Yamamoto YDA 01 DAC

All300b,
Go to 6 moons.com letters page and scroll down to the recent corespodence. A reader asked this very question. Srajan said the Burson160D review is`nt quite finished but right now he prefers the Metrum Octave. Note worthy due to his very high regard for Burson against more expensive competitors. Also see comments on the last page of the Aries Cerat Gladius speaker review in the current issue.There additional comments concerning DACs. See his current April Music U3 review where 4 DACs are compared using the U3.

Hmmm....your comments are very inspiring. One thing is true that digital never sounds like analogue, at least I have never heard that happen. The continuity and liquidity of analogue is something so compelling that after a session of analogue listening even the best digital sounds discrete and thin to me. I attribute this to the absolute "continuity" of music that analogue presents. Yes there are other things like the midrange body, bass and treble presented by analogue is also something very special about analogue but that is something I can compromise a little on. What Srajan says is also true that analogue sounds "opaque" while digital sounds transparent and thinned out. If these R/2R dacs can solve any of these problems of digital playback without introducing a new one I would love to try them out. So, the Yamamoto remains as the DAC to beat when it comes to conventional design !!! Not bad :-). BTW, have you heard the Reimyo ? I used to own the Reimyo DAP777 for 2 years. Nice DAC.

Hi Pani,
I`ve not heard the Reimyo player. You make some insightful points regarding analogue/digital differences.Music continuity and flow are a high priority for me as is "natural" tone/timbre and harmonics,A good analogue system excels in this vital area.The special ability and uniqueness of the YDA-01 DAC is how sucessful MR. Yamamoto was in obtaining this with his DAC.The flow and continuity is so well done. I do think much has to do with his many years of developing/building analogue and SET tube components, this background is apparent in his DAC.

I feel Yamamoto has near maxed out this quality using the very common delta sigma chip types. My speculation is that ultimately that R/2R DACs implemented correctly can exceed the limits of delta sigma designs(in terms of these "analogue" qualities) This seems to be what Srajan is also suggesting.The R/2R sound is not as "lite up" but is dense,present.3-D and superior in terms of flow,liquidity,ease and relaxation i.e. more similar to well done analogue(which is denser and more filled in).

Further it seems to me the very simple circuit of the Metrum is a major contributor, as many believe(I among them) fewer part count-straight forward design-strong power supply=better sound. Now add the use of a non-audio chip(extreme high speed industrial chip) built by someone who relied heavily on his ears, well good things happen.

Pani, it always comes down to what type of sound you`re after. For me, true tone, natural flow and ease,realistic microdynamics wirh exceptional resolution and nuance is the goal. i`ve achieved that to my satisfaction with my amplifier and linestage. The Yamamoto is very close, I hope The Metrum Octave gets closer yet. I suspect it will.
Best Regards,

Superb Charles, it seems that we have similar goals. Apart from Delta Sigma, there is also multibit dacs like Burr Brown PCM 1704, 1702, Philips TDA1501, Analog Device AD1865. Many consider these to be architecturally more correct for music reproduction hence a more natural sound. However I have not heard the better implementations of these DAC chips so cant comment.
Fingers are crossed for the Metrum !!!

I'm very interested in the Yamamoto vs. Metrum Octave...These two DACS are extremely high on my list to join my Shindo system. I have not invested heavily in vinyl and hope to find a digital solution that gets me there. I've heard great things about Metrum and also a believer of the KISS principal as far as design goes. Charles, please keep me on your list of people to inform once you've had some time with the Metrum. I'd like to order before the price increase if it ends up being THE solution.