[errnst]

what soundcards have i heard?    over the last 20 years i have heard a lot, including sound cards integrated onto mother boards,   i do not know the exact brands and model numbers, sorry.   The onboard sound on some of  today's motherboards sounds better to me than soundcards of ten years ago did.  The stock valab beats them all.
 
There are some pretty expensive sound cards out there today that i have never tried.  Nothing about them makes me want to try them either.  But you never know, maybe one of them can beat an offboard dac like the valab.  I just do not know how.   The problem is that no internal sound card can overcome is the interference of the computer power supply.   I also have never seen a NOS sound card.

 

[errnst]

for anyone using linux ubuntu, i suggest getting Ultimate edition, it is ubuntu based, it does sound way way better

 

[Dynobot]

Quote:

for anyone using linux ubuntu, i suggest getting Ultimate edition, it is ubuntu based, it does sound way way better

Ultimate Edition is feature packed which will most likely have numerous processes and interrupts running all the time.  Neither of which is good for audio.  Granted it might be great, like Linux Mint for example but a nice GUI and lots of cool features does not an audio computer make.
 
You want small and light, and very sparse in terms of features, applications and processes.  This way all of your CPU's power will be dedicated for one purpose.....audio playback.

 

[errnst]

compared to regular ubuntu, SE is excellent, way better implementation of pulse audio, 
 
i have heard different things about other processes interfering with sound quality,  i have a gizmo called an ultravox, it isolates the usb signal from the computer power, so that helps
 
 
if anyone knows a version of linux with better sound, i would love to hear about  it

 

[aspenx]

Is the DAC being discussed here the same as this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Valab-NOS-USB-Re-Clock-DAC-Low-Jitter-Dual-1ppm-TCXO-/300458131138?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item45f4b33ec2
 
Will this be the latest basic version (March 2009?) and is vintage_audio_lab the seller I should be approaching?
 
Will also like to know how it fares against the Musiland Monitor 02 US. I also see a optical and coax ports, does that mean the DAC accepts these inputs too? If so, does it only take 16-bit 44.1kHz data and hence will not work with my Musiland?

 

[googleborg]

yeah it accepts coax and optical, i remember that it did accept 96k/24bit when i tried.  Those pics are old though, the latest version is better laid out inside with a small EM filter also, i posted some pics in this thread somewhere around page 65?
 
that's the right seller too, and the dac should be the latest 'simple' one.  Other sellers sell a very similar type of DAC also, with the 8x TDA1543 etc.  the 'lite dac' for example.
 
The entire NOS DAC sound is very...different... to modern digital (like the musiland?)...frankly I thought the valab struggled to match even my onboard realtek's weaker aspects, such as simple vocals, instrument 'clarity', and was flat-out worse in most other regards like dynamics and soundstage, and sounding like mud on the louder songs i play.  It also lost to a sony CDP-791e CD player i got off ebay for £10!  very much a matter of if you like the sound it gives...there's only one way though, and that's to buy/hear the things.  I won't be touching 'NOS DACs' with ancient chips again though.
 
Quote:

Is the DAC being discussed here the same as this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/Valab-NOS-USB-Re-Clock-DAC-Low-Jitter-Dual-1ppm-TCXO-/300458131138?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item45f4b33ec2
 
Will this be the latest basic version (March 2009?) and is vintage_audio_lab the seller I should be approaching?
 
Will also like to know how it fares against the Musiland Monitor 02 US. I also see a optical and coax ports, does that mean the DAC accepts these inputs too? If so, does it only take 16-bit 44.1kHz data and hence will not work with my Musiland?

 

[aspenx]

Quote:

 
The entire NOS DAC sound is very...different... to modern digital (like the musiland?)...frankly I thought the valab struggled to match even my onboard realtek's weaker aspects, such as simple vocals, instrument 'clarity', and was flat-out worse in most other regards like dynamics and soundstage, and sounding like mud on the louder songs i play.  It also lost to a sony CDP-791e CD player i got off ebay for £10!  very much a matter of if you like the sound it gives...there's only one way though, and that's to buy/hear the things.  I won't be touching 'NOS DACs' with ancient chips again though.

 

Thanks for the rundown.
 
I got interested with the NOS idea because I'm feeling that my DAC is a little harsh and the soundstage not being very good (it's excellent in other aspects though).
 
I've read other senior head-fi'ers slamming the TDA series chips but "sounding like mud on the louder songs" really puts me off. Sadly, a good half of the music I listen to is "loud". I think I'll save the ~$200 and the headache of trying to adjust to a sound that I'm not used too. I'm looking forward to the LT1028s I got from the seller for my headamp though.
 

 

[googleborg]

What attracted me was also the spiel about it being analogue like, indeed less 'harsh' as my onboard can be shrill and screechy at times, made worse by the fact the bass is not so good, and honestly i expected a huge increase in sound quality from the Valab over my onboard going though 20ft of very cheap cable into my amp, but i definitely never got that.  It was quite 'hard' coming to terms with this fancy little box i had bought with it's fancy ebay page full of technical babble listing components etc, being unable to better something stuck on my motherboard that cost peanuts - if i simply wanted my music to sound all soft i'd use an EQ setting in foobar or something.
 
