Jump to content
IGNORED

How Many DACs Have You Owned? Your Journey


Recommended Posts

schiit MODI then uber GUNGNIR

trying to siphon enough$ from my CFO for schiit 'RAG' and 'YGGY' (all i hear is something to the effect 'over my dead body'-same thing she said when my st andrews golf umbrella was stolen and one my son's friends said i'd just have to back and get another one)

Link to comment

Dang, I didn't realize I was one of the worst offenders. In order

 

Peachtree iNova - it was my intro to hifi as dac and integrated amp. I sold it after a year to move up

 

NAD M51 - still using as DAC/pre in loudspeaker system

 

iFi iDAC - very good small dac, used it with computer, eventually gave it to my brother when I got an iDSD

 

BMC PureDAC - very nice dac, exceptionally good headphone output, just not my cup-o-tea so I sold it

 

iFi iDSD - won it (so didn't pay for it) I like it very much though and still have it as my portable; sounds great, very musical and fun sound. It really is all you would need for a desktop headphone system if you were practical, but I'm not practical...

 

Ayre QB-9DSD - sits on my desk in my heaphone rig which has become my primary listening system. It is as good as I need and has cured my upraditis. I just wish they would get on with the software update to make it at least double rate DSD capable

Roon ->UltraRendu + CI Audio 7v LPS-> Kii Control -> Kii Three

Roon->BMC UltraDAC->Mr Speakers Aeon Flow Open

Link to comment

Squeezebox Touch

NuForce HDP

 

But I am not sure either of those sounds any better than the Linn Genki CDP that I no longer have. I spend more time listening to my Sony NWZX1 (now NWZX2) with Westone W40s and the combo sounds great (to me).

 

I also have a Sony PHA3 DAC/Amp and it is slightly better than the DAPs by themselves.

QNAP TS453Pro w/QLMS->Netgear Switch->Netgear RAX43 Router->Ethernet (50 ft)->Netgear switch->SBTouch ->SABAJ A10d->Linn Majik-IL (preamp)->Linn 2250->Linn Keilidh; Control Points: iPeng (iPad Air & iPhone); Also: Rega P3-24 w/ DV 10x5; OPPO 103; PC Playback: Foobar2000 & JRiver; Portable: iPhone 12 ProMax & Radio Paradise or NAS streaming; Sony NWZ ZX2 w/ PHA-3; SMSL IQ, Fiio Q5, iFi Nano iDSD BL; Garage: Edifier S1000DB Active Speakers  

Link to comment

Squeezebox Duet

Squeezebox Touch (Still own)

Cambridge Audio DAC Magic

Rega DAC

Yulong D18 Sabre

Ayre QB9

Ayre QB9-DSD

Devialet 200 (Still own)

 

Dragonfly 1.1

Dragonfly 1.2 (Still own)

 

RME Fireface UC (Still own)

 

 

Want to try the Ayre Codex to replace the dragonfly at work.

Roon Rock->Auralic Aria G2->Schiit Yggdrasil A2->McIntosh C47->McIntosh MC301 Monos->Wilson Audio Sabrinas

Link to comment

Theta DS Pro Gen II

Classé DAC-1

(2 ModWright SACD players)

Luxman DA-06

"Relax, it's only hi-fi. There's never been a hi-fi emergency." - Roy Hall

"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - William Bruce Cameron

 

Link to comment
I'm also interested in your journey. What have you learned?

 

The Apogee was a great entry level A/DAC that worked well with active speakers. The Prism Orpheus was a huge step up from the Duet. I am very happy with the Orpheus.

 

The Slim Devices Transporter was a nice product for its day. After purchasing the Alpha Dac, I used the Transporter only as a transport with the Alpha Dac performing the conversion. This was a big step up. Then, I replaced the Transporter with a mac mini linked to the Alpha Dac by a Berkeley Alpha USB. This was led to another large improvement in SQ.

Link to comment
Dave Ellis doesn't do the kits anymore, alas. But Jim Salk continues to make the 1801 in several variants, with some really spectacular woodworking. He's a real gentleman and it was a pleasure doing business with him. The only thing I would caution you on is that DIYers tend to be a little, erm, hyperbolic in their reviews. But more than one person has compared them favourably with the Dynaudio Special 25, which is a stonking good speaker in my book, so...

