Jump to content
IGNORED

T+a dac 8 dsd


Recommended Posts

PC is basically a case that looks like a CD player containing:

6700K on a Z170 board

Corsair RM550X Zero RPM 80plus Gold PSU

16GB RAM @ 2133

WD 250GB SSD

Scythe Low Profile 58mm 15-22dB fan

 

But build by a DAW specialist so I am hopeful it will be a quality build

 

Guess I will end up buying both Intona and Regen, compare them and sell the lesser god. or maybe keep both if they play nice together ;-)

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
Afraid to say that there is no instruction specified to T+A DAC 8 DSD box on the site. Though I'm quite accustomed to the procedure necessary to update the firmware of Amanero board (I mean Combo384 board), I suppose that it will not be that easy to update the firmware implemented into T+A DAC 8.

 

Though I have never opened this DAC box of mine, I could not locate the part corresponding to the pads to make a contact for erasing the flash memory of Amanero, the procedure necessary for the firmware update, as long as based on the picture shown in the #10 message of this thread. Also, without opening the DAC box, it will not be possible to do it. Furthermore, it is not confirmed whether or not the ConfigTool.exe used for writing CPLD and firmware into Combo384 can be applicable straightforward to this DAC. Correct me if I'm wrong and there are other ways for update.

 

That said, even if this update is really of value, it's my current thought that I will wait until T+A can accept it and become willing to provide a risk-free, official firmware update.

 

Hmm, think I will wait too...

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 1 month later...
PC is basically a case that looks like a CD player containing:

6700K on a Z170 board

Corsair RM550X Zero RPM 80plus Gold PSU

16GB RAM @ 2133

WD 250GB SSD

Scythe Low Profile 58mm 15-22dB fan

 

But build by a DAW specialist so I am hopeful it will be a quality build

 

Guess I will end up buying both Intona and Regen, compare them and sell the lesser god. or maybe keep both if they play nice together ;-)

 

so yeah, I received my HTPC, Regen and Intona industrial and can report the following:

HTPC is to noisy to keep in the music room so had to move it to the cellar and use a simple quiet win 10 PC as NAA.

Connecting both Regen and Intona at the same time gives me the best result so I keep them both.

I use the Sonore Signature Power Supply to power the Regen and this gives a much better result than Meanwell or iFI.

Converting everything to DSD512 using poly-sinc-mp and DSD5v2 256+fs is where i settled at for now and it sounds wonderful.

Especially bass is better than ever, BIG but sweet and soft at the same time.

 

Happy days

 

one more thing: my T+A DAC 8 DSD does not mute both channels 100% so using it as a pre was not a big succes. sound familiar?

I called T+A and they told me to sent it to them so they can look at it. I asked if they are planning a firmware update hoping to send the DAC in once and get both the pre fixed and firmware updated. they say they are looking at the new Amanero code and will update the firmware if they test it successfully.

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 1 month later...
  • 3 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

after listening to PCM converted to DSD512 for a few months on my T+A I heard PCM over I2s through a Pink Faun NOS DAC and was surprised by the natural sound of NOS PCM.

 

This experience got me rethinking the whole upsampling thing and I am now back to just PCM through the T+A. I plan to get a Pink Faun NOS DAC and I2s card to compare to the Jcat Femto --> Intona -->Regen-->T+A DAC chain i've got running at home.

 

PCM converted to DSD512 sounds very nice if you listen to individual instruments or voices (especially bass in my system and music preference) but as a whole it loses the cohesion that is there before HQP starts working on it.  

 

of course this is all just my ears listening to my system...

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 3 weeks later...

2 questions for every T+A DAC8 DSD owner that is using HQP to do the DSD512 thing

 

After about 6 months of fiddling with HQP settings I gave up and am now back to just plain simple PCM without any upsampling or converting in software and using the Bezier-interpolator plus IIR-filter (= bezier ovs with the blue light).

 

I just can’t seem to get DSD512 to sound right. Individual instruments or voices are nice in DSD512 but some sort of cohesion or atmosphere is lost.

It could well be that I just have not found the right settings yet so I would like to know which setting others are using and experiment a bit with HQP again.

 

Question 1: When was the last time you shutdown HQP and listened without any upsampling or converting in software?

If it has been a long time please try it and tell us what you think, do you hear the cohesion or atmosphere I am talking about

If it helps you could even pretend it is some new XXX filter in HQP 3.179_9

 

Question 2: which settings do you use in HQP? (please post a screenshot of the HQP settings tab)

 

these are mine

 

Schermafbeelding 2017-05-27 om 22.34.25.png

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
11 hours ago, Miska said:

 

Your HQPlayer settings are as different from the settings you use with the DAC's built in upsampling (technically it is still software, just running inside the DAC) as settings possibly could be... Total opposites, no wonder you get different sound.

 

"polynomial2" in HQPlayer is closest to the Bezier-interpolator in T+A. Or from the ones available for DSD oversampling maybe poly-sinc-mqa or minringFIR.

 

 

Thank you Jussi, I will try the suggested filters/oversampling

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 3 weeks later...

Good luck to all DAC8 DSD users trying to convince themselves upsampling to DSD512 is the way to go!

I am abandoning ship... bought a Pink Faun DAC 2.32 and (hopefully) will live happily ever after doing just plain old redbook and foot-tapping again now that life is back into the music. pfff nearly got me there... just using your T+A to do redbook is OK too but the Pink Faun DAC together with their XLR cable is something special (in the 5K range). so yeah rock on

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...
On 5-7-2017 at 7:00 PM, sbenyo said:

I just go the volume control working. I had to put it very high and also put my pre amp volume high.

It works fine. Thanks for the advice. I will try using DSD512 as I understand it is the sweet spot for this DAC. I still want PCM to work much better that it current is. I hope it will get better.

 

so you are using the preamp in the T+A and also an other preamp at the same time...? that does not sound right...please tell us your system config

when possible use balanced output and quality cables. also look at AC power.

I used a T+A DAC8 DSD for a few months to do the 512-thing but am now back at redbook (using a different DAC as you can see in my signature).

imho 512 improves the resolution of individual instruments and voices but cohesion and ambiance are lost. the guy over at Kitsune explains this in a nice way click

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment

Roon can upsample too. What does your usb chain look like? is it just pc/mac/laptop straight into T+A or do you have some reclocking/isolating going on?

there is a lot of room for improvement on that side too! you can ask Jussi aka Miska developer of HQP questions in the HQP tread on this forum, he seems to be a little less active these days but you can try anyway. good to hear that you are more satisfied already. happy tweaking and most of all listening! 

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 10 months later...
16 hours ago, emcdade said:

In your T+A experiences, which approach  do you think will sound better:

 

Native PCM—SMS-200 with Sbooster—T+A DAC8 DSD

 

DSD512–Windows PC with smps—Matrix X Hi pcie usb card — iso regen with Sbooster—T+A DAC8 DSD

 

????

PCM...I used to own the T+A DSD and did 512 for a while but to me PCM sounds more natural with finer detail, decay and air.

(especially using a better DAC like the Pink Faun I use now)

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

Link to comment
  • 4 months later...

Dirk, may I suggest trying a better DAC like the Pink Faun DAC 2.32 and use HQP to serve files in their native format?

I used to do redbook --> DSD512 into a T&A DAC8 DSD before but once I had a little session at PF HQ I was smitten...and turned to the dark side...

Pink Faun Streamer —>  Pink Faun DAC --> Ayre AX5 --> Paradigm S8 

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...