Mike Mcsweeney Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Which should i buy if i am ok with the price of either (consider the price is the same for all 3, even if they aren't) 1. TEAC UD-501 (free Teac HR dsd player) 2. IFI MICRO (no dsd player) 3. KORG DS DAC 100 (free audiogate dsd player) Link to comment
jtm Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Which should i buy if i am ok with the price of either (consider the price is the same for all 3, even if they aren't) 1. TEAC UD-501 (free Teac HR dsd player) 2. IFI MICRO (no dsd player) 3. KORG DS DAC 100 (free audiogate dsd player) [ATTACH=CONFIG]13920[/ATTACH] Don't know your preferences on connectivity, space consumption, design & materials used, orvother stuff. For me the Teac UD-501 is a big win in my system as it easily outperforms more expensive DACs. I am using Audirvana+ and not the original Teac player software on my system. Myself being curious on the Pioneer U-05 which will come soon to EU... Link to comment
jhwalker Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Don't know your preferences on connectivity, space consumption, design & materials used, orvother stuff.For me the Teac UD-501 is a big win in my system as it easily outperforms more expensive DACs. I am using Audirvana+ and not the original Teac player software on my system. Myself being curious on the Pioneer U-05 which will come soon to EU... I can't speak from experience with TEAC or KORG, but the iFi Micro iDSD is superb. I love that it will play any music I own without transcoding or downsampling, etc., and it sounds wonderful. I thought the iFi Nano iDSD was great, so was unprepared for how much better the Micro sounds. John Walker - IT Executive Headphone - SonicTransporter i9 running Roon Server > Netgear Orbi > Blue Jeans Cable Ethernet > mRendu Roon endpoint > Topping D90 > Topping A90d > Dan Clark Expanse / HiFiMan H6SE v2 / HiFiman Arya Stealth Home Theater / Music -SonicTransporter i9 running Roon Server > Netgear Orbi > Blue Jeans Cable HDMI > Denon X3700h > Anthem Amp for front channels > Revel F208-based 5.2.4 Atmos speaker system Link to comment
gstanley75 Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Jhwalker, how does the ifi micro sound better compared to the nano? Link to comment
jhwalker Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 Jhwalker, how does the ifi micro sound better compared to the nano? For a start, the built-in amp is *much* more powerful, so your headphones pretty much immediately sound much more "authoritative". Setting that aside, PCM music sounds much clearer and more articulate than with the Nano - make no mistake, the Nano sounds great, but the Micro sounds greater I'm using the "bit perfect" filter, so that's probably part of it (you can very clearly hear the difference when you turn on either the minimum phase or linear phase filters) The bass (on both PCM and DSD) sounds much stronger and clearer with the Micro than with the Nano. DSD (as far as I can tell) is about the same between the two; i.e., I don't hear as large a difference with DSD as with PCM On a more subjective note, the Nano sounds lovely but "polite", while the Micro is more colorful and "in your face" - which I like! John Walker - IT Executive Headphone - SonicTransporter i9 running Roon Server > Netgear Orbi > Blue Jeans Cable Ethernet > mRendu Roon endpoint > Topping D90 > Topping A90d > Dan Clark Expanse / HiFiMan H6SE v2 / HiFiman Arya Stealth Home Theater / Music -SonicTransporter i9 running Roon Server > Netgear Orbi > Blue Jeans Cable HDMI > Denon X3700h > Anthem Amp for front channels > Revel F208-based 5.2.4 Atmos speaker system Link to comment
magnum innominandum Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 Hi Mac, Which should i buy if i am ok with the price of either (consider the price is the same for all 3, even if they aren't) All I read is they all are delta sigma.... Just kick that crap where it belongs - the gutter. M.I. Magnum innominandum, signa stellarum nigrarum Link to comment
Kelly Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 Hi Mac, All I read is they all are delta sigma.... Just kick that crap where it belongs - the gutter. M.I. Some comments reek of tired dogma ... Just comment on a thread where you can add something useful - a different one. Back to the adults on the thread: I've had the iFi for a bit over a week now and its really pretty damn good. I already had the iUSB Power so that is how am powering it for desktop use to not have to worry with battery management. It sounds remarkably clean either way. I can't comment on the other products but I think the iFi is reasonably priced purely as a DAC even without its headphone capability (which is quite good.) Roon ->UltraRendu + CI Audio 7v LPS-> Kii Control -> Kii Three Roon->BMC UltraDAC->Mr Speakers Aeon Flow Open Link to comment
jtm Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 All I read is they all are delta sigma.... Just kick that crap where it belongs - the gutter. M.I. Will you enlighten us with your interpretation of this technical background which makes you so self-confident that you can judge these products without auditioning ? Link to comment
gstanley75 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Jhwalker, thanks for the added detail. Much appreciated. Now I need a ifi Micro for my other system. Link to comment
Mike Mcsweeney Posted August 16, 2014 Author Share Posted August 16, 2014 Hi Mac, All I read is they all are delta sigma.... Just kick that crap where it belongs - the gutter. M.I. Huh? I am willing to listen, if you have anything intelligible to say? why do you say it is crap? can you buy a dac that is not "sigma delta" that is not a lot more expensive? Link to comment
