[SeeSax]

  My suggestion is the UD-301, a bit more dynamic than my Uber/MB Bifrost so paired with the Ember its a better match IMO.  But for the T1 I prefer it paired with the BH Crack and Bifrost Uber while I like the HE-560 is paired with Lyr2/Bifrost MB, the differences are very little but after a while with one or the other the differences become easier to notice.  Just remember that this is a sonic preference and not a better or worse issue.

 
Thanks David, you are always super helpful. I ended up buying the Audio-GD NFB-1, but you can never have too many DACs right?  

 

[DavidA]

   
Thanks David, you are always super helpful. I ended up buying the Audio-GD NFB-1, but you can never have too many DACs right?  

Nice to have various DACs to listen to, its a great way to learn about the differences between DACs and what your personal preferences are.  Heard good things about AudioGD, I was looking at the Master 7 my self.

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Heard good things about AudioGD, I was looking at the Master 7 my self.

I almost pulled the trigger on a Master 7, but I ended up getting my M51. I still think the M7 would have been a fantastic DAC.

 

[DavidA]

  I almost pulled the trigger on a Master 7, but I ended up getting my M51. I still think the M7 would have been a fantastic DAC.

Its up there with the Pagoda and Isabellina from what I heard so far.

 

[Sonic Defender]

  Its up there with the Pagoda and Isabellina from what I heard so far.

I am thinking my next DAC in about a year will be the Pagoda.

 

[SeeSax]

I just decided to use my Chord Mojo in "line out mode," into an AudioQuest 3.5mm to RCA cable and then into the Ember. WOW! For some reason it is obscenely loud, so I don't know if this line out mode is feeding in a much stronger signal than my other DACs, but it's blasting my eardrums out with the volume on the Ember at 9 o'clock with my HE-560 Planars. The power is insane. It sounds brighter than the ZDac and Bifrost did, but it's extremely detailed while still being very musical. Interesting set up. More testing to do on my end. 
 
-Collin-

 

[Amish]

You can't go wrong with the Pagoda. It is by far the best DAC I have used to date and it will never leave my main stack. If this thing breaks I will just send it back to Mhdt Labs for repair. 

 

[Sonic Defender]

  You can't go wrong with the Pagoda. It is by far the best DAC I have used to date and it will never leave my main stack. If this thing breaks I will just send it back to Mhtd Labs for repair. 

Nice to know. I wish I didn't like the M51 so much or I would make the move now, but I really do like the NAD house sound.

 

[Amish]

Nothing wrong with NAD. As long as we enjoy what we have that is all that counts!

 

[mikek200]

Question,regarding tubes??
I have a Ember amp ,that will be delivered next week,and will be using it with the dac portion of a Parasound ZD V.2,and my HD600's.
 
I e-mailed Jeremy about using this tube,..Brimar 13D3 12AU7,and he replied,he was not familiar with this tube.
 
Are there any other Ember owners,who are using this tube?,if so,are there any issues/problems?.
Any help,replies would be greatly appreciated.
 
I apologize for the thread interruption..
 
Thanks,
Mike

 

[Amish]

  Question,regarding tubes??
I have a Ember amp ,that will be delivered next week,and will be using it with the dac portion of a Parasound ZD V.2,and my HD600's.
 
I e-mailed Jeremy about using this tube,..Brimar 13D3 12AU7,and he replied,he was not familiar with this tube.
 
Are there any other Ember owners,who are using this tube?,if so,are there any issues/problems?.
Any help,replies would be greatly appreciated.
 
I apologize for the thread interruption..
 
Thanks,
Mike

The Ember amp supports the 12AU7 ECC82 so I don't know why it wouldn't support that tube. I would have no doubts about it working.
 
And congratz on the Ember amp! You will really enjoy it. Tube rolling is a lot of fun in this amp and you can really change the sound by swapping them out. Find yourself some cheap Amperex orange globes, maybe a vintage Telefunken etc. I really like the 12AX7 and 12AT7 myself.

 

[mikek200]

Thanks Amish,
 
Yes,I've been tube rolling for many years now,and I have a fine collection of tubes,including the Orange Globe,and I just found out from SeeSax,that the dac on the paraZD,is also similar to the older Parasound dac,I used years ago{probably with a few updates?}
I am a Mullard,Amperex,Brimar freak,,so,I have my work cut out for me-LOL...90% of my tubes are matched pairs,that I used on my Stax amp.
 
If any guys on this thread need tubes,chances are ,I have it---SeeSax,has bought many ,some of my finest...so,shoot me a PM,with what you might need
 
Thanks,
Mike

 

[HOWIE13]

  Question,regarding tubes??
I have a Ember amp ,that will be delivered next week,and will be using it with the dac portion of a Parasound ZD V.2,and my HD600's.
 
I e-mailed Jeremy about using this tube,..Brimar 13D3 12AU7,and he replied,he was not familiar with this tube.
 
Are there any other Ember owners,who are using this tube?,if so,are there any issues/problems?.
Any help,replies would be greatly appreciated.
 
I apologize for the thread interruption..
 
Thanks,
Mike

 
Brimar made good tubes. As Amish has said Ember supports 12AU7 tubes so there shouldn't be a problem. Whether the sound will be to your liking I don't know . What I can say is I have a Brimar ECC88 and it sounds very nice in Ember: sweet, quite warm but not syrupy, clear and neutral- very similar to my Mullards.
 
I usually find 12V tubes to be a little warmer than 6V varieties-that could be just chance, and I think your Brimar will be a hit!

 

[Tunkejazz]

Hi Folks, 

Owned an Ember 2.1 for a few months now and absolutely love it. I did, however, pair it with the wrong DAC (I think) with the Parasound ZDac. I love the DAC on its own, but with the musical and smoothed details (especially treble) I feel that I am better off with as transparent a DAC as possible per the reviews of the Ember. 

Long way of saying: what DAC do you guys recommend with this? Something with a Sabre32? I can spend $600ish or more if it will get me return on my investment, but for now is there anything in the $500-600 range that would make this combo really sing with BD T1s or HE-560s?

Thank you!

-Collin-

I would not spend $600 on a dac to pair it with a $350 amp, but there are many opinions around here. I am using a ifi nano idsd and it sounds great with the Ember. The designer of the Ember has actually recomended something like a Modi.

But if you are set to use that budget, the Mdac cost around 600 and I doubt you can find a better dac for that price. John Westlake designed it which is quite a strong endorsement.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I would not spend $600 on a dac to pair it with a $350 amp, but there are many opinions around here. I am using a ifi nano idsd and it sounds great with the Ember. The designer of the Ember has actually recomended something like a Modi.

But if you are set to use that budget, the Mdac cost around 600 and I doubt you can find a better dac for that price. John Westlake designed it which is quite a strong endorsement.

I had the Audiolab 8200CD which essentially had the same DAC design in it and it was very detailed sounding and it does sound like the OP wants that. I would surely go with an iFi product as well, love the iDSD Micro, great sounding DAC section.