[Jozurr]

I won't be buying a Sabre DAC again. It has always sounded "offensive" to me as mentioned here, regardless of implementation. Sometimes less than other times, but still not as good as my DAC-19. I would say go for a DAC-19 and a LC for the Omni if possible (extremely good pairing), otherwise a LYR2 shouldn't be far off. I have never liked the analytical sounding Audio-GDs, including the Master 11. Get a better amp, or imrove the DAC and get the DAC-19. Going above on the the NFB Audio-GD chain isn't going to yield as positive results. My 2c and YMMV etc of course.

 

[jerick70]

  Excellent option, but an expensive one for me 2000$ !!
So I'm still at a loss between the NFB-29H or use the NFB-11 (DAC) and brought him to lyr 2 (AMP)

 
You can pick up the WA22 used in the $1300 range.  I've seen them for less also.

 

[ahmad-bayern]

   
You can pick up the WA22 used in the $1300 range.  I've seen them for less also.

Where ?
I hope to help you plz

 

[jerick70]

Where ?

I hope to help you plz

On Audiogon http://www.audiogon.com. I purchased my WA22 on Audiogon for $1300.00. You can find them on Ebay too. But they are generally a few hundred more on Ebay.

 

[ThePianoMan]

NFB 29
8000MW /  40 ohm 
 3500MW  /  100 ohm
1200MW / 300 ohm
600MW  /  600 ohm

LYR 2
Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 6.0W RMS per channel[COLOR=8F8F8F]
[/COLOR]
Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 4.0W RMS per channel[COLOR=8F8F8F]
[/COLOR]
Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 660mW RMS per channel[COLOR=8F8F8F]
[/COLOR]
Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 330mW RMS per channel

Which is really about the same power into the 50ohm omni. I wasn't crazy about the NFB-10. Not enough power. I like the sound of the 28, and think the amp section is marvelous, but find the ability of its DAC doesn't improve enough over the 10 for it to make it worth it to me. I also will take separates over singleboxes any day, but of course, we all have different preferences ^_^

 

[defbear]

so your carbon was $600 and your microZOTL was $1100. I would hope the MicroZOTL sounded better! Would you say it is all around better or is there anything that stands out to you that really makes the difference? please feel free to pm me if this is too off topic?

Not off topic if talking about amps for ZMF phones, I hope. I love my Liquid Carbon. Small, versatile, balanced, great SE output as well. The LC scales up with better equipment and fits In my LCD2 case. The microZOTL is SE only. I bought it to see how good a SE only amp could be. I found out in buckets. So many buzzwords to choose from. Bigger soundstage, more 3-D and euphonic, even more engagement and Prat. It sounds great being fed by as little as a Dragonfly Red. It loves the Mojo too. I'm mainly using a Bifrost Multibit. The microZOTL scales up incredibly well. I have outputs from my Master 11 feeding it as well. I haven't even started tube rolling yet. I started out with a Bifrost uber paired with a lyr2. Great setup with my lcd-2f's. But I bought a set of classic hd800 phones and started chasing the hd800 dragon and bought a master 11. The Schiit Stack sat neglected. I also got in the queue for a Liquid Carbon and use a Emotiva Stealth DAC-1 with it. The Schiit Stack still sat. So instead of selling it, I had the Bifrost upgraded to Bimby Multibit status for $250.00. For me it,was a night and day difference. More detailed and bigger soundstage etc. The Omni's love it. For the gent who asked about the Lyr2, I would purchase it if I had a nice DAC to go with it. I would like to upgrade from the Bifrost. I'm not sure if a Musette or a DAC-19 would be an upgrade or side grade but now I'm getting OT. Last comment. When I first heard my ZMF Omni's in Wenge I said 'Why didn't I just buy these in the first place? They have Everything right out of the box"

 

[BunnyNamedCraig]

Not off topic if talking about amps for ZMF phones, I hope. I love my Liquid Carbon. Small, versatile, balanced, great SE output as well. The LC scales up with better equipment and fits In my LCD2 case. The microZOTL is SE only. I bought it to see how good a SE only amp could be. I found out in buckets. So many buzzwords to choose from. Bigger soundstage, more 3-D and euphonic, even more engagement and Prat. It sounds great being fed by as little as a Dragonfly Red. It loves the Mojo too. I'm mainly using a Bifrost Multibit. The microZOTL scales up incredibly well. I have outputs from my Master 11 feeding it as well. I haven't even started tube rolling yet. I started out with a Bifrost uber paired with a lyr2. Great setup with my lcd-2f's. But I bought a set of classic hd800 phones and started chasing the hd800 dragon and bought a master 11. The Schiit Stack sat neglected. I also got in the queue for a Liquid Carbon and use a Emotiva Stealth DAC-1 with it. The Schiit Stack still sat. So instead of selling it, I had the Bifrost upgraded to Bimby Multibit status for $250.00. For me it,was a night and day difference. More detailed and bigger soundstage etc. The Omni's love it. For the gent who asked about the Lyr2, I would purchase it if I had a nice DAC to go with it. I would like to upgrade from the Bifrost. I'm not sure if a Musette or a DAC-19 would be an upgrade or side grade but now I'm getting OT. Last comment. When I first heard my ZMF Omni's in Wenge I said 'Why didn't I just buy these in the first place? They have Everything right out of the box"

Wow. Thanks for that insight.

