Chord 64, ECD-1, Audio Logic, Dodson DAC opinions


I am in the process of researching and will be shopping for a new(used)DAC in the near future. The ones I am considering are Chord 64, ECD-1, Audio Logic, Dodson. I am looking for some opinions from owners or people who have auditioned them. I won't have a chance to listen before I buy and hope some experts could chime in to give me their ideas/opinions. I am also concerned with price to performance ratio. My system is Krell solid state power amp/pre, speakers are Coincident. I listen to all types of music besides classical. Thanks for your help
nicksgem10s
I had the following DACs in my system. I slightly preferred the Chord 64 to the Audio Logic but I did not get a chance to experiment with NOS tubes in the AL. I thought the ECD-1 was the biggest bang for the buck using my Sony SCD-777ES as a transport. I also preferred using the ECD-1 with the Audiomeca Mephisto CDP and a highly modified Shanling CDP. The ECD-1 is a very good DAC for the used prices. The ECD-1 had the best/deepest bass of all the DACs I listened to. It also had a wider soundstage. The Audio Logic had better separation and placement of vocals and instruments and was clearer sounding. I also liked the mid range better as it was more real sounding versus the ECD-1 which as a SS unit sounded laid back but not real. The Chord slightly bettered the AL DAC in the same areas and has a 4 second delay which took some time to get used to. I also felt that NOS tubes in the AL would better the sound of this DAC and that I could taylor the sound with tubes. It was also cheaper then the Chord although I saw one on Agon for around $1500 yesterday.

I may have posted this on Agon in another thread but overall all three are very good DACs and the ECD-1 would be a good choice for someone on a budget, or an older model AL 34 DAC if you prefer the sound of tubes.

Happy Listening.
I would slightly disagree with Audioengr in that the current version of the Audio Logic, with its transformer coupling, is not really a "tubey" sounding piece anymore in the classic sense--earlier versions, particularly the early Model 34s, could be described that way, and with tube-rolling you could do a lot of tailoring of the sound to your taste. The AL offers excellent bass and detail retrieval, though perhaps not state of the art in those areas, but has a "realness/liveness" factor and dimensionality to its presentation that I haven't heard in any of the pricier DACs like Wadia, Levinson, dCS and Krell. Cannot comment on the Chord, Dodson or ECD-1 (Bigkidz compared the Audio Logic to the EC, check the archives under Audio Logic, you'll see what he reported), although looks to me like you've narrowed it down to some good choices. If there's any way to audition any of the units (if you live in NY metro area, you're welcome to hear my unit) it would be advisable, as your musical tastes and sonic preferences may not match ours, and these units, as all equipment, have different strengths and weaknesses.
oops...sorry, I hit "submit" too early...

Someone at Audiocircle did a direct comparison of the Dodson DA-218 and the Electrocompaniet ECD-1 here:

http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=11466

We did a shootout between the Dodson DA-218, Audio Logic 24MXL, Orpheus Labs DAC, Empiracal Audio-modded ECD-1, and Modwright-modded Sony DVP-NS999ES. Write-up and discussion of the shootout is here:

http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=12876
Make certain to add the Benchmark DAC-1 to the list. It is at least as good as any of those under consideration and will be the least transport sensitive. Don't let the plain cosmetics and low price raise any concern - the DAC-1 is an excellent digital decoder and a stellar value. Good luck!
I also compared the Benchmark, Birdland and Wavelength DACs to the ones I mention above and although these are very good, they IMHO did not offer the same sonics as the AL or Chord. I also tried a preamp by the person who mods the Benchmark and while it was excellent, it did not better my Pass X-1. Hope this is helpful. You need to hear a few on your own to understand what each of us are saying about the sonic signature of each DAC.

Happy Listening.