[feifan]

Daniel, 800s and Cello -- yes! The 800s' dynamics are the best I've heard.

DAC with Phonitor? I'm curious, too. I've been using the DL3 (stock) and have no complaints. But Acix's comment ("The SPL amps will give you this impression that you have the best setup/DAC out there...and this because of the transparency level of those amps.") has me wondering if my amps are hiding any DAC flaws.

Acix, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the various DACs you mention, especially the Apogee and Weiss.
 
dukeskd, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the Mytek 192.
 
Daniel, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the Audiolab MDAC.

 

[daniel_hokkaido]

Quote:

Daniel, 800s and Cello -- yes! The 800s' dynamics are the best I've heard.

DAC with Phonitor? I'm curious, too. I've been using the DL3 (stock) and have no complaints. But Acix's comment ("The SPL amps will give you this impression that you have the best setup/DAC out there...and this because of the transparency level of those amps.") has me wondering if my amps are hiding any DAC flaws.
 
 
Daniel, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the Audiolab MDAC.

 
Yeah you raise a point! I originally got a lehmann linear amp and a dacmagic. I dont know.. i mean lehmann was a reference amp but it definitely
was more coloured than spl...prob cause its an audiophile amp and not for studio. Anyway, yeah the lehmann broke and I decided to replace it 
from Thomann with an SPL Auditor. Not immediately but after a few weeks I started to feel the transparency of the SPL was exposing a new
harsh sound from the Dacmagic. It really bugged me in the end so I got the MDAC. Which really improved everything! Esp vocals and drums man! Stuff like Talk Talk or Laurie Anderson ... drum and bass etc is very well presented by MDAC. As for slower stuff I mostly listen to, I dont know. Maybe it's the 650s Im using. My whole system really comes alive with more lively electro tunes. So def drums and vocals the MDAC 
excels in my view..it was the first dif i noticed from DAcmagic. 
 
I also found getting a furutech usb cable boosted the solidity and soundstage of MDAC..and adding upgrade cable to 650s really solved 
a large part of their distortion at high freqs when at higher vols. 
 
go gear! It does make a big difference! 

 

[feifan]

The MDAC sounds good. Drums and bass guitars are a tough test for equipment. If it can't cover the speed, depth, and breadth of a single bass stroke, keeping it tight, articulated, and punchy, it's obvious to everyone's ears. The 650s are harder to sync than most, but an upgrade cable helps. I use the cardas. My guess is that the veil is inversely proportional to clean power. For example, in balanced lineups, it disappears. In SE, it's touch and go. I like it as a reference because everyone seems to be familiar with it, for good or bad. I'll have to look into furutech usb cables.

 

[dukeskd]

I have to disagree with Acix's comment. For a few months before purchasing my Mytek 192 DAC, I was using the cEntrance DACMini as my primary DAC. The difference between the two in A/B analysis is enormous. You will clearly see why the Mytek is priced at twice the value of the DACMini, and the sound reinforces this statement. I always rely on my DAC for my professional part in music, which is mastering and mixing, especially since everything is computerized and a USB is all you need to connect to a DAC. When critically listening and doing comparisons the differences will come out easily with the Phonitor than any other amplifier I have tried (please do not use tube amps when doing critical comparisons, they will color the sound with dependence on tubes).

 

[Acix]

Quote:

Daniel, 800s and Cello -- yes! The 800s' dynamics are the best I've heard.

 Acix's comment ("The SPL amps will give you this impression that you have the best setup/DAC out there...and this because of the transparency level of those amps.") has me wondering if my amps are hiding any DAC flaws.

Acix, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the various DACs you mention, especially the Apogee and Weiss.
 
dukeskd, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the Mytek 192.
 
Daniel, I'm interested in hearing your impressions of the Audiolab MDAC.

 
 
The other way around... I clearly said, "With the Phonitor transparency level you'll be able to notice the differences between the DAC's right away"

  About the Weiss, this DAC I want to try on my first occasion.
 
I had the chance to A/B the Amara and the Berkeley on the WES with the Stax 4070 At the NorCal meet in 09. The Berkeley was more natural organic sound, and the Amara was more open in the treble, and tight and sharp all over the sound spectrum, both DAC's had great details just in a different sound presentation. During my session with both DAC's I had some grainy noise sound, I think it was coming from the WES amp. I also got feel that the WES smash the Amara vast dynamic range...and I ended up very disappointed with the WES experience. I'm sure today that this session can be done into much better experience with the Phonitor.
 
I've found a photo of this session,
 

 
For studio use, I'll prefer the the Ayre DAC and the Apogee Mini DAC. The Ayre DAC is raw and natural, open and very transparent sound. Right after come the Apogee mini DAC with a bit more analytic approach to the sound, and yet not as raw and balanced as the Ayre sound. The V800 will be the last one for me to use in the studio, is a good tight sound DAC, but for me is a bit to much treble energy and roll off bass compare to the Apogee DAC. 