 

[Stillhart]

Not off topic if talking about amps for ZMF phones, I hope. I love my Liquid Carbon. Small, versatile, balanced, great SE output as well. The LC scales up with better equipment and fits In my LCD2 case. The microZOTL is SE only. I bought it to see how good a SE only amp could be. I found out in buckets. So many buzzwords to choose from. Bigger soundstage, more 3-D and euphonic, even more engagement and Prat. It sounds great being fed by as little as a Dragonfly Red. It loves the Mojo too. I'm mainly using a Bifrost Multibit. The microZOTL scales up incredibly well. I have outputs from my Master 11 feeding it as well. I haven't even started tube rolling yet. I started out with a Bifrost uber paired with a lyr2. Great setup with my lcd-2f's. But I bought a set of classic hd800 phones and started chasing the hd800 dragon and bought a master 11. The Schiit Stack sat neglected. I also got in the queue for a Liquid Carbon and use a Emotiva Stealth DAC-1 with it. The Schiit Stack still sat. So instead of selling it, I had the Bifrost upgraded to Bimby Multibit status for $250.00. For me it,was a night and day difference. More detailed and bigger soundstage etc. The Omni's love it. For the gent who asked about the Lyr2, I would purchase it if I had a nice DAC to go with it. I would like to upgrade from the Bifrost. I'm not sure if a Musette or a DAC-19 would be an upgrade or side grade but now I'm getting OT. Last comment. When I first heard my ZMF Omni's in Wenge I said 'Why didn't I just buy these in the first place? They have Everything right out of the box"

 
From what I've heard about the BMB, the DAC-19 and Musette should both be a nice step up.  @Hansotek just got a DAC-19 and has the BMB and Mojo so he could maybe speak to what you can expect if you do step up.

 

[Hansotek]

From what I've heard about the BMB, the DAC-19 and Musette should both be a nice step up.  @Hansotek
 just got a DAC-19 and has the BMB and Mojo so he could maybe speak to what you can expect if you do step up.

They are all pretty good devices. The differences are much clearer on a 2-channel system, but they are all still fairly distinguishable on headphones. IMHO it goes something like this: Bimby << Mojo < DAC-19.

Again, this is just my subjective opinion, but I feel like Mojo is about 10% better than Bifrost, with a less strained/fatiguing midrange, better sense of space, improved depth/layering, better dynamics, better blackground, superior microdynamics and more punch/impact.

DAC-19 maintains many of the technicalities of Mojo, but does so with more emotional engagement, better transparency and more natural timbre. Overall, I'd say it is maybe a 5% improvement from Mojo and about a 15% improvement over Bifrost Multibit.

Obviously, these numbers are somewhat subjective and arbitrary on my part, just trying to communicate the differences the best way I know possible. Again, all three are good devices and I would recommend any of them without hesitation. Definitely don't want to paint Bimby in a negative light. Just because I like the other two better doesn't mean that it is bad. It kicks the snot out of just about any DAC under $600, and with different synergies/pairings YMMV on the best results.

 

[defbear]

They are all pretty good devices. The differences are much clearer on a 2-channel system, but they are all still fairly distinguishable on headphones. IMHO it goes something like this: Bimby << Mojo < DAC-19.

Again, this is just my subjective opinion, but I feel like Mojo is about 10% better than Bifrost, with a less strained/fatiguing midrange, better sense of space, improved depth/layering, better dynamics, better blackground, superior microdynamics and more punch/impact.

DAC-19 maintains many of the technicalities of Mojo, but does so with more emotional engagement, better transparency and more natural timbre. Overall, I'd say it is maybe a 5% improvement from Mojo and about a 15% improvement over Bifrost Multibit.

Obviously, these numbers are somewhat subjective and arbitrary on my part, just trying to communicate the differences the best way I know possible. Again, all three are good devices and I would recommend any of them without hesitation. Definitely don't want to paint Bimby in a negative light. Just because I like the other two better doesn't mean that it is bad. It kicks the snot out of just about any DAC under $600, and with different synergies/pairings YMMV on the best results.

Thank you for the impressions. It sounds like I need to reach higher. Or perhaps deeper into the wallet. I could get it all over with and get an Yggy. Seems too easy. There must be something else out there.

 

[grizzlybeast]

 

They are all pretty good devices. The differences are much clearer on a 2-channel system, but they are all still fairly distinguishable on headphones. IMHO it goes something like this: Bimby << Mojo < DAC-19.

