TOUR: MHDT Labs Stockholm V2 NOS DAC tour! PCM56P-J R2R D/A chips, Bendix 2C51 Tube, 24/192 input
Apr 5, 2016 at 11:16 PM Post #106 of 133
Hahaha I almost lost my tea to the keyboard with the record player on the dash. The red in the car do the paint work justice on the pic, this is the first I've seen that one-off. I thought your avatar photo was a prototype or Photoshop or something.

The Fiat Abarth, turbo and about the size of an mr2. Bet that's a ton of fun!!
 
Apr 6, 2016 at 6:49 AM Post #107 of 133
Definitely. I'd advise everyone that is considering these DACs to look into info on external USB converters. The fact of the matter is, many of these USB inputs on DACs are an afterthought. Every DAC that I've tested has improved with a good USB converter. That is not to say that some DAC (read: Yggy, Pavane, MSB) have excellent USB inputs, but they still are lacking in some way. 

The Mutec 1.2 is probably the best way to go if one is on a budget. Don't jump up to the MC-3+ unless the return policy is good. You may or may not hear the differences, or they might be so subtle to you that the high price just isn't worth it. I'd much rather spend $400 or so on the Mutec 1.2, then to spend $400 more for cables, etc. These differences for me were not subtle and in turn, the Mutec is staying in my system for the foreseeable future.


This was the first DAC where sensitivity to the USB source was an obvious factor (in general I don't use USB for audio). But I was surprised, nonetheless, as to how sensitive to the USB interface this DAC was, so I have to agree with your comments as they apply to the Stockholm 2.

With Yggradsil I found AES/EBU sounded best, then COAX/Toslink (tied) and finally USB. I've only tried Wyrd, Regen and Recovery with Yggys USB input and didn't hear any difference there (YMMV), but that's not to say that something on the level of the Mutec devices wouldn't yield a benefit there.
 
Apr 6, 2016 at 2:33 PM Post #108 of 133
  Good stuff John, I really like the tabbed graphs and how structured it made the review. Also I've never seen anyone list what they're pinpointing on songs like you have with the test tracks, excellent if someone wants to recreate your listen with the focus on particulars. It's tough to just say this song...then this is what it sounded like but mentioning the section allows people to hone in like one usually does with analytical listening.  Also I forget when you told me via PM, were you comparing everything via SE or were some of the sources balanced? Since the HDVD 800 is an all-in-one unit, it was technically running balanced from the FiiO's digi out, correct?

The red Sennheiser rig is something I'm wanting to see in person (once you move back to the PNW)! When it used to be your avatar I didn't think you actually had a red HD800, let alone the matching HDVD dac/amp!! Is it a special edition or you had a hand in the scheme after purchase?

Just an interesting observation so far, the guys that had the DAC for shorter times gave the most in-depth reviews! (Not that I'm expecting in-depth reviews but it's certainly appreciated) I should have limited everyone to 5 days
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!  Also thanks again for being flexible John, the DAC arrived earlier to you from what I mentioned last month and you still got it out early to make sure @JoeDoe got it by Friday to make the Nashville Head-fi meet. Now @RCBinTN will have a chance to at least hear it at the meet since he won't be in town for some time after.



 

 
i think it'll be safe to say, my $.02 will not be so quite "in-depth" !
 
Apr 8, 2016 at 8:43 AM Post #110 of 133
Just updating the tour: DAC has arrived in Florence and everything seems to be good to go. I should be getting some quality time with it this evening and then I'll bring it with me to the Music City Meet tomorrow. 
 
Should be good to compare it to the Rega, WA7, and my recently re-acquired Mojo!
 
Apr 11, 2016 at 9:27 AM Post #112 of 133
Couple of shots from the Music City Meet this weekend. Please excuse the gross lighting - if you check out the meet's impressions thread, everyone was at the mercy of the yellow tint as we were in a community gymnasium!
 

 

 
Apr 11, 2016 at 8:24 PM Post #114 of 133
  Couple of shots from the Music City Meet this weekend. Please excuse the gross lighting - if you check out the meet's impressions thread, everyone was at the mercy of the yellow tint as we were in a community gymnasium!
 

 

Damn, how the H**L did I miss that rig at the meet?
 
Apr 11, 2016 at 11:03 PM Post #116 of 133
Any early impressions from @JoeDoe on the Stockholm 2?
 
Apr 11, 2016 at 11:22 PM Post #117 of 133
  Any early impressions from @JoeDoe on the Stockholm 2?

Initial impressions are good. To these ears, the midrange is a little more forward than what would be considered 'neutral.' That's going from the Mojo.
 
I've also been doing a little A/Bing between the onboard DAC of my WA7tp and feeding the MHDT into the WA7's amp section. So far... can't hear a lick of difference!
 
Apr 12, 2016 at 12:26 AM Post #118 of 133
  Initial impressions are good. To these ears, the midrange is a little more forward than what would be considered 'neutral.' That's going from the Mojo.
 
I've also been doing a little A/Bing between the onboard DAC of my WA7tp and feeding the MHDT into the WA7's amp section. So far... can't hear a lick of difference!


The differences in everyone's gear and how the DAC sounds is all over the board, it's very interesting at the different impressions everyone's giving. Which tube are you using at the moment?
 
Apr 12, 2016 at 12:26 AM Post #119 of 133
I had Cayin's new DAC here for review. A very clean sounding unit. And while I like it a lot and think its a good product it only confirms my new found taste for R2R NOS. That midrange you mention had some depth to it that I didn't notice at first but later on was very easy to tell after some time. I noticed it most with my Trafomatic Head 2
 

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