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DACs and bass response?

I'm auditioning dacs in my system. One (COS) was way to analytical, overall, but had very tight bass. Another (Aqua La Voce) is what some would describe as "musical"  and sounds  terrific in all aspects except bass. My cdp alone does better in that regard. I have monitors and no subs. Can I expect that dacs that are hyper-detailed will also offer tighter bass as a rule?
stuartk
charles1dad's avatar
charles1dad
10,250 posts
 
Stuartk,
Reading various post by listeners who’ve heard the Benchmark Dacs some have described them as having a "thin" or somewhat clinical sound character. Subjective to be sure and some listeners love its sonic character.

If at all possible listen to it yourself . It’s impossible to predict accurately what someone else may like based on another’s taste. You may find this DAC to be excellent or you could find it somewhat sterile, amusical  and unengaging. I hope that you are able to audition the Benchmark in your system.
Best of luck,
Charles
shadorne's avatar
shadorne
7,477 posts
 
@stuartk  

Euphonic would be a tube like sound - richer in even harmonics than is on the recording and can sound wonderful. Your choice as to what you prefer. There is no wrong choice.
gdhal's avatar
gdhal
1,641 posts
 
Reading various post by listeners who’ve heard the Benchmark Dacs some have described them as having a "thin" or somewhat clinical sound character. Subjective to be sure and some listeners love its sonic character.

True. This is because they use delta sigma Sabre ESS series chips, which have a well known/documented signature sound.


lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,632 posts
 
@stuartk,

What are your source components? I am thinking may be there is a room for improvements elsewhere in your system. 

worldwidewholesales
137 posts
 
Hi,

The servers we have tested include all the Lumin servers, 2 Antipodes server, DS and DX, 3 Aurender servers but not the top Aurender, Total dac server (very nice but only when using the matching Total dac) and several units like Cocktail and Auralic. Our favorite servers we have tested are the Sonore products. My reference server is the Sonore Signature Rendu SE model but even the smaller ultraRendu with an aftermarket linear power supply tested above many of the more expensive servers that we tested.

 

When we did our testing we did it on several higher end, very sensitive systems. We were testing for a lower noise floor, better soundstage, better harmonics and less digital glare. The Sonore products just produced a more natural music flow and sounded much more analogue than the other servers.

 

The other factor that really effects the sound of the server is the quality of the CAT 7 cable that you use and the quality of the USB cable that you use. Inakustik USB Reference cable and the Inakustik Reference CAT 7 cables are our reference cables. We have blind tested slightly over 400 different cable models over many years of testing cables.

 

Just a quick note; we are the Canadian and North American distributor for some of these products but we never take on new lines unless they beat our previous reference lines.

 

Cheers and enjoy your holidays.
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