Article: Bryston BDA-1 DAC Review

[minzyman]

Guys,<br />

<br />

I guess to be fair I should add that the Sonos System front end could have been the culprit for much of the jitter induced effects I heard from the Bryston/Accuphase system.<br />

<br />

Still, for me there are several alternatives to Redbook CD out there that many of us are exploring. Since we all have a cd player, one of the key objectives in investing in a digital music server/DAC is to surpass the sound quality of cd (esp. given the availability of great hi-rez recordings). Otherwise the investment just doesn't seem worthwhile. Some of my audiophile friends have suggested I just get a turntable instead, as it sounds "far better" than digital. So in my analysis of these new Dacs that are being cranked out, I hold the bar fairly high.<br />

<br />

/LM

[znorter]

Yess...<br />

...I am sure (and I agree with the post you wrote) about the "real" necessity to have a PC sys in my audiophile existence:<br />

TO PLAY THE HIRES FILE made in digital domain!<br />

For all the rest we can afford (analog world), we have* in best quality order the:<br />

A) reel to reel studio master<br />

B) turntables sys<br />

C) sacd players<br />

<br />

Luca<br />

<br />

<br />

*in my honest opinion<br />

<br />

P.S. "A1" will be the category of the PC front end with digital master downloaded and recorded during these last years when it will be possible to buy some pro devices for a reasonable price because now the standard PC sys are yet too much populars. Good work, C.A.

[DanRubin]

Meaning absolutely no disrespect, Chris, I have to say that I am very skeptical of your comment that the sound of the USB input is 99% of the AES/EBU via the Lynx card. My understanding is that Bryston has not done a no-holds-barred USB implementation and I expected it to be sub-par through that input, akin to the Bel Canto. Whereas I thought the AES EBU out of the Lynx card was supposed to be state of the art. If the Bryston USB really is that good, I'll buy one.

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Dan - No disrespect taken, I think it's great to hear from readers whether they agree or disagree with any part of a review. It certainly helps keep writers honest when people all over the world are free to express their opinion directly below each review.<br />

<br />

I see where you are coming from Dan and it's a very good topic for discussion. I don't think it is as easy as your post suggests. <br />

<br />

<br />

You suggest Bryston did not do a "...no-holds-barred USB implementation..."<br />

<br />

and <br />

<br />

You suggest "...AES EBU out of the Lynx card was supposed to be state of the art..."<br />

<br />

Both of those statements could be true and I'd still stand by my 99% comment. Here is why.<br />

<br />

1. You appear to be comparing two totally different components from two different manufacturers. <br />

A. The USB input from Bryston<br />

B. The AES16e digital I/O card from Lynx Studio<br />

<br />

2. It appears that you're assuming Bryston did do a "...no-holds-barred ... implementation..." on its AES interface and that anything less on the USB interface should not sound as good? Are all AES interfaces better than less than perfect USB interfaces? It is quite possible that Bryston did any combination of good - better - best implementations on both USB and AES.<br />

<br />

3. Your suggesting that there is no homogenization of the sound taking place within the DAC. For example, components all have a sonic signature. If the analog stage has a sonic signature this is likely to impact the sound by acting like a filter and bringing the sound of different digital inputs much closer together. I'm not saying this is the case with the BDA-1 nor am I saying this is always a bad thing. <br />

<br />

<br />

Again, no disrespect or offense meant by any of my comments. I'm sure you'll respect my honesty as I respect and expect yours. As you know this is a laid back site where I expect to see skeptical comments and where we can actually discuss it in good conversations. Heck, someone else may jump in and correct both of us. Anyway, I look forward to your response Dan. Talk to you soon :-)<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

[DanRubin]

Chris,<br />

<br />

You are correct that I have assumed Bryston's AES/EBU implementation is good. That's because AES/EBU and S/PDIF and Optical have been in use in DACs for as long as there have been DACs. It's not hard for a good manufacturer (and I'd certainly put Bryston in that category) to achieve excellent results. But USB for high-end audio is a new ballgame. There are a couple of standard chipsets out there that designers are using. The PCM270X, which I believe Bryston (along with Bel Canto and some others) use is not highly regarded. My Bel Canto DAC3 sounds better driven via Toslink from my Mac Mini than via USB. But Bel Canto's new USB -> SPDIF box uses the superior TAS1020 chip. I'm planning to get one. So that's the essence of my skepticism -- getting USB right is tough and I'd be surprised if Bryston has managed to get it right. But I'd be more than happy to be wrong about this. <br />

<br />

Separate from the above, I do agree that DACs have a "sound" that will be evident across all of their inputs (what you called "homogenization"). After all, these inputs share most of their circuitry.<br />

<br />

Dan

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Dan - Thanks for the reply. Speaking of Bel Canto I picked up the USB Link yesterday. I be writing up something shortly.

