[bmichels]

  I will go on to say that I am not opposed to digital, it has come a long way. My DaVinci is substantially better than what I have heard previously. I chose it not because it has the highest resolution, converts to DSD etc etc, but because to my ears it sounded the most natural and closer to a good analog source. I have thoroughly enjoyed the rise of computer based audio and Head-Fi for its convenience and ability to enjoy the widest possible range of music.
 
I also enjoy it because I do not have the time to mess around with a big system. I used to spend many hours a week constantly fettling a big system, it drove my then wife to distraction. There are so many variables that it becomes a science experiment sometimes. With Head-Fi, I can listen to whatever I want at whatever level I want at times that suit me. I also I don't have to be concerned about the room, a big system puts so much energy into a room that the room itself becomes the limiting factor.
 
What I discovered and now with the benefit of that experience I strive for, is system synergy. I balance off one aspect of the sound with another, in my case tubes help me achieve this. The sum of the whole ends up being greater that the sum of its parts. 

 
You got a really impressive set-up my friend, but considering you have a Woo 234, I am surprise you do not get the ABYSS (according to your signature) which I understood offer great synergy with the Woo Mono ?  Is the ABYSS in your radar ? 

 

[bmichels]

I am surprised that there are so few (almost none) reviews of thus NAGRA DAC (besides 2 french and 1 german review) 

 

[isquirrel]

   
You got a really impressive set-up my friend, but considering you have a Woo 234, I am surprise you do not get the ABYSS (according to your signature) which I understood offer great synergy with the Woo Mono ?  Is the ABYSS in your radar ? 

I have listened to the Abyss only for a few hours, the initial impression I had was it did not involve me emotionally the same way that the LCD-3F does. 
 
I need a longer period of time with the Abyss to really form a view. I will have that opportunity in a few weeks (a friend is visiting with his). 
 
I also think its a good time to sit on the fence, presumably Audeze are gong to come out with something new (Prototype Z) and so 2015 will be a good year for Head-Fi. I expect to see several new products launched at the CES. I am thoroughly enjoying my system right now and so I am in no hurry.

 

[adamaley]

  @isquirrel, if you're considering the Chord models, you should be aware that the maker has said that they are working on a new desktop model to bring in the lessons learned from their much-raved-about portable Hugo, which some say is as good or better than their more expensive current desktop models. It may be months away, it may be years, but it promises to be a significant improvement..
 
This of course is countered by the notion that, if you always wait for next year's model, you'll never buy anything )

 
Hmm, it's not completely clear whether this is a good or bad thing. I've heard a lot of unflattering things about the Hugo's DAC performance. It may be in the best interest of some people to purchase before they spoil the broth with Hugo sauce.

 

[isquirrel]

   
Hmm, it's not completely clear whether this is a good or bad thing. I've heard a lot of unflattering things about the Hugo's DAC performance. It may be in the best interest of some people to purchase before they spoil the broth with Hugo sauce.

True, the performance from the QBD 76 is very good, but its not my main DAC, personally I am very content to sit with the DaVinci for some years to come. Particularly impressed with a new firmware file Larry Ho sent me that lifted the performance of the DaVinci quite substantially. He is working on new firmware which will give it DSD 256/512 capabilities, its good to know that technically it can do that. Even though there barely any material out there so its hardly relevant to me.
 
However as you say it may not be the improvement people are looking for. Its always a good idea to arrange a home audition before purchasing, the new Chord QBD may well not be to everyones liking in which case I am sure there will be some good deals to be had on the 'old' QBD.

 

[seeteeyou]

  For me the daVinci is out of financial reach, but the NAGRA is still possible (but at the max i can afford).

 
So far you seemed to like tube-based gears as well, maybe you could find their dealer in Belgium and give ModWright Elyse a try
 
http://www.modwright.com/dealers.php
 
http://www.modwright.com/sources/elyse-dac.php
 
 
http://www.hi-fi.com.pl/testy/przedwzmacniacze.html
 
http://www.bd-audio.co.uk/modwright-instruments-elyse.html‎
 
ModWright was able to transform somewhat ordinary components into giant killers that could rival something belonged an entirely difference price range. 
 
Similar to Berkeley's Alpha DAC Reference, the caveat is no DSD but you could always consider investing in Weiss INT204 for PCM conversion
 
http://www.element-acoustics.ca/products.php?cid=4&sid=17&tid=0&pid=2274
 
That combo should be under 10K in America and you could figure out what that costs in Europe.

 

[bmichels]

   
So far you seemed to like tube-based gears as well, maybe you could find their dealer in Belgium and give ModWright Elyse a try
 
http://www.modwright.com/dealers.php
 
http://www.modwright.com/sources/elyse-dac.php
 
 
http://www.hi-fi.com.pl/testy/przedwzmacniacze.html
 
http://www.bd-audio.co.uk/modwright-instruments-elyse.html‎
 
ModWright was able to transform somewhat ordinary components into giant killers that could rival something belonged an entirely difference price range. 
 
