[pigmode]

Would have been a good time to get a cullen IV. They are going for reasonable prices on audiogon, and not getting snapped up like before.

 

[Graphicism]

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Which of these settings should I be using on my Macbook with the DLIII attached via optical?
 

 
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I would set it for 24/96

Surely 44.1 would be best, bit-perfect output and let the DAC do the upsampling. Otherwise you're introducing jitter and other junk and not letting the DLIII do it's job.

 

[markkr]

In the opinion of those that have replied, is the DLIII (non-modded) the best way to spend $500 on a DAC?
 
I've got to be honest, it doesn't sound that much different than my Pico DAC only...

 

[Graphicism]

Quote:

In the opinion of those that have replied, is the DLIII (non-modded) the best way to spend $500 on a DAC?
 
I've got to be honest, it doesn't sound that much different than my Pico DAC only...

In my opinion absolutely. When I picked mine up I had the opportunity to listen to the W4S DAC also, of which I found brighter, more digital sounding similar to the Benchmark DAC1. The DLIII is more analogue/smoother sounding which you could call warm, however depending on the headphones you use it with, bright headphones would benefit from a warmer source. Theatrical headphones like T1, D7000 etc would benefit from a brighter source. I suppose I'm comparing an $800 unit to a $1,000 one however I didn't find one better than the other, only different.
 
Ultimately they say a good DAC should disappear from your chain, thus differences will be like comparing white paint to cream paint. When auditioning however you're concentrating on these changes, however subtle they might be; pitch, tone, soundstage, instrument separation all play a part. Before moving up to the DLIII I heard many op-amp based DACs from the $100 Zero DAC to the $400 Yulong d100, I would consider those almost identical when sharing the same op-amp.
 
How do you compare DAC's?

 

[markkr]

Thanks Graphicism.
 
I've had a few other DAC's in the past, but currently I'm A/B'ing the Pico vs DLIII on my Gilmore Lite by switching the RCA over between them. Both are using USB (to make it a common denominator between them). The only difference I hear is the DLIII has slightly more bass, but I don't consider that to be "better". I'm using my Magnum's as my reference phone and the same set of songs for each DAC. 
 
I'm not complaining about the DLIII, I just don't hear the "synergy" I'd expect with an analog sounding DAC, revealing amp, and revealing phones. I was expecting "magic" but its kind of bland....

 

[dallan]

 
Quote:

In the opinion of those that have replied, is the DLIII (non-modded) the best way to spend $500 on a DAC?
 
I've got to be honest, it doesn't sound that much different than my Pico DAC only...

I have both of those dacs.  Admittedly my DLlll has been heavily modded and i use a high end usb->coax converter but to even mention that in the same breath with my pico dac only seems ludicrous.  I have heard some stuff out here that blows me away occasionally though, and those who stand vehemently by some pretty absurd statements-guess we have very different ears.

 

[Graphicism]

Quote:

Thanks Graphicism.
 
I've had a few other DAC's in the past, but currently I'm A/B'ing the Pico vs DLIII on my Gilmore Lite by switching the RCA over between them. Both are using USB (to make it a common denominator between them). The only difference I hear is the DLIII has slightly more bass, but I don't consider that to be "better". I'm using my Magnum's as my reference phone and the same set of songs for each DAC. 
 
I'm not complaining about the DLIII, I just don't hear the "synergy" I'd expect with an analog sounding DAC, revealing amp, and revealing phones. I was expecting "magic" but its kind of bland....

No problem. It is harder to discern a noticeable sound quality difference than say a sound signature difference. Switching RCA cables, as-in plugging them out of one device and into another gives too much of a pause in the music making differences hard to pick out. I would suggest an RCA selector for testing purposes, you can get them for around $5 and switch between DAC's at the push of a button.

 

[markkr]

<sigh> I feel like I'm really missing something here... and feeling like I need to change something to get the "wow" I'm seeking. Just unsure if its the amp or DAC.
 
Thanks again for your replies.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

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Surely 44.1 would be best, bit-perfect output and let the DAC do the upsampling. Otherwise you're introducing jitter and other junk and not letting the DLIII do it's job.

Not with the Mac - if the DAC is set for 24/96 and the music is 16/44.1 the DAC will still play it at 16/44.1, but you will get the full benefit when you play 24/96 music this way.  If you leave it at 16/44.1 then when you play 24/96 music it will be down-sampled first.

