Is DEQX a game changer?

10-01-14: Drewan77
Answering about the Chord DAC, this was input to the DEQX via the phono analogue input so maybe this has some bearing on the slightly dull sound.

what??? Are you serious??
you input your DAC into the phono analog input of the DEQX & let DEQX RIAA equalize your DAC input?? (The assumption here is that the input is called 'phono' because of the equalization being done to the signal; otherwise, DEQX would have called simply called it an analog input).
You know that phono is RIAA equalized because the bass freq are compressed to make them fit in a reasonable amount of space on a LP?? The effect of this would have been to accentuate your bass & make all your music bass-heavy.
And, you actually made a critical listening decision based on this connection??
wow, Drewan77, I'm amazed.....

Bombaywalla, I'm pretty certain that none of the DEQX products, or at least the current ones, include phono stages. Given that, and also given the considerable level of expertise and experience that is evident in Drewan's posts, and also given that RCA connectors are sometimes referred to as "phono connectors," I would expect that the word "phono" in his statement was simply intended to distinguish the unit's RCA input from the balanced XLR input referred to in his next sentence.

Best regards,
-- Al

thanks for clarifying, Almarg. RCA/single-ended input might have been a less confusing word to use...

Allmarg is correct, apologies if I confused everybody, in my country a single ended input is often called a 'phono' socket. A phono stage is something else entirely

I should also point out that the latest HDP4 processor uses an entirely different (presumably improved) DAC compared to the HDP3 that I have. I still maintain that the primary benefit of DEQX is the speaker correction facility. Anything else is a bonus

Thanks ALMARG for helping us stay on track. I hope your helpful attitude becomes contagious!Very reassuring.