DENAFRIPS DAC ---- Owner Impressions, Feedback, General Discussion, Questions and more....


Thread for OWNER IMPRESSIONS, FEEDBACK, QUESTIONS, ETC. regarding DENAFRIPS DACs.

DENAFRIPS lists the following R2R DACs:

Ares, Pontus, Venus, and Terminator (in increasing price order).

"DENAFRIPS incorporated in year 2012, focus in developing high end audio equipment at a very affordable price. Throughout the years of intense Research & Development, and continuous improvement of the product lines, DENAFRIPS had finally settled with the current product range equipped with R-2R ladder DAC technology. The reason behind this is the designer strongly believe that R-2R DAC is the best way to reproduce music.

The name, DENAFRIPS, stand for:

D-ynamic
E-xquisite
N-atural
A-ttractive
F-idelity
R-efined
I-ntoxicating
P-ure
S-ophisticated

This mean a lot and it is the house-sound of all DENAFRIPS products." [Copied From Denafrips About Us section]
david_ten
@danasam  Thanks for your review and thoughts and findings regarding the Pontus DAC. It was a fun read as well. I can relate to your V-8 and motorcycle saddle analogies!  

With the PONTUS you relax in your listening room in a way that I had not experienced before.

I find myself listening into the wee hours of the morning without even realizing it.
....what this hobby is about, right?

Mr. Pontus gets Terminated !

      I have been around way too many years in this addictive audio hobby of ours. There were the earliest days when, at the ripe old age of 14, and much to the chagrin of my parents , I mounted 4 speakers on the ceiling over my bed. Driven from a mono clock radio, the sound was anything but stellar, but humble beginnings we all have. Through the high school and college years there were many amplifiers, speakers, turntables and the like. I found myself visiting every showroom I could find; I even had fun at one of the largest Lafayette radio stores back in the 1970’s ! Now a retired electrical engineer, I look back and realize I have certainly chased audio nirvana with an undying passion. In the 1980’s the first CDs did not impress, so I never sold my turntable. However, in the last 10 years or so I have gotten on-board with the digital revolution in reproduction. Have tried many DACs, happy but never totally satisfied.

      I said all that to say this, the Denafrips Terminator R2R DAC is the last DAC I will need to, or want to, purchase . . . . period.  It is simply that good, and by good I mean accurate and engaging at the same time. A simple visual analogy is in order here. It is like looking at a perfect photograph, spot on focus, nothing overexposed or under exposed, perfect color balance, realistic depth of field, etc. In short, looking at a perfect photograph transports you to the time & place where the photo was taken. It is as though you were there with the photographer, seeing what he saw.

        As good as the Denafrips Pontus DAC is, the Terminator is on the ultimate musical plane. Its sound signature is definitely in the Denafrips family, it is just that it bests the Pontus in every aspect (and I assume also the Venus but to a lesser degree). With Termy (my nickname for him ) the ease of presentation witnessed with Pontus is taken to a level where you wouldn’t even mention it, because it is a nonissue. Music just flows with no sense of struggle or limitation. It feels like when a subcompact car would have done the job, you instead have an earth-moving vehicle ! The bass definition is so good that identifying the particular bass instrument in any song is child’s play. Massed strings and harmonized voices are what really stands out for me. Just prior to writing this report I listed to The Manhattan Transfer : “Boy From New York City”, “BirdLand”, and one of my favorites “Java Jive”. All of them left me with a new appreciation for this tight knit singing group, just awesome. Next up was Joe Cocker, his soulful voice came through like never before. Every inflection and intonation was brought forth in living color !

        My Termy now has about 80 hours of break-in, I know there may be a bit of improvement still left but at this point I have not complaint one.  I’ll follow up when Termy has in excess of 200 hours . . .  so stay tuned ! BTW Mr. Pontus went to a good friend, he couldn’t be happier . . . or could he?

sincerely, Dana (aka danasam)


danasam---I was just to our mutual friend's house back east here--he also having a "Termy".  Best sound from his system yet.  Such telling detail...one of the things I like --or perhaps aim for-- in my system is being able to hear each instrument/voice AS an individual and then hearing at the same time the combination of the parts.  Sort of like seeing the  trees AND the  forest!!.  And that is there with the Terminator. Also there is wonderful dynamics, and accuracy with soul.  Sound stage is particularly deep and layered.  Holographic.

Dixter.
@danasam  Gripping storytelling of Termination Day and putting Pontus up for Adoption. 

Great to hear your take and findings with the Denafrips Terminator. Having the Terminator with many more hours than yours, rest assured, you will be in for an even more rewarding experience as it fully settles in. 

Your descriptors fit with my experience with this wonderful DAC...it's great to hear the same from you. Congratulations on finding an endgame DAC for yourself!