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Musetec (LKS) MH-DA005 DAC

Some history: I was the OP on a four year old thread about the Chinese LKS MH-DA004 DAC. It achieved an underground buzz. The open architecture of its predecessor MH-DA003 made it the object of a lot of user mods, usually to its analog section, rolling op amps or replacing with discrete. The MH-DA004 with its new ESS chips and JFET analog section was called better then the modified older units. It has two ES9038pro DAC chips deliberately run warm, massive power supply, powered Amanero USB board, JFET section, 3 Crystek femtosecond clocks, Mundorf caps, Cardas connectors, etc., for about $1500. For this vinyl guy any reservation about ESS chips was resolved by the LKS implimentaion, but their revelation of detail was preserved, something that a listener to classic music especially appreciated. I made a list of DACs (many far more expensive) it was compared favorably to in forums. Modifications continued, now to clocks and caps. Components built to a price can be improved by costlier parts and the modifiers wrote glowingly of the SQ they achieved.

Meanwhile, during the 4 years after release of the MH-DA004, LKS (now Musetec) worked on the new MH-DA005 design, also with a pair of ES9038pro chips. This time he used more of the best components available. One torroidal transformer has silver plated copper. Also banks of super capacitors that act like batteries, solid silver hookup wire, 4 femtoclocks each costing multiples of the Crysteks, a revised Amanero board, more of the best European caps and a new partitioned case. I can't say cost NO object, but costs well beyond. A higher price, of course. Details at http://www.mu-sound.com/DA005-detail.html

The question, surely, is: How does it sound? I'm only going to answer indirectly for the moment. I thought that the MH-DA004 was to be my last DAC, or at least for a very long time. I was persuaded to part with my $$ by research, and by satisfaction with the MH-DA004. Frankly, I have been overwhelmed by the improvement; just didn't think it was possible. Fluidity, clarity, bass extension. A post to another board summed it up better than I can after listening to piano trios: "I have probably attended hundreds of classical concerts (both orchestral and chamber) in my life. I know what live sounds like in a good and bad seat and in a good and mediocre hall. All I can say is HOLY CRAP, this sounds like the real thing from a good seat in a good hall. Not an approximation of reality, but reality."

melm
melm OP
1,082 posts
 

@lordmelton 

Congratulations and thanks for the kind words.  Based on your last post I expected to hear from you by now, but with about a month of breaking-in.  Sorry the DAC took so long to get to you.  Others wrote that they were getting their Musetecs about 10 or so days after ordering.  Snafus happen, I guess.

Nice that it's giving some pleasure right out of the box, but the best is yet to come.  If you haven't seen it I wrote about break-in just 3 days ago.  You're surrounding the DAC with some really nice components so it's especially good to know that it is meeting expectations.

As many have written, this DAC is really optimized for USB so that's the route to work on IMO.

You write that you'll be, "looking at a USB to I2S converter re-clocker."  However, that's exactly what the upgraded Amanero board does inside the DAC with a better power supply and better clocks than you're likely to find in a separate unit.  So I fail to see the advantage.  A positive move in that direction (at least in theory) might be an ethernet to I2S device bypassing any USB entirely.  Whether such a unit can outperform the USB on the Musetec may still be a question.  Beekhuyzen tested such a device and found it not to perform better than the inexpensive USB combo he was using.

Looking forward to that post you promised after a month of break-in.

lordmelton's avatar
lordmelton
877 posts
 

@melm Thanks again. I agree the USB input is just wonderful and just keeps getting better. I’m at the stage now where I believe everything sounds better through USB!

This is a first for me because I’ve always had better sound with AES/EBU, that’s not saying it’s bad but it’s ever so slightly harder and a micron less involving, sort of 99% as good as USB.

If anyone is on the fence regarding the Musetec 005 take the plunge you won’t regret it. It’s an accurate and natural sounding DAC that reproduces music truthfully.

sns
3,369 posts
 

Yep, usb is superior way to go with many dacs. Also has the advantage of using various usb rendererers/streamers and fiber conversion. For most, usb beats even I2S which should have inherent advantage of native topology within dac, therefore, no conversion needs to done within dac.

 

We were speaking about the importance of clocking, think of all the superior clocking schemes within renderers/streamers and/or fiber media converters, jitter virtually eliminated. And then the advantage of galvanic isolation with above devices. 005 usb is also state of art or near, much engineering effort here.

dbb
207 posts
 

@sns 

Have you tried the Network Acoustics  Eno filter with the 005? I noticed you posted on another thread that you were going to try it. If you did I would  be interested in your impressions. 

sns
3,369 posts
 

@dbb  After further research I've decided to move in another direction. I have Sonore opticalrendu coming in tomorrow. This will replace one of my TPLink FMC and SOTM sms200 Neo.

 

I've been streaming for six years now, greatest improvements I've experienced were LPS and other optimization on server, splitting server/streamer functions and fiber conversion. The optical rendu serves two functions, improved streamer vs SOTM and replacing one lower quality FMC, My next move after this will be Small Green Computer Sonictransporter I9 or DIY server, either way will have optical output. This all in service to application of all optical network post modem.

 

Based on my experience and others with mature streaming networks, optical provides the highest resolving network. I'm also trying to simplify my streaming solution. With the above changes I can get rid of two FMC, the two lps to power them, this all post server..In front of server plans to get router with optical capability, no added switch required with this.

 

005 simply continues to excel with latest upgrades of 300b.101D tubes and Audio Note caps, Takman resistors in Statement pre. With tubes and new parts nearly fully burned in the closed in, uptight sound quality has been greatly alleviated, the bloom is getting nearly fully realized. Sound quality continues to relax with greatest resolution ever experienced, this is getting to be increasingly analog like sound quality. Opticalrendu should only increase this analog like presentation, working towards luxurious quality with extreme resolution. I fully believe 005 is capable of this presentation.

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