DAC Auditions

[med_designer]

Hello all -

 

I am going to my local dealer tomorrow to listen to these there DACs.

 

1. Mytek Stereo-192 DSD

2. Antelope Zodiac Gold 384 kHz

3. Weiss DAC2 Firewire

 

Questions and thoughts:

 

1. If you purchased one of these why did you?

2. Thoughts on simply letting Amarra or whatever convert on the fly to PCM such as 176.4 vs. native DSD

3. Antelope Platinum DSD is also an option.

4. Weiss DAC2 has a usb DSD option now.

5. Any concern on going Thunderbolt to FW on a MBP vs FW800 on a Mini to FW400 on the Weiss?

6. Gotchas?

 

Thanks -

Richard

[Audio_ELF]

Did you really mean the Weiss DAC2; or the DAC202?

[Leonardo Piras]

1. If you purchased one of these why did you?

2. Thoughts on simply letting Amarra or whatever convert on the fly to PCM such as 176.4 vs. native DSD

3. Antelope Platinum DSD is also an option.

4. Weiss DAC2 has a usb DSD option now.

5. Any concern on going Thunderbolt to FW on a MBP vs FW800 on a Mini to FW400 on the Weiss?

6. Gotchas?

 

1. I purchased the Mytek Stereo 192-DSD because of extremely good value for the money.

Bought it second hand in as new condition for €800. Bargain.

 

2. Try it if you can. I usually like music upsampled to 2xDSD. JRiver or HQPlayer are the only software on mac that do the trick in real time.

 

5. No concerns, they work perfectly and don't have any impact to the sound (to my ears).

 

6. Choose with your ears!

[redingepor]

yes,try it if you can. I usually like music upsampled to 2xDSD. JRiver or HQPlayer are the only software on mac that do the trick in real time.

[med_designer]

Hello -

 

Audio_ELF: Yes, the DAC2. My dealer is a pro audio dealer and this is what they had available. Not sure what the differences are other they the obvious physical appearance.

 

Thoughts on the DACS:

 

1. Mytek - Not my cup of tea and iI did not really take to it.

 

2. Antelope Gold (AG) - Very similar to the the DAC2. I found things like reverb tails and other lower level details fairly pronounced. I tend to feel some of my playlist did better on the AG and while others where better on the Weiss. Very subtle differences. Could be happy with this DAC

 

3. Weiss DAC2 - Like it. Seems to fit well with the music I listen to. Used Amarra along with h-res PCM and dff files. Weiss locked on quickly and performed well. For me it felt more pleasing overall - tracks that I really love where presented very nicely. I tend to lean toward the Weiss but not by much.

 

4. Found a pre-owned DAC202 for about $3,100.00 from a dealer. Not sure I am comfortable purchasing blindly off the internet - especially without hearing it in context before hand.

 

 

So I am now considering:

 

1. New Antelope Gold with Voltikus

 

2. New Weiss DAC2

 

3. Pre-owned DAC202

 

Richard

[bhobba]

Hi Richard

 

Haven't owned any of those DAC's and have only heard the Wiess and it was heavily upgraded.

 

It was actually fairly close to my personal favourite DAC, and surprisingly so. The guy that builds that DAC was there (I usually opt for hand made stuff rather than commercial gear - but that's just me) and he was surprised as well.

 

So of those DAC's I would go for the Wiess and look at upgrades.

 

Thad said you are looking to spend a substantial amount of money, so I would be looking at hearing a few more DAC's.

 

Of the DAC's you will likely be able to hear (it is highly unlikely you be able to hear mine because like I said its basically hand build to order in minuscule quantities) I would suggest seeking out:

 

1. Phasure DAC.

Not my personal favourite. I describe it as blancmange like, which is colloquial for uninteresting. Unbelievably clear, clean and pure, quite unmistakable. When I heard the Wiess I thought it had the edge - but others viewed it differently - they thought the Phasure MURDERED it. Some go ga ga over this DAC and because of that I consider it a must hear. And even though its not my favourite it shows a clean pair of heels to most stuff I have heard - even stuff a LOT more expensive.

 

2. Lampizator DAC

The closest commercial equivalent to my favorite DAC. Very musical.

 

3. The AMR

It's sort of a cross between the other two - not quite as drop dead pure as the Phasure - nor as musical as the Lampizator.

 

Anyway they are the ones I would check out before forking over that sort of dosh.

 

Thanks

Bill

[EuroDriver]

My 2¢

 

Phasure did not float my boat, I could not get excited

 

AZ Platinum, got me excited playing DSD 64 and 128 internally Upsampled to DSD256, but it's a lot of coin

 

I settled on the Exasound as per sig below. For me the ability to play DSD 256 source was the deciding factor. On the E20, DSD 256 sounds so much noticeably clearer than DSD128. Very difficult to hear any any difference between the AZP and the E20, when both are playing at DSD256

 

The ifi microDSD does DSD256 as well, and would therefore be on my must audition list, but for me is a non starter as I will only look at balance output DAC's and don't want to bring a pre-amp into the system

 

once you have a DSD DAC, you need to try HQ Player. It's a steep learning curve, but the pristine clarity and realism of the playback of PCM converted to DSD256, and native DSD material is breath taking

[bhobba]

Phasure did not float my boat, I could not get excited

 

Same here. Glad someone else feels the same as me - I usually cop a blast for suggesting its not the bees knees.

 

But some just go ga ga over it so it's worthwhile checking out.

 

AZ Platinum, got me excited playing DSD 64 and 128 internally Upsampled to DSD256,

 

I also have a playback designs MPD3 which is exceptional via DSD - in fact one of best digital I have ever heard - very real live and present. Again something you should check out.

 

It would be my go-to DAC except mine is just so musical on the stuff I listen to.

 

Thanks

Bill

[EuroDriver]

I also have a playback designs MPD3 which is exceptional via DSD - in fact one of best digital I have ever heard - very real live and present. Again something you should check out.

 

I have always loved the sound of the MPD3, enchanting, but the lack of volume control kept me away. Definitely worth auditioning !