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AudioByte Vox | Zap vs Rockna Wavelight

These 2 DACs are from the same guys and cost about the same. Has anyone compared them? What firmware was on the AudioBtye when you heard it?

It seems to me that the AudioByte is technically advanced. I do not know enough about the Rockna to comment. However, the sound that it produces is the most important factor. So how do they compare?
 
yyzsantabarbara
verdantaudio's avatar
verdantaudio
1,533 posts
 
The unit that is 4x the price is the Wavedream Signature.  The Wavelight is $4950 while the HydraVox/Zap combo $4500 list.  The difference is the Audiobyte is a pure FPGA DAC while the Wavelight is an R2R DAC with an FPGA front end.  

OCD Guy is not the sole importer of any of these products.  The US and Canadian distributor for Rockna is Worldwide Wholesalers in Canada.  Audiobyte is sold in the US direct from Rockna/Audiobyte in Romania.  I buy Audiobyte direct from Romania.   

I have Wavelights in-stock and am waiting on my Audiobyte stock so I can do a side-by side comparison of the two.  I am going to try each firmware option on the Audiobyte and will be writing up a detailed POV on each.  


rh67
307 posts
 
Cool.. interested in your side by side comparison.
yyzsantabarbara OP
5,123 posts
 
@verantaudio Thanks for the feedback. The idea of tuning the AudioByte via firmware sounds interesting. Just like the PS Audio DirectStream,

I had the AudioByte on my mind now for about 2 years. The Wavelight was something that people said to also consider.

I sold my AudioMirror Tubadour III SE yesterday and moved my Gustard X26 Pro to act as DAC/peamp in another room. So now I have my Benchmark DAC3B connected to a CODA 07x preamp and it sounds very good. I have rack space and fibre optical streaming already setup for a second DAC. So looking around for another DAC.

Looking forward to your comparison. It would also be interesting to know how the HUB changes the sound.
arafiq's avatar
arafiq
1,729 posts
 
I thought you really liked the Audio Mirror ... did something change in your setup?
yyzsantabarbara OP
5,123 posts
 
I did like the AMT3SE for my RAAL SR1a. I only used it for those headphones since I preferred my other 2 DACs on the floorstanders. The guy that created my Convolution files for my floorstanders just created Convolution files specifically for the RAAL SR1a ($250). SR1a owners are really loving these filters.

(27) Raal Ribbon Headphones - SRH1A | Page 266 | Headphone Reviews and Discussion - Head-Fi.org

Once those were installed on ROON and run the AMT3SE became redundant. I liked my other 2 DACs more on the SR1a. I sold the AMT3SE in about an hour with many offers to buy. A very popular DAC.

Taking the RAAL-requisite SR1a Headphones To Another Level - Reviews - Audiophile Style
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