[lambdastorm]

I was able to demo this for a week 2 months ago, and was not impressed. Their entry level Canary II is surprisingly good but at 3X the price, this thing is just lackluster. I particularly dislike their ARC implementation, ASRC mode sounds much more dynamic and lively.

 

[EdgeOfSound]

I was able to demo this for a week 2 months ago, and was not impressed. Their entry level Canary II is surprisingly good but at 3X the price, this thing is just lackluster. I particularly dislike their ARC implementation, ASRC mode sounds much more dynamic and lively.

Interesting. So you prefer the Canary II over the Aquila II or just that it is better value? I noticed that in the Aquila they have a USB to I2S converter which I assume is a good thing.

I've also been wondering how does the Aquila compare to things like the Topping Dx7Pro and the Audio-GD 11.38 which use the same DAC chip but have quite different implementations from what I can tell.

I really wished I could try them out. I'm almost certainly going to buy one of them. Since I have no idea how any of them sound I'm leaning towards the Topping purely because it's probably the safest best with all the inputs I want and also lots of people using Topping products.

 

[Lu Mazzmarill]

In his YouTube review, Zeos compares directly the Daart with the Topping DX7Pro.
He thinks that the Daart is more powerful, more simple to use but has less connectivity options.
About the Audio-gd, i can't tell.

 

[imran27]

We have migrated our JIC (Jitter and Interface control) technology from DA10 to Aquila II, that's the major similarity between Aquila II and DA10, but the power supply and headphone amplifiers circuit are completely different. DA10 is fully discrete JFET input Class A amplification and Aquila II is IC based Class AB. On paper Aquila II has higher power rating, but Class A offer better control and transient, and a more appealing sound signature. Because of that, the DA10 needs a stronger power supply in order to keep the discrete components to operate in saturated capacity. All these added up to extra costs between Auqila II and DA10.

When you say IC based, what do you mean?
IC as in opamps or something else...

 

[Andykong]

When you say IC based, what do you mean?
IC as in opamps or something else...

Operational Amplifier (Opamp) certainly is within Integrated Circuit domain. When we describe the headphone amplification circuit as IC based, we want to differentiate Aquila II from our reference DA10 which employs a lot of discrete components in the headphone amplifier circuit.

 

[imran27]

Operational Amplifier (Opamp) certainly is within Integrated Circuit domain. When we describe the headphone amplification circuit as IC based, we want to differentiate Aquila II from our reference DA10 which employs a lot of discrete components in the headphone amplifier circuit.

Hi Andy,
Thank you for the response.

But I think you know a little bit about me and you know that isn't the answer I expected

So let me preface my question. In Indian Audiophile community we like to experiment a lot with mods.
For eg: Topping D50's tonality was fixed by just removing the stock opamp (which iirc was opa1612, not on socket, it was soldered to the board but still easily doable) and replacing with opa2156.

I wanted to know beforehand if any such thing is possible, on my own risk of course i.e. if you're using opamps for I/V, LPF, LO, etc... then for many of use that means flexibility of tuning.

From the what I have read in a few days about Aquila II, seems like a pretty good device.

 

[Andykong]

Hi Andy,
Thank you for the response.

But I think you know a little bit about me and you know that isn't the answer I expected

So let me preface my question. In Indian Audiophile community we like to experiment a lot with mods.
For eg: Topping D50's tonality was fixed by just removing the stock opamp (which iirc was opa1612, not on socket, it was soldered to the board but still easily doable) and replacing with opa2156.

I wanted to know beforehand if any such thing is possible, on my own risk of course i.e. if you're using opamps for I/V, LPF, LO, etc... then for many of use that means flexibility of tuning.

From the what I have read in a few days about Aquila II, seems like a pretty good device.

Yes, we met at CanJam Singapore 2018 and have cross pathed in the Indian Audiophile Forum several times.

