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Gustard R26 - different sound signatures in different units

The Gustard R26 was recommended to me this year by reputation through a guy who hadn't heard it but knew people he trusted who recommended it. 

Now I've listened to a few R26's now with mixed results. It's been a journey and I made some dumb mistakes by not paying close enough attention. 

The first R26, new from Amazon, sounded dull and uninteresting, not extended on top. I was driving it through USB. I exchanged that R26 for another one, which sounded similar, but then I discovered driving it from the U18 DDC through coax (I have a very good coax digital cable) and the sound signature was totally different.. lively and extended on top. 

Then I found a used R26 on EBay for much less than I had paid for the new one from Amazon, so I returned the one to Amazon and purchased the one from EBay. It sounded brighter than the one I had returned, but at first I didn't mind. Maybe was more detailed. Strangely, the display had a micro font compared to the first two I had.

For a time I didn't do any serious listening. I was more involved in my piano playing and composing hobby. I eventually went back to the R26 I got from EBay and realized it was much too bright. I wondered if it had old firmware, given the micro font on the display. I tried upgrading the firmware, but there was no change in the display or sound.

I ordered another R26 from Amazon. This one sounds completely different than the one I got from EBay. It has about 120 hours on it so far. The problem is that it has shrill/unpleasant sibilance. I'm not saying it's particularly bright. The R26 from Ebay is brighter yet doesn't sound shrill. So the this new R26 probably still has some burn-in time needed, but the shrillness hasn't diminished at all over the first 100 hours. Maybe it's even worse.

Anyone have a similar experience with any of these?

magon
sls883
328 posts
 

@bigshutterbug I’m sure a few units with issues get through or could get damaged internally in shipping. I shipped a conrad-johnson preamp and it got knocked around enough that a bunch of capacitors came loose.

Did you try different filter settings? The fast setting has the most detail. The default setting is medium, I believe, which does sound dull to me.

Did Gustard say it was fine, or the reseller?  Which input did you use?  I was not overly impressed with the coaxial input. It improved a lot with an Acoustic Zen cable.  I mostly used the USB and I2s inputs. 

magon OP
34 posts
 

@bigshutterbug I would also like to know what input you used. What you are describing sounds like the USB input on the first R26 I bought. Switching to the I2S or Coax inputs with a U18 DDC was an entirely different sound signature, much more lively and extended, much better dynamics. 

I don't find that the filter settings make much difference for the large differences in sound I've heard between units. This older R26 I bought from EBay is much brighter, no matter the input, than the more recent R26's I've tried. It's much brighter no matter the filter setting. The later R26's through the USB input were dull no matter the filter setting.

audphile1's avatar
audphile1
4,925 posts
 

@magon You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear

get a better DAC on a used market rather than starting with a bad one and dumping more money into it for mods. 

bigshutterbug
383 posts
 

Yes, I did try all of the filter settings, which made very slight differences. I used the coax digital input, with a very good cable for most of my listening attempts. I also tried the USB input as well. When I sent it back for a refund, it was to the dealer, and they claimed that they listened to it upon return. What I heard from the unit I purchased was a sound that was miles away from what one would expect from an audiophile DAC. More like FM radio quality using a poor sounding tuner built-in to an even worse sounding $100 receiver. I truly received a lemon with that one.

sls883
328 posts
 

Sounds like something was wrong with it.  I wouldn't buy from that dealer again. They'll probably box it up and resell it. 

A $100 dac shouldn't sound like what you described.

Stupid question, but did you check the voltage switch? I don't even know if it would work. A guy on another forum couldn't get sound from his new X30. The voltage was set on 230V. 

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