Mike Mcsweeney Posted August 16, 2014 Author Share Posted August 16, 2014 Also, IF i do buy an external dac (right now thinking about buying a reciever that supports DSD over HDMI), what is the best way to have the output to go out 2 sets of cables (one set to small pc speaker setup, and one to a reciever). i don't want to have to switch back and forth... can the analog output signal be split, so it plays to both analog outputs at the same time? Link to comment
Kelly Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Also, IF i do buy an external dac (right now thinking about buying a reciever that supports DSD over HDMI), what is the best way to have the output to go out 2 sets of cables (one set to small pc speaker setup, and one to a reciever). i don't want to have to switch back and forth... can the analog output signal be split, so it plays to both analog outputs at the same time? iDSD only has one set of outputs, but assuming your devices have reasonably high input impedances then something like a pair of these should work fine Roon ->UltraRendu + CI Audio 7v LPS-> Kii Control -> Kii Three Roon->BMC UltraDAC->Mr Speakers Aeon Flow Open Link to comment
john57 Posted August 17, 2014 Share Posted August 17, 2014 Actually the iDSD has three sets of outputs. The RCA, headphone and the digital out which can be connect to another receiver that can handle SPDIF inputs. The SPDIF is always active when there is a active USB digital input and the iDSD does not have to be turn on only for the analog outputs. I found this out from another user. The SPDIF port on the micro can be a input, output or optical. This makes the iDSD micro quite flexible. Link to comment
Kelly Posted August 17, 2014 Share Posted August 17, 2014 Actually the iDSD has three sets of outputs. The RCA, headphone and the digital out which can be connect to another receiver that can handle SPDIF inputs. The SPDIF is always active when there is a active USB digital input and the iDSD does not have to be turn on only for the analog outputs. I found this out from another user. The SPDIF port on the micro can be a input, output or optical. This makes the iDSD micro quite flexible. He asked about the analog output. But you are right, the SPDIF out is an option for a receiver. Roon ->UltraRendu + CI Audio 7v LPS-> Kii Control -> Kii Three Roon->BMC UltraDAC->Mr Speakers Aeon Flow Open Link to comment
jtwrace Posted January 24, 2015 Share Posted January 24, 2015 Does anyone know if there is any objective data comparing the iFi iDSD to the Teac UD-501? W10 NUC i7 (Gen 10) > Roon (Audiolense FIR) > Motu UltraLite mk5 > (4) Hypex NCore NC502MP > JBL M2 Master Reference +4 subs Watch my Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXMw_bZWBMtRWNJQfTJ38kA/videos Link to comment
Miska Posted January 25, 2015 Share Posted January 25, 2015 Does anyone know if there is any objective data comparing the iFi iDSD to the Teac UD-501? At least I have posted some measurements for both... (my blog here) Signalyst - Developer of HQPlayer Pulse & Fidelity - Software Defined Amplifiers Link to comment
jtwrace Posted January 25, 2015 Share Posted January 25, 2015 At least I have posted some measurements for both... (my blog here) I don't see the Teac though. I must be missing it. Sure wish I was able to get my hands on both to send to my buddy so he could measure them on his dScope. What do you think objectively/subjectively of them? W10 NUC i7 (Gen 10) > Roon (Audiolense FIR) > Motu UltraLite mk5 > (4) Hypex NCore NC502MP > JBL M2 Master Reference +4 subs Watch my Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXMw_bZWBMtRWNJQfTJ38kA/videos Link to comment
Miska Posted January 25, 2015 Share Posted January 25, 2015 I don't see the Teac though. I must be missing it. Sure wish I was able to get my hands on both to send to my buddy so he could measure them on his dScope. What do you think objectively/subjectively of them? TEAC UD-501: Playback formats on a TEAC UD-501 (TI PCM1795) - Blogs - Computer Audiophile iDSD Micro: iFi iDSD Micro measurements - Blogs - Computer Audiophile Signalyst - Developer of HQPlayer Pulse & Fidelity - Software Defined Amplifiers Link to comment
jtwrace Posted January 25, 2015 Share Posted January 25, 2015 TEAC UD-501:Playback formats on a TEAC UD-501 (TI PCM1795) - Blogs - Computer Audiophile iDSD Micro: iFi iDSD Micro measurements - Blogs - Computer Audiophile Interesting, thanks. Are you willing to share your subjective opinion with and without your software? W10 NUC i7 (Gen 10) > Roon (Audiolense FIR) > Motu UltraLite mk5 > (4) Hypex NCore NC502MP > JBL M2 Master Reference +4 subs Watch my Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXMw_bZWBMtRWNJQfTJ38kA/videos Link to comment
wisnon Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Interesting, thanks. Are you willing to share your subjective opinion with and without your software? He did so extensively in another thread. Either the HQP one or the ultimate DSD one. Link to comment
jtwrace Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 He did so extensively in another thread. Either the HQP one or the ultimate DSD one. Any idea where? W10 NUC i7 (Gen 10) > Roon (Audiolense FIR) > Motu UltraLite mk5 > (4) Hypex NCore NC502MP > JBL M2 Master Reference +4 subs Watch my Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXMw_bZWBMtRWNJQfTJ38kA/videos Link to comment
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