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Denafrips Terminator vs. Venus

I was wondering if any members (non Denafrips dealers) have had first hand personal experience listening / living with these two DACs from Denafrips. The Terminator is universally acclaimed while Venus is much less talked about. I understand physically the Terminator has 2 transformers and better chassis separation.

I found a page on the Denafrips' site with two Youtube videos for comparison, but can't hear a difference through headphones. Anyone been able to compare them back to back in the same system?
divertiti
bultaco
61 posts
 
@adg101
Thank you for your response. Maybe your right. Spending that much to upgrade the Oppo 95.. I really wanted the 205... Want to sell yours?
So, you think the Cambridge 851c sounds better on red book than on the 205, huh? Interesting.

On another Denafrips thread, a poster said he did not get a positive result with the addition of a "Terminator" on his Oppo. So, he got a 205 and was really happy.  
adg101
1,063 posts
 
The 205 is a really good all around deck, but my Cambridge is more resolving and open. The 205 is on the warmer side and I do like it on poorly recorded music. Who knows why a person throwing a Terminator on an Oppo why they didn’t like it; maybe an inadequate digital cable, power cables, or the particular Oppo was showing through the Denafrips it was the weak link in the chain.  Nope, I’ll keep my 205 as it’ll move to a home theatre setup.

If you’re looking for a 205 only for red book playback there’s a lot better out there. To be fair I did replace both fuses in my Cambridge which really cleaned it up which I’ll admit sounds silly. Might do an OppoMod power supply upgrade so I can roll in different fuses. Believe the fuses in the stock 205 are fixed or soldered in.

I’m using my Bluesound Vault 2 with the DAC in the Cambridge more than just playing CD’s through the Cambridge; in fact I haven’t loaded a CD in the Cambridge for months. Maybe look at a streamer with a hard drive and buy a nice DAC and just use the Oppo for movies which it’s probably really good at.
bultaco
61 posts
 
@adg101
Thanks for your input. The streamer/DAC is something I should be taking a look at (I'm done w/vinyl ). I'm very interested in MQA.

My system deserves better. It's a little north of 60k, so an Oppo being my only source is a crime.
ianrodger
164 posts
 
Very happy Pontus owner here!
eugene78
2 posts
 
@celander 

I am the one who record the video of Venus vs Terminator. Frankly, it's hard to tell the difference from handphone recordings. I have both of the DAC at that time is due to my friend is buying the Venus and I have the Terminator. So we do a quick comparison.

He opts for Venus due to space and budget. He is upgrading from Pontus.

Venus vs Pontus is a big difference. Pontus is warm and smooth, Venus will give you a lot more details.

Terminator is much more refine and has the control. The power section in Terminator is the killer over Venus.

Terminator is definitely worth the extra bucks!


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