[carloscarr]

I wanted to add a few comments as another pleased (amazed) owner of a BDA-1. I have had it about a week, but knew from the first few minutes that it was a keeper. My previous DAC was a Lavry DA10, which is a very musical DAC and has bested Benchmark DAC1 and other DACs in its ~$1000 price range in several reviews I've seen. It was certainly a big step up in sound quality from what I had before, analog out from an M-Audio Audiophile 192 soundcard. But in comparison to the BDA-1, the DA10 sounded muddied. Perhaps my system (Magnepan speakers, Classe amps) needs a very transparent DAC like the BDA-1 to avoid this. All the faults in my system I had previously attributed to the speakers or amp, believing the opinion that a DAC is of relatively low importance and will not have a huge effect on SQ. But now these weaknesses are gone, transients are crisp and everything is more musical. I agree with a previous reviewer that the BDA-1 has "mad PRAT" (pace, rhythm, attack, timing). I especially notice this on jazz horns which previously seemed thin, but rock and other genres also benefit.<br />

After trying the optical and USB out I feel the spdif coax out gives best sound, slightly better than optical and noticeably better than USB. I also leave the upsampling off at to me it reduces the transparency and clarity of the sound (some have commented that it adds a tubey effect). One post said the spdif BNC is superior to spdif coax, but I have not tried BNC yet. USB also has some problems with volume control that I don't have with spdif, I can believe what others have reported that USB out can send high volume surges of sound due to quirks in Windows. Even with spdif, I get slight crackling when the audio playback jumps to a new sampling rate file, which never occurred with the Lavry. It would be nice if the BDA-1 was available with a digital volume control. Since I run the DAC's balanced out directly to my amps, I now must use digital volume attenuation within the playback program (Foobar or Xmplay). I buffer the original 16-bit file to 24-bit, and I believe this means that the program can reduce the volume substantially without altering the 16 significant bits. WASAPI output is available in Foobar and Xmplay on Vista, and to me sounds very noticeably better than ASIO (either ASIO4ALL or with M-Audio drivers). I think the redesigned Vista audio stack has a lot of potential. I use spdif out from the onboard audio chip (Realtek AC889). Realtek has been one of the first good implementations of the new audio protocols in Vista, and using WASAPI, the onboard chip sounds indistinguishable to WASAPI out through a mid-range soundcard like M-Audio Audiophile. I think when Lynx and RME release WaveRT drivers that take advantage of Vista's potential, then the gap between digital out from the motherboard vs. a good soundcard will widen again.<br />

In any case, the BDA-1 has improved my enjoyment of the system by a huge amount and is well worth the increase in cost over the ~$1000 DACs, which is saying something in hi-end audio's world of rapidly diminishing returns with increasing price.<br />

<br />

[Lece]

The search for right DAC for my setup has led in many directions. But as I researched and compiled trusted opinions, the decision came to be between the Bryston BDA-1 and the Benchmark DAC1 USB. The reviews for both have ranked them among the best buys for your money in both build and sonic quality, yet to my knowledge, there are no direct comparisons between the two available. And, regrettably most retailers do not sell both, let alone have demos of both for comparison. Fortunately for me I was able to come across one dealer that not only does, but one that was also able to set up an A/B listening session. For that, I have to take a quick minute to thank the people at Westlake Pro Audio (www.westlakepro.com) for allowing me 2 hours use of one of their professional mixing studios filled with some of the finest audio gear as well as one DAC1 USB and one BDA-1.<br />

I brought with me my MacBook Pro with 25 records of various music stored as AIFF 44.1K 16bit files, a mini-to-toslink fiber optic cable, and a USB 2.0 cable. All Midi Controls were set using that timesaving application, CA-Sample Rate, provided by the people at Computer Audiophile (www.computeraudiophile.com) with everything set at 44.1K and 16bit, except for the when using the Benchmark, which forces 24bit. My salesman joined me as well as the Manager of the studio who was also interested hearing what the two had to offer.<br />

