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Ayre now has a new QX-5 all in one

box with DAC/Streamer (Tidal etc), Roon ready. It has nearly any input and a great headphone amp too.  It can also be used as a preamp, although I personally have yet to hear any digital pre sound as good as a great preamp, but that's me.  It's all balanced and has the Ayre power supply filters that all the Ayre products have.  I can't wait to hear it. I personally am running a great sounding Empirical Audio OSDE/SE with all the upgrades from Steve and I also have a Mac Mini server that Empirical totally rebuilt with a separate Hynes linear power supply.  It's full of only hi rez, well recorded music of all genres.  I love it, but the new servers do sound a bit better, so I've been looking.  I didn't want to set up a NAS, but since I run a Linn DS system in the bedroom I'm open to it.  I love the Melco NAS and may just get that for my NAS and the Ayre for everything else.  I want a simple, one box solution and I do use IEM's and cans on Sunday and Sat mornings so having a great amp solution in my main rig is enticing too.

I rn an Ayre AX-5 Twenty with Vandersteen Treo's (going to sell so I can upgrade to the Quatro's) and Basis/Aesthetix's for vinyl.  Pretty exciting times in digital.  I'm sure that Ayre will be a great value for all that it offers and it should sound incredible.  Time will tell.
ctsooner
ctsooner's avatar
ctsooner OP
2,480 posts
 
Got to hear it at the Northeast premier last weekend.  I liked what I heard, but it only had 30 hours on it.  At the end of the day when everyone left it really started to open up and the bass started to get solid.  It will keep getting better up to around 500 hours I was told.  The headphone amp on it sounded great and that's with 0 hours on it.  It's typical Ayre. It really is amazing at how they have optimized all the legacy inputs.  I have the AX5 Twenty and it will sound better with the preamp, but for someone how only had a VX5 Twenty or better, you can run it via the QX5 Twenty, but you will lose a spec of openness and a spec in the bass region I was told. That's normal for any of the great DAC volume controls.  They still don't beat a great preamp if you are using a great one. If you have a preamp that isn't pretty much world class, then you will be better off using the balanced outputs of the DAC into your amp directly.  
rshad0000
271 posts
 
Has anyone else been able to listen to the QX-5?  I have a VX-5/KX-5 twenty setup and am looking for a good DAC to compliment it.  Very interested in your impressions.   Thanks
ctsooner's avatar
ctsooner OP
2,480 posts
 
It's killer.  I have friends who have now put Berkley ref mk 2 up for sale as they bought the QX5 Twenty on the spot.  It is incredible.
erik_squires
16,892 posts
 
@ctsooner

My experience with Ayre DAC's is that they CAN sound awesome but only with great sources.

Your friends who traded in the BADA, what is the source?

Best,

Erik
ctsooner's avatar
ctsooner OP
2,480 posts
 
Erik, anyone in this league needs to have a good source.  That goes for any DAC.  If your source isn't good, then there is no way anything else can sound good in the system.  

I've heard this DAC with an old Macbook running Flac and no special software and it was the best I've ever heard it and that was before it was broken in.  
One has an Aurender W20 which is a very good source.  Another is using a Melco as a NAS, which is a very good source. I don't know if it's uncompressed Flac or WAV though.  We are talking about high end systems

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