 

As I mentioned before the Ellis speakers can be somewhat finicky. They can sound good with a wide range of electronics, but making them sound great is a bit tougher. The Job225 is a great solid state partner. Dave maintains that an EL34 tube amp is best for them. I beg to differ...

 

I also found the speakers that your friend has that are bargain leaders. They are a rare item too. I'm more likely to watch for them online as I'm a rock music listener not primarily opera or classical. I am not happy with the Alphas at all anymore. Am I pretty safe buying them as an improvement over Alohas?

Link to comment
I did say it was embarrassing... When I bought the speakers, after a fair bit of research, the one thing I hadn't noticed was how finicky they'd be about amplification and source. They are really tremendous speakers, but the whole point of buying direct was to save money, money which I've certainly somewhat piddled away in trying out so much equipment. That said, however, I know how neurotic I am and I probably would have juggled equipment even with a more easy-going set of speakers. Pretty much every piece of equipment that's been through here in the past few years has either been bought used or on sale, so I don't mind TOO much. But I'm glad that I've found the synergy I was looking for; it was all getting a bit exhausting emotionally.

 

If I think about it, I'd also probably say that when I started down the road I had very little money to play with, but then I started earning a fair bit more quite quickly. It took a while to figure out what constituted "value."

 

Nothing to be embarrassed about. I just do not have the funds to upgrade quickly. Otherwise I would have replaced my Wadia 12 year ago.

[br]

Link to comment
Would you ever consider buying inexpensive DACs such as the Schitt Modi or others just to see if modern tech is better or is your DAC still sweet for you.

 

You are correct I am thinking about buying a Schiit Gungnir. Then maybe at a later stage upgrade it with a Hydra-Z. But the Schiit Yg also looks sweet. But I am not sure if I want to spend so much money on a DAC. If I save some money I should be able to buy it in the coming 6 to 12 months. Just don't know if I want to. Also need to buy a streamer. Even though I think the DAC is more important sound wise. The choice of streamer is very important for the user friendliness. I like the Lumin app and the Aries app also seems fine. But those are serious money machines for me.

 

The more economical option would be a Moon streamer but I have never seen it in action or read anything about it. So not sure how good they are. But a Moon Neo280DSD with build in mind streamer is a nice box solution. But how does it sound? How good is the app? etc.

[br]

Link to comment
The Apogee was a great entry level A/DAC that worked well with active speakers. The Prism Orpheus was a huge step up from the Duet. I am very happy with the Orpheus.

 

The Slim Devices Transporter was a nice product for its day. After purchasing the Alpha Dac, I used the Transporter only as a transport with the Alpha Dac performing the conversion. This was a big step up. Then, I replaced the Transporter with a mac mini linked to the Alpha Dac by a Berkeley Alpha USB. This was led to another large improvement in SQ.

 

Thanks.

Link to comment
Nothing to be embarrassed about. I just do not have the funds to upgrade quickly. Otherwise I would have replaced my Wadia 12 year ago.
I hadn't heard about Wadia until this thread. I'm very new to this. They make components into the tens of thousands of dollars and paradoxically iPhone products. They have a range of products around the thousand dollar range too which seem more affordable.
Link to comment
Squeezebox Duet

Squeezebox Touch (Still own)

Cambridge Audio DAC Magic

Rega DAC

Yulong D18 Sabre

Ayre QB9

Ayre QB9-DSD

Devialet 200 (Still own)

 

Dragonfly 1.1

Dragonfly 1.2 (Still own)

 

RME Fireface UC (Still own)

 

 

Want to try the Ayre Codex to replace the dragonfly at work.

 

Impressive list. You change out equipment a lot I guess. What's your philosophy here?

Link to comment
Theta DS Pro Gen II

Classé DAC-1

(2 ModWright SACD players)

Luxman DA-06

 

Sticking with the bargain basement brands then... Just teasing. Is dealing with Theta and Classe type brands more important to you or are you willing to consider more boutique "garage" brands in equipment?

Link to comment
Dang, I didn't realize I was one of the worst offenders. In order

 

Peachtree iNova - it was my intro to hifi as dac and integrated amp. I sold it after a year to move up

 

NAD M51 - still using as DAC/pre in loudspeaker system

 

iFi iDAC - very good small dac, used it with computer, eventually gave it to my brother when I got an iDSD

 

BMC PureDAC - very nice dac, exceptionally good headphone output, just not my cup-o-tea so I sold it

 

iFi iDSD - won it (so didn't pay for it) I like it very much though and still have it as my portable; sounds great, very musical and fun sound. It really is all you would need for a desktop headphone system if you were practical, but I'm not practical...