Again, this is just my subjective opinion, but I feel like Mojo is about 10% better than Bifrost, with a less strained/fatiguing midrange, better sense of space, improved depth/layering, better dynamics, better blackground, superior microdynamics and more punch/impact.

DAC-19 maintains many of the technicalities of Mojo, but does so with more emotional engagement, better transparency and more natural timbre. Overall, I'd say it is maybe a 5% improvement from Mojo and about a 15% improvement over Bifrost Multibit.

Obviously, these numbers are somewhat subjective and arbitrary on my part, just trying to communicate the differences the best way I know possible. Again, all three are good devices and I would recommend any of them without hesitation. Definitely don't want to paint Bimby in a negative light. Just because I like the other two better doesn't mean that it is bad. It kicks the snot out of just about any DAC under $600, and with different synergies/pairings YMMV on the best results.

Thank you for the impressions. It sounds like I need to reach higher. Or perhaps deeper into the wallet. I could get it all over with and get an Yggy. Seems too easy. There must be something else out there.

If there is one thing that the audio world is not short of its DAC's. Schiit has marvelous marketing so you will hear of them the most. But there are others that cost even more and are reported to sound better. If you ever find a Pavane at a good price I highly recommend it. I love it. You have a lot of gear there. You can easily trim some fat and get a yggy or a pavane.  
 
Also the New Cayin iDAC-6 is great and the iHA-6 pairing with the Omni is one of the best I have heard them with. 

 

[ThePianoMan]

Don't forget Gumby either. There's also Old Theta DACs used, or even some smaller one-person companies turning out R2R DACs (I'm forgetting the names, but a quick Google search should avail you)

 

[Hansotek]

Thank you for the impressions. It sounds like I need to reach higher. Or perhaps deeper into the wallet. I could get it all over with and get an Yggy. Seems too easy. There must be something else out there.

Yiggy is great, no doubt. Certainly there is other good stuff out there.

I'm a huge fan of the Questyle CAS192D. Everyone always sleeps on that one because R2R got so popular in the last couple of years, but it is one of the best delta-sigma implementations and one of the cleanest, most musical DACs around. In fact, it is so clean, you can't even measure the THD on standard equipment. It's like 0.00028% or something crazy like that. The new Golden edition is even lower at 0.00022%, which may not seem like much, but it is an improvement of over 20%. I really need to hear them back to back sometime.

The Mytek Brooklyn is another one that is highly under appreciated, but I think might become pretty popular in the coming year because it is capable of decoding MQA. Again, it is delta-sigma, but that doesn't necessarily mean it sucks, most people just suck at implimenting delta-sigma.

The Berkley Alpha and Resolution Cantata are amazing, but way overpriced, IMO. I had a hard time reliably distinguishing the Cantata and DAC-19 (which both use the same chip). The Chord Dave is also super boss, but hot damn, it is expensive! Can't justify paying that much personally, but it is pretty sick.

The Metrum Musette seems interesting and well priced, but I need more listening time with it to form a real opinion.

Oh, almost forgot to mention the Lampizador Model 4! Now that is an amazing DAC. Tons of weight and body, but still incredibly incisive and spacious. It really does everything well. I think I can honestly say the Lampizador Model 4 paired with the Wells Enigma and Danacable interconnects is the flat-out #1 best setup I've heard synergistically with the Omni. We set this up at AXPONA and listened to it with zach915m, Dana Robbins from Danacable, Kristen from Wells Audio and a few of the Ginkgo Audio guys and absolutely everyone walked away just shocked and blown away by the sound. IIRC, Zach said something like, "I honestly didn't know my headphones could sound like THAT." It was just stunning in every way possible.

Anyway, my point is, there are quite a few other good DACs on the market. Yiggy is very good and very well marketed, which is going to make it the loudest voice in the room. Just don't confuse that with it being the only option available for end game.

 

[ButtUglyJeff]

Yeah, the Musette plays real nice with the LC...
 

 
I promised myself I'd stop blabbing about my new love.  A very lovely sound.  Accurate, but not too accurate.  Meaning musical with enough accuracy.  I love hearing new nuances in my existing collection.  And its not crazy large.  This thing is going to grow in popularity here...
 
 
....and FYI, Zach is a Metrum Dealer.  He just didn't update his site yet to reflect it yet.

 

[grizzlybeast]

Yeah, the Musette plays real nice with the LC...




I promised myself I'd stop blabbing about my new love.  A very lovely sound.  Accurate, but not too accurate.  Meaning musical with enough accuracy.  I love hearing new nuances in my existing collection.  And its not crazy large.  This thing is going to grow in popularity here...

Now thats an analog sounding set up.
I recommend scouting an external power supply. It is been mentioned to improve the speed and transparency of the Musette