amp. I've read descriptions on this forum about the "veil being lifted" and I think that's a great description. Think of listening to an AM station versus a FM station. Obviously not to the same degree, but a similar experience as far as an improvement in clarity. Instrument separation is no better or worse than my previous setup. Some initial impressions I've read indicate that the bass starts out disappointing, but from what I'm hearing now it's at least as good as with my previous setup. So overall I'm pleased with the sound and hopefully it's even better after burn-in. It's not night and day difference, but it's definitely discernible.

Like I mentioned I've had my pimeta amp for 5 years and I hadn't looked around for an upgrade until a couple of weeks ago. What I wanted was (in no particular order):
1) Single unit desktop DAC/amp
2) At least two outputs for headphone and powered speakers
3) Affordable
4) Good aesthetics
5) Sound quality

The Maverick Audio TubeMagic D1 has met all of those qualities admirably with room to spare (more inputs and outputs than I need for my application). I think it's the perfect solution for people like me who want something simple/elegant to get better sound from their computer without busting the budget. I'm upgrading my desktop speakers to Audioengine A2's, so I will be testing those out with the Maverick in a few days as well. The only con if I had to nitpick something, the supplied power cord is a little short. Works fine for my application, but might not be sufficient for some people. Good thing it's your standard computer/monitor power cable and readily available. Very happy with the purchase overall!