New Oriolus Stack - BD20 DAC, BA20 AMP, SE02 EQ, 1795 BT Receiver and more...
- Thread starter seamon
- Start date
Got the BD20 DAC. Initial impressions are that it's really good. Ordered some upgrade Opamps - MUSES01 and MUSES03
what setup are you using for testing?
Awesome can’t wait to see photos of the stack (if possible) and hearing your thoughts. How are you controlling volume right now?
Some musings from the Abyss Thread
The tonality is sweet because of the tube amp.
That said, it needs some tweaks to perform the best - the opamps(4 on the DAC + 4 on the Amp) needs to be changed and a heatsink must be applied on them.
Honestly, I would not recommend this over something like the RME ADI-2FS. This is for those who need maximum performance while on the go and don't mind modding equipment.
Just get the RME ADI-2FS or something if you are just looking for the best out of the box experience.
The DAC has 2 dual Opamps in the I/V stage and 2 single or one dual(User Choice) opamp/s in the LPF stage.
For I/V I chose the MUSES01 which is considered to be one of the best for this stage and for the LPF, I chose the MUSES03 in 2xsingle Opamp mode.
For the I/V stage, Burson V5i-D might potentially be another good candidate. For the LPF stage, MUSES02 is another great choice if you want more bass.
PS: I can't guarantee if the V5i will fit.
They offer an OFC Cable with the amps which seem to be pretty well made. However, changing it to a JPS Labs Superconductor just increases detail retrieval by easily 20-30%.
The BA300s mkii cannot be easily modded. Someone like Romi can probably change the opamps at the bottom, they are the SOC type.
Just at this point, the output from the BA300s PreAmp surpasses the ADI-2 FS in my opinion.
The BA20 amp has 4 single opamps(or 2 dual) in the Amp section and 4 single opamps in the Buffer section.
For maximum transparency, the Buffer Section should be bypassed, they provide 4 bypass modules for the buffer section.
I currently have the stock OP1611 opamps in the amp section and waiting for 4 more MUSES03 opamps.
I also plan to make bypass modules for the Buffer Section using OCC Ag(just short pin 3 and 7 using wire).
For Heatsinks, I am using the smaller black heatsink from these and applying a 1mm thermal pad on top of the heatsink. This transfers the heat to the metal case and also secures the heatsink.
Now I need another Superconductor wire, damn....
The main problem I had with the DAC was that I thought the midrange lacked body with the stock opamps(I guess slightly V shaped). I am mostly looking for a great midrange in anything I listen to. The MUSES opamps completely solve this.
I would actually say this will still be the best transportable solution without modding. I had the WA11 and I would say even stock this is miles ahead.
BD20 -> BA300s = Superconductor
BA300s -> BA20 = stock OFC
BD20 -> Diana V2 = Superconductor
I was looking for a reference system for when I am travelling. I once carried a LCD 4 + AMP + DAC internationally and it was not fun. This is probably it.
One more thing this stack has over the ADI-2 FS is bass timbre. ADI-2 FS bass sounds a little dull and slightly wrong tonally. This is apparently common with the AK4490 DAC.
Ok the Oriolus Transportable Stack(Oriolus BD20 DAC -> Oriolus BA300s mkii PreAmp -> Oriolus BA20 Amp) is around 10-15% more transparent than the Headphone out of a RME ADI-2 FS AK4490 edition. I am actually floored by its performance. It's so transparent that the cable connecting the modules matter 20-30% in detail retrieval.
The tonality is sweet because of the tube amp.
That said, it needs some tweaks to perform the best - the opamps(4 on the DAC + 4 on the Amp) needs to be changed and a heatsink must be applied on them.
Honestly, I would not recommend this over something like the RME ADI-2FS. This is for those who need maximum performance while on the go and don't mind modding equipment.
Just get the RME ADI-2FS or something if you are just looking for the best out of the box experience.
Lmao comparing this to the WA11 is an insult to this. This is at least 2-3 times the performance of the WA11(DAC + Amp)
The DAC has 2 dual Opamps in the I/V stage and 2 single or one dual(User Choice) opamp/s in the LPF stage.
For I/V I chose the MUSES01 which is considered to be one of the best for this stage and for the LPF, I chose the MUSES03 in 2xsingle Opamp mode.
For the I/V stage, Burson V5i-D might potentially be another good candidate. For the LPF stage, MUSES02 is another great choice if you want more bass.
PS: I can't guarantee if the V5i will fit.
