Maverick Audio TubeMagic D2 DAC


After weeks of research, I scooped one of these up because the price seems unbeatable for the hardware/specs provided. $274 delivered from the Chinese mfr ($249 ex works).
Analog Devices 1955 chip; Burr-Brown OPA2604 op-amps; tube pre-out stage includes JAN GE 5670/2C51 tube "upgrade".
Also solid state pre-out.
Optical, Coax (RCA & F-type), and USB (asynchronous, using the Tenor 7022L chip) inputs.
24/96 capability (unfortunately does not go up to 192).
Audiophile S/N ratios for both outs.
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After only 15-20 hours listening and break-in, I am thrilled. The tube out is fantastic; so rich, so full, yet so clean and dynamic. No tube fog or any sort of masking, just pure enhancement. Can't really comment on solid state out because I'm so smitten with the tube stage. Very dimensional and natural.
This thang has made a BIG improvement in my enjoyment of CDs (using an old Phillips CD/DVD player as transport) and the tube out is a step or five up from the Squeezebox Touch DAC that is also part of my setup.
VERY pleased and looking forward to even sweeter sounds as the TubeMagic breaks completely in.
More to follow...
colorfulpellets
The D2 does not include a headphone jack. Or were you thinking of using it upstream of a dedicated headphone amp?
I'm thinking about using D2 as a dedicated DAC for my music system, and move D1 back as headphone amp. Does that make sense ?
Price aside, I'd like to compare this D2 with my current AD-1865 NOS Dac or a friends Metrum Octave Dac.
Both, the D1 and D1+, use an electrolytic cap with a film bypass for the left and right channels. I swapped the electrolytic's for Nichicon Muse @ 10uf. The film bypass caps were replaced with VCap CuTF .22uf although the original film caps were rated for 1.8uf but measured 1.5uf. The new caps cleared up tonality, tremendously enhanced focus, and widened the sound stage; however, there was a loss of depth with the new caps.
The D2 uses two 2.2uf Wima's as output caps with, possibly, smaller Wima's in series after the larger caps. Squeeze a pair of Jupiter VT stacked caps in there to open the stage and give the music natural timbre.