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Bidat vs Perfect Wave vs Weiss and others

This is thread I started a while ago and promised in February i would start doing some real world comparative testing using the Bidat (Plus Mod) as the ref. The units under test are to include in no specific order the MSB Platinum Dac, the Weiss Minervera and the Playback Design player. I posted this under the follow-up of the original thread and it is there is you do a search under Digital for "ps audio perfect". I can't understand why it did not 'promote' to the top of the digital section as it did in the past whenever there was a new contribution, so I have started a new related thread with the first entry of my fun (and I hope edifying comparative experiences).
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Ok, I just got a broken in Weiss Minerva (several hundred hours at least). It has been in my system burning in for about 18 hours (18 hours since arriving in my home, time to come to thermal equilibrium). I have done some comparative listening to the Museatex Dcc-1 (a rarely known digital preamp 19 bit dual differential type) using glass Tos on both and then glass on the DCC1 vs a very expensive (can't name it yet as the manufacturer has not released it...sorry :( ) Firewire on the Weiss. I have a Mac Mini (2007 model) 2.0 ghz Core2Duo with 4Gig of ram running Leopard (although this model can only see 3.01 gig of that (I used 4gig as the memory transfer is optimized when the mem modules are the same). I also have a 1TB NAS (all over wifi). I am of course going to reserve final judement until a bit later.

I will be comparing the Museatex Bidat with the Plus Mod later this weekend. As a teaser, I will go on record and say that honestly at this point I don't agree with the stellar reviews concerning the Weiss Minerva.

It is resolute, almost technicolor but just to give you a short glimpse of what I am hearing, I could imagine a well healed vinyl person listening to Holly Cole on vinyl and then listening to the Weiss (playing the same in CD format) and saying "this is why I will never leave vinyl". Now that may sound harsh, but this is a hobby and I don't have a dog in the race, I am just reporting my ears findings.

I listened to a few high resolution files 176.4/24 and 96/24 but what I heard was a really clear highly resolved soul-less rendition of the music. It never ever made me smile or relax into the music the way the DCC-1/Bidat or even my former (when I actually spun cd's...wow time flies) stellar Dynavox Dynastation 2 (the finest CD player I have ever heard).

In a nutshell (at this point) it just sounds like digital and that aint good in my camp because I am not forgetting about the gear and just listening to the music. I don't like syrupy or dark, I have heard plenty of players try to use that trick to sound musical. No, I look for something that is more elusive and few their be that find that magical combination when forging through the nether regions of the digital domain. I will continue listening to see if the Weiss surprises me :)

More to come...
audiofun
levy03
442 posts
 
no doubt Vhiner...i agree 100%. when i took my pwt/pwd to a friends house last year, my psa I2S-AC12 sounded a bit harsh with his krell amps. he had a $25 monster hdmi laying around that we tried and it sounded better.

hdmi is no different then any other connector imho. gotta find the "right one" that works with your gear.
audiofun OP
799 posts
 
Though this may be off topic a little I figured you guys might like to hear about my diverter. I have just purchased the 24/192 Sonicweld Diverter. It is supposed to ship in the next couple of weeks.

The plan is to do a head to head with the EVO into my MSB Power Dac. I will keep you posted. I've owned the HiFace which was bettered by the EVO and now I will find out if the Diverter is as good as I have read.

One Dac that I would love to try is the Empirical Audio Overdrive.., I am thinking of arranging an in home demo of the Dac. If I do I Willie course report my finding right here :)
vhiner
544 posts
 
I read the Daggogo review of the Emperical Audio Overddrive and it sounds like a contender. I was struck by one comment the reviewer made when comparing it with several very pricey DACs, including dCS's latest. He said the differences were "subtle" and "subjective". I keep hearing this from reviewers I trust about the differences between the top 10 or 15 DACs out there, MSB and the PW DAC among the list. Anthony Cordesman wrote recently that when he listened to the latest from Boulder, Meridian, and PS Audio that each one had it's strengths. While both of these reviewers had their preferences, they were quick to caution readers that the differences were NOT dramatic once you enter this pantheon of high end DACS. Some would argue that the major differences have more to do with the analog stages than the chip sets. I bow to greater minds on that subject but I suspect we may be reaching the outer envelope of what is currently understood when it comes to digital sound reproduction...until another "Ed Meitner" comes along....not that the living one is resting on his laurels. ;-) the trickle down is resulting in some mighty fine cheaper DACS. Good news for everyone.
vhiner
544 posts
 
Peter Breuninger of The Absolute Sound just give his 2011 Golden Ear Award to PS audio's Transport/DAC/ Bridge combines Golden Ear Award.

Here's the text:

Here's the text:

"This combination may not equal a handful of
 units that cost far, far more (like the Meinter
 XDS1 or the Meridian 808 Signature), but it
 comes so close that differences are as much
 matters of taste as of the finest nuances of
 sonic detail. The sound is extraordinarily live
 and detailed, and capable of getting the best
 bass response out of digital. The PS gear is
 detailed without any without hardness or edge
 that is not on the recording. A “must-hear”
 unit if you are trying to scale the heights of
 digital—particularly if you are not operating
 on an unlimited budget. It is in the process
 of becoming a full music server with its own
 music-management system, and it can handle
 even the highest sampling and frequency rates
 with ease—making it one of the few buys with
 full growth potential for the future. (Review
 pending)"
tabl10s's avatar
tabl10s
1,096 posts
 
I wonder why it wasn't included in the Dagogo piece? A DAC I found interesting was the DaVinci($15k)USB DAC that's made locally(Sacramento). It's optimized for USB, but is supposed be quite good with standard connections.
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