[complin]

Thats a least half new price?
Quote:

I see a used Skylla II for 4K, which is a really good price for it.  If I was going tube route that's where I'd go.

 

[Radio_head]

It's half the new price (at least in the US), but in 9/10 condition, with an extra 1K+ in mods (done by ayon US) and tubes.

 

[MorbidToaster]

Skylla is 8.5 new.

Any direct experience with Raysonic vs Ayon? My dealer likes both but said Ray is a really good dude. The CD 228 (his top end) looks like a great package for the price. Even the 128S looks nice and has ins.

 

[johnwmclean]

Quote:

The 851C hasn't been out a year. Unless you got a prerelease unit around this time last year and just got rid of it.
In my system the synergy with the Ayon seemed great. I'll get to hear the PWD soon in my home and see how I like that, but Ayon has a really nice offering around 4k with lots of options the looks nice. Also considering a used K-07.

 
Correction the 840c is the unit I had.

 

[complin]

What sort of mods do they offer? The brand does not have much visibility in the UK.
 
Seems similar to the Audio Note DAC range manufactured in the UK
 
Quote:

It's half the new price (at least in the US), but in 9/10 condition, with an extra 1K+ in mods (done by ayon US) and tubes.

 

[spritzer]

Wasn't it Raysonic that was the center of a scandal last month?  Products filled with the cheapest parts for years and then the CEO took off with all the money they had. 
 
Quote:

 

Spoiler: Warning%3A%20Don't%20remember%20context

 
I can't answer most of this, but I can make some huge over generalizations about tubes in DACs. And, that is, while I like tubes, and consider them to generally be the best active way to produce voltage gain, there isn't much place for them in most DACs outside of marketing, at least those using current out chips. The reason is that a current out DAC chip works best into a low impedance.  That means either an opamp or the source/emitter/cathode of an active device.  The input impedance for one of these devices is ~1/Gm.  With a BJT or a FET, this is easily under an ohm.  However, even a super duper high Gm tube, like a 7788, is still orders of magnitude higher. And, those are rare and unlikely to be seen in a commercial device.  The highest Gm tube you are likely to see in commercial gear is a 6922, and it has an input Z around 80 ohms which is too high. Moreover, most higher end DAC chips run a pretty high current out, so you'd need to really push a tube like the 6922 to carry that sort of current.

Secondly, there is also often a buffer stage, but again, sand devices just work better here.  A cathode follower really offers no benefit over a source/emitter follower sound wise and has worse drive ability.  And, it costs a lot more to make. And it is likely noisier.
 
 

 
Couldn't agree more and this ties in with the whole bad practice of trying to run tubes at low voltage which they really don't like.  The only tube sources I've liked are the APL models which run them at high voltage and transformer couple the output. 

 

[MorbidToaster]

Again, in the early stages of research. Still a lot more to hear and more money to obtain before anything goes down. Also looking at a used Cantana since they can be had for around my cap budget wise. 
 
Turntable comes first though. Next week. 

 

[vinyllp33]

Quote:

 
Turntable comes first though. Next week. 

 
Vinyl + SR009 =  

 

[mill999red]

1+

Vinyl + Tubes + SR-009 =

 

[edstrelow]

You may find that you can tweak sound quality with  contact enhancers.
 
I have used various contact cleaners and enhancers on plugs and sockets  such as Progold (which I think is now called Deoxit Gold) and Mapleshade's Silclear paste ( silver-based product).  These will give a slight signal boost,  last night I put dabs of each on a probe on an old analog multimeter and with the scale set to measure up to 20 ohms, each showed  about a 1 1/2 ohm decrease.  This pretty much agrees with my listening experience and the  fact that you can use them on the tips of old batteries to get a another lease of life.  However these 2 contact enhancers  seem to affect frequencies differently.  Progold seems to enhance treble whereas  Silclear gives a bass boost. I see that at least one other reviewer has noted the bass effect of Silclear too http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/frr.pl?raccs&1077564712&&&/Mapleshade-Silclear and the several follow-ups seems generally positive.  Some suggest that Silclear should not be used in hot locations, such as under tubes, and some suggest it needs removal and renewal after a time for continued good results.
 
I generally start by cleaning contacts with regular Deoxit and then applying a very thin film of Silclear and then maybe  some Progold. With most critical components I redo the cleaning and reapplication every year or so.Silclear would seem the obvious choice for the 009, upping the bass and possibly reducing treble although if you use both you can play with the sound a bit.
 
It can't be overstressed that you use only small amounts of each,  Progold can run and excess Silclear will be scrapped off when plugs are re-inserted.

 

[rsbrsvp]

If you are using a Mac Mini as your server try "Pure Music" as your source instead of "i tunes", "Fidelia", or " Amarra".
 
"Pure Music" to my ears is by far the least bright and easiest on the ears of four mentioned above and the most musical while still revealing fantastic detail.
 
For computer based audio using the SR-009, "Pure Music" is a must.  It makes a big difference in ear fatigue.

 

[johnwmclean]

iTunes is bit perfect and free.
Pure music is bit perfect and expensive.

 

[hpz]

I have tried stock itunes against bitperfect and amarra and have found the latter two to sound noticeably better than the stock itunes. Instrument separation we clearer and the slight harshness in the treble goes away.


Between bitperfect and amarra I couldn't find too much to differentiate between the two. For the money bitperfect is the obvious choice. (I paid for bitperfect, while amarra was free with the Weiss dac202)

 

[anetode]

I prefer to stick to all natural homeopathic cures for treble.

 

[vinyllp33]

Quote:

If you are using a Mac Mini as your server try "Pure Music" as your source instead of "i tunes", "Fidelia", or " Amarra".
 
"Pure Music" to my ears is by far the least bright and easiest on the ears of four mentioned above and the most musical while still revealing fantastic detail.
 
For computer based audio using the SR-009, "Pure Music" is a must.  It makes a big difference in ear fatigue.

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