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W4S DAC2 vs Benchmark DAC1 my observation

The thread "Benchmark dac - why such diverging opinions?" inspired me to sell my Benchmark DAC1-HRD last week and give the Wyred 4 Sound DAC2 a try... short story... I think the Benchmark is a better piece of equipment.... long story you may like the W4S DAC2 better.

I have a good bit of information to write and it will not all fit into this first post. I will post two parts as I go through the process. The first part will be comparing the toslink which is my preferred input and the second part I will get into details on the USB.

Please note I do not have a preamp and both units were used as a stand alone preamp.
james63
mjbuoni
3 posts
 
Also, I haven't experienced anything that I would describe as "glare" to the Benchmark sound. I'm not sure what configuration others are using, but I have found that setting the internal jumpers to 0dB attenuation and using balanced outputs to give a superior and purer sound quality compared to the other default settings.

Cheers,
Matt
zuesman
207 posts
 

if you really want to up the game you should try the Wyred4sound 10th anniversary DAC it beats DACs costing two to three times the cost, one of the reviewers put it up against his VPI turntable with a $5,000 Japanese cartridge and he said it was every bit as analog sounding, on that review I decided to buy it and try it and I totally agree, they also offer a 30-day money-back trial, can't beat that.

tubeguy80
99 posts
 

Wow talk about bringing an old thread back to life!

I think you can still trade in the older Wyred4Sound DACs for a good value towards newer versions. I don't recall if they sell them or strip most of the guts but reuse the case. Either way that seems like a good value if they still do it. 

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