 

[Acix]

Quote:

 
Do you mean by A/B two or more DACs that you run from your pc/macbook to apogee then from that to violectric then to the SPL? 
Another Q btw as you said you are a mastering engineer...is piano known to cause problems on higher notes for distortion? When i tried some phillip glass with the HD800s and my setup the 
resonance from accumulated notes (as glass does play fast!) was still there though MUCH less than with HD650s. As the notes build up in cresendos i just notice a lot of distortion (if that is 
the right term) ... when piano is slow its all crisp. Do you reckon this is my DAC getting overwhelmed or that the recording could be at fault? 
 
Def let me know what you think of the zodiac when you try it..i know it has an amp in it but i know nothing about its quality. Btw there is talk about the MDAC getting a PSU upgrade. I 
have chatted with mates about what advantages this could bring... is it to better store and regulate the quality of electricity going into the dac chip so it keeps it running at 100% effeciency
rather than having it fall prey to slight mains fluctuations? 
 
Cheers! P.S I read the computeraudiophile.com review of the Berkeley USB converter and the Alpha DAC today. Gawp! 

 
 
You can run a few USB devices simultaneously, you'll just need to change the drivers on the control panel.
 
The distortion on the Phillip Glass higher notes piano can be from the recording at my first guess. I'm not sure if you DAC have a gain function, but if there is a gain should be as close as possible to the 0 db's.

 

[daniel_hokkaido]

ah thanks for that. Yeah I wasn't sure if its my tech or the recording. 

 

[Zombie_X]

Hi,
 
I've changing DAC's altered my Auditors signature quite a bit. The DAC25.2 sounded warm (even though the XLR output) and was not super detailed. The V800 is much more detailed and very neutral. It was like opening a foggy glassed window.
 
And yes tube amps will color the sound a lot. It would also say don't use them for anything critical or analytical.
 
Quote:

I have to disagree with Acix's comment. For a few months before purchasing my Mytek 192 DAC, I was using the cEntrance DACMini as my primary DAC. The difference between the two in A/B analysis is enormous. You will clearly see why the Mytek is priced at twice the value of the DACMini, and the sound reinforces this statement. I always rely on my DAC for my professional part in music, which is mastering and mixing, especially since everything is computerized and a USB is all you need to connect to a DAC. When critically listening and doing comparisons the differences will come out easily with the Phonitor than any other amplifier I have tried (please do not use tube amps when doing critical comparisons, they will color the sound with dependence on tubes).

 

[feifan]

dukeskd, thanks for the heads up on the Mytek 192 DAC. You're right. "A/B analysis" is probably the best test. But it takes time and effort to set up, and there always seems to be variables that we can't control. It's funny, though, how time always seems to improve SQ. Some swear it's burn-in, but you have to wonder if it's the equipment or the ears that are burning in -- or both.
 
I just received a press release re PS Audio's NuWave DAC. It's billed as the successor to the DL3 so I'm definitely interested. But the field's crowded so I'm not rushing into it just yet.
 

 

[dukeskd]

Quote:

dukeskd, thanks for the heads up on the Mytek 192 DAC. You're right. "A/B analysis" is probably the best test. But it takes time and effort to set up, and there always seems to be variables that we can't control. It's funny, though, how time always seems to improve SQ. Some swear it's burn-in, but you have to wonder if it's the equipment or the ears that are burning in -- or both.
 
I just received a press release re PS Audio's NuWave DAC. It's billed as the successor to the DL3 so I'm definitely interested. But the field's crowded so I'm not rushing into it just yet.
 

Yes feifan, the field is definitely crowded. The best thing is to trial the different DACs at shops but that is another hard thing to do especially when you'll need to bring your personal inventory along, not forgetting the fact that a shop is usually very distracting when performing analysis.

 

[feifan]

Acix, thanks for the clarification. It's good to hear your confirmation of the Ayre DAC. I've never heard it described as "raw" before. I usually hear "refined." A lot of different variables could probably account for this difference. I've had my eye on the QB-9 for quite a while and the QA-9 even moreso. But a lot of new options at lower prices are popping up.
 

 

[feifan]

Zombie_X, nice description: "The V800 is much more detailed and very neutral. It was like opening a foggy glassed window." I've always been impressed with the V800's killer looks. Good to hear it has qualities I favor. My concern was the USB input, which maxes at 24/96? Granted, 24/192 may be overkill, but it's fast becoming a standard.

 

[Acix]

Quote:

Acix, thanks for the clarification. It's good to hear your confirmation of the Ayre DAC. I've never heard it described as "raw" before. I usually hear "refined." A lot of different variables could probably account for this difference. I've had my eye on the QB-9 for quite a while and the QA-9 even moreso. But a lot of new options at lower prices are popping up.
 

 
Is depending on what music are you listening, with classical music this can be the case, For me the "raw" description coming from Ayre DAC ability to be so much transparent that I can hear the raw sound that hiding behind the fx's in my electronic music... "refined" I can call the Apogee sound house. Both DAC's are the most transparent ones in my experience. I'll be glad to hear your experience, or anyone else here about the most transparent DAC via the Phonitor.

 

[daniel_hokkaido]

when are you set to try the antelope? 

 

[Acix]

Quote:

when are you set to try the antelope? 

 
I need to check with my contact @ Antelope if there is any demo unite with the Voltikus PSU available in Israel.