Similar to Berkeley's Alpha DAC Reference, the caveat is no DSD but you could always consider investing in Weiss INT204 for PCM conversion
 
http://www.element-acoustics.ca/products.php?cid=4&sid=17&tid=0&pid=2274
 
That combo should be under 10K in America and you could figure out what that costs in Europe.

 
thank you a lot for the links... I will look carefully 

 

[TheAttorney]

A new high end DAC contender that slightly undercuts the Nagra is the $16k Berkeley Reference that got a rave review at Absolute Sounds here:
 
       Berkeley Audio Design Alpha DAC Reference Series
 
Apart from me getting irritated that this "Best Ever" conclusion had no reference to the last Best Ever model (or to any competitor at all), I was interested in how Berkeley handled the DSD dilemma... by ignoring it altogether! Instead they propose customers use the bundled jriver app to convert DSD files to PCM prior to playing. And no USB input either. All in the interests of No Compromise.
 
It's certainly a brave gamble, but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go down that limited route. Only if I could directly compare the Berkeley to the other contenders, which seems unlikely at the moment in the UK.

 

[isquirrel]

  A new high end DAC contender that slightly undercuts the Nagra is the $16k Berkeley Reference that got a rave review at Absolute Sounds here:
 
       Berkeley Audio Design Alpha DAC Reference Series
 
Apart from me getting irritated that this "Best Ever" conclusion had no reference to the last Best Ever model (or to any competitor at all), I was interested in how Berkeley handled the DSD dilemma... by ignoring it altogether! Instead they propose customers use the bundled jriver app to convert DSD files to PCM prior to playing. And no USB input either. All in the interests of No Compromise.
 
It's certainly a brave gamble, but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go down that limited route. Only if I could directly compare the Berkeley to the other contenders, which seems unlikely at the moment in the UK.

+1 - Honestly how are we supposed to take these reviews seriously when the words 'best ever' and 'end game' are scattered about like confetti. I would have thought producing a DAC that ignores native DSD is a mistake and will make it difficult to re-sell when the inevitable next 'best ever' thing comes along.

 

[bmichels]

 
...I would have thought producing a DAC that ignores native DSD is a mistake and will make it difficult to re-sell when the inevitable next 'best ever' thing comes along.

 
Agree

 

[TheAttorney]

One of the reasons I've hung on to my CDP for so long, is that the HD music file scene just doesn't seem to settle down to a common format that we can all get on with.
 
Now there's a new kid on the block from Meridian, link below. No idea where this fits in with DSD etc, and whether its got long term legs, but it sure does confuse me.
 
http://www.tonepublications.com/industry-news/the-latest-high-resolution-format-from-meridian-audio/

 

[bmichels]

I wish NAGRA did, using the technology of the HD-DAC, a battery powered transportable DAP like they use to do Transportable products in the past...
 
This will be a killer product ! 

 
 

 

[harmonix]

  A new high end DAC contender that slightly undercuts the Nagra is the $16k Berkeley Reference that got a rave review at Absolute Sounds here:
 
       Berkeley Audio Design Alpha DAC Reference Series
 
Apart from me getting irritated that this "Best Ever" conclusion had no reference to the last Best Ever model (or to any competitor at all), I was interested in how Berkeley handled the DSD dilemma... by ignoring it altogether! Instead they propose customers use the bundled jriver app to convert DSD files to PCM prior to playing. And no USB input either. All in the interests of No Compromise.
 
It's certainly a brave gamble, but I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go down that limited route. Only if I could directly compare the Berkeley to the other contenders, which seems unlikely at the moment in the UK.

Not completely broken in yet but I'm almost ready to say the Nagra HD DAC is one of the best I have yet to hear. Set up is with MPS and VFS blocks for both PSU and DAC.
I preferred the EMM over the LH but the Nagra beats the EMM imho...This is coming from an ex-owner of the EMM.

 

[isquirrel]

  Not completely broken in yet but I'm almost ready to say the Nagra HD DAC is one of the best I have yet to hear. Set up is with MPS and VFS blocks for both PSU and DAC.
I preferred the EMM over the LH but the Nagra beats the EMM imho...This is coming from an ex-owner of the EMM.

Are you using it with the optional balanced outputs ?

 

[isquirrel]

  Not completely broken in yet but I'm almost ready to say the Nagra HD DAC is one of the best I have yet to hear. Set up is with MPS and VFS blocks for both PSU and DAC.
I preferred the EMM over the LH but the Nagra beats the EMM imho...This is coming from an ex-owner of the EMM.

Could you elaborate further on your setup, headphones, source and if you're using the USB input and if so what cables are you using?
 
Thanks