They offer an OFC Cable with the amps which seem to be pretty well made. However, changing it to a JPS Labs Superconductor just increases detail retrieval by easily 20-30%.
The BA300s mkii cannot be easily modded. Someone like Romi can probably change the opamps at the bottom, they are the SOC type.
Just at this point, the output from the BA300s PreAmp surpasses the ADI-2 FS in my opinion.
The BA20 amp has 4 single opamps(or 2 dual) in the Amp section and 4 single opamps in the Buffer section.
For maximum transparency, the Buffer Section should be bypassed, they provide 4 bypass modules for the buffer section.
I currently have the stock OP1611 opamps in the amp section and waiting for 4 more MUSES03 opamps.
I also plan to make bypass modules for the Buffer Section using OCC Ag(just short pin 3 and 7 using wire).
For Heatsinks, I am using the smaller black heatsink from these and applying a 1mm thermal pad on top of the heatsink. This transfers the heat to the metal case and also secures the heatsink.
Now I need another Superconductor wire, damn....
The main problem I had with the DAC was that I thought the midrange lacked body with the stock opamps(I guess slightly V shaped). I am mostly looking for a great midrange in anything I listen to. The MUSES opamps completely solve this.
I would actually say this will still be the best transportable solution without modding. I had the WA11 and I would say even stock this is miles ahead.
BD20 -> BA300s = Superconductor
BA300s -> BA20 = stock OFC
BD20 -> Diana V2 = Superconductor
I was looking for a reference system for when I am travelling. I once carried a LCD 4 + AMP + DAC internationally and it was not fun. This is probably it.
One more thing this stack has over the ADI-2 FS is bass timbre. ADI-2 FS bass sounds a little dull and slightly wrong tonally. This is apparently common with the AK4490 DAC.
Bypassing the output Buffer makes the BA-20 amp super transparent. However, if headphones draws more current than the Max Output Current of the Amp stage opamps then the sound will distort.
The stock OPA1611 has a max current rating of around 55mA so the sound will distort if the headphones draw more than 0.11W.
If you plan to use hard to drive headphones, you need the BUF634A buffers which can do upto 250mA = 0.5W. However the buffers reduce transparency by quite a bit.
The solution? MUSES03 on the amp stage. The MUSES03 are rated for 250mA max current so Buffers are literally not needed.
The stock OPA1611 has a max current rating of around 55mA so the sound will distort if the headphones draw more than 0.11W.
If you plan to use hard to drive headphones, you need the BUF634A buffers which can do upto 250mA = 0.5W. However the buffers reduce transparency by quite a bit.
The solution? MUSES03 on the amp stage. The MUSES03 are rated for 250mA max current so Buffers are literally not needed.
No but thinking about it. Still tweaking the current stack, maybe after that
headphonesaddict123
Member of the Trade: Aya Workshop
can somewhat testify my (albeit very short) impressions on the ba/bd 20 stack :
i tried it with my IEMs (acoustune1551) , was surprised with the result because nowadays i am a little saturated with portable amps due to having tried many but only impressed by a few.
I'd describe it as lively, crisp, energetic and has great quality in resolution and imaging aspect. The stack also increased the quality of rumble and slam for my IEM. For a vivid (and biased) comparison i would say that on the same song(s), the stack sounds better to me than with wm1a on 3.5mm port, and probably better than some other DAPs too!
Overall , i don't think i like it as much as OP does , but i had a positive impression with this portable stack , and i will listen for longer when i have the chance for more accurate sound descriptions.
i tried it with my IEMs (acoustune1551) , was surprised with the result because nowadays i am a little saturated with portable amps due to having tried many but only impressed by a few.
I'd describe it as lively, crisp, energetic and has great quality in resolution and imaging aspect. The stack also increased the quality of rumble and slam for my IEM. For a vivid (and biased) comparison i would say that on the same song(s), the stack sounds better to me than with wm1a on 3.5mm port, and probably better than some other DAPs too!
Overall , i don't think i like it as much as OP does , but i had a positive impression with this portable stack , and i will listen for longer when i have the chance for more accurate sound descriptions.
I am currently rolling opamps on the stack
headphonesaddict123
Member of the Trade: Aya Workshop
very cool, let us know each result you tried and what you think about it.
the stack is not mine but from an acquaintance i know so i can't try it by my own.
in contrast to your impression i didn't like BA300 much the last time i paired it with wm1a, but that was also a very short listening so i will try the full stack again
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