Quote:
Originally Posted by PhilS
I [...] was wondering if anybody's heard it, heard about it, or has any opinion about it [...]
|
I have not only heard about it or heard it, I own one. I received it this past Friday, and this post summarizes my opinion about it: The Whest Audio DAP.10 is simply one amazing product, which puts the fun back into CD replay, in particular when you're as spoilt as I am by a high-quality vinyl rig, sonically speaking.
I fully understand the skepticism reflected in the first few posts of this thread, and while I do not know what to make of robm1's first and only post in this forum, I have to admit that I am thoroughly impressed by what I hear coming out of my DAP.10.
It's not easy to put in words what the effect of the DAP.10 is. Reviews of this device are available on Whest Audio's website, and I read them all before ordering, but nothing could prepare me for the effect I heard after I inserted the DAP.10 into my stereo system. Now that I have re-read these reviews, I can understand much better what the respective reviewers were trying to tell their readers -- and why they failed to get the message across. By now I am convinced that -- unfortunately -- there is nothing I can say to fully describe the effect this device has on the sound, but let me tell you this much: Its effect is most beneficial.
The DAP.10's benefits cannot be described without using metaphors, and the one metaphor that sprang to my mind was that of binoculars. Imagine a CD player of high quality, very good cabling, in a system consisting of very good components that work very well together. That's how I would like to describe the rig I have at home (please see my profile for details).
In particular, my CD player is the Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 3D, which is maybe not the latest model, but sonically still very respected, including by members of this forum (click
here at 4.c. and
here, third para. from above), and certainly not cheaply made.
Enter the DAP.10 (cabling is the same as with the stand-alone player, just two short runs of the same type of cable): The feeling you get is the sonic eqivalent of focusing your binoculars. The picture gets sharper and more clearly delineated, the objects in the picture lose their fuzzy, frayed edges, dark grey turns more towards black, and the colors and the white no longer "bleed" into the neighboring areas. Definition, definition and definition, in conjunction with focus, focus and focus, that's what the DAP.10 is all about.
In sonic terms this means (for example) that the solo rhythm guitar in the intro of Phish's "Sample In A Jar" is much better placed within the stereo image between the speakers, as is the snare drum, which also comes from a more celarly defined place, and certainly the singer's voice, which sounds much more "rounded" and palpable. The entire stereo image "snaps" into place -- quite an astonishing effect, especially if you were, like me, not at all unhappy about your CD player's imaging on a stand-alone basis (I have happily used this player since late 2001).
The other main effect of the DAP.10 is to "tighten up" the sound as such, irrespective of its placement in the stereo image. Bass notes get tighter (that's very easy to hear right away), a case in point being the first track on Nils Petter Molvaer's album "Khmer", which features a very loud rhythmic bass note in the left channel and a little later an equally loud, but slightly higher rhythmic bass note in the right channel. It is a
tour de force for any system at any price point to reproduce this track clearly, as the interference of the two bass notes is very strong. The DAP.10 cleans up matters effortlessly and increases the definition of the bass notes to an extent that supresses any tendency to boom, but leaves in the bass energy.
The treble benefits in a similar way, with the exception that we're not talking about boom, but about a more transparent and crystalline, less fatiguing sound. This applies to cymbals (in pop or jazz music) as well as to violins (in classical music). The treble sounds clearer and much less "frayed" at its edges, which is one of the least pleasant characteristics of CD sound in general. The treble's extension, both within the stereo image and in terms of time (i.e. beginning and end of the respective sound) becomes better defined and less "fuzzy" with the DAP.10 in the chain.
Finally, the midrange, e.g. voices, saxophones and the like, appears to be "more 3D", in that the distinction between singer/soloist on the one hand and background music on the other hand becomes less "blurred". It's easier for the listener to perceive the singer/soloist as being a separate source of sound that is prominently featured, while remaining a part of the overall mix. This is quite an astonishing effect insofar as the overall integrity of the mix isn't being jeopardized at all (which is more than I can say about some of the "pseudo-detailed" products that are using a jacked-up treble to simulate higher resolution).
Despite all of the technical "hifi review" mumbo-jumbo above, the most impressive effect of the DAP.10 in my system is the simple fact that it makes CD playback so much more enjoyable, as the device effectively minimizes the digital "sizzle" (which is not necessarily the same as sibilance) and slightly metallic/electronic "glare" that even the most expensive CD players demonstrate, and which is the main reason why great vinyl is usually better-sounding than great CD, despite the many other shortcomings of vinyl.
For a moment this effect could be mistaken for a loss of treble (which is certainly a possibility given that you need to use two cables [with more connectors and thus more contact surfaces] instead of only one to connect the CD player to your amp's input), but upon further inspection and A/B'ing this assumption turns out not to be true. I cannot say that there is any loss of treble, at least not a significant one. But the treble is less fuzzy, less frayed, less badly defined than without the DAP.10 in the chain. Mind you, before trying this device I would not have described the sound of my CD player with these terms, and I also believe that it remains one of the more competitive CD-only players to this day. But the DAP.10 gave me more of a good thing, and that's why I value this unit so much and have such great respect for its creator.
Does this thing make my CD player sound identical or comparable to my vinyl rig? No, it doesn't. But it reduces the distance between the two to an extent and in an area that possibly no other "tweak" is able to. And that is most impressive. In a way, my CD player may sound a little less "spectacular" than without the DAP.10, but much more enjoyable, convincing and believable, and that's what it's all about, to me anyway.
You may have noticed that up to now, the word "headphone" has not appeared in my report, and as a matter of fact, I have done 95% of the listening with my speaker system. The remaining 5%, though, were done with my STAX Omega-II set, and as a teaser, I can confirm that the DAP.10 has a very beneficial effect on headphone listening as well, but it is too early for me to describe what exactly the headphone-specific characteristics are. For the time being let me state this: The DAP.10 may appear expensive, and it is not 100% clear to me
how it does what it does, but one thing I know even now: If you have a decent CD player, and if your stereo system is principally capable of throwing a decent soundstage as well as of creating convincing images, there is no way you are going to let go of a DAP.10 once you've inserted it. Its beneficial effect is even more noticable (or should I say "less subtle") with headphones, and that's what I am going to report about in the near future.
In closing, I repeat that the DAP.10 puts the fun back into CD replay, and in a big way, which -- ironically -- may benefit less expensive players more than near-perfect ones, and in my view it is as far removed from being a fad as any excellent, but expensive component is from a hyped Bose (or comparable) product. But ultimately, I feel that I am lacking the words to describe more precisely why I perceive this device as being truly exceptional and its effect on the music so beneficial. You've just got to hear it for yourself, if you're interested. If your mind is open enough to accept the mere possibility of the beneficial effects I attempted to describe above, and if your wallet is deep enough to buy one, go and order one from a reliable dealer that offers a money-back policy or the like. We'll meet again in this place after you've tried it for a few days. I have made up my mind, my DAP.10 stays where it is.