Yes, we used op amp in the key area you mentioned, but I suggested you spend sometime to check out the Aquila II with different headphones, established the performance benchmark before changing the circuit. We'll explain the technical detail of Aquila II in another thread HERE,

 

[EdgeOfSound]

Sorry everyone, I've got a review in progress but have two other large review projects to wrap up before I can get to it.

Quick summary though - the DAC portion is surprisingly close to the Yulong DA10. Despite using a different DAC chip (ESS vs AKM) from the DA10 they still managed to give a similar sound, with just a touch less definition and extension. I'm attributing a significant part of that to their use of FPGA processing, but also the power supply and output stage have a lot in common. That means generally neutral but with a beautiful midrange sweetness, grain-free treble, and fast transient snap. It's a lovely sounding DAC.

The main difference I hear is with regards to the integrated headphone amp, where DA10 takes a more commanding lead - particularly with power hungry/difficult to drive headphones. Aquila II is still very enjoyable but not quite on the same level, which is to be expected from the more simplified opamp-based design rather than fully discrete on the DA10.

How' the Aquilla review coming along?

 

[project86]

Slower than I'd like. I'm wrapping up part two of my headphone amp roundup (featuring four different amps, and part one also had another four amps) so that took a lot longer than usual. Also California is burning down (again) which impacts things for me as well. But I hope to have it done in the next couple weeks if all goes according to plan... should I even say that in 2020?

I still very much agree with my summary above though. It's a fantastic all-purpose DAC/headphone amp/pre-amp with a generally neutral signature, great extension, accurate imaging, and slightly sweet midrange. I enjoy the ability to switch between the Sabre ASRC mode and the proprietary PIC option - they are slightly different and while I mostly prefer PIC, they both have merit. PIC mode makes the device pretty much immune to variations in transport quality, which is really beneficial. The DAC itself is resolving enough to where it would logically demand a pretty decent transport, thus driving up the cost of the system. But then the PIC makes it sound just as good with a standard laptop or even a cheap Android tablet. That's a major benefit for users on a budget.

It does excellent as a preamp for desktop monitors or even in a big system. You really don't lose much compared to dedicated units unless their cost overshadows the entire DAC itself. I swapped my old Parasound Halo P3 in and out of my speaker rig and the result was so close to the Aquila 2 alone that I wouldn't bother having the dedicated preamp unless I needed the additional ins/outs.

For the headphone out, single-ended is fine and balanced is quite listenable. It's not far behind a Cavalli CTH which is one of my favorite affordable amps, and in some ways (treble articulation, microdetail) it may be superior. I'd still recommend adding a nice dedicated headphone amp down the road when money allows, but the integrated headphone stage is not bad at all.

Anyway that's it for now, can answer specific questions if you have any, and will post the review link once it's done.

 

[marcusd]

Our Aquila II full review is now published. A very competitive mid-priced offering with some great synergy with demanding headphones such as the Hedd Audio Heddphones, Diana V2, and the Empyrean.

https://headfonics.com/yulong-da-art-aquila-ii-review/

 

[EdgeOfSound]

Slower than I'd like. I'm wrapping up part two of my headphone amp roundup (featuring four different amps, and part one also had another four amps) so that took a lot longer than usual. Also California is burning down (again) which impacts things for me as well. But I hope to have it done in the next couple weeks if all goes according to plan... should I even say that in 2020?

I still very much agree with my summary above though. It's a fantastic all-purpose DAC/headphone amp/pre-amp with a generally neutral signature, great extension, accurate imaging, and slightly sweet midrange. I enjoy the ability to switch between the Sabre ASRC mode and the proprietary PIC option - they are slightly different and while I mostly prefer PIC, they both have merit. PIC mode makes the device pretty much immune to variations in transport quality, which is really beneficial. The DAC itself is resolving enough to where it would logically demand a pretty decent transport, thus driving up the cost of the system. But then the PIC makes it sound just as good with a standard laptop or even a cheap Android tablet. That's a major benefit for users on a budget.

