Ideon DAC's

I currently have the Ideon Absolute epsilon. To say it is exquisite is to fall short of its level of performance. It is my preference out of my 3 best DACs out there (one I can't afford anyway😀)

Some time ago I had to downsize and sold most of my rig incl. my MSB Select II, and settled for an Ayazi at the recommendation of a consultant I had at the time (hadn't heard of them until then). I mention this to say that I ended up not missing my beloved Select II; my little Ayazi performed way beyond any expectations I had, better than it had any right to! Transparency is top notch and bass is well articulated and strong, no problem playing complex music (classical).

It must be one of the best deals out there, based on my experience at home and recently at the Munich hi-end. Keep it on all the time, it takes about 24 hrs to reach optimum operation and add two little 3R reclockers and you won’t believe the result!

Ion: I had the Ion + pre version at home recently (just to compare with my own). I currently use a TVC into Symphonic Line Kraft. To make a long story short, the sonic result of the Ion in pre + dac guise was excellent, not very far from the Epsilon + TVC. BTW, it’s also built like a tank -- a heavy tank and likes to sit on its own feet or stillpoints. 

Between the two, the Ion is far superior -- except that you'd expect that at 3x the price. Regardless, at least you'd be getting a SOTA piece, you won't worry about pre's and DACs for a while!

Generally speaking I find that with Ideon, what you pay for is what you get -- except for the top gear which is seriously better than their price point would suggest. 

Michael Vamos, the US importer, is very friendly and helpful

we showed with the ideon dac and our 432Evo Eon server at capitol audio fest the combo was outstanding

Dave and troy

Audio intellect nj

US.importer 432EVO music servers

@gregm - sounds like the ION + preamp is the way too go according to your post. I appreciate the information. Where did you purchase it from? Thanks.

@ Audiotroy  - I'll contact you later part of the week - Thanks.

Note: If you have over $75k in your budget for a dac, streamer and external clock, the Ideon absolute epsilon system may be worth a try. 

I will pass for now.

Consider a tube DAC like Lampizator, I have a Baltic 4 with volume control, IMO the best DAC under $10K, and replace your Node with either a Lumin U1 or Innuos Pulsar. Without a good streamer you won't fully exploit your new DAC's capabilities.

@ baylinor - I noticed that you have the Gustard X26 pro - what streamer do you have with it? How does that compare to the Ideon Ayazi or Ion + preamp? 

I don’t advise that, what is your max budget ? 
if you buy Roon streamer , then when you can buy a decent Seperate linear power supply like the. Linear Tube Audio LPS that’s a huge step in sonics and dedicated power supply ,you can buy one step at a time . The dac  built in to most of these streamers cannot compare , the Gustard R26 is excellent for $1600 or less $$ under $1k the Denafrips Aries-2.   

@singere 

Current system:

-Node 130 with Teddy Pardo LPS 

-Small Green optical isolation bundle to clean up ethernet cable feed

-bluejeans ethernet cable from TP-Link wifi extender

-Monosaudio HiFi 12 AWG PC cable for Teddy Pardo

-Shunyata venom 14 PC for optical isolation bundle LPS

-Curious USB cable from Node to Gustard X26 PRO Dac

-Wyred4sound ST Stage 2 preamp

-Audio envy XLR/AES cables from Gustard to preamp

One of the reason for the Gustard is its excellent array of connections with I2s working perfectly with my Jay's cdt2-mk3 CD transport using the Tubulus Argentus I2s cable. 

What I am always after is value for the money. Never been about looks or brand names or what country it is made in. It has worked wonders for me. Instead of spending 75k on a streamer dac clock combo, I built my entire house of stereo for exactly that amount of money.

The listening room is really what takes the sound of any system to different levels. Many audiophiles are unable to pay attention to the listening room because of many understandable reasons or because they just simply choose to ignore it. Trying to attain a sound that will truly satisfy someone with equipment alone is what will force them to buy equipment in the 6 digits category but unfortunately for them, it will never reach its full potential. 

You can see my full system if you click on my handle and click on details. I got about 50k in equipment total and in the house of stereo it is the best my ears have ever heard and not by a small margin.

Enjoy the journey and happy SB day.

And I have no clue as to how it compares with the Ayazi or Ion since I have never heard either.

The ideon dac is very good I did not know they made a combo dac streamer , and not knowing your budget that's why I mentioned separates That  = around #$3k

they build good quality . Please advise if Ideon  makes a Dac-Streamer combo 

they are well made products their $3500 dac is in the same company of $5k dacs

Hi @singere

I purchased my Epsilon at the 2022 Hi-End show in Munich. I bought the actual show piece...

(Previously, it was the consultant who supplied me with the Ayazi.)

I found the Ion DAC+pre very good, definitely in the upper echelons of high-end. Regards

Audioman58 - to answer your question regarding Ideon - they do not have a combo Dac streamer.

Who buys a DAC/Streamer if spending over $2k?

I tried the Ayazi with the 3R Master Time Black Star (along with a bunch of other stuff) with my Fleetwood Deville SQs, Backert Labs Rhythm 1.3 and McGary Amp.  The bottom line is I did not love it.  I got to go back and forth between the Ideon stack and a Merson DAC1 and liked the Merason much, much better in my system. Streaming came from an Innuos Zenith MkIII server and also a Sonore Optical Rendu.

I had auditioned both Absolute and Ion Dac at home.

Although Absolute belongs to the elite class of Dac,  Ion could be better value.

Ion approach 80 % of performance at less than half price.

Server was Aurender N20.

Thomas

So I'm still searching high and low for a DAC/Streamer. The drawback is I cannot preview since no one sells them by me. The options I'm still looking at are as follows: Hopefully someone can point me in the proper direction..

1. Ideon Ayazi
2. Merason Frerot - I could get demo both DAC/power supply for $1,699
3. Chord Qutest
4. Bricasti M3

I would probably use the Innous mini Pulse, Innous Pulse or the Aurender N150 streamer.

Thanks again for any help or experience!!

@badgerdms We are living parallel audio lives.

I had the same exact experience as you.

The Merason DAC1 has not been taken off its perch on my rack since its arrival.

@macdude - what streamer are you using? 

@singere Lumin U1 mini (modified to run on a linear power supply)

The Ayazi is great, but it’s a dac only. You should seriously consider a Lumin too, prob a used T3. No inputs, but sounds fantastic.