An 'example' of the mud i described; I was listening to Placebo (the rock band ;P), and the valab and onboard were pretty equal on simpler passages with just some vocals or drums or distorted guitars, but when the volume ramped up and things got loud, the valab just seemed to 'muddle' it all up somewhat more than the onboard :/
 
Still this is just my opinion, the good thing is these things are easily resellable to someone else who is curious so you can buy and not take much of a loss if you want to hear what NOS DACs sound like for you, i guess  or perhaps you can even buy second hand

 
i've got an Aune coming shortly, and a load of 'browndog adaptors' I had to order from the USA, so i look forward to playing about with that too, i'll add some LT1028s to the list of chips to roll 

 i'm not expecting the Aune's dac to sound better than my onboard, but if it does then i'll be happy, i just want to hear differences more than anything.

 

[aspenx]

Ouch. I guess this DAC really isn't everyone's cup of tea. Probably not mine too and it's a real hassle selling it off if I indeed find it not to my liking.
 
The Aune sounds like a good idea. I wonder why I got the Musiland Monitor 02US instead in the first place...

 

[realmassy]

I've been using a Valab Luxury for the last week and so far I'm impressed. I mean...not just value for money.
 
I used to own a Audio-GD Ref.5, but the sound was too cynical and cold, so I decided to downgrade and get the Valab. I'm very very pleased with the organic and deep soundstage and the natural tonality of this dac, and it's a perfect match with my Earmax headphone amp and the HD650. 
 
Maybe it will sound weird to many of you, but to my ears this has been an actual upgrade: I've just spent 3 hours listening to some of my favourite recordings (classical an jazz) and I felt really involved in the music. I was so absorbed by the music that I could spot some details never heard before.
Bad recordings definitely sound better, compared to the Ref.5, less harsh. But, to my surprise, good ones are great, transparent, airy without being bright. 
Technically the soundstage is narrower, and pinpoint accuracy is not at the same level of the Ref.5, but it's more organic and deep, with soloist close to the listeners, more intimate.
Micro dynamics are better on the Valab, and generally the bass is more present, and you'll notice it in piano, where left hand has more body and it sounds full. It's not a tight bass, it's quite soft, round, with a long decay. Maybe slow for someone but natural to my ears.
 
My only regret so far? That I didn't go for the Chameleon

 

[brianmay]

I have in order a dac3 Reference (simil to dac3-se but with DSP1)  from Audio-GD that I want to compare with my modded Valab 2.1 (a very musical and great tonality dac).
 
I'm curious about the difference...on the table the Audio-Gd DAC wins but I'm ready for a surprise 

 

 

[Wood]

If you really want to hear what this little dac can do use Russian Teflon for coupling (DC blocking). The highest value is 0.47uf so I found I needed five caps per channel.
 
 
 
The result is the closest to, "no cap" I have heard. All other caps I have tried suffer from strong colouration and/or lack transparency, or in other words, mud. These Teflons however do not make the sound clinical, the musicality of the Valab is all still there in spades, but so so much clearer.
 
I got them from this guy http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/0-47uF-200V-teflon-capacitors-FT-3-Lot-4-TESTED-1000V-/200516790485?pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item2eafbb68d5#ht_1631wt_964
 
 
The only downside is the time for burn-in, its hell and they sound awful for 600hrs solid

 

[Dynobot]

Thats It!!!
 
Turn in your Audiophile card at once!!!
 
 
Quote:

I've been using a Valab Luxury for the last week and so far I'm impressed. I mean...not just value for money.
 
I used to own a Audio-GD Ref.5, but the sound was too cynical and cold, so I decided to downgrade and get the Valab. I'm very very pleased with the organic and deep soundstage and the natural tonality of this dac, and it's a perfect match with my Earmax headphone amp and the HD650. 
 
Maybe it will sound weird to many of you, but to my ears this has been an actual upgrade: I've just spent 3 hours listening to some of my favourite recordings (classical an jazz) and I felt really involved in the music. I was so absorbed by the music that I could spot some details never heard before.
Bad recordings definitely sound better, compared to the Ref.5, less harsh. But, to my surprise, good ones are great, transparent, airy without being bright. 
Technically the soundstage is narrower, and pinpoint accuracy is not at the same level of the Ref.5, but it's more organic and deep, with soloist close to the listeners, more intimate.
Micro dynamics are better on the Valab, and generally the bass is more present, and you'll notice it in piano, where left hand has more body and it sounds full. It's not a tight bass, it's quite soft, round, with a long decay. Maybe slow for someone but natural to my ears.
 
My only regret so far? That I didn't go for the Chameleon

 

[Dynobot]

You need a nice neat box to fit all that in....
 
 
Quote:

If you really want to hear what this little dac can do use Russian Teflon for coupling (DC blocking). The highest value is 0.47uf so I found I needed five caps per channel.
 
 
 
The result is the closest to, "no cap" I have heard. All other caps I have tried suffer from strong colouration and/or lack transparency, or in other words, mud. These Teflons however do not make the sound clinical, the musicality of the Valab is all still there in spades, but so so much clearer.
 
I got them from this guy http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/0-47uF-200V-teflon-capacitors-FT-3-Lot-4-TESTED-1000V-/200516790485?pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item2eafbb68d5#ht_1631wt_964
 
 
The only downside is the time for burn-in, its hell and they sound awful for 600hrs solid

 

[Wood]

Should do, but kinda like the Heath Robinson look