Schiit Bifrost vs. the original Peachtree Dac-it

and even if we did how do you map the test results to a subjective listening experience?

Thats super easy, if any distortion/non-linearity/errors/etc. are below established audibility tresholds, then it’ll be transparent. THD+N of -130dB vs -140dB is not meaningful for usage as they are both below the noise floor of any room, even though it’s easy to say the latter is better. A DAC that has a frequency response of +/-0.1dB is better than +/-0.2dB, but they’ll sound similar and be audibly better than one that’s +/-1dB. IMD that’s 60dB below the fundamental will be inaudible with music (may be audible for test tones).

Indeed, getting concrete values for what’s transparent is difficult, but if the values are far better than any human tests have shown, than that’s good.

mzkmxcv:  I agree with you.  But my "Mimby" has been oodles of fun, and I still highly recommend it for someone who wants to try out a different flavor of DAC without breaking the bank.

@kahlenz

Yeah, that’s why I tried to stress that I’m talking about accurate playback. I want all my gear transparent, and add DSP to taste, rather than not add any DSP and try and mix and match gear that colors the sound on its own. Simply different philosophies.

mzkmxcv:  that accuracy agenda is out the window as soon as the recording engineer hooks up a mic.  Accurate to what?  The natural tone and timber of the acoustic event?  The engineer's concept of how it should sound?  The artist's vision of how he/she wants his/her music to come across?

When you add playback systems and varying room acoustics, the idea of "accuracy" becomes absurd.  Everything that comes in contact with the original signal is going to color the sound.  There is no such thing as accurate.

At best, playback systems should be designed for the pleasure of the listener.  That includes colorations of all sorts.  It really boils down to what you want to listen to, and what, for you, best conveys the feelings and emotions of the music.

kahlenz

... There is no such thing as accurate. At best, playback systems should be designed for the pleasure of the listener.

That's a fine preference, but of course it has nothing to do with high fidelity.