It does excellent as a preamp for desktop monitors or even in a big system. You really don't lose much compared to dedicated units unless their cost overshadows the entire DAC itself. I swapped my old Parasound Halo P3 in and out of my speaker rig and the result was so close to the Aquila 2 alone that I wouldn't bother having the dedicated preamp unless I needed the additional ins/outs.

For the headphone out, single-ended is fine and balanced is quite listenable. It's not far behind a Cavalli CTH which is one of my favorite affordable amps, and in some ways (treble articulation, microdetail) it may be superior. I'd still recommend adding a nice dedicated headphone amp down the road when money allows, but the integrated headphone stage is not bad at all.

Anyway that's it for now, can answer specific questions if you have any, and will post the review link once it's done.

Hope you are keeping well and safe. Many years ago I was in LA and there were fires in San Diego and that was bad enough. This is obviously a different level.

At the moment it's really a toss up between the Aquilla II and the Topping DX7 Pro. My impression from reading what I can find is that I probably won't be disappointed with either...which doesn't help my decision making. Haha. I'm crippled by too many good options.

 

[YULONG Audio]

We just kick started a US/Canada tour for our DA-ART Aquila II, please sign up HERE if you are interested in checking out Aquila II in your home system.

 

[Lu Mazzmarill]

Has anyone tried this with closed cans like Focal Elegia or Denon 7200? How does it pair with closed back headphones?

 

[YULONG Audio]

We didn't have Elegia or Denon 7200. We use Sony MDR-Z1R and Fostex TH900 as our reference close back dynamic headphones. We use TH900 with Aquila II in many shows and events in China, we don't do that unless we like the Aquila II and Fostex TH900 pair. We believe the Denon 7200 has a lot of similarity to the Fostex TH900 in terms of driving requirements and sound signature, so maybe this offers some bearing to your questions.

 

[Condocondor]

YULONG DA-ART Aquilla II Impressions from the Tour:

My current personal gear is a iFi Audio iDSD Black Label transportable DAC/AMP. It is helped significantly with the iFi's iPurifier3 and iGalvanic decrappifier USB technology. Current headphones are: HiFiMan Edition XX and Audioquest NightOwl (closed). I listen primarily to Youtube Music and videos.

First listen revealed a DAC/AMP that was very handsome black, capable, modern, and clean sounding desktop device. It comes with "Slow, Phase, Sharp" filter selection and "ASRG and SYNCH" decoding. Personally, I like the Phase/ASRC combination which seemed to give a mellower, smoother, and more spacious delivery of music. I'm coming from a Burr Brown powered DAC so this was the closest setting combo that was familiar to my ears. Sharp and Slow filters were not as pleasing to me although they may pair well with various other headphones. I liked the liquid crystal display showing me all the essentials in a single glance: INPUT, PCM, Filter, Headamp, Preamp, Pure DAC, etc. It takes a little bit of trying at first to find your way around the primary menu of options. The unit did not come with a user's manual on the tour. The unit has it's ON/OFF switch on the rear so I'm assuming it's meant to be left on at all times. However, the unit becomes very warm (though not hot) if left on all the time.

The Aquilla II's sound can be tailored to personal tastes depending on the settings chosen. The amp is plenty powerful and composed at all times. It represents a good value, mid-tier, well performing desktop headphone DAC/AMP. I consider the Aquilla II a sidestep from my current rig which ran me about $900 in total. ESS DACs are different than Burr Brown DAC's for various reasons. On some music, I thought I might like the ESS presentation better than the Burr Brown. At other times I thought I preferred the Burr Brown presentation better. I went back-and-forth many times trying to find a preference but could not. I think, due to my bias, thought I preferred the Burr Brown's more relaxed/ spacious presentation, overall, better. But, it was so close that I could be happy with either rig. I'm not ready to jump ship to purchase the Aquilla II as the performance was not better than what I have.... and yet the Aquilla's performance was commendable and will appeal to a wide range of headphone lovers. Glad I had the opportunity to experience the Aquilla II. Thank you to Andykong for this tour opportunity.