I tried the replacement that AA sent me this weekend. It worked fine when I hooked it up, and I listened to a couple of CD cuts I know well on my cold system.
I let the system including the DAP warm up for an hour, then I returned to listen again. I replayed the same two cuts, then moved to another on the same CD.
At this point the DAP had been powered up for about an hour and a quarter. Suddenly the right channel died. I muted the preamp and picked up the DAP to check out the conections, which were fine.
I unmuted the preamp and warily sat down to listen. Both channels were again operational.
About 2 minutes later I heard a loud bang through my right speaker and the right channel went dead again.
At this point I'd had all I could handle. I removed the DAP and confirmed that the right speaker was OK after the transient. This is the first piece of gear that has ever catastrophically failed in my system in over 23 years of listening.
I called AA next day and reported my problems, and they agreed to refund the unit - kudos to Joe and Matt for great customer service.
Now for my listening impressions. Of necessity they are based on about 20 minutes of listening - I normally prefer to listen much longer before forming an impression.
System (my Frankenstein) consists of:
- Wadia 7 transport
- Genesis Digital Lens
- Wadia 9 D/A
- Krell KRC-HR preamp
- Apogee Studio Grand speakers (including DAX electronic crossover)
- Pass Aleph 1.2 on the ribbon panels
- Aragon Palladium II on the subwoofers
System is currently wired single ended, except for the link from the Studio Grand DAX crossover to the Palladium II's, which only have a balanced input.
Test CD: "No Frontiers", Mary Black; main track :"Columbus"
I consider imaging and spatial detail to be one of the great strengths of the Wadia7/9 combo.
With the DAP in place, I did hear more apparent detail, but it came at a cost. My impression was that the entire tonal balance of the system had shifted toward the treble. Bass was there, but it lost some weight, and the highs seemed etched and a bit harsh. The overall sound of the system was thin, and I missed the spectral balance of the system without the DAP.
Mary Black's voice lost its warmth and huskiness, and sounded cold, sterile, and high-fi. True, I heard a bit more ambience, but no more than I would get from EQing the highs.
I don't know how the DAP would have improved with breakin, but I don't want to risk my speakers to try again. I still wonder what the processor is really doing to the signal.
Clearly Whest is having some kind of quality control issue with the DAP-10R. BOA2 got one defective unit and I got two. If you try one be sure you buy from a dealer with good support.
My $.02.