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Looking for a vinylesk sounding DAC

I cannot say I wasn’t satisfied with my system.

Laptop (Quobuz Studio) - > Schiit Bifrost 2 - > Ocellia Reference RCA - > Werner Acoustics, Selene (active tube preamp using two VT-231 from RCA) - > passive preamp - > Ocellia Reference RCA - > First Watt F6 dual mono custom built - > HEDD Audio’s "Heddphone" / Hifiman HE 4

From the beginning I started to built it I had a quite concrete idea of what it should sound like in the end: vinylesk without using vinyl. It took me a while to get there and now I really thought I got it: Due to the F6 the outcome is brutally powerful and incredibly fast while the tube stage adds lots of body, depth and a rich organic undertone. Finally the RCA’s from Ocellia were adding the fine raffinement and a nice holographic soundstage. Nothing smears, in just every situation everything stays transparent, well controlled/articulated and the separation is just excellent.

BUT when listening to streamed vinyl I still feel the need for action - I just want EVERY track from quobuz to sound like this. Please take just some seconds and listen to this:

https://musicandvinyl.blogspot.com/2020/08/haruomi-hosono-from-aegean-sea.html?m=1

There is just MORE elasticity, MORE tonal density, MORE plankton, MORE concentration to the point, MORE light-footedness and MORE palpability (compared to a "disdainful" quobuz stream). Do you know what I mean?

I still think and hope a new dac could be the nirvana-solution. But which one would manage the job to sound just like vinyl (99% would be ok...)?

Happy to hear your suggestions!
barrista0611
desktopguy
384 posts
 
I see people on this & other threads really trashing NOS DACs on technical grounds. I also see certain measurement-centric (vs listening-centric) audio sites trashing NOS DACs.

If you really want to get closer to vinyl/analog sound while staying in the digital realm, the surest way I know is to get yourself a solid NOS DAC. My 2nd NOS DAC is the MHDT Labs Orchid w/tube buffer circuit (which I rolled an older tube into). I don't know & don't care how it measures--I do know that it succeeds in shedding the known digital nasties better than any previous DAC in my system. In the side system I have a multibit DAC (Audio GD DAC-19) which, despite also getting trashed by reviewers, sounds quite decent to me.

Understand, though--NOS digital may lack the familiar digital nasties (edgy/insistent upper midrange & treble; overly "dry" acoustic; harmonically thin notes; impactful but tonally parched bass; on and on)--but it isn't equivalent to really good vinyl. Digital & vinyl simply don't sound the same. 

In fairness to digital, it's quite easy to use a peaky/pricey moving coil cartridge with the wrong phono preamp to arrive at sound nearly as nasty as trad/delta-sigma digital. Still different from digital, but nasty.
soundermn's avatar
soundermn
344 posts
 
Digital is never going to sound like vinyl.  It just isn't.  There's no needle, it's not analogue.

So you bought a Tesla, but you wish it sounded like a Ferrari.  There's no cylinders, pistons or exhaust.  But, you could play a recording through the stereo.  Will it sound like an engine?  Yes.  Is it the same?  No way.  

You can't get blood from a turnip.  This is just how it is.
jjss49's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
jjss49
6,612 posts
 
@snackeyp

I find it amusing how so many "audiophiles" dig in on one or the other medium of music delivery as being superior and the other being useless.
I believe that both digital and analog are amazing once the right formula is found. The right combination of components can/will produce magic. Shutting oneself off to one particular medium because of preconceptions, misconceptions, bad experiences and the like is the definition of ignorance. For many (most?), ignorance is easy, convenient and comfortable. There is pain and inconvenience in discovery and enlightenment. There is also a lot of joy in it, if you’re willing to keep an open mind

well said, and i agree wholeheartedly

earlier this year when covid started and being mostly shut in, i undertook the challenge of learning and implementing streaming into my system, which was cd and lp based up to that point - my question was can i get streaming to sound as good as cd or analog

it has been a long, but fun and interesting journey - some 8-10 streamers, 25-30 dacs... the short answer is yes, streaming sounds every bit as good, mostly due to good sounding dacs

the whole experience streaming is such a massive upgrade to only listening to cd’s and lp’s on hand -- simply because streaming lets you discover new music so effortlessly... sooooo happy now... i listen more than ever and enjoy it more than ever
decooney
2,178 posts
 
i listen more than ever and enjoy it more than ever

Precisely.  And with a really good DAC, even better.  
barrista0611 OP
26 posts
 
@jjss49 Just out of curiosity - which dac did you finally choose based on your corona-phase-shootout?

@snackeyp I was reading your review of the Holo May. Excellent write-up, absolutely enjoyed it. As the May is not my budget - are you able to compare to the Spring 2?

Anyone using the Spring 1, L2? 
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