As we began A/B’ing between the two from song to song, it was instantly apparent how much louder the Bryston was then the Benchmark. According to the decibel meter on the mixing board, it was approxiamtely 3db louder! To my knowledge the Benchmark does has level adjustments on the back that could easily fix that, if its volume is an issue to you.<br />

Utilizing the USB connections of both units, we all appreciated the stronger treble and tonal balance that the Benchmark had over the Bryston. Voices were slightly fuller, symbols were crisper with a longer finish, and keyboards and synthesizers had more impact and vigor. On the flipside, we also noticed that the bass was stronger and more controlled with the Bryston. The difference was equally as dramatic as the Benchmark’s strengths in higher frequencies.<br />

In terms of sound stage, the Bryston was slightly wider and a tad more room filling. The Benchmark tended to be more forward and central. Separation and definition were about the same on both units with some songs from Thom Yorke’s The Eraser Rmxs album sounding better on the Benchmark while others from Animal Collective’s Merriweather Post Pavilion sounding better on the Bryston.<br />

Unlike the Benchmark, the Bryston allows for the control over the up-sampling feature. Throughout our tests, we almost always preferred the up-sampling to be on. The difference between the function being on and off was miniscule, and I liked the fact that we had the ability to turn it off or on with the push of a button.<br />

After and hour and a half, both the manager and I preferred the Benchmark simply for its clarity and balance, with the salesman preferring the Bryston for its “pleasing scoop” that he felt evened out the balance with the midrange at higher volumes. With my mind made and as we were packing everything back up, I remembered the mini-to-toslink cable that I had brought. Knowing that the Bryston functions differently via USB then it does via its other inputs, we decided to switch the cables and do another quick test to see it there is a noticeable difference. And, yes, there was a noticeable difference.<br />

The Benchmark sounded very similar to an almost unnoticeable degree, but the Bryston opened up revealing much of the lost highs that it lacked via USB. It was not 100% at the level of the Benchmark, but it was 95-97% there, creating a very natural and full sound. The Bryston’s bass also improved in tightness, which could be a result of the pairing with better higher frequency resolution or that over the optical pathway, the Bryston’s processing was better as a whole. Playing the Isley Brothers song, “People of Today”, the BDA-1 provided a much more musical experience then the Benchmark did, even evoking some head bobbing. That is to say that the DAC1 USB sounded fantastic as well, it is just that the combination of the Bryston’s newfound clarity meshed with its already large sound stage, made for a more pleasing experience.<br />

The cable switch also improved on Bryston’s imaging, making for much sharper and more defined reproductions. This was a noticeable difference over the Benchmark. Via the BDA-1, on Henry Fiol’s Fe, Esperanza y Caridad, the background vocals in the song ”Ven y Baila mi Son” were distinct and clearly separated in space from your left to slightly right of center, and when played through the DAC1 USB, the same separate voices merged into a group, and the space narrowed to a range slightly to left and right of center. We played a few other songs with similar results. On Heat Miser’s Mic City Sons, “Rest My Head Against the Wall”, the Benchmark had a very pleasant range with all of the instruments sounding as unenthusiastically energetic as I assume Elliot Smith had wanted them to be. But when played through the Bryston, each of those instruments took its place within the soundstage, filling the room, and essentially making the whole expirence more lifelike.<br />

Given this large gain in performance, I had to reconsider my decision made 30 minutes earlier. If I had only the option of USB, I would have gone with the Benchmark without much of a thought. It has a wonderful, clear, and balanced sound, that is sharp without being harsh or hard to listen to. It, in fact, was a pleasure to listen to. It is a unit that is worth every cent. But, since the use of an optical cable is an option for me, I ultimately chose the Bryston. The gains by using an optical cable, were in our opinion’s game changing. Its’ soundstage was wide and spacious, its’ ability for separation and definition was amazing, its’ control and authority was impressive, and its’ sound, for lack of a better phrase, makes you want to dance to the music; all making the Bryston BDA-1 an easy choice as my DAC.<br />

<br />

Wes Katzir

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Wes - Wow, thanks very much for spending the time to write this very detailed post. I think you covered some of the differences very well and just as I expected. The USB implementation in the Benchmark is one of the better ones around and as you suggest it handles 24 bit audio natively. I also like the ability on the BDA-1 to turn of upsampling. It's pretty cool.<br />

<br />

Thanks again for spending so much time to help all the Computer Audiophile readers with your detailed account of your experience.

