I suspect that part of why the guys on the ASR forum excoriate guys like me with "too much money and not enough brains" is that they don't have the money to buy higher end gear. This might sound unduly snobby but IME, system resolution generally gets better as you spend more on gear. A truly high end system very noticeably reveals component shortcomings. They probably know that, but are too embarrassed and envious to admit it.
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 $$ by research, and by satisfaction with the MH-DA004. Frankly, I have been overwhelmed by the improvement; just didn't think it was possible. Fluidity, clarity, bass extension. A post to another board summed it up better than I can after listening to piano trios: "I have probably attended hundreds of classical concerts (both orchestral and chamber) in my life. I know what live sounds like in a good and bad seat and in a good and mediocre hall. All I can say is HOLY CRAP, this sounds like the real thing from a good seat in a good hall. Not an approximation of reality, but reality."
Meanwhile, during the 4 years after release of the MH-DA004, LKS (now Musetec) worked on the new MH-DA005 design, also with a pair of ES9038pro chips. This time he used more of the best components available. One torroidal transformer has silver plated copper. Also banks of super capacitors that act like batteries, solid silver hookup wire, 4 femtoclocks each costing multiples of the Crysteks, a revised Amanero board, more of the best European caps and a new partitioned case. I can't say cost NO object, but costs well beyond. A higher price, of course. Details at http://www.mu-sound.com/DA005-detail.html
The question, surely, is: How does it sound? I'm only going to answer indirectly for the moment. I thought that the MH-DA004 was to be my last DAC, or at least for a very long time. I was persuaded to part with my $$ 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."
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To change the subject. An interesting thing happened today. I brought back my CODA 07x preamp to my office and removed my Benchmark LA4 preamp from the office. I learned that the CODA 07x maybe useful with my, soon to be delivered, RAAL VM-1a headphone amp (it has only 1 input). So, in it went to the office system. I had a ROON software update done today before the gear changes, I was listening with my Musetec 005 DAC after the update and not the Benchmark DAC3B. Both DACs were working flawlessly in the past with either one of my preamps. Today the DAC3B had a lot of distortion on the music, this was easy to hear with ADELE 21 stream from my FLAC version on my hard drive. On the Musetec 005 I had no distortion, just perfect sound. I did some investigation (changing XLR’s, preamps, USB cables) and narrowed it down to the DAC3B now requiring the HEADROOM MANAGEMENT feature enabled in ROON. I found that values less than -3 on the HEADROOM ADJUSTMENT fixed the distortion I was hearing. I am testing all of this on my RAAL SR1a headphone which are uber revealing. Interesting aspect of this issue is that the Musetec 005 did not have the distortion after the ROON update and the DAC3B did not need the -3 or less adjustment prior to the software update. Now that this is all fixed, I am doing A | B comparisons of the 2 DACs with 2 streams from 2 OpticalRendu’s. It is so easy to hear the differences in these 2 DACs. The Musetec is such a clear winner with the RAAL SR1a. When I get my tube RAAL VM-1a amp I am not sure if the Musetec 005 will be the winner. Ok, back to whatever we were discussing. (9) Help explain intersample overs, please? | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum |
Is it possible to ask the manufacturer to correct what is reported on the technical specifications or to refute the ASR tests? Is it possible to explain to the followers of ASR that what is not measurable at the moment does not necessarily exist? they seem to me to be two essential questions, answering which would put an end to the diatribe |
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