[emremusic]

 
 
Friends, I need some advice, 
 
As you may have noticed my Woo6SE is really a great amp, but rest of my gear - my source (Apogee Duet) and headphones (AKG 702)- needs to catch up..
 
I'm looking to upgrade, and I have...500 bucks. I know that is not much to work with in audiophile terms but I'm getting married soon, and we need the money for furniture. - Actually my wife to be doesnt know about this little upgrade itch.
 
I'm thinking about Musical Fidelity's V-Dac, and the V-link -usb to spdif convertor. They both add up to about what I can spend and they are both highly recommended on Head-fi. Those pieces together add up to a much better DAC than my Apogee Duet.
 
Would this be a good route for my 6SE?
 
 

 

[BrucYSN]

Quote:

I sold my Theta transport back in March.  I rarely use CD's anymore.  In fact I'm thinking about selling off my entire collection sans Coltrane.

Don't you think they sound better? I notice some improvement by quite margin compare to a dvd-based transport. 
I'm too lazy to rip all the cds.... 
 

 

[BrucYSN]

Quote:

I know what you mean but it seems for me I've burnt out on my entire collection of CD's except my Jazz from the 50's.  While there is a lot of excellent music in it I've simply moved on to new music because I'm a new sound junkie. I get all of my new music from the extensive county library and then I cherry pick.  So all my music is now across 3 hard drives and none of it is from my CD collection.   I simply don't listen to it anymore.  Sometimes out of guilt I peruse through the collection and try to pick out something I might want to listen to and it always turns out the same. I'm not as interested as I once was. 
 
 I know for most people this is not the case and probably peculiar to me alone. But thats the way my neural pathways have evolved. I seem to thrive for the exploration of new sounds and then according to my playlist I average about 20 plays on a tune and then I move on.  
 
So it looks like the CD collection is going to be smelted in the financial caldron along with other lost interests and perhaps contribute to a WA2 and the resulting expenditure which will surely follow as tubes roll in and out.
 
 

Borrow from library... why i haven't I think of it.. ... 
 
 

 

[vinyllp33]

 
 
Friends, I need some advice, 
 
As you may have noticed my Woo6SE is really a great amp, but rest of my gear - my source (Apogee Duet) and headphones (AKG 702)- needs to catch up..
 
I'm looking to upgrade, and I have...500 bucks. I know that is not much to work with in audiophile terms but I'm getting married soon, and we need the money for furniture. - Actually my wife to be doesnt know about this little upgrade itch.
 
I'm thinking about Musical Fidelity's V-Dac, and the V-link -usb to spdif convertor. They both add up to about what I can spend and they are both highly recommended on Head-fi. Those pieces together add up to a much better DAC than my Apogee Duet.
 
Would this be a good route for my 6SE?
 
 

My good friend has your same set up: WA6SE/Sophia/K702 and just bought a really sweet DAC from Emotiva Audio.

No doubt the Musical Fidelity are really good pieces, but I think that you will find the XDA-1 benefits from its much larger power supply, discrete analog output stage and more substantial build quality. And since it has direct USB in you eliminate the need for a SPDIF cable which results in a shorter signal path and additional cost savings.

Check it out, for $399 with free shipping it really is a steal and worthy of being paired with a Woo.

http://emotiva.com/xda1.shtm

Also many congratulations on your impending nuptials!

 

[WarriorAnt]

Quote:

 
 
Friends, I need some advice, 
 
 
 but I'm getting married soon, and we need the money for furniture. - Actually my wife to be doesnt know about this little upgrade itch.
 
 

 First off. Furniture is way over rated. About the marriage thing, set the audiophile rules NOW, right from the start. These rules will include the speakers go in the living room. There will be cables on the floor.  There will be a rack of gear... You get the idea
 
  Thirdly NEVER tell your wife how much something costs.  Ever.  I've known my wife for 25 years and I've never told her how much anything costs.  I've seen plenty of guys fall by the wayside making that mistake.    It is a fatal mistake. Don't do it.

 
 

 

[Silent One]

Quote:

 

 
 
emre ~
 
I too, would like to share in your joy... congrats on your upcoming nuptials as well!

 

[grokit]

 
Quote:

I sold my Theta transport back in March.  I rarely use CD's anymore.  In fact I'm thinking about selling off my entire collection sans Coltrane.

 
Quote:

I'm not getting rid of my CDs for that exact reason. I hardly ever play them, but they serve as a very effective backup library.

Not just for backup, but if you have copyrighted music ripped to your HDD, you need to keep your original CDs to be technically legal. Not sure how it works if you are archiving CDs from the library though.

 

[grokit]

 
Quote:

My good friend has your same set up: WA6SE/Sophia/K702 and just bought a really sweet DAC from Emotiva Audio.

No doubt the Musical Fidelity are really good pieces, but I think that you will find the XDA-1 benefits from its much larger power supply, discrete analog output stage and more substantial build quality. And since it has direct USB in you eliminate the need for a SPDIF cable which results in a shorter signal path and additional cost savings.

