RME ADI-2 DAC Thread

[simon740]

Hello,

can I ask if this dac work with Linux system?

regards,
Simon

 

[AudioQuality777]

Hello,

can I ask if this dac work with Linux system?

regards,
Simon

Yes, excellent on Linux and tested Snake. But I'm using Win10 with Jriver player.I think the Win10 plays a little more detailed.

 

[AudioQuality777]

I am using it with two systems:

For Music: Mac Mini playing Roon > Supra USB cable > RME ADI-2 DAC > Balanced XLR to Hypex NC400 monoblock amps > ATC SCM11 speakers. Also Unbalanced RCA to ATC C1 subwoofer.



For Movies: MacBook Pro running Plex > Optical SPDIF > RME ADI-2 DAC > same amp and speakers.

I also have a Logitech Harmony universal remote control and was able to "learn" from the commands of the RME remote, so now I can use this to control volume and source etc of the RME unit as well as it controls Plex.

Very good system.

 

[simon740]

Yes, excellent on Linux and tested Snake. But I'm using Win10 with Jriver player.

Thank you for your answer. Im looking a DAC for my Jolida JD302 BRC and WLM La Scala monitor speakers.
In the past I had Aune S16, Naim DAC V1, Rega Brio-R dac. Now I choose between Chord Qutest and this ADI-2.

regards,
Simon

 

[AudioQuality777]

Thank you for your answer. Im looking a DAC for my Jolida JD302 BRC and WLM La Scala monitor speakers.
In the past I had Aune S16, Naim DAC V1, Rega Brio-R dac. Now I choose between Chord Qutest and this ADI-2.

regards,
Simon

User "musicmaker" comparison on the previous page Chord Hugo 2 (2400$) &RME ADI2 DAC.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/rme-adi-2-dac-thread.868015/page-8#post-14131003
"I owned a Hugo 2 and will tell you, the RME sounds a bit better. Factor in the other features, balanced output, parametric eq, usb cleanup, power cleanup and tons of other features. This is a no brainer for the sound quality and flexibility it provides. I honestly wish more people try this unit"

Chord Hugo 2 (2400$)It is $ 600 +- more expensive than Chord Qutest(1800$). According to the logic of Adi2DAC any better than Chord Qutest because Adi2DAC it's better than Chord Hugo 2.

 

[simon740]

$ 600 more expensive than Chord Qutest ? Meybe Pro version.
In EU the price for ADI-2 DAC is 999€.
Now I realy think to buy this little toy

 

[Boerd]

I have a Chord Mojo and to my ears it sounds perfect with my HD 650 / Beyer 880 / 600 ohms. Unfortunately I see random problems with it and the battery doesn't hold a charge for more than 2 hours which means it stays plugged in a lot.
Plus - when the power level is lower the THD increases on Mojo http://reference-audio-analyzer.pro/en/report/amp/chord-mojo.php#rw14
Now, I have on order a Focal Elex which is lower impedance and high sensitivity so I am thinking the IEM feature is something I would need, as I listen to fairly low levels (very sensitive hearing).
The only thing is I know monoprice is readying a DAC/ headphone combo based on THX AAA technology and that seems to be the cleanest these days.
Choices, choices, choices.

 

[AudioQuality777]

Well done several times a month driver update.
New USB driver for Windows 7 to 10.03/29/2018
http://www.rme-audio.de/download/driver_madiface_win_09653.zip

 

[AudioQuality777]

Correction of the frequency response for the NOS filter or why an EQ was useful!!!
https://www.forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=26952

I fully agree, but in the end the aliasing turns out to be no big issue in real-world...otherwise MQA wouldn't even exist...

And for the rolled-off treble there is a simple workaround: use the EQ to compensate. Here are two settings for Slow and NOS to linearize the treble response at 44.1 kHz sample rate:

Slow B5 G +4.0 F 16.5k Q 2.1 Shelf
NOS B5 G +3.0 F 14.3k Q 0.6 Shelf

As you can imagine with only 3 and 4 dB gain this is just a slight change, it linearizes NOS perfectly, and Slow good enough.

 

[doctor subie]

Interested if anyone knows how this would compare to the PS Audio Stellar Gain DAC?

 

[amirm]

I just finished my Review and Measurements of ME ADI-2 DAC. It did extremely well! Best I have measured of any DAC. And nice headphone amp to boot.

I see you all discussed the odd way it only advertises one sample rate to Windows. That is the main fault I see with the unit as I am not a fan of installing any drivers.

 

[kundica]

I just finished my Review and Measurements of ME ADI-2 DAC. It did extremely well! Best I have measured of any DAC. And nice headphone amp to boot.

I see you all discussed the odd way it only advertises one sample rate to Windows. That is the main fault I see with the unit as I am not a fan of installing any drivers.

I'll check them out, thanks!

The driver is that way by design since the Madiface driver spans across many devices which are primarily or solely used in professional applications. Those people would typically determine their settings in a DAW and it affords them a higher level of stability. Unfortunately it presets issues with many Audiophile oriented applications.

Edit: I should mention that Qobuz works fine with the ASIO driver. I use Qobuz Sublime+ and it will play through my playlist of 16/44 to 24/192 without bugging.

 

[AudioQuality777]

I just finished my Review and Measurements of ME ADI-2 DAC. It did extremely well! Best I have measured of any DAC. And nice headphone amp to boot.

I see you all discussed the odd way it only advertises one sample rate to Windows. That is the main fault I see with the unit as I am not a fan of installing any drivers.

It's not very clear what kind of problem you have with USB on Win. Automatically does not the sampling frequency on the music file switch? Or do you personally have incompatibility with Roon? Specify.
On with USB and Roonthere are no problems with this ASIO WIN10 !
On the Mac, too, there is no problem with USB and Roon.

 

[lowvolume]

I see you all discussed the odd way it only advertises one sample rate to Windows. That is the main fault I see with the unit as I am not a fan of installing any drivers.

You have a strange way to twist reality. No one here ever discussed this point. Luckbad mentioning it is no discussion.

This is a non-issue for anyone else. Use ASIO - be happy.

 

[kundica]

You have a strange way to twist reality. No one here ever discussed this point. Luckbad mentioning it is no discussion.

This is a non-issue for anyone else. Use ASIO - be happy.

I'm not sure what you're referring to but amirm is correct about the ASIO driver. It locks in 1 sample rate at a time and if an app changes that sample rate the windows drops the device and adds a new one with the new sample rate.