[dviswa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jholtz /img/forum/go_quote.gif I must admit, the Zapfilter install has turned the Zhaolu into the most detailed DAC or CD player I've ever heard. It's phenominal. It does have the downside however.

This is something that has been on my mind for some time now. I have a lot CDs from 60s,70s,80s recordings, which are not the best engineered CDs. I am afraid I may have to loose all of them if I upgraded my Zhaoulu any further.

Technically the differences between Oritek modded and Zap filter modded Zhaolu seems to be in inches from what I have read here and not in miles or even feet. The question to you guys who have heard both, is between Oritek modded and the Zap filter modded ones, which is more forgiving? This might make me decide which way to go.

Thanks,
Dinesh

 

[C37]

I have just finished installing my zapfilter last night (AD chip) . The sound is very, very classy, open, detailed,focused.
I will not repeat all the rave that's been said before, but one thing that i've noticed is that listening fatigue is very low with this component. Excitement is not. Listening to pink floyd's "the wall" made me think: wait a minute! I know this sound... it reminds me of something... it sounds like ...analogue, like it used to play on my Rega planar 3 and denon DL103, more than twenty years ago, only much better!

A big thanks to all the posters in this forum.

 

[C37]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dviswa /img/forum/go_quote.gif This is something that has been on my mind for some time now. I have a lot CDs from 60s,70s,80s recordings, which are not the best engineered CDs. I am afraid I may have to loose all of them if I upgraded my Zhaoulu any further.

Dinesh, Ok, a bad recording is a bad recording, but in fact, nobody mentioned that the opposite could also happen: by further upgrading, you might find out
that you rediscover some of the "bad" recordings which where just begging for better equipment

I had several times the case, the most extreme being a Clash live recording which i initially thought was taped illegally by amateurs...now it rocks!

Maybe check the synergy with the rest of your system...

 

[dviswa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by C37 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Dinesh, Ok, a bad recording is a bad recording, but in fact, nobody mentioned that the opposite could also happen: by further upgrading, you might find out that you rediscover some of the "bad" recordings which where just begging for better equipment I had several times the case, the most extreme being a Clash live recording which i initially thought was taped illegally by amateurs...now it rocks! Maybe check the synergy with the rest of your system...

Bad recordings begging for better equipment. That is a very interesting point.
Surely, I want to make my system less fatiguing. Not that it induces much right now, but still...

So the answer might just be, Shut up and upgrade!

I was hoping Ori would chime in too, on the part of being forgiving. Some of the high end equipment in the market gets labelled as "Unforgiving" because they make every blemish, wart, what have you, show up in your face, so to say. That is the fear.

I have a couple of amp projects already in the pipeline ahead of the Mod anyway.

 

[Ori]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dviswa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Bad recordings begging for better equipment. That is a very interesting point. Surely, I want to make my system less fatiguing. Not that it induces much right now, but still...

Since my name came up... My thoughts on transparency are very simple. It might reveal all the ugly side of the recording, but only in very rare cases did it make them sound worse. I sometimes can clearly tell steps in the mix yet find the overall musical presentation more engaging with the more revealing equipment.
In some sense, this touches on the individual's taste. I marvel accuracy and lust for "natural" harmonic detail, as long as it's not exxagerated to the point of being ridiculous. There is some ideal balance between musicality and accuracy. None can make music by itself - it takes both for me.
Other people may like their music differently. I've listened today to a very nice system. At the price, it should not only sound good but serve coffee too... The sound from the source (which includes a $17K CD transport) was lifeless, lacking any detail that would make it half believable. I sure was glad to switch to the vinyl rig on that system. It was like a fresh ocean breeze for me!
Yet, I'm certain that some people love the sound of digital through that system. It's a very subjective issue and not one that's worth a lengthy discussion... But personally I'm still convinced, that a more revealing source in that same system would still be more enjoyable in the long run. How much sugar-coated candy can you eat before you get sick to your stomach?

 

[dviswa]

Ori,

Thanks for making you design philosophy clear.

The balance between accuracy and musicality is the key. Unfortunately a very elusive one, and quite subjective too. Changes from person to person, and the types of music.

Sadly without a lot of costly experimentation one cannot determine what might be ones own sweet spot. I guess, that is good for the industry, creates a lot of churn by way of people buying and selling stuff looking for that elusive (perhaps mythical) sweet spot.

Regards,
Dinesh

 

[zsevgymko]

Noob's question - I'm ready to pull the trigger on Zhaolu D2.5A with the DC block caps bypassed by Eddie Wu, but would like to replace in the future the stock opamps with LM4562s, does that require soldering ? I think I've read somewhere in this thread that soldering is not needed, but I want to be sure

 

[d-cee]

Quote:

Originally Posted by zsevgymko /img/forum/go_quote.gif Noob's question - I'm ready to pull the trigger on Zhaolu D2.5A with the DC block caps bypassed by Eddie Wu, but would like to replace in the future the stock opamps with LM4562s, does that require soldering ? I think I've read somewhere in this thread that soldering is not needed, but I want to be sure

no, thankfully they use DIP-8 sockets where the opamps are so you can remove the existing opamp and "roll" in new ones relatively quickly and easily

 

[zsevgymko]

Thanks, d-cee

 

[Cata1yst]

Ok i just ordered my zhaolu so im going to do a bit of op amp rolling, what im looking for is clean, deep, bass, with maybe a little extension on highs so what ive come up with is these opamps...

DY2000>LT1057>OPA2107

and is the CS4938 a DAC chip or is it an op amp...google hasnt told me anything

lastly is the headphone op amp also dual channel? is there any data that i should keep an eye on when im looking for a replacement?

pardon the n00bie questions

 

[westies]

Quick question from a noob here. I'm doing the caps bypass mod right now, but before I try it out, is there anything I should be checking for with a multimeter? Also, it's fine to just leave the caps in and bridge them with a wire from underneath, right? Didn't want to remove the caps if I didn't have to.

 

[dviswa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cata1yst /img/forum/go_quote.gif Ok i just ordered my zhaolu so im going to do a bit of op amp rolling, what im looking for is clean, deep, bass, with maybe a little extension on highs so what ive come up with is these opamps... DY2000>LT1057>OPA2107 and is the CS4938 a DAC chip or is it an op amp...google hasnt told me anything lastly is the headphone op amp also dual channel? is there any data that i should keep an eye on when im looking for a replacement? pardon the n00bie questions

The CS chip is the DAC. The opamps used are dual channel on the output / low pass filter section. I do not know if the headphone section is dual.

 

[dviswa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by westies /img/forum/go_quote.gif Quick question from a noob here. I'm doing the caps bypass mod right now, but before I try it out, is there anything I should be checking for with a multimeter? Also, it's fine to just leave the caps in and bridge them with a wire from underneath, right? Didn't want to remove the caps if I didn't have to.

You might want to measure the DC voltage at the opamp outputs with no signal, just to make sure it is in a few millivolt range. Not a must, optional. Bridging will do, no need to remove the cap.

 

[C37]

A dirt cheap tweak you might want to try ( we're talking peanuts money here and if you don't like it, it's very easely retrofittable) is to put some self adhesive felt pads on top of the caps- it tidies up the sound noticeably.YMMV. See what i mean on the right of the 2.5

 

[Gautama]

Whats the reasoning behind that?

Seems like a Patrick82 mod...