Thoughts on Benchmark DAC1

[earjam]

I have been listening to the dac1 with a mcalister pl-10 amp now for about a month. The amp has tremendous soundstage and transparent airy treble with wonderful definition. The combination is great compared to the headphone out on the dac1. The senn hd650 were transformed into a new pair of headphones with this combination. My sa-5000 improved a lot compared to headphone out on the dac1, but nothing like the improvement of the 650s. I will give it more time to burn in and maybe review the pl-10 at some future date.

 

[chrisfromalbany]

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodcans I love my dac1, especially my EA modded box with my Singlepower tube amp. I think the combo of dac1+tubes really works well, as per Jashugan's post. As far as other dacs go, I have heard good things about the ack 2.0, I can't wait to listen to one in person.

ok i am done searching at the moment. I seen this mod before. What is it exactly?

 

[woodcans]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisfromalbany ok i am done searching at the moment. I seen this mod before. What is it exactly?

You can read about the mods on the EA website, www.empiricalaudio.com.

You can read my impressions and see comparison pics in this thread:

dac1 comparison

Pics on page 4, impressions page 3.

WC

 

[chrisfromalbany]

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodcans You can read about the mods on the EA website, www.empiricalaudio.com. You can read my impressions and see comparison pics in this thread: dac1 comparison Pics on page 4, impressions page 3. WC

why did I think this mod was cheap.. stupid me.. lol..

 

[elmoe]

Yeah, I was interested in that mod too (if I get it we have a very alike setup woodcans) but I think that for the price, I'd rather invest 1800 (800 being the price at which I can resell my DAC-1) into a better DAC.

 

[Captain]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jashugan Yeah, I was interested in that mod too (if I get it we have a very alike setup woodcans) but I think that for the price, I'd rather invest 1800 (800 being the price at which I can resell my DAC-1) into a better DAC.

What do you think of the DAC-1 in a speaker set up? I think the quality of the DAC-1 shine's through a lot more with speakers. The improvements over the EMU 1212 were a lot more obvious when compared on speakers as opposed to headphones.

 

[elmoe]

I say it depends. Personally, I think the DAC-1 really shines with speakers for sure, the mids are very dynamic and the highs sharp, while that can be painful with headphones, with speakers its much more pleasant. However some headphones, if you pair them with the right amp, can really synergize well with the DAC-1. For example in my current rig (sig) the SR325i doesn't sound all that good out of the singlepower MPX3, which is why I've kept a Grado RA-1 amp for them, but the SA5ks sound amazing out of the singlepower, which smoothes out whatever you could find in excess (such as analytical sound, heavy treble, very cold music) and brings out the qualities of the DAC. It all depends on synergy.

That said you're probably asking this thinking of using the DAC-1 as a preamp, in which case indeed, the speaker setup would sound much nicer. I've used the DAC-1 as a preamp for many months before I had the MPX3, and I must admit that I enjoyed speakers alot more back then. My Dynaudios really sang, very crisp and dynamic, really awesome for rock.

 

[Welly Wu]

May I butt in here?

I am highly interested in acquiring a Benchmark Media Systems DAC1, but I am not sure if it is going to work in my reference system. I have a ModWright LLC Pioneer Elite DV-59AVi which has an unbalanced Cardas RCA coaxial out jack that is directly connected to the Pioneer transport. If I connect a Blue Jeans Cable digital coaxial cable (which I have to buy) from the Modwright Pioneer to the back of the DAC1, then will I be able to still play Red Book CDs, HDCDs, XRCDs, DVD-Audio (192kHz/24bit two channel) and SA-CDs (2.882MHz/1bit DSD) through the headphone jacks? Next, I plan to buy a Polk Audio XRt12 Reference Tuner so I can subscribe to XM Satellite Radio. Polk Audio recommends the DAC1 with its XRt12. If I use the supplied TOSLink cable and hook it up between the XRt12 and DAC1, then will I be able to hear it through the other headphone jack as well? How can I switch between source components with the DAC1?

I'm thinking that the answers are yes, but I sent an e-mail message to Dan Wright of ModWright LLC to make sure. I still don't know how I can switch between sources and listen. My last question is how good is the headphone amplifier jack? I am talking in reference to say a Ray Samuels Emmeline HR-2 dedicated headphone amplifier. My reasoning is such that the DAC1 + Ue-10 PRO = absolute neutrality and precision. That is a good thing for me. But, I'm not sure if this will all work out ok.

Lastly, I have to buy another 12' unbalanced stereo RCA pair of Blue Jeans Cables so I can hook up the XRt12 to my SONY KV-20FS120 TV. Oh boy, it's all very complex now.

