[Shahrose]

Instead of buying the Yggdrasil or the r7 I guess I'm saving money to buy the Dave. What do you think about it?

Can't go wrong with a DAVE. Tried and tested TOTL DAC. But then we're talking about a different price range.

 

[UsoppNoKami]

Was your Yggy2 with the new Unison USB?
Have you tried to compare your Audio GD R7HE with the Chord DAVE?

i auditioned the DAVE + CD Mscaler many times at a nearby Hifi dealer as they were trying to interest me in various speakers.

The Chord stack was nice to look at, and the system sounded decent... but I didnt buy anything then. On the other hand, I have a 2019 R7HE with no intention of changing it for my 2-channel / headphone listening. That's all I will say

 

[sajunky]

Certainly m-scaler can also be used on non-chord dacs like Schiit Yggdrasil and Audio Gd R7.

M-Scaller works the best with Delta-Sigma DACs. A reason is that when feeding DS DAC with a maximum sample rate it is possible to bypass an inferior internal oversampling engine, noise-shaping and other tricks strictly aimed for good measurements. For R2R users Redbook sounds exceptionally well. When upsampling a sound brings more details and a wider sound stage, but not neccessary depth and losing little bit of a natural NOS presentation. It is up to user preference which one is better, purely personal matter and music of choice. It is important to say, as most of modern top-hits is mastered for Delta-Sigma converters.

The other function of M-Scaller is redirecting ground loops, like DDC does, it can be important factor in your setup. Otherwise M-Saler is not special. It does the same job as upsampling on the PC, but PC (even an old Core 2 Duo) has vastly more processing power for a job than M-Scaler. You can test yourself in HQplayer or Foobar 2000 with SoX add-on.

If you want do extreme testing, There a software tool running in demo mode for resampling your files with a mastering studio quality.

 

[FredA]

Seems like Kingwa now offers pro Series ICs:

http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/CablesEN.htm

 

[mark44]

There is no such thing as better at this point, it all depends on what you prefer. Best is to listen to a Dave with m-scaler and see what you think.

Someone here had a Dave a long time ago (without the m-scaler) and said he preferred the R7HE. Currawong who started this thread had a R2R7 who preferred the Hugo 2 and said (if I recall correctly) the dCS Bartok is probably better than Dave. I know someone with a dCS flagship and says the Audio-GD DAC with the DI has the best sound he's ever heard. I know someone who replaced his R8 with a Holo May and doesn't miss the Audio-GD, and there are probably many Holo May users who wish they could afford even the entry dCS Bartok.

If Audio gd R7s are doing so well then why doesn't Currawong have R7 anymore? (if I understand correctly)

 

[sajunky]

If Audio gd R7s are doing so well then why doesn't Currawong have R7 anymore? (if I understand correctly)

Currawong review wasn't as good and comprehensive as this. And a product is improving continuously, currently in MK2 version.

 

[FredA]

Good point.

If Audio gd R7s are doing so well then why doesn't Currawong have R7 anymore? (if I understand correctly)

Indeed. Currawong's dac was the original version (r2r 7), released in 2017, which he sold after a while. The newer versions have better clocks and DA modules. The mkii has some additional improvements. The he version is quite an improvment by itself if you live in an area with much noise on the ac grid.

 

[FredA]

I know it's not the right thread but i found a really excellent set of headphones on Alie. They are the Music Master E1000s. They sell for 1300USD. They have similar technology to Audeze. They feature 108mm drivers, made in Germany, sitting in hand-made Indonesian ebony shells. The sound is rather spacious, smooth and well resolved. The set is clean but on the warmer side. The bass is really excellent. The whole spectrum is very good. For jazz and classical, which are my main interests, they shine. Easy to find through your favorite search engine, for those interested. Heavy, at 575g, but with top build quality. Listening to classical on a kt-5020 tuner i got recently, they are just splendid. This tuner playing classical is something really special, the staging, the air, the richness of the timbres, even the bass. And these headphones were designed to play classical. Can't believe how good. I will have to get some great classical recordings, i don't have much of them if any.

They are great with the r7he mkii and he9 combo. Easy to listen to over extented sessions.

 

[sajunky]

@FredA. I am not addicted to headphones, but Sennheiser is my definitive choice and HD 600 is on my desk. There is a campain you can win HD800s.

 

[FredA]

@FredA. I am not addicted to headphones, but Sennheiser is my definitive choice and HD 600 is on my desk. There is a campain you can win HD800s.

The r2r 11 fits with neutral headphones, while the r7mkii./he9 combo i use, given the cables i use, like headphones that are a little warm.

 

[holco]

Question,

I have a R8 2021 with an Auralic Aries G1 streamer (vd Hul Ultimate usb cable) in front of it and I like to know if an R7 mk2 is a good well spent upgrade?

The possibility to upgrade in the future with a external clock is then also a option, a option that I don't have now.

 

[emeeve]

@holco, I upgraded for that very reason even though I had my R8 nicely burned in and performing at an optimal level. It sounded just amazing...but it has a new home now and I'm busy burning in my R7 MKII along w/ my After Dark Emperor 10mhz clock...because it's early days in the burn in process, I can't say it's significantly better - at 265hrs so far, it's for sure coming around and I know it will take another 250hrs to get it somewhat optimal...my target is actually 1500hrs with any AGD product...is it worth the upgrade? I would say yes, particularly if you're adding an external clock. I have also have the DI-20 & Ether-Regen paired with matching clocks so my system is sounding pretty amazing right now...but as @FredA can tell you, I've messaged him many times that I wanted to throw it out the window because somedays it just sounded awful (relatively speaking of course!). Fortunately he told me to stay the course and yep, he was right...it just gets better. On a side note, I've stayed away from any AGD HE products simply because I have a PS Audio Power Plant (PS1000) w/ regenerative power supply connected to dedicated AC circuits...although I still recommend good LPS's for any external clock. But a lot of folks swear by the R7HE MKII so give that consideration before you upgrade. Hope that helps.

https://www.adark.co/collections/pr...eference-master-clock-audiophilestyle-edition

 

[holco]

@holco, I upgraded for that very reason even though I had my R8 nicely burned in and performing at an optimal level. It sounded just amazing...but it has a new home now and I'm busy burning in my R7 MKII along w/ my After Dark Emperor 10mhz clock...because it's early days in the burn in process, I can't say it's significantly better - at 265hrs so far, it's for sure coming around and I know it will take another 250hrs to get it somewhat optimal...my target is actually 1500hrs with any AGD product...is it worth the upgrade? I would say yes, particularly if you're adding an external clock. I have also have the DI-20 & Ether-Regen paired with matching clocks so my system is sounding pretty amazing right now...but as @FredA can tell you, I've messaged him many times that I wanted to throw it out the window because somedays it just sounded awful (relatively speaking of course!). Fortunately he told me to stay the course and yep, he was right...it just gets better. On a side note, I've stayed away from any AGD HE products simply because I have a PS Audio Power Plant (PS1000) w/ regenerative power supply connected to dedicated AC circuits...although I still recommend good LPS's for any external clock. But a lot of folks swear by the R7HE MKII so give that consideration before you upgrade. Hope that helps.

https://www.adark.co/collections/pr...eference-master-clock-audiophilestyle-edition

Emeeve, R8 vs R8 2021 is a big difference.

 

[emeeve]

I only owned the R8 2021.

 

[holco]

I only owned the R8 2021.

Ok, clear.
I am still in doubt about upgrading to the R7 mk2, not for the money but especially the (again) long run in time, choices choices