New Audio-gd R-7, R-7HE R-8, R-27, R-27HE, R-28 Flagship Resistor Ladder DACs and DAC/amps

[Patswalker]

Has anyone actually reached out to Magna and asked? Might be a good idea.

 

[Hoondarrh]

R27 was around 2.2 kEuro for many months/years.

Says the R27 is 2171 Euro on their site for me.

Edit**
After checking the archives webpages, the prices now match up to what they were prior, minus a few. At least, from what I'm seeing. The HE-1 was 2065.29 Euro, now 2330 Euro. Master 2A was 4131.40 Euro, now 4683 Euro. Seems like Archive.org didn't capture the second page, so can't see what R27 was prior, but a few items do seem have to increased a bit, but most others are the same.

Try archive.org

Yeah, a good resource. Thanks for reminding me.

Has anyone actually reached out to Magna and asked? Might be a good idea.

Probably the simplest solution. Lol

How does Yggy MIB compare to the DAC in R27HE?
Thanks

It doesn't come close, as far as I'm concerned. The MIB was paired with both the Cayin HA3A, Mjolnir 3, Jotunheim 2 and Ragnarok 2. Worked best with the first two, and sounded awful with the Ragnarok 2. All these were tested with the Modhouse Tungsten SS, Klipsch HP-3, DCA Noire, ZMF Auteur. Had a friend listen as well who also has used Schiit gear (mostly Bifrost 2) for a while.

The R27HE has only been used and tested with the amp inside, but was bought with the intent to be used as a DAC/pre for a power amp. Headphones tested are only the Modhouse Tungsten SS and Focal Hadenys my friend owns. The level of realism and detailed portrayal of music is easily discernable between the Audio-gd vs Schiit pairings. There's way more force and energy behind the music, which is mainly what drew me to looking into Audio-gd in the first place. Not to mention it's the only thing that has sounded like it can actually power the Modhouse Tungsten, despite the Rag being far more powerful.

The Cayin was the only amp I'd be happy keeping of the others mentioned, especially with the MIB. People always talked extremely positively of the Yggdrasil, and while it was certainly better than the Bifrost, it was still very disappointing for the 3k or so it costed after tax/delivery. I imagine I'd even more strongly prefer Audio-gd's more entry-level offerings over it.

 

[matthia]

@Hoondarrh
Many thanks, great data point for me
Which power amp do you use with R27HE?

 

[FredA]

It's been a while for me here.

I now own the He7 mkii as many know.

I got a Cybershaft op21ad in October as an upgrade to my Afterdark Trifecta Eva. I assembled a custom psu for it and later on added an external dc filter to clean up the power further. The good news is the he7 mkii (and so the other audio-gd dacs with clock input like the r7he) are worthy of such a clock. Sound quality got significantly better after the first week and then took another step up with the DC filter. I must add that using the DI25HE and Tubulus clock and i2s cables (or something as good) is a must with such a setup.

Take note that i took all possible mesures to minimize vibrations (dampening feet), noise from the ac line (fancy cords, isolators and Furutech ncf accessories), grounding boxes and cables. I also got a cheap but very good streamer as well as a lhy sw6 audiophile switch.

The point is mostly to get the noise inside the Dac's FPGA as low as possible,because this is where the external clock signal is received and processed. Protecting this signal has a direct incidence on sound quality and i would ague this is the reason why hdmi i2s cable can make such a difference in this all audio-gd setup.

I am now contemplating the idea of getting a set of monobock amps. But I barely have room for them.

Anyway, this is a crazy hobby but if you love music, it's worth it.

 

[Hoondarrh]

Many thanks, great data point for me
Which power amp do you use with R27HE?

No problem.

I don't have the power amp in yet, but eventually I will be getting the Master 3A to pair with it. Have been holding off on further spending because of the current situation within the US.

 

[Honeypot]

It's been a while for me here.

I now own the He7 mkii as many know.

