[AllEars]

Hello,

I recently purchased a Bel Canto DAC3 and so far I have been very impressed with it's ability to extract a whole slew of new found details in my music collection but I have a few questions that the owners manual doesn't seem to cover.

My current rig consists of the Bel Canto DAC3 used in Variable Output Mode which then drives my Classe CA201 MkII amplifier directly. My source components are a Wadia i-Transport and a Rotel RCD-1072 CD Player both of which are feeding the DAC3 via their SPDIF outputs using all MIT AVT1 Series interconnects. My speakers are Legacy Audio Signature III's

Now on to my questions:

1. When I am scrolling thru the Input knob on the DAC3 I see the following options AES/SP1/SP2/OP/USB & .058. My question is related to what the .058 means and if this has anything to do with the output level of the Preamp portion of the DAC. I can't seem to change that value while turning the knob so I'm not sure what it's for. Any ideas?

2. Right now I am using the RCA Line out plugs to feed the signal to my amplifier and notice that I need to turn the volume up fairly high on the 1-100 scale in order to get a decent listening level out of the unit. Based on the manual it says that the Line Level outputs are capable of feeding 2.25vrms to drive an external amp and the XLR Balanced outputs feed 4.5vrms when they are used.

Is the fact that I am using the Line Level RCA outputs to my amp the reason why I need to turn the volume up to 80-85 to produce a good listening level? My speakers a pretty efficient (93db). Would switching to a balanced XLR cable require less volume input on the DAC3 to produce the same desired listening level?

3. My final question/concern is related to the difference in bass output I am now hearing from my speakers with the DAC3 in place. My previous Preamp was a Rotel RC-1070 and with that unit in place prior to purchasing the DAC3 I thought I had what could be described as an almost over abundance of bass output on certain types of music (Trance mainly) which would require me to flip the switch on the back of my Signature III's which reduces standing waves in the 65Hz region in order to not boom me out of the room.

Now with the DAC3 in place and the Rotel no longer in the picture it seems as if the bass output has thinned out by a noticeable margin. I no longer rush to flip the bass contour switch on the speakers for the same type of music. Another example of this would be when I am listening to an old favorite like Pink Floyd's Delicate Sound of Thunder CD I used to leave the bass contour switch in the neutral position and it would be more then adequate. Now I find myself wishing that I had another switch on the speakers to bump things up a notch in the bass region.

Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not saying that I no longer have decent bass output but I am wondering if anyone else has noticed the same phenomena with their equipment after the addition of the DAC3 directly driving their amp. Could it be that the Rotel was over emphasizing the bass or is it that the DAC3 is a bit thin in the bass output region? On the other hand, could it be that I am now hearing for the first time what the music is supposed to sound like with no coloration by my old preamp?

Sorry for the long story and thanks for any input you may be able to provide.

 

[SR-71Panorama]

1. Not sure what ".058" is. Mine doesn't display this when cycling input modes. Maybe you have a newer firmware with some sort of add-on. I haven't looked at my manual since I purchased the dac, which was a while ago.

2. Those levels are similar to mine; you cant hear much below 60, unless you really crank the volume knob on the amp that is fed by the dac. I usually keep mine around 90, and also use RCA. I've just not bothered tying balanced, as I dont have any XLR cables at the moment. I do remember someone mentioning that they thought the spec for the XLR 4.5vrms output seemed unnecessarily high.

3. The Sixmoons review described the tone as being slightly lean. I think its really a preference thing. I noticed less bass than the Emu 0404 USB that I had previously, but the bass was infinitely cleaner and better controlled. To my ears it is very neutral, and will sound anemic with anemic material, and robust with robust material; if the album has more bass, then the dac will show that to be the case. I think you are probably just adjusting to the new sound. Its a very balanced sound, with no real emphasis on any part of the frequency range.

 

[AllEars]

Thanks for your reply. It appears that I was a bit off in regards to the mysterious ".058" number I was seeing. It actualy says 05.8 but who knows what it means.

I think you are probably right about just getting acustomed to the new sound. In any event I am still very impressed with it's abilities. Even my older CD's sound HDCD'ish in nature compared to how they used to sound.

I'm not sure my concern with needing to turn the volume up to 80 or so will matter in the long run because if I go much above 85 I think I may get a knock on the door from "The Man" with his citation booklet in hand telling me to turn it down.....

On a final note, I'm still amazed that it seems no matter how high you have it turned up that there is no sign of distortion that you typically get from most preamps when they are reaching their maxium output level. I'm pretty confident that I could burry the volume on it and hear no signs of clipping from the amp or speakers which is nice to know. Especially if you have ham fisted drunken buddies around who can't seem to find a satisfying listening level. In this price braket having idiot proof equipment is a good thing

 

[DouglasB]

AllEars, the "058" you are seeing is actually "U58" on the display. The top of the "0" is cut off which may be hard to see when you are looking down on the unit. "U58" is Bel Canto's way of spelling USB on the limited mostly numeric display. Turn the knob when you see USB to see AES, SP1, SP2 and OP as the other input selection options.

 

[watercourse]

I also haven't seen the "058" display either, however, mine is ~2 yrs old, your firmware might be newer. Most likely what DouglasB opines.
I've noticed quite a bit of difference in lowered background noise and overall more coherent sound running balanced cables to a Bel Canto S300. Even with XLRs, I still need to bump to 50 to get to adequate sound levels, but I live on a noisy street; at 64 it fully energizes my 20x15x10 room and sounds amazing. The bass control is outstanding, and I would agree that the overall sound is balanced, not lean at all IME.
I will post more input when I run RCAs to my RWA Sig 30.2 when it arrives next week.