Jump to content
IGNORED

AudioQuest DragonFly 24/96 Asynchronous USB DAC / Headphone Amp


Recommended Posts

032312Audioquest-600.jpg

I don't quite get this. You're volume control would still be in digital domain.
I know what you mean, the only way a digital volume control can reduce sound is by degradation of the signal by destroying bits. The Dragonfly has its volume on the analog side.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
dac_hd_enclosure.png

Good morning,

Seeing how it uses Gordon Rankin’s Streamlength USB protocol, and accepts Music Files Up to 24-bit/96kHz resolution just like the Halide Design Dac HD.

 

Isn't it the same Dac in a mobile interface?

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
I've only heard it through IEMs and a car stereo.
The Dragonfly sure must be a nice unit. As I understand it it can be used to connect your computer to a home stereo system by bypassing the volume control. It has a 24-bit conversion chip, two clocks, and can hook up to a pre-amp or power amp. Other than the cords. do you really think it will sound different than Gordon's other designs?

032412Gordon_Rankin-600.jpg

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
bad for integrating with pre-amps/integrated amplifiers because of (good) cable availablity.
Gordon made a product that ends in Rca's with Cryogenic wires, using the Streamlength USB protocol already. I am just waiting to see if Dragonfly causes the Halide to come down in price.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment

dac_hd_rca.png

Would make a very nice RCA DAC.
Isn't that the point, a RCA has already been done using Gordon's Streamlength USB protocol. Zeros and ones go in the USB, and analog signals come out the RCA's.
Every .. manufacturer has their own vision.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
AQSY3R.jpg

Gordons recent reply goes straight to the heart of what I was saying.

C'mon don't knock their output stage and DAC implementation just because Gordon didn't design them.
I am in the market to upgrade my Dac to one with Gordon Rankin’s Streamlength USB protocol.
I said lets do this, and AQ wanted a dac with minimum phase filters. .. I said look let me make what I originally suggested.
Nothing great was ever created by committee. If Gordon does the whole design it will be better. I drive a Porsche not a Corvette. What I would like to know is what is Gordon working on now that does go into my Vintage McIntosh amp?

 

Is there any degradation of signal expected going from Dragonfly silver outlets adapting to RCAs. And what would be the best way to do this, adapters, wires etc. or just go with a pure RCA design.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment

snowflake_full.png

You posted a picture of the answer to your question.
Which question?
..what is Gordon working on now?
What he designing now?
..is there any degradation of signal going to RCAs?
Or degradation of signal using an adapter?

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment

64112halide.jpg

 

Mahalo - I don't see the Dragonfly or the Halide on those pages. The concept page was the most interesting. Does anyone know how the Dragonfly should sound compared to the Halide Design Dac Hd?

 

Will these new advanced, lower priced products, put pressure on the pricing of older products, or do you think they be able to stand on there own a while longer at any price?

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
11-1%20%285%29.jpg

Do I use the system volume control or the iTunes volume control, or does it matter?
Did you try it both ways?
..with iTunes, it is the system master volume control, rather than iTune's own, that you want to use. Keep the iTunes volume control maxed out.
Wgscott has to be right because on an earlier Gordon Rankin Streamlength USB it says in Asian:
Setting the volume slider on the computer will result hardware in the Proton to set the analog volume control for the outputs to the desired setting.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment

Gordon's digitally controlled analog volume, like that found on the Wavelength Proton and the Dragonfly, will not cause you to degrade your sound when you reduce your computers volume, like it does on the Streamlength Halide Design Dac HD and other designs.

8_dragonfly_summerrrrrrrrr.jpg

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
..the generic USB cable does the job.
You added another distortion link in the chain.

kite7.jpg

If you wanted the Dac suspended in the middle of the cord with no loss of data and everything OCD clean, for just twice the price you could have gotten the Halide without the analog volume control.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
I don't know if there are any audible negative effects with the short cable.
You did not just add a short cable, you added two non-pro connections, and a small gauge wire. All of which theoretically could degrade your signal. The better your headphones the more likely you are to hear it. Results will probably be more extreme when you try it amplified into studio monitors. In theory you want to keep your path as pure as possible. Your system is only as good as the weakest link in the chain. No link, is better than a strong link. You put in a weak, (uneccessary from a sonic perspective) link.

weak_link.jpg

So the USB filters out some of the digital data?
The USB filters do not filter out any of the digital data, but lowering the sound on a digital volume control will degrade bits. The Gordonfly uses an analog control to prevent this degradation for computer audiophiles.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment

6359570499_1c8b794904.jpg

 

..the question is "does it matter?"
In a recent post at the Asylum Tony Lauck quoted Ayn Rand saying:
There are two sides to every issue: one side is right and the other is wrong, but the middle is always evil. The man who is wrong still retains some respect for truth, if only by accepting the responsibility of choice. But the man in the middle is the knave who blanks out the truth in order to pretend that no choice or values exist, who is willing to sit out the course of any battle, willing to cash in on the blood of the innocent or to crawl on his belly to the guilty, who dispenses justice by condemning both the robber and the robbed to jail, who solves conflicts by ordering the thinker and the fool to meet each other halfway. In any compromise between food and poison, it is only death that can win. In any compromise between good and evil, it is only evil that can profit. In that transfusion of blood which drains the good to feed the evil, the compromiser is the transmitting rubber tube . . .
You bet it matters, when you can afford to, upgrade your signal path, do not damage it.

 

For those who see things like Ayn Rand - Tony Lauck - Computer Audio Asylum

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
USB allows volume conditioning directly which is used here. This means the volume control is part of the system wide volume control located on the system tool bar and NOT in the application.
dragonfly_silk_painting_poster_print-r393c7094e451498dac1be0efc07dfd76_on2_152.jpgThis is where I see confusion. Gordon says use the system wide volume control, but AudioQuest says use iTunes.
Adjusting volume level:...When using DragonFly in this “variable output mode,” we recommend setting the computer’s main volume control to full, and turning down the music player’s (iTunes is an example of a music player) volume to 25% or less of the maximum output, in order not to damage either equipment or your ears, then adjust as desired. When used in this way, DragonFly’s onboard 64-position analog-domain volume control is able to preserve full resolution and maximum sound quality.

 

Also why 64-position?

 

http://www.musicdirect.com/documents/pdf/AAQDRAGONFLY.pdf

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
dragonfly_silk_painting_design_magnet-p147338230623769368en878_152.jpg
We are not advising anyone to bypass the analog volume control. In fact you cannot bypass the analog volume. The only audio output on Dragonfly is the 3.5 mm. analog output. What we are suggesting is that you set the computer’s midi output to max, then adjust the player’s output to suit.
This just shows that you cannot trust marketing types or customer service. By setting the computer’s midi output to max you by-pass the analog volume control. And as any Audiophile can tell you, when you adjust the player’s digital output you usually lose resolution. AudioQuest is going to have to fix the owners manual. The analog volume control in the DragonFly is controlled by the main system’s volume control.

The Driver smiled when he lost his pursuer...

Link to comment
  • 5 weeks later...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



×
×
  • Create New...