I got a Cybershaft op21ad in October as an upgrade to my Afterdark Trifecta Eva. I assembled a custom psu for it and later on added an external dc filter to clean up the power further. The good news is the he7 mkii (and so the other audio-gd dacs with clock input like the r7he) are worthy of such a clock. Sound quality got significantly better after the first week and then took another step up with the DC filter. I must add that using the DI25HE and Tubulus clock and i2s cables (or something as good) is a must with such a setup.

Take note that i took all possible mesures to minimize vibrations (dampening feet), noise from the ac line (fancy cords, isolators and Furutech ncf accessories), grounding boxes and cables. I also got a cheap but very good streamer as well as a lhy sw6 audiophile switch.

The point is mostly to get the noise inside the Dac's FPGA as low as possible,because this is where the external clock signal is received and processed. Protecting this signal has a direct incidence on sound quality and i would ague this is the reason why hdmi i2s cable can make such a difference in this all audio-gd setup.

I am now contemplating the idea of getting a set of monobock amps. But I barely have room for them.

Anyway, this is a crazy hobby but if you love music, it's worth it.

With such setup and care you put into every detail, have you considered any AC conditioner?
I know about the HE line of the audio GD products have generative power supply, but I am wondering if adding additional filtering or at least a surge protection at the AC would be a good idea. I've been now researching for a while, but I haven't come to a conclusion yet.
Any inputs?
I had in mind the puritan PSM 156, furman 16 PF IE and inakustik AC3502.
However my research always ends with a mix of experiences where some people claim it gets worse, while others say better or no difference.
Technically speaking, it's the same. Some results show improvement, others do not.
I can't go around spending money so I really don't know what to do anymore.
Some experienced people even recommended avoiding filtering with HE GD stuff, and just adding a quality power strip to avoid filtering. Such as power strip with fixed cord.

Any help is appreciated

 

[FredA]

With such setup and care you put into every detail, have you considered any AC conditioner?
I know about the HE line of the audio GD products have generative power supply, but I am wondering if adding additional filtering or at least a surge protection at the AC would be a good idea. I've been now researching for a while, but I haven't come to a conclusion yet.
Any inputs?
I had in mind the puritan PSM 156, furman 16 PF IE and inakustik AC3502.
However my research always ends with a mix of experiences where some people claim it gets worse, while others say better or no difference.
Technically speaking, it's the same. Some results show improvement, others do not.
I can't go around spending money so I really don't know what to do anymore.
Some experienced people even recommended avoiding filtering with HE GD stuff, and just adding a quality power strip to avoid filtering. Such as power strip with fixed cord.

Any help is appreciated

I have a very good power strip without filtering per say but the chassis has multiple coats designed to shield from and absorb RFI/EMI. It is was custom assembled by me. The iec connector is the Furutech fi-06ncf, and the first two receptacles are Gtx-d NCF (r). The third one is a Copper Colour Berylium. The wire inside it extracted from a piece of Neotech nep-3001 mkiii. The strip is hooked up to the wall with a Nimak 4.5awg cord and on a wall, there is a gtx-d ncf (r) with ncf mounting plate and cover. This alone is a very significant power upgrade. But will set you back 1500$.

I use fancy clones as cord for the dac, amp, pre, and a pure silver cord on the clock (siltech, siltech, audioquest and Xangsane). The cord choice on these three gears has a considerable impact on bass quality and tonal balance. The DI24HE is the least sensitive to cords in my setup. The streamer's psu also gets a relatively very good clone cord (odin 2).

In order to isolate the 4 most important digital gears from the rest and from the grid, i use a 500w isolation transformer with elaborate filtering (zerozone spo-500). The file server and switch are on a pt-500.

To answer you question is not so easy. Since I use excellent cords and strip, connecting the dac directly to the strip or on the isolation transfo makes minimal difference. With a dac using a regular psu, of course things would be different. Same for the di24he. The clock and streamer benefit much more. But since the transformer is overkilled at 500w, there is no downside to hooking up the DAC to it.

To add to sound quality and add warmth too, the two receptacle on the spo-500 were replaced by Oyaide R0. The ones on the pt500 were replaced by Copper Colour berylium.

The clock and streamer psu are assembled with zerozone boards and both use overkilled 100va o-core transfos and a Furutech fi-06 ncf. Both use an aucharm oil-impregnated fuse. Same fuse with the sw6 and Zerozone spo-500.

