DDriveman - thank you. I don’t blame anyone for not searching through the previous 84 pages since it’s a daunting task, but I owned and sold the DAVE, auditioned the Allnic D5000, and have had the Zanden DAC and phono stage in my room (owned and sold the Zanden phono stage).
In total disclosure, the Blu2 was not yet released so I did NOT hear the DAVE “fully loaded”. But the DAVE, on its own, although very good, did not overshadow several other dacs in its price range and just under it. It’s form factor and function were seriously cool beans, but in the end it couldn’t compete with other dacs I was listening to at the time. And although I desperately avoid being jaded, I REALLY wanted to like the DAVE. As a headphone DAC/amp combo it is, however, VERY hard to beat! I don’t know if the Blu2 will compensate for the faults I found in the DAVE. I do have a friend who is a dealer and he has a DAVE on demo but not a Blu2. I will see if he can bring in a Blu2 and have him bring both over.
Allnic was disapponting at best. I have a full review posted in the distant pages back.
Zanden was what you would expect. Sweet, engaging, luscious and felt like being engulfed by a giant teddy bear while listening. It was musical and engaging but lacked fine detail and accuracy, typical Zanden sound. I’m talking micro here, not macro. In the right system, Zanden can last and provide a lifetime of happy ownership. I see it joining a Zanden preamp and amps (or maybe Octave if you wanted to increase clarity and resolution a notch), and a pair of Acapella horn speakers in a medium to large room. Jazz and blues and chamber music and choir..... oh mee oh my!!!!
👍🏻👍🏻
In total disclosure, the Blu2 was not yet released so I did NOT hear the DAVE “fully loaded”. But the DAVE, on its own, although very good, did not overshadow several other dacs in its price range and just under it. It’s form factor and function were seriously cool beans, but in the end it couldn’t compete with other dacs I was listening to at the time. And although I desperately avoid being jaded, I REALLY wanted to like the DAVE. As a headphone DAC/amp combo it is, however, VERY hard to beat! I don’t know if the Blu2 will compensate for the faults I found in the DAVE. I do have a friend who is a dealer and he has a DAVE on demo but not a Blu2. I will see if he can bring in a Blu2 and have him bring both over.
Allnic was disapponting at best. I have a full review posted in the distant pages back.
Zanden was what you would expect. Sweet, engaging, luscious and felt like being engulfed by a giant teddy bear while listening. It was musical and engaging but lacked fine detail and accuracy, typical Zanden sound. I’m talking micro here, not macro. In the right system, Zanden can last and provide a lifetime of happy ownership. I see it joining a Zanden preamp and amps (or maybe Octave if you wanted to increase clarity and resolution a notch), and a pair of Acapella horn speakers in a medium to large room. Jazz and blues and chamber music and choir..... oh mee oh my!!!!
👍🏻👍🏻