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How to proceed?

Removing my Aqua La Voce dac from my system has eliminated fatigue and reduced but not fully eliminated sibilance. Running my Jay’s CDT2MKIII into my Hegel H390’s onboard dac is definitely a more relaxed presentation but tonally leaner than I prefer. Some have suggested I swap out the Hegel, but first I’d like to try another dac.

What I’m unclear about is how to go about choosing another dac that will not duplicate the same drawbacks I’ve experienced with the Aqua. Are there details in the design or specs that can guide me in this regard?  I'm unsure how to proceed.

stuartk
stuartk OP
2,376 posts
 

@gdnrbob

I mentioned Jay’s transport and Hegel integrated. I don’t think speakers are contributing to the problem but they are Silverline SR17.5 monitors. I've tried various scenarios, including slaving the Aqua to the Hegel's clock, which made matters worse. The one consistent result was that sibilance was worse with the Aqua in the signal chain.

@fthompson251

Yes-- I should’ve mentioned that’s the only thing that’s occured to me, so far, to try.

 

gdnrbob
4,411 posts
 

I don’t think speakers are contributing to the problem

Speaker design can affect playback in many ways. Some due to crossover design.

Drivers, too.

B

stuartk OP
2,376 posts
 

@gdnrbob 

No doubt, but I've had these speakers for a long time, with other components and never had a sibilance problem.

czarivey
5,697 posts
 

If you cannot rise the bridge, you can lower river

If upgrades do no good, then downgrade and find older and cheaper one.

 

mitch2
3,694 posts
 

Price range for the DAC?

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