[Lece]

Chris-<br />

<br />

It was my pleasure. I am only trying to help out people in a similar situation to myself, who haven't had the opportunity of demoing both at once. It is a tough choice since there are no truly right or wrong ways to go, only ones that might suit your situation better. And since most people on this website have their speakers placed only a little further then arms reach away, like I do, I felt that the more suitable choice would be to go with the unit that provided a wider sound stage. Anything that would help to further emphasize that nice "sound envelope" I am listening for, would be a welcome addition to my rig.<br />

I will be getting the BDA-1 sometime this week or next. I was lucky enough to have the DAC1 USB in my house for a few before nights demoed the two units , so after I am done setting everything up, I will reply with my thoughts on the in home comparison. Things are always different when you don't have 4 Bryston 7BSST amplifiers or the custom Westlake Audio studio monitors that they were powering.<br />

<br />

-Wes

[DanRubin]

Thanks for doing this, Wes. And very interesting. I have not heard the USB version of the Benchmark, but my brief audition of USB into the Bryston suggested that Chris's finding --he felt that USB was excellent on the Bryston -- may be correct. So your experience clearly differs. What I will say is that the Bryston is extraordinary via SPDIF using an Empirical Audio Offramp.<br />

<br />

I'm surprised the Bryston is not getting more buzz.

[Lece]

Dan-<br />

<br />

Please don't get me wrong, I thought that Bryston had plenty of strengths via USB as well, I just enjoyed the experience of the Benchmark better in that situation. In regards to "buzz", I think it is just a matter of time. I have already started seeing more reviews released on it, with WhatHiFi just recently giving it 5 stars, and I believe that stereophile will soon release its' review. If you have any suggestions on how I can improve the connection with my Mac Mini, I would be grateful for the advice.<br />

<br />

-Wes

[DanRubin]

<em>If you have any suggestions on how I can improve the connection with my Mac Mini, I would be grateful for the advice.</em><br />

<br />

Wes, I haven't used my Bryston with a Toslink connection, but that's how I connected my Mac Mini when I was suing a Lavry DAC. I don't recall if you said which Toslink cable you are using, but I definitely found there to be a difference. I used the Wireworld, which I found to be better than the Kimber, and used a mini adapter with it. Van den Hul's OptoCoupler can be ordered with the mini-Toslink on one end, but I haven't tried it. Both are reasonably priced as cables go (< $150).<br />

<br />

My second suggestion is to play with the Audio Midi settings for sample rate and word length. See which you prefer.<br />

<br />

There are a few USB-to-SPDIF converters on the market. The best of them, such as the Empricial Offramp, which I own, and the Bel Canto, which I know only by reputation [hey Chris -- where's that review?], support 24/96 via USB and also approach it in a more advanced fashion than the built-in USB in the Bryston. They should elevate the performance above what you will get with Toslink, but the results you will get with Toslink will be excellent, I'm sure.

[Lece]

Dan-<br />

<br />

Thanks for the reply. I believe in adhering to the shortest signal path when possible. Keeping that in mind, do you think the benefits of adding an additional element to the source path in an effort to improve jitter reduction, ie. utilizing an Offramp to act as a "peacemaker" between the Mac Mini and the DAC, would outweigh the additional "color" gained simply by adding that extra unit in the signal path? And if so, why?<br />

<br />

Thanks again-<br />

<br />

Wes<br />

[DanRubin]

I wholeheartedly concur when it comes to <em>analog</em> signal path. But for the digital signal path, I think it's not hard to add devices and retain bit perfection. If one of the those devices improves overall jitter performance, then you should be ahead of the game.

[Mauro1980]

Hi Everyone<br />

<br />

I read in the article<br />

The inputs on this unit are almost endless. One USB at 16Bit 32K-48K, two coax, two optical, one AES/EBU, and two BNC all at 16-24Bit and 32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176, or 192K.<br />

I have some doubts, I agree that the limit of USB is 16/48, but I believed that for the optical was 24/96, not 24/192.<br />

In the article I understand that every input except USB can reach 24/192.<br />

<br />

Sorry if my English isn't very good<br />

<br />

bye<br />

<br />

Mauro

[The Computer Audiophile]

Hi Mauro - Using Mac OS X the optical limit is 24/96. Using Windows Vista the optical limit is 24/192.

[Mauro1980]

Thank you Chris<br />

<br />

So a laptop with optical output and Vista or Windows7 (I imagine both), Can I read waves at 24/192 without any down sampling?<br />

With WD media player the player downsamples the files at 24/48.<br />

<br />

bye<br />

<br />

Mauro

[The Computer Audiophile]

I haven't tried this one Windows 7 or with Windows Media Player. I know it works on Vista with MediaMonkey.

