Audio Note Dac 1.1x

I am here to provide a professional opinion to this forum so that one can feel free to express and learn from our experiences. I am going to stick with that and avoid remarks by others.

I also have to stress that I dont believe oversampling reveals more detail or that its better. I just did not like the the AN 1.1x and the 3.1 to my ears, I sold it on AA after buying it and someone bought it and ended up selling it 1 month later since he was looking for the images I have used before for my add.
I asked and he had the same problem, no resolution compared to my Classe CDP he said,. I am into tubes so that will give you an idea straight to Sonus Fabers as the primary system. I play classical music (cellist)and I am a big hifi nut for over 20 years, I just heard some much more from other units so............its an opinion :)

My advise to buyers of these DAC in particular, TRY before you BUY!

Good luck

Anway

My experience is more in line with Muralman1. I too was seduced by a Zero DAC. When I took it home for a short trial, I was less than impressed by the bass, but there was just something about the sound. To my ears it had a rightness that transcended audiophile issues like resolution and soundstaging.

So I bought a 3.1x Balanced, and it was a revelation. It was the least corrupt sound I'd ever heard from a digital box. Eventually I got greedy and went for a 4.1x, and despite the ferocious price I can't imagine wanting to change.

One thing I've realized is that each of us have our own set of aural expectations, and what sounds perfect to me may sound fatally flawed to someone else. Or vice versa - I bought a pair of top-notch 845 monoblocks recently, and they didn't turn my crank at all. After a couple of months I gave up on trying to like them, and gave them to my local dealer to sell. He promptly fell totally, head-over-heels in love with them. The same goes for DACs - I've never heard an oversampling DAC I like nearly as much as my AN, but I'm quite prepared to believe that someone else will feel differently. Caveat, as always, emptor.

Hi Gliderguider

Interesting, and thank you for your input, could you also please be kind enough to include some of the other dac's you have tried along with the AN DAC. Its good to know the reference point I guess and thank you kindly.

rapogee

The other DACs and CDPs I've used or compared to AN equipment include the Assemblage 2.6, SimAudio Nova, MSB Gold Link and Naim CD5. I've also listened extensively to a Wadia 861 in a similar, though not identical system to my own.

I've run a shotgun approach custom internal zero oversampling DAC for a few years now. Results mirror some here. Primary reason. Better timing accuracy. Therefore more accurate dynamics and preservation of spacial information. Combined with a digital amp, offers tube space, better than transistor speed.