Check it out, for $399 with free shipping it really is a steal and worthy of being paired with a Woo.

http://emotiva.com/xda1.shtm

Also many congratulations on your impending nuptials!

 
What amp is your friend using, and is there a preamp involved? I'm asking because I tried an XDA-1 and sent it back when it wouldn't give me a decent line voltage level into my amp. From what I read in another forum the earliest models were too hot, and mine was from the second batch where they must have overcompensated. The current specs say "Nominal Output Voltage: 1V RMS", most sources are twice that.
 
My feeling is that it would be good into an Emotiva or perhaps another preamp but not so good straight into a headphone or power amp. I have tried two other DACs, one of them balanced into that same amp without issue. I tried the XDA-1 in both SE and balanced mode into that amp and neither was up to the task. Also it only has attenuated mode, no option for fixed output.
 
I called them after I sent it back, and they said that they checked it out and it was working correctly. It was an interesting experience because after reading the initial reviews I was concerned that it would be too loud but it turned out to be quite the opposite.
 
It was disappointing, as from what I had read it sounds very good for the price in the right setup, plus it looks ubercool and has a nice remote control. Also it takes up a LOT of real estate, about 17" square with the cables coming out of the back.
 
 

 

[Skylab]

 
 


Not just for backup, but if you have copyrighted music ripped to your HDD, you need to keep your original CDs to be technically legal. Not sure how it works if you are archiving CDs from the library though.

That's actually a very good point. Selling your CDs after ripping them is a violation of copyright law if you keep the ripped music. If you gave away the CD's free, and you kept the receipts from their original purchase, then I'm not sure how that could be an issue. But who keeps receipts like that? Not me. My CD collection is now close to spanning 25 years of my purchases. My LP collection spans almost 35 years. There is no chance whatsoever that I will ever sell the LP's. But I'm pretty much decided on keeping the CD's too. I also kinda like looking at them.

 

[WarriorAnt]

Quote:

That's actually a very good point. Selling your CDs after ripping them is a violation of copyright law if you keep the ripped music. If you gave away the CD's free, and you kept the receipts from their original purchase, then I'm not sure how that could be an issue. But who keeps receipts like that? Not me. My CD collection is now close to spanning 25 years of my purchases. My LP collection spans almost 35 years. There is no chance whatsoever that I will ever sell the LP's. But I'm pretty much decided on keeping the CD's too. I also kinda like looking at them.

I loved vinyl. There is no argument about the seductive, lucid, holographic sound of vinyl from me.       I had a large collection that started with my first album "Meet The Beatles" in 1964.  I was 8.   But there was one thing I never could get used to and it really made me crazy.  Groove noise.  I always hated groove noise.  No matter how good the condition of the vinyl, no matter how well engineered the table/tone arm/cartridge I just couldn't stand groove noise.  Even today when music is intentionally mixed with groove noise as an effect I discard the track immediately.  So a while back I gave all my vinyl away to a friend who isn't audiophile and doesn't have the money to collect CD's. The vinyl was just sitting in boxes for years now.  I gave him a turntable also.  He turned me on to Coltrane long ago so it was the least I could do.    I kept that Beatles vinyl though.  I only have the record now after all these years no album cover.
 
As for my CD collection.  all is does is collect dust.  The only time I look at it is when I dust it off.   I'll keep all the Jazz on the Impulse label and Blue note stuff.  Everything else is gonna go.    
 
 

 

[Skylab]

Groove noise bothered me until I began to wet-vacuum clean my records. Now my records are almost all completely quiet. Wet-vacuum cleaning is a revelation for vinyl.

 

[WarriorAnt]

Quote:

Groove noise bothered me until I began to wet-vacuum clean my records. Now my records are almost all completely quiet. Wet-vacuum cleaning is a revelation for vinyl.

Like the record doctor or a VPI cleaner.   They still could not rid me of my OCD for groove noise. I have to admit though just talking about vinyl makes me lust for vinyls allure.
 

 

[Skylab]

Right, I use a VPI 16.5. Maybe the best $500 I ever spent in my more than 30 years in the hobby.

 

[WarriorAnt]

Quote:

Right, I use a VPI 16.5. Maybe the best $500 I ever spent in my more than 30 years in the hobby.

It does a great job.

 

[Icenine2]

Here's what I wonder about legalities.  For instance: I've owned Sgt Pepper in 2 vinyl issues, 2 CD issues, the 24 bit files on USB.  At what point haven't I paid the artists rights here?  Even if I sell them and keep one on file?  It seems logical that if I buy an newly remastered version I shouldn't have to pay for the artists rights a second time but should get some sort of trade in upgrade price?  Of course even if it does make some sense it isn't probably the letter of the law.
Quote:

That's actually a very good point. Selling your CDs after ripping them is a violation of copyright law if you keep the ripped music. If you gave away the CD's free, and you kept the receipts from their original purchase, then I'm not sure how that could be an issue. But who keeps receipts like that? Not me. My CD collection is now close to spanning 25 years of my purchases. My LP collection spans almost 35 years. There is no chance whatsoever that I will ever sell the LP's. But I'm pretty much decided on keeping the CD's too. I also kinda like looking at them.