[dbdog]

I have a BDA-1 and I'm having a %^#&*&@ of a time getting it to keep a solid lock on the SPDIF signal from my PC. <br />

See my thread here:<br />

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/content/DAC-losing-SPDIF-signal-when-I-spark-my-gas-stove-Please-help<br />

<br />

In short, it loses it's lock on the signal whenever I spark my stove or when my furnace kicks on. See the thread for deets.<br />

<br />

Has anyone else had interference problems with their electrical system in their house? How about with the BDA-1? My old DAC (MSB link DAC) played right through anything although it was maybe making stuff up during the times of noise. Dunno. I didn't hear anything obvious. It certainly didn't sound as good as the Bryston (inbetween it's dropouts, that is). <br />

<br />

I'm starting to think I need a tinfoil hat!<br />

<br />

Cheers<br />

Dave

[dsbourque]

Great review from the latest edition of Stereophile...<br />

<br />

Conclusions<br />

The Bryston BDA-1 let me enjoy the best-sounding digital playback I’ve ever heard in my listening room, outshining even Bryston’s own BCD-1 CD player. This might be related to the fact that the BDA-1 has two Crystal CS4398s vs the BCD-1’s single chip.<br />

The Bryston BDA-1 has become an essential part of my listening expe- rience. Mated to my Quad ESL-989 loudspeakers and used with Bel Canto’s USB Link 24/96, the BDA-1 let me enjoy hi-rez files downloaded from the Internet, producing open highs, de- tailed imaging, deep soundstaging, and well-defined and authoritative bass that connected me to those crucial elements of music: pace, rhythm, and emotion. And, yes, the BDA-1 also let me enjoy a higher level of musical dimensionality and realism. As Bob Reina did when he added the Audio Research Reference 110 amplifier to his reference system, at the end of my listening sessions for the BDA-1, I put down my notebook and picked up my checkbook. I give the BDA-1 my heartfelt recommendation for the highest rating in Stereophile’s “Recommended Components.” ??

[deepakrghosh]

I am a newbie to computer audio. So I need some help.<br />

<br />

I have the BDA-1 DAC and a Apple Macbook Pro. The BDA-1 has a USB input? To get the best quality audio, can I just connect the MacBook Pro to the BDA-1 directly using a USB cable? Will this connection allow me to get the best output from regular MP3 files as well as HD tracks which will be 24/96? or do I need to do anything else.

[Audio_ELF]

To get the best quality from your BDA-1 without spending huge amounts of money, look at buying a M2Tech HiFace USB to SPDIF interface. This will give better signal to your BDA-1 than using the USB connection directly. Cost is around £100.<br />

<br />

Eloise

[deepakrghosh]

I want to avoid buying more expensive gadgets. Does any of the following work:<br />

<br />

1. Use a toslink cable with an adapter for the MAC to get a 24/96 signal out to the DAC?<br />

2. Is there a digital coax cable with an adpater (for the Mac) that can be connected to the DAC?<br />

3. Straight USB connection - why is this connection inferior and not give me the best signal?<br />

<br />

According to Bryston, the data transfer capacity of the USB port is 1.1 compliant and therefore should have enough capacity to transmit a 24/96 or 24/192 signal? I am happy with a 24/96 signal because the BDA-1 can upsample.

[Audio_ELF]

First off, while the USB connection is USB 1.1, the way Bryston chose to implement the USB connection it's limited to 16/44.1 and 16/48.<br />

<br />

To your other suggestions ...<br />

<br />

1. Yes you can use a Mini-TOSLink to TOSLink cable (the Mini-TOSLink connection is part of the headphone socket). This will allow you to utilise 16 and 24bit at 44.1, 48 and 96k (the very latest MacBooks seam to also support 88.2k which is missing on the older ones).<br />

<br />

2. The only way to get digital co-ax is via a converter.<br />

<br />

3. See above.<br />

<br />

As I say it's your choice, but the M2Tech HiFace is getting rave reviews for getting the best out of Co-ax SPDIF DACs without spending a huge amount (not sure what you paid for the Bryston BDA-1, but in UK the RRP is £2,000 and I'm suggesting you spend another £100 - less than many cables).<br />

<br />

Wish you all the best with your new DAC.<br />

Eloise