[Sam Edwards]

My experience with Meridian is that they are very slow with software updates. I have the their Sooloos system and their home theater. Don't hold your breath.

 

[schneller]

  My experience with Meridian is that they are very slow with software updates. I have the their Sooloos system and their home theater. Don't hold your breath.

 
So I should fear that an update will come in a while or not at all?

 

[Sam Edwards]

It should come someday.

 

[LAmitchell]

   
Any chance you can borrow a NAIM V1 for a day or two?

 
OOHHHHHHHHH I SOOOOO WISHHHHH!
 
I'm such a fan of Naim that I would really really like to get my hands on one.

 

[pearljam50000]

Is this any good with HD800 as a DAC\amp?

 

[Sam Edwards]

The Director is a DAC only. You need a separate amp. I think the pairing is great with HD800 with both my amps.

 

[rgs9200m]

Maybe I'm missing something, but the Director (now called the DAC Direct) need USB power from the computer if USB digital input is used, so how is external A/C power used in this situation?
(The wall-wart, if used, attaches to the USB jack.)
 
Do the other power sources mentioned on this thread get around this somehow?
Thanks in advance.
 
(I'm going to try the Direct[or] I think because I want a small-profile DAC w/o an amp and I did like the 808.3 cdp I heard at a show and used to own the 508.24 long ago.)

 

[schneller]

If connecting the DAC to the PC via USB then the DAC is also powered by USD.
 
If connecting the DAC to a source via COAX/OPTICAL then the DAC still needs to be powered by USB and for this they have a DC-to-USB device.

 

[rgs9200m]

OK, thanks for that sir. So I guess it's true that there is no way to use any other power source when using it as a USB-sourced DAC.
I assume that, since I mainly use a big desktop machine, the power from USB is adequate.

 

[rgs9200m]

If I use the toslink input, are there any superior power sources via the USB port? Thanks.

 

[Incognito73]

Well, yeah, external battery 

  When I was testing Meridian Director toslink input, it was powered from this battery:
 
http://www.ianker.com/product/79AN7903S-BA
 
That's a really good thing about this DAC. You can run it from the battery!
 
Other (expensive) option is AQVOX
 
http://www.aqvox.de/usb-power_en.html
 
Or very good value for money TeraDak U9VA
 
http://www.ab-system.hk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=64

 

[GoSUV]

I use this:
 
http://ifi-audio.com/portfolio-view/micro-iusbpower/
 
to provide clean USB power to the Director. Besides the upgraded performance, this also has the benefit of continuing to provide power if you disconnect your computer from the USB side (such as if you need to move your laptop to another location), and the toslink input would still work on the Director.

 

[rgs9200m]

Hey, thanks for all that info (which is new to me). This topic probably deserves a dedicated thread of its own.

 

[Zoop]

hi all, 
 
just a quick report on my findings. please note my testing mostly done on my KEF 201/2, I only have limited use with headphones so far. and i have only used the same CD, havent played around with computer files yet. i bought it as replacement of my audiolab as it fried itself last week. 
 
i always wanted to hear the meridian house-sound but never quite want to commit so much into their entry level kit. until their DAC's came along, but even then, i'm always skeptical how much your money actually goes into the machine and not the director's pocket! so when this ex-demo came on sale, i just gave it a go. when it arrived, i saw the wall plug power supply...my days.... even my £9 tesco nokia comes with a charger with better build quality.... i must say i have never been so skeptical about a product.... 
 
mainly compared to oppo-105 (1st version with latest FW) and audiolab 8200cdq (only based on my memory) as a source. all downstream kit (quad 99pre/909) stays the same throughout. before i jump into the main comparison, to me, oppo-105 and audiolab on their own are fairly similar in terms of details (same chip afterall), just that oppo seems to draw your attention to the flaws of the recording and audiolab seems to draw your attention towards the rest of the music, may be because it is a bit warmer than oppo.
 
director power is fed by standard usb 2.0 out of my laptop (while plugged into the wall). im not a keen believer in cables, so all just random ones i found in the house.
 
trial 1: laptop itune + cd-drive + usb 2.0 port--> director --> quad/kef
 
good but a bit flat, details almost on par with audiolab, abit less warm but definitely give you the british-ish sound. warmer than 105 by teeny little bit. bass department is worse than both audiolab and oppo (remember my KEF only goes down to 45hz, so full floorstander will be even worse), but there is a slight improvement in upper mid. (eagles - hell freezes over - hotel california - introduction where audience claps/scream have slight better separation).   
 
trial 2: cheapo argos £20 DVD player --> co-axial --> director --> quad/kef
 
gone worse, i really thought the laptop USB is the best starting point because it cant get worse....boy...i was wrong.. i have never heard my KEF so dull.... zero soundstage, bass is so loose you can almost see the bass note came out of the woofer and dropped onto the floor before it even reaches you... 
 
trial 3: oppo as transport --> co-axial --> director --> quad/kef
 
i did this just for fun and didnt expect much of it, but then i was surprised.... every details across the range improves (only slight amount over oppo on its own), most noticeably the upper mid improvement carries over but in even bigger portion, the bass tighten up (which was the downgrade from previous trial) and, like someone else mentioned here already, I can start hearing the void vibration in wooden acoustic instruments. the audience claps and scream now have added height, more three dimension than before. so overall im quite impressed, considered i only paid £250 for this ex-demo. im sure spending this on cables won't get me this much improvement.... 
 
i must stress it's a notable improvement, but not a huge one, certainly i wouldn't notice the improvement if it was A/B. just don't expect if you get this, all of a sudden you have something that can rival DCS flagship or other 20k DAC/player. given the price i got it for and how much i paid for the oppo and audiolab, i will give it full marks for value for money. now the prime question is..... 

 

 

[rgs9200m]

Very interesting Zoop, thanks. Hopefully, the Director can provide some of that 808.3 sound from a computer. I've got the Oppo 105 and, while nice, is not on that level.