[elbuzzard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Currawong /img/forum/go_quote.gif if we rate an iPod at 5 and my Northstar at 100, the Nakamichi Dragon DAC gets 120, the Lavry DA-10 and Benchmark DAC 1 come in at 95, the Zero DAC (stock) would be about 60 and the Compass would be an 80.

where would the Apogee duet fit in this scale? i found another post of yours where you state that the duet is %95 of the Lavery and the Compass was %90 of the Northstar. Could you please compare the Duet and the Compass to the same DAC? preferably the Lavery which I have heard. Thanks in advance. Ive been reading up on this product and finally pulled the trigger(make room on the bandwagon folks). It was a hard call between the C2C and the Compass since i already have a duet(that I will be keeping for the ADC capabilities) as a nice source. But in the end i decided that the Compass was more useful due to its connectivity to other digital components like my PC laptop, TVs, and CD player.
Should I be expecting tracking numbers via email?

 

[Currawong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by elbuzzard /img/forum/go_quote.gif where would the Apogee duet fit in this scale? i found another post of yours where you state that the duet is %95 of the Lavery and the Compass was %90 of the Northstar. Could you please compare the Duet and the Compass to the same DAC? preferably the Lavery which I have heard. Thanks in advance. Ive been reading up on this product and finally pulled the trigger(make room on the bandwagon folks). It was a hard call between the C2C and the Compass since i already have a duet(that I will be keeping for the ADC capabilities) as a nice source. But in the end i decided that the Compass was more useful due to its connectivity to other digital components like my PC laptop, TVs, and CD player. Should I be expecting tracking numbers via email?

The Duet, with stock cable, had about 95% of the detail of my Lavry. Both are more cold/analytical-sounding. The Northstar is somewhat different, being more detailed than the Lavry, but much softer sounding, especially with a stock power cable. The Compass' DAC with the Sun HDAM has a sound that is closer to the Northstar IMO, so it can seem to be much closer in ability, and the Benchmark 1 can seem to sound better, because it's brighter. So it's not so clear-cut, as different DACs can give quite different impressions when used or compared with different gear.

 

[haloxt]

The giant pdf Horse linked just said the earth and moon were not advisable for "low-distortion" applications. It makes no comment on how good it osunds. I think the distortion was deliberate because even-order harmonic distortions sound good.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Order this, or order some 1 TB hd's I've been wanting for a few months.....

Being a college student sucks

lol

 

[Currawong]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DoYouRight /img/forum/go_quote.gif MY QUESTION IS! Why wouldn't he buy in a Wolfson 8740 when it cost's $8 and isn't it better? Than some older AD chip? How hard would it be to pop in the best dac chip you can buy? For a meager $20 tops? Thanks

I was just thinking of this the other day, so I asked Kingwa about it and he had a look at their tech specs. The noise floor is around -80dB in the 8740, but in the AD1852 is below -120dB, and even below 140dB in some cases (see the graphs in their spec sheets). That's 30x higher distortion in the WM8740 than in the AD1852. Kingwa reckons that the 8740 will be audibly inferior as a result.

 

[sulcata_geo]

My Compass was already over 1,000hrs burn-in.
Setup of my Compass is HDAM Sun V2 without earth wire + bright setting.
Main headphone is ATH-W5000.

The sound of Sun V2 without earth wire is more detailed and more airy than Sun V2 with earth wire or HDAM Earth. The treble is not horrible for my ear.

I've compared Compass DAC>Compass amp and Compass DAC>PS Audio GCHA.
GCHA is slightly more detailed. But the difference is not so big.


For me , Compass is good DAC/Headphone amp combo.

 

[ecclesand]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sulcata_geo /img/forum/go_quote.gif My Compass was already over 1,000hrs burn-in. Setup of my Compass is HDAM Sun V2 without earth wire + bright setting. Main headphone is ATH-W5000. The sound of Sun V2 without earth wire is more detailed and more airy than Sun V2 with earth wire or HDAM Earth. The treble is not horrible for my ear. I've compared Compass DAC>Compass amp and Compass DAC>PS Audio GCHA. GCHA is slightly more detailed. But the difference is not so big. For me , Compass is good DAC/Headphone amp combo.

Thanks for the info on the Sun HDAM...very helpful!

 

[Nidhogg22]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rayk /img/forum/go_quote.gif Quick question, how long is the USB cable that comes with the compass?

About 8ft I would say.

 

[sandchak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ecclesand /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thanks for the info on the Sun HDAM...very helpful!

Actually if I am not mistaken, the Sun can be made to sound brighter or softer by changing the Caps, don't know the specifics but you can ask Kingwa..

I just went through Audio GD website, I think the SUN V2 uses Evox caps which produces softer sound than WIMA caps.. :

Quote:

If one only needs to change sound character , the use of 0.01 UF would be OK . But we recommend the use 0.1 UF to 1 UF , in this way we can easily hear the improvements in SQ . Not any capacitors can be used for Cap-Mod . Different capacitors will produce different sounds , so the capacitors need to be chosen keeping in mind personal preference . For example: WIMA can make it fast , dynamic and clear SQ . but if you want the sound to be warm and thick (textured) , don't use WIMA , in this case, oil- cap will be a better choice .

 

[MadMan007]

So I've placed my order. Are there any major shortcomings to the Compass? The only thing that looks like it is the reports of hum that I've seen in a few posts, did we figure out what that's from?

 

[punk_guy182]

yeah I have a low hum with the preamp output and it is pissing me off. i also notice some distortion when I turn the volume knob in preamp mode.

 

[haloxt]

That distortion from turning the volume knob is normal. Try turning while listening to pink noise or something like that and you will hear extra noise from turning the knob. I hope the hum you are talking about is nothing major, just how loud is it?

 

[MadMan007]

Quote:

Originally Posted by punk_guy182 /img/forum/go_quote.gif yeah I have a low hum with the preamp output and it is pissing me off. i also notice some distortion when I turn the volume knob in preamp mode.

I've searched the thread and it seems like a few of the reports (not sure by who, maybe you?) were using the preamp out in to powered speakers which is a no-no imo. How are you using yours exactly?

There's actually only a few reports so I'm not very concerned but it seems to be the only major shortcoming I can find.

 

[Canuck57]

There's no hum when I use the pre-amp (connected to powered Monsoon panel computer speakers)...Dead Quiet!

No distortion/noise while turning the volume knob as well.

Others have mentioned that their compass runs quite warm/hot, mine has been continuously on since May 11 (burning it in) and it's only slightly warm when I place my hand on top of it.

Some have questioned if it has enough juice for Senn HD650s. Well a fellow Head-fier & I were listening with 2 pairs of HD650s (Y splitter) and it had NO problem driving both sets of cans!

My compass currently has approx. 430 hours on it and the sound just keeps on getting better!

 

[AudioPhewl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MadMan007 /img/forum/go_quote.gif So I've placed my order. Are there any major shortcomings to the Compass? The only thing that looks like it is the reports of hum that I've seen in a few posts, did we figure out what that's from?

Sadly, yes. And they're the cause of major disappointment to me.

1. 24 hours per day just isn't enough.
2. There is too much music to enjoy.

I wish I'd never ordered mine.

~Phewl.