I have an AC Helene on order; I should have it by the end of June, I hope!! I will report on the sound quality after the break-in. The problem is that all my components are brand new and need to burn in (Luxman 590AXII and Kef Reference 1 Metas). I have not picked out a streamer yet, and my head is spinning; a lot of choices out there. Any insight would be great!!
DAC Shootout Starts This Weekend
Okay...in another thread I promised to do a side-by-side evaluation of the Audiobyte HydraVox/Zap vs the Rockna Wavelight. Due to the astonishing incompetence of DHL this has been delayed. At the moment, I have a plethora of DACs here and am going to do a broader comparison.
I am going to do a compare of the Rockna Wavelight, Rockna Wavedream Signature, Audiobyte HydraVox/Zap, Chord Hugo 2, Chord Hugo TT2, Bricasti M3, Bricasti M1 Special Edition, Weiss 501 and the internal DAC card for an AVM A 5.2 Integrated amp as a baseline.
For sake of consistency, I am going to use that same AVM integrated amp driving Vivid Kaya 45s. I may branch out and do some listening on other speakers (Verdant Nightshade of Blackthorn and/or Wilson Benesch Vertexes) but want to use the Vivids for every compare as they are the fullest range speakers I have here. For sake of consistency I will use a Chord 2Go/2Yu connected via an Audioquest Diamond USB as a renderer. The only exception is the Hugo 2 which has a 2Go directly attached to it. I will use a Roon Nucleus+ as a server in all cases.
My plan is to use the same five songs on every DAC; In a Sentimental Mood from Duke Ellington and John Coltrane, Be Still My Beating Heart from Sting, Liberty from Anette Askvik, Duende from Bozzio Levin Stevens and Part 1 of Mozart String Quartet No 14 in G Major from the Alban Berg Quartet. The intent is to touch on different music types without going crazy.
I will take extensive notes on each listening session and write up a POV on the strengths of each unit. I am going to start this this Friday/Saturday and will be writing things up over the next month or so. If you have thoughts, comments or requests, I will be happy to try and accommodate. The one thing I am not going to do is make the list of songs longer as that has an exponential impact on this and make everything much harder. If and when other DACs come in on trade I may add to the list through time.
I am going to do a compare of the Rockna Wavelight, Rockna Wavedream Signature, Audiobyte HydraVox/Zap, Chord Hugo 2, Chord Hugo TT2, Bricasti M3, Bricasti M1 Special Edition, Weiss 501 and the internal DAC card for an AVM A 5.2 Integrated amp as a baseline.
For sake of consistency, I am going to use that same AVM integrated amp driving Vivid Kaya 45s. I may branch out and do some listening on other speakers (Verdant Nightshade of Blackthorn and/or Wilson Benesch Vertexes) but want to use the Vivids for every compare as they are the fullest range speakers I have here. For sake of consistency I will use a Chord 2Go/2Yu connected via an Audioquest Diamond USB as a renderer. The only exception is the Hugo 2 which has a 2Go directly attached to it. I will use a Roon Nucleus+ as a server in all cases.
My plan is to use the same five songs on every DAC; In a Sentimental Mood from Duke Ellington and John Coltrane, Be Still My Beating Heart from Sting, Liberty from Anette Askvik, Duende from Bozzio Levin Stevens and Part 1 of Mozart String Quartet No 14 in G Major from the Alban Berg Quartet. The intent is to touch on different music types without going crazy.
I will take extensive notes on each listening session and write up a POV on the strengths of each unit. I am going to start this this Friday/Saturday and will be writing things up over the next month or so. If you have thoughts, comments or requests, I will be happy to try and accommodate. The one thing I am not going to do is make the list of songs longer as that has an exponential impact on this and make everything much harder. If and when other DACs come in on trade I may add to the list through time.
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@verdantaudio - in light of your opinion about chips v ladder v fpga dacs, I think it you would be doing the audiophile community a favor if you posted a separate thread about your findings based on comparing a large number of dacs, some of which you sell (gasp) and some you don’t. The myth of the resistor ladder superiority to the chip has become so prevalent as to go unchallenged. How many threads have you seen “looking for a resistor ladder dac” because of the assumption that it sounds less digital? I think you would be doing people a favor in helping them buy based on sound as opposed to design. Thanks |
Also, as an aside, I fully agree with the above posts mentioning the importance of the power supply to the sound. In my Naim days, I remember adding the optional 5k power supply to my 5k CD player and it transformed the sound to a degree I could not believe. And it was only the power supply. Nothing else changed. I have a sneaking suspicion that the Modwright mods that are so highly regarded owe their sound in large part to that hefty outboard power supply he adds. OCD Mike’s video about the Playback dac shows a monsterous power supply in there, resembling that of a power amp. |
Verdant, if you look at Michael Fremer's current "Associated Equipment" list, e.g. in his review of the Gryphon Commander Preamp, you will see he is using a SW1X LPUIII in his rotation of phono pre's. That company makes a model of DAC called the DACIII Balanced Classic. Getting your hands on one would be difficult. Too bad though. |
I would add Ed Meitner to that list too :) I just picked up a MA3 DAC that uses his MDAC2 converters. I'm actively comparing it to my Mojo Audio DAC which couldn't be much different under the hood but so far I would say they sound more similar than different. What I really like about the Mojo's sound is pretty much present with the MA3. There are some differences and that is what I need to figure out to decide if the MA3 will replace my Mojo long term, but overall I have two DACs that sound really really good to my ears, and they don't share very much design or implementation details...
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