Thanks for all the great info and follow up, but this is such a tease! 😜 Really looking forward to your thoughts, and Mojo is now back on the short list for my next DAC upgrade — very interesting about the choke power supply. My main concern with Mojo is I’m a stickler for upper octave detail/air, sound of stick hitting the cymbal, etc. and was concerned their DACs might be a little soft sounding up there for my tastes, but I guess we’ll see…
Six DAC Comparison
I am in the middle of comparing the sound of six different DACs in my system. I own them all (I know weird) but one of them is still within a trial/return timeframe.
Not to share specific comparisons today, but a couple of observations so far are that first, they all definitely sound different from each other. On one hand, they all sound pretty good and play what is fed to them without significant flaws but on the other hand there are definite sonic differences that make it easy to understand how a person might like the sound of some of them while not liking others.
Second, raises the observation that most of them must be doing something to shape the sound in the manner the designer intended since one of the DACs, a Benchmark DAC3 HGA, was described by John Atkinson of Stereophile as providing "state-of-the-art measured performance." In the review, JA closed the measurements section by writing, "All I can say is "Wow!" I have also owned the Tambaqui (not in my current comparison), which also measured well ("The Mola Mola Tambaqui offers state-of-the-digital-art measured performance." - JA). The Benchmark reminds me sonically of the Tambaqui, both of which are excellent sounding DACs.
My point is that if the Benchmark is providing "state-of-the-art measured performance," then one could reasonably presume that the other five DACs, which sound different from the Benchmark, do not share similar ’state-of-the-art" measurements and are doing something to subtly or not so subtly alter the sound. Whether a person likes what they hear is a different issue.
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@soix - Sorry to drag this out but comparing six different DACs takes more time than I allotted! It might have been better (certainly easier) to compare two of them and then two more, and then two more, and then the three that I liked most and then the three I liked least. However, unlike a playoff, the goal is not to pick a "winner," but rather to simply report observations. I did post a picture of five of the DACs on my system page. The Mojo Audio Mystique X SE NCZ is not in my system right now as I do not have room, so I will move it in later. A couple of early observations would include that they all sound good, just different. There is not a single one of the six that I couldn't live with in my system, but I do like several better than the others. My preferences are most likely related to the music I listen to and the sonic preferences I prefer from my system. In my previous post, when I talked about liking a richer tone than I was getting from the Metrum Acoustics DACs, in general, the six DACs here do provide that. Another observation is that IMO the professional reviews of these DACs accurately portray what I am hearing - mostly. I would say there are embellishments and, as well, there are times you must read between the lines or pick-up on subtleties within the review but, in general, I would say the reviews are accurate. The specific SMc Audio DAC-2 that I have here has not actually been reviewed, but the previous "Ultra DAC" iteration received an extremely positive (almost too much so) review years ago at 6moons. While constructed from the same platform, the DAC-2 that I have here is different, and is supposed to sound better. When I get down to discussing my specific observations and comparisons, I do not intend to reinvent the wheel and will probably quote some of those existing reviews. I will also share that I really wanted to like the Merason but didn't like it so well at first. However, the more I listened, the more I liked it and now, even if it doesn't turn out to be my favorite, I do find it hard to switch to something else. It is just so easy to listen to and displays this rich sounding musicality on just about every type of music I throw its way. It is also absolutely unflappable, regardless of how hard you push it. |
Great info. As a former reviewer I’d make two observations FWIW:
So the takeaways would be that you doing these comparisons is hugely useful for relative perspective and why so many here are so eagerly awaiting your thoughts/impressions, and take the time to compare each DAC directly to the other because trying to infer firm conclusions from indirect comparisons could easily lead to erroneous findings (been there, done that). Again, FWIW. |
Hello everyone, I would like to chime in as audiophile and manufacturer. I've been audiophile for over 40 yrs. I started building audio equipment in 1984. Everything I build, I build it for myself first. If I like it(if passes my taste - listening test), it becomes a product I sell. So I would like to give my two cents. DAC chips make difference. Output section and power supply too. Parts quality also. If I have to define which one does what: DAC chip - tonality, musicality and 20-25% of the sound Output section - clarity, resolution, soundstage, dynamics, coloration and 40-50% of the sound Power supply(mostly on the digital part) and parts quality - transparency, resolution, liquid and easy flowing sound, less harshness and 20-30% of the sound. I would love to have you guys audition and evaluate my Audio Mirror - Tubadour V DAC. Vlad
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@mitch2 - No easing into retirement for you my friend! You have Benjamin and now Vlad at Audio Mirror wanting you to review their latest. I predict that Lukasz at Lampizator will be posting shortly with his thoughts & requests At this rate you may be tuning into a part time/full time DAC reviewer. Net is that this is positive news for those of us interested in the thoughts of a knowledgable common sense audiophile relating to a few select DAC's of YOUR choosing! |
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