I have two advertisements over in the For Sale/Trade forum. If anyone here want a mint condition Ray Samuels Emmeline HR-2 with OPA627, AD797, and LT1028 op-amps plus a Cardas Neutral Reference 0.5 meter IC with the genuine Cardas documentation, then please e-mail me or send me a PM.

Do you think that I am offering a very good and fair trade if someone were to take me up on my offer?

 

[jpelg]

The Benchmark has three digital inputs:

1. Optical TOSlink
2. Coax (BNC w/RCA style adapter included)
3. XLR

You can switch between them via a 3-position switch on the front panel. Like a digital pre-amp, of sorts.

These will take a PCM feed from any compatible source. This definitely includes your redbook, & HDCD's. Whether your player outputs DVD-A signal digitally, I don't know for sure. Some players don't at all. Some players don't output above 96khz thru their optical-out, but will output up to the full 192K thru their coax-out. Not sure about your player. YMMV. But if your player outputs the signal, the DAC1 should be able to sync up with it.

Forget about SACD. There are very few transports that will output SACD digitally, and I don't think your player is among them (if so, I will stand corrected). Regardless, the Benchmark will not accept/decode it anyway.

I found the headphone-out quite powerful. In fact, direct comparisons with a RS HR-2 found the HR-2 lacking in power. The Benchmark can power AKG K1000's, and the K340's (400ohm!) quite nicely. The HR-2 cannot do either. You may prefer one sonic signature over the other, though. This is personal, so again, YMMV.

While the person who indicated the going used prices of each device in your WTB ad was threadcrapping (and was deleted), he was correct. A used Benchmark sells for a few hundred more than a used HR-2 these days.

Hope that helps a little. As always, IMNSHO

 

[Welly Wu]

Oh crap...no SA-CD!!!

Since you are a moderator, can you please delete my two for trade advertisements in the amplification and source components sub-forums now?

I knew there was a good reason why I don't already have the DAC1!!!

This means that I can not get the Polk Audio XRt12. I have to go with the TAO XM2go with the ClipXT. It's significantly less expensive too especially with the $50 USD mail-in rebate and the $70 mail-in rebate for a free home or vehicle adaptor kit.

Yeah, so, the DAC1 is not the right one for me. I kind of was thinking that the two digital coaxial outputs only handle PCM, not DSD. Crap.

Thanks for the bad news. It would have been kind of bad if I couldn't listen to SA-CDs no more.

 

[Captain]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jashugan That said you're probably asking this thinking of using the DAC-1 as a preamp, in which case indeed, the speaker setup would sound much nicer. I've used the DAC-1 as a preamp for many months before I had the MPX3, and I must admit that I enjoyed speakers alot more back then. My Dynaudios really sang, very crisp and dynamic, really awesome for rock.

I have been using a speaker set up for a while now with a 300B tube amp. I only use head phones on very rare occasions now. I think I would find it hard to go back to headphones full time, as I now have the speaker and tube bug. As said early I do feel this gets the most out of the DAC-1.

 

[elmoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Captain I have been using a speaker set up for a while now with a 300B tube amp. I only use head phones on very rare occasions now. I think I would find it hard to go back to headphones full time, as I now have the speaker and tube bug. As said early I do feel this gets the most out of the DAC-1.

Indeed, but try a tube headphone amp, a singlepower did wonders for me and my sa5k

I enjoy headphones alot now, its a very different way to listen to music, speakers are for jamming, headphones for intimacy, both good at what they do

 

[lan]

My impressions of DAC1 is that I don't like it. Ultimately it's presentation is not balanced for me.

The good
Above average dynamics (8/10)
Above average detail (7.5/10)

These give an impressionably initial wow factor.

The bad
Recessed midrange
Hazy treble (at least for my standards)

The ugly
Sounds unnatural.
Seems to have a hole in the middle of the sound especially with onboard amp. Coupled with the recessed midrange, this is a deal breaker for me.

I have never liked this DAC at meets but I acquired one anyway so I can judge it in my own system. Modification did help it somewhat.

 

[woodcans]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jashugan Yeah, I was interested in that mod too (if I get it we have a very alike setup woodcans) but I think that for the price, I'd rather invest 1800 (800 being the price at which I can resell my DAC-1) into a better DAC.

I am looking forward to the chance to compare my modded DAC1 to a dac of similar or higher price. I just haven't had the opportunity to do that yet.

 

[elmoe]

Well, when you know that for the price of the DAC-1+mods you can get a DAC such as: Chord DAC64 or an Audiologic 34 Dsm , which are certainly very good DACs (haven't heard either of them though), I think I'd rather try one of them out instead