 

[Graphicism]

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Not with the Mac - if the DAC is set for 24/96 and the music is 16/44.1 the DAC will still play it at 16/44.1, but you will get the full benefit when you play 24/96 music this way.  If you leave it at 16/44.1 then when you play 24/96 music it will be down-sampled first.

Well I agree if you're going to be playing 24/96 it will need to be set as so, but for the majority of music 16/44.1 output from the computer will allow the DAC to up-sample. As far as I know the DAC isn't NOS with the options being 96 and 192. I don't know Mac's but if you set it to 24/96 won't typical files upsample from 16/44.1 to 24/96 before entering the DAC?

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

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Well I agree if you're going to be playing 24/96 it will need to be set as so, but for the majority of music 16/44.1 output from the computer will allow the DAC to up-sample. As far as I know the DAC isn't NOS with the options being 96 and 192. I don't know Mac's but if you set it to 24/96 won't typical files upsample from 16/44.1 to 24/96 before entering the DAC?

My understanding is the Mac doesn't up-sample, but it will down-sample if you are set for a lower bitrate than the music you are playing.  And I forgot the DLIII up-samples everything, unlike the Perfectwave DAC that I bought to replace my DLIII.  But with Mac the only up-sampling should be within the DLIII.  I found the 96Khz mode to sound identical to the Stello DA100 Signature DAC with up-sampling turned on.  The 192K mode was a little more airy and spacious sounding, and maybe a little brighter.  With my HD800 rig I left it at 96Khz, and with my Stax SR-007 rig I left it at 192Khz.
 

 

[Rawrbington]

gosh, im torn between the DLIII schiit bifrost and the dacmagic.
is 400$ a reasonable price for a used DLIII?
ill be using it with a woo wa2.
im wondering if it will create too much of a warm tube sound when they are put together.
and how it compares to the other 2 dacs mentioned.
 
thoughts?
 

 

[markkr]

I belIeve $400 is a great price. I paid $500 shipped for mine with all original packaging and material and in mint condition. $500 seemed like the going rate from my research. 
 
I've no experience with the Schiit products, but there is so much hype surrounding them... That usually raises a red flag for me, I choose the DLIII based on its long term results on several different forums not just HeadFi. 
 
The DACmagic was high in my list too however USB is supposed to be its weak spot. 
 
I also looked closely at the Centrance products, but when I kept emailing them questions and they never returned my emails... I went elsewhere. 
 
Quote:

gosh, im torn between the DLIII schiit bifrost and the dacmagic.
is 400$ a reasonable price for a used DLIII?
ill be using it with a woo wa2.
im wondering if it will create too much of a warm tube sound when they are put together.
and how it compares to the other 2 dacs mentioned.
 
thoughts?
 

 
 

 

[Graphicism]

Quote:

My understanding is the Mac doesn't up-sample, but it will down-sample if you are set for a lower bitrate than the music you are playing.  And I forgot the DLIII up-samples everything, unlike the Perfectwave DAC that I bought to replace my DLIII.  But with Mac the only up-sampling should be within the DLIII.  I found the 96Khz mode to sound identical to the Stello DA100 Signature DAC with up-sampling turned on.  The 192K mode was a little more airy and spacious sounding, and maybe a little brighter.  With my HD800 rig I left it at 96Khz, and with my Stax SR-007 rig I left it at 192Khz.
 

I think the Mac does upsample otherwise there wouldn't be an option. I find 192K more rounded, not as bright and so I use that for bad recordings and movies, 96k for everything else.


Quote:

gosh, im torn between the DLIII schiit bifrost and the dacmagic.
is 400$ a reasonable price for a used DLIII?
ill be using it with a woo wa2.
im wondering if it will create too much of a warm tube sound when they are put together.
and how it compares to the other 2 dacs mentioned.
 
thoughts?
 

$400 for a DLIII is a bit iffy, I've seen them go as low as $500 but even then you don't know if you're getting something that's been tampored with, or perhaps a failed upgrade or something. I haven't heard the Bitfrost but it is discrete so on paper it looks good, Jude has one for review right now. The DacMagic is aweful, I have no idea why they have such a following but it is absolutely no different than my op-amp Zero DAC... I wouldn't pay more than a $100 for it.

 

[markkr]

Quote:

 I've seen them go as low as $500 but even then you don't know if you're getting something that's been tampored with, or perhaps a failed upgrade or something.

 
I never thought to take mine apart and look for this possibility.
 
Edit: checked... no mods. looks perfect inside.