And then there is grounding. The result of grounding is much dependent on cables. I use sp-9003ag on all gears, except the main strip, which is grounded with a piece of ataudïo power cord. Grounding the main strip made a significant difference. I use a 18kg box from ali with 4 outputs (two for the strip and the other two for the pre). The spo-400 has its own 3.5kg box, the dac and di24he have a 2kg box each and the clock and streamer use a small Xangsane box. The effect on the clock was very noticeable.

 

[Honeypot]

I have a very good power strip without filtering per say but the chassis has multiple coats designed to shield from and absorb RFI/EMI. It is was custom assembled by me. The iec connector is the Furutech fi-06ncf, and the first two receptacles are Gtx-d NCF (r). The third one is a Copper Colour Berylium. The wire inside it extracted from a piece of Neotech nep-3001 mkiii. The strip is hooked up to the wall with a Nimak 4.5awg cord and on a wall, there is a gtx-d ncf (r) with ncf mounting plate and cover. This alone is a very significant power upgrade. But will set you back 1500$.

I use fancy clones as cord for the dac, amp, pre, and a pure silver cord on the clock (siltech, siltech, audioquest and Xangsane). The cord choice on these three gears has a considerable impact on bass quality and tonal balance. The DI24HE is the least sensitive to cords in my setup. The streamer's psu also gets a relatively very good clone cord (odin 2).

In order to isolate the 4 most important digital gears from the rest and from the grid, i use a 500w isolation transformer with elaborate filtering (zerozone spo-500). The file server and switch are on a pt-500.

To answer you question is not so easy. Since I use excellent cords and strip, connecting the dac directly to the strip or on the isolation transfo makes minimal difference. With a dac using a regular psu, of course things would be different. Same for the di24he. The clock and streamer benefit much more. But since the transformer is overkilled at 500w, there is no downside to hooking up the DAC to it.

To add to sound quality and add warmth too, the two receptacle on the spo-500 were replaced by Oyaide R0. The ones on the pt500 were replaced by Copper Colour berylium.

The clock and streamer psu are assembled with zerozone boards and both use overkilled 100va o-core transfos and a Furutech fi-06 ncf. Both use an aucharm oil-impregnated fuse. Same fuse with the sw6 and Zerozone spo-500.

And then there is grounding. The result of grounding is much dependent on cables. I use sp-9003ag on all gears, except the main strip, which is grounded with a piece of ataudïo power cord. Grounding the main strip made a significant difference. I use a 18kg box from ali with 4 outputs (two for the strip and the other two for the pre). The spo-400 has its own 3.5kg box, the dac and di24he have a 2kg box each and the clock and streamer use a small Xangsane box. The effect on the clock was very noticeable.

Thanks for the detailed response. I can't go now through every detail. But I will surely look into them.
Thanks for sharing and get ready for a dm spam nah j/k just a few

 

[duffer5]

I have a very good power strip without filtering per say but the chassis has multiple coats designed to shield from and absorb RFI/EMI. It is was custom assembled by me. The iec connector is the Furutech fi-06ncf, and the first two receptacles are Gtx-d NCF (r). The third one is a Copper Colour Berylium. The wire inside it extracted from a piece of Neotech nep-3001 mkiii. The strip is hooked up to the wall with a Nimak 4.5awg cord and on a wall, there is a gtx-d ncf (r) with ncf mounting plate and cover. This alone is a very significant power upgrade. But will set you back 1500$.

I use fancy clones as cord for the dac, amp, pre, and a pure silver cord on the clock (siltech, siltech, audioquest and Xangsane). The cord choice on these three gears has a considerable impact on bass quality and tonal balance. The DI24HE is the least sensitive to cords in my setup. The streamer's psu also gets a relatively very good clone cord (odin 2).

In order to isolate the 4 most important digital gears from the rest and from the grid, i use a 500w isolation transformer with elaborate filtering (zerozone spo-500). The file server and switch are on a pt-500.

