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

My FAQ response:

Good to hear from you. Hope all is well with you.

Lets call this latest DSP as BGA-DSP. It has various improvements over the previous one offered before Nov 2019:

- Intel Altera Cyclone IV FPGA with more IOs

- Improved PCB layout

- Improved components, i.e. ERO caps from Germany

Here's my take:

1. If you own and are happy with the current DSP board now, you do not need to upgrade. The high res support (PCM1536/DSD1024) and functions are exactly the same compared to the BGA-DSP.

2. But as all audiophiles, we are OCD, we are perfectionists, we like to try new things. That's the fun part of our hobby. The BGA-DSP is inexpensive (we subsidised heavily on the DSP board offer), it could be fun to play with it. We certainly need more toys at this strange time since we have unusually more time at home :)

Please stay safe, take care!

Many thanks.

Regards,

Alvin Chee

www.vinshineaudio.com

BGA-DSP Board Install Guide:

https://www.denafrips.com/single-post/2020/05/06/Guide-BGA-DSP-Upgrade?utm_campaign=9b01618a-f87c-41ab-98ad-b179a5f16465&utm_source=so&utm_medium=mail&cid=6a6bbfad-aefa-4c9d-9edc-f0321a709747

I see the new Denafrips digital-to-digital products accept clock inputs around 45mhz. Any idea why they chose these rates? The most commonly used rate in audio studio master clocks is 10mhz, as well as multiples of 44.1 to 192khz. Also, can the multiple outputs on these products be used simultaneously? In my system it would be useful to operate USB and AES/EBU outputs simultaneously-- one to a DAC and the other to a digital recorder.

Hi, I'm interested to buy a Terminator. Is there anyone.in the UK who has bought one from Singapore and imported it into the UK?
If so, may I ask how much Import Fees and Customs rates were paid? Obviously I know.The VAT fee but would like to gain solid info for UK importation.
Many thanks.

Terminator update.

First, the not so good: In an earlier post I stated I had sent the unit back for transformer hum. I’ve seen at least one other posting regarding the same. There was still a very slight hum when returned to me. I agree with the prior poster that this really is not acceptable for a flagship product. However, I bought an Emotiva CMX2 DC offset blocker which cured the hum. (There are few, even very expensive, power conditioners designed to eliminate DC offset). Apparently there is some degree of DC offset on my power lines, but the Denafrips was the only component not able to cope with it as nothing else in my system has any transformer hum. One more box to contend with in my system, fortunately I have room to hide it. Something to think about.

As for the sound, for the most part it is amazing! With PCM it’s detailed yet warm with stunning holographic imaging. But...On occasion there is static and a hissing sound similar to what you might experience with extreme clocking/jitter issue. Restarting play usually cures it. I am not sure if this is an issue with the Denafrips or Roon software or my nucleus+. Not quite sure how to trouble shoot that one. Any suggestions are welcome. The fact that it happens, even occasionally, haunts me... “is it happening now at a less audible level? Is the sound right? Could it be better? Is the DAC broken?“ Sometimes the music seems better than others even when I don’t hear the hiss. Just in my head???

As for DSD vs PCM. It’s hard to A/B it by upsampling. When I upsample PCM to DSD the level drops considerably which has a dramatic affect on perceived sound quality. (The opposite happens if I downsample a DSD file to PCM—the level increases) Again, I am not sure if this is a function of the DAC or the Roon software. I have tried to correct for this by adjusting the volume, but don’t seem to be able to get it just right. My very rough impression is the DSD soundstage seems ever so slightly more compressed with less detail. In fact, I have taken to down sampling some DSD material to PCM. On the surface this makes sense, as the magic in the DAC is the R2R where PCM shines.