 

Ayre QB-9DSD - sits on my desk in my heaphone rig which has become my primary listening system. It is as good as I need and has cured my upraditis. I just wish they would get on with the software update to make it at least double rate DSD capable

 

You have a sweet tooth. Bet your system sounds amazing.

Link to comment
I have owned 7 DACs over 23 years. Now I would preface that by saying for many years there were quite a number of active audiophile friends in my area. We often did extended swaps, listening sessions, get togethers etc. etc. So I had extensive experience with a much larger number of DACs. There also are a few I kept very briefly finding them not to my liking I am not counting on this list.

 

Meridian 263

Meridian 563 later abetted by a Meridian 518 to use with it.

Wadia 12 also used with the same Meridian 518. (the 518 did useful things for digital and was not a DAC).

Wadia 25

Tact RCS 2.0 (which also did room correction)

Tact 2150 XDM

Tact XP

 

Now as to someone's journey, having lots of audiophile friends to listen with and loan/borrow equipment with is very helpful, informative, encouraging, delightful (and economical).

 

Now I have owned the same number of speakers over that time and more than twice that many amplifiers.

 

Now vs then, DACs are still improving though basic sound quality probably has slowed in improvement. What is changing much faster is available formats to playback and how the devices work. What is a normal digital based front end is still evolving rapidly.

 

IMO, the message from such a journey relates less to DACs. It would be speakers matter the most.

 

Want to borrow more of my experience? Go back and read that sentence saying speakers matter the most. Or if you are sticking with headphones substitute headphones for speakers.

 

The other notable (goes for speakers and headphones), the amp driving these matters the next most. Hence how I came to own 7 speakers, and something like 18 amps over the same time period.

 

Speakers (or headphones) are the weak link, the bottleneck in virtually all audio systems both inexpensive and highly expensive. Does not mean upstream improvements are not heard or not worthwhile. The biggest gains are to be found in the transducers that make the actual sound you hear however.

 

I have same experience. Speakers become way more important once you have a modestly good DAC. The returns on various DACs are very quickly diminishing. In most cases differences become "flavour" of the analog out rather than performance as they are mostly all very good above $1000.

 

The ESS Sabre chip used in most of the recent DACs is amazing - far better performance vs previous generations but it is doubtful if this level of improvement is actually audible under normal music listening conditions - lab tests however do show remarkable performance!

Link to comment
Impressive list. You change out equipment a lot I guess. What's your philosophy here?

 

Not really.

 

The Duet and Touch were sources first really. The Ayre QB-9 was actually just upgraded to a QB-9 DSD version. The Devialet is a complete integrated solution that replaced everything in my main rig.

 

Dragonflys are my portable rig and the RME Fireface has been on my main computer for alot of years now.

 

 

So it's really:

 

Cambridge Audio DAC Magic

Rega DAC

Yulong D18

Ayre QB-9

 

Devialet replaced my simaudio phono preamp, Ayre QB-9 and Simaudio 600i integrated.

Roon Rock->Auralic Aria G2->Schiit Yggdrasil A2->McIntosh C47->McIntosh MC301 Monos->Wilson Audio Sabrinas

Link to comment

Since 2009

PS Audio DLIII w/ Cullen upgrade

PS Audio PWD v1

Linn Akurate

Linn Klimax DS/1

Teac UD-501

Benchmark DAC2 HGC

Ayre QB-9

Ayre QB-9 DSD <-- still own

Audio Research Ref Dac <-- still own (for now)

Schiit Yggdrasil <-- still own

 

After putting this list together, it appears I need to enroll in a 12 step program. Luckily, it appears that Yggy may help me break the grip of DAC upgradeitis

ChrisG

Bend, OR

Link to comment
Since 2009

PS Audio DLIII w/ Cullen upgrade

PS Audio PWD v1

Linn Akurate

Linn Klimax DS/1

Teac UD-501

Benchmark DAC2 HGC

Ayre QB-9

Ayre QB-9 DSD <-- still own

Audio Research Ref Dac <-- still own (for now)

Schiit Yggdrasil <-- still own

 

After putting this list together, it appears I need to enroll in a 12 step program. Luckily, it appears that Yggy may help me break the grip of DAC upgradeitis

 

We need a audioholic hotline setup. You need serious help.

Link to comment

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...