To answer you question is not so easy. Since I use excellent cords and strip, connecting the dac directly to the strip or on the isolation transfo makes minimal difference. With a dac using a regular psu, of course things would be different. Same for the di24he. The clock and streamer benefit much more. But since the transformer is overkilled at 500w, there is no downside to hooking up the DAC to it.

To add to sound quality and add warmth too, the two receptacle on the spo-500 were replaced by Oyaide R0. The ones on the pt500 were replaced by Copper Colour berylium.

The clock and streamer psu are assembled with zerozone boards and both use overkilled 100va o-core transfos and a Furutech fi-06 ncf. Both use an aucharm oil-impregnated fuse. Same fuse with the sw6 and Zerozone spo-500.

And then there is grounding. The result of grounding is much dependent on cables. I use sp-9003ag on all gears, except the main strip, which is grounded with a piece of ataudïo power cord. Grounding the main strip made a significant difference. I use a 18kg box from ali with 4 outputs (two for the strip and the other two for the pre). The spo-400 has its own 3.5kg box, the dac and di24he have a 2kg box each and the clock and streamer use a small Xangsane box. The effect on the clock was very noticeable.

Such a setup deserves a picture. Care to post a picture or two of your setup? Would love to see it.

 

[Honeypot]

I am so happy the HE9 includes an input short design.
I was having an issue where the XLR connection was somehow affecting the overall grounding or signal reference of the system.
In other words, when the XLR cable was connected, it was introducing a ground-related interference or loop that impacted the RCA output of the DAC, leading to distortion in one my tube amps. Removing the XLR connection eliminated that unwanted interaction, which is why the problem was going away.
This pointed to a potential issue with how the DAC’s XLR and RCA circuits share or reference their grounds.

Checking the audio gd site I saw the jumpers and the input short design. But I wasn't certain.
I reached Magna Hi-fi and Jos replied promptly with instructions on how to solve it. I have nothing but gratitude for their support and professionalism dealing with customers.
I take my hat off people...

 

[FredA]

Such a setup deserves a picture. Care to post a picture or two of your setup? Would love to see it.

The 18kg grounding box is underneath the rack, on silicon dampers (as all boxes), if you wonder. At this time of the day, there is no day light so quality is not great

 

[duffer5]

The 18kg grounding box is underneath the rack, on silicon dampers (as all boxes), if you wonder. At this time of the day, there is no day light so quality is not great

Impressive to say the least. Nicely done.

 

[Patswalker]

So. Question. I've got an HE9LE and I LOVE it. What a specifically like, aside from the amazing clarity and texture, the ability to put out huge power and also play incredibly will with IEMs. I have mine, most of the time, connected to my Schiit Yggi OG. I really really really want to get the same experience at my desktop close by. Does anyone here know any headphone amps that can do the same just in a smaller size? I am not a purist for any one company. Anything come super super close?

 

[kandamrgam]

So. Question. I've got an HE9LE and I LOVE it. What a specifically like, aside from the amazing clarity and texture, the ability to put out huge power and also play incredibly will with IEMs. I have mine, most of the time, connected to my Schiit Yggi OG. I really really really want to get the same experience at my desktop close by. Does anyone here know any headphone amps that can do the same just in a smaller size? I am not a purist for any one company. Anything come super super close?

Well you could try TCA HPA-1. It's only something like 55 x 140 x 210 and weighs just 850 g!! Haven't heard it personally, though great reviews generally.

 

[Hoondarrh]

So. Question. I've got an HE9LE and I LOVE it. What a specifically like, aside from the amazing clarity and texture, the ability to put out huge power and also play incredibly will with IEMs. I have mine, most of the time, connected to my Schiit Yggi OG. I really really really want to get the same experience at my desktop close by. Does anyone here know any headphone amps that can do the same just in a smaller size? I am not a purist for any one company. Anything come super super close?

Depends on your budget. Orchard Audio Valencia, Flux Lab Mentor, CFA3, and Violetric V281 are all powerful solid state amps I'm a fan of and are desktop size-ish. There's also the Wells Audio Milo, but has an upright form factor, which is an oddity, but can be found used for under for fairly "cheap". That said, I haven't tested or heard these with IEMs, but I'd imagine the first three mentioned would work well with them.