Article: Audio Research DAC 9 Review

[The Computer Audiophile]

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[ZenGentleman]

I'm a "live, and let live" kinda guy when it come to this hobby. There's quite a bit of quirky gear out there. Whatever floats your boat, I say. However, that said, I must admit to being rather surprised that, in 2017, a manufacturer as respected and as consistently excellent as ARC would release a DAC that features a "not great" USB input. Won't work with Linux? A bit wonky with Macs? That's unacceptable in a $500 DAC, let alone a $7,500 one. The questionable choice made for the USB solution in the new DAC 9 is squarely in the "WTF were they thinking?" camp. That is simply just a huge head-scratcher for me. Also, the manufacturer acknowledges the issue as a problem and hopes there will be a fix down the line? In my opinion, they shouldn't have released this new model until it worked flawlessly. Period.

 

Just my opinion. I'm sure others will disagree.

[mrvco]

I think it is fair to say that this is a "read between the lines" review.  Being that AR used a non-audio DAC chip, I'd love to know how their implementation compares to the Schiit Yggy.  And a highly comprimised USB  interface on a $7500 DAC in this day and age is wholly unacceptable.

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 minute ago, mrvco said:

I think it is fair to say that this is a "read between the lines" review.  Being that AR used a non-audio DAC chip, I'd love to know how their implementation compares to the Schiit Yggy.  And a highly comprimised USB  interface on a $7500 DAC in this day and age is wholly unacceptable.

 

You're free to read as you wish, but I don't write for people to read between the lines. 

[stevebythebay]

2nd appearance of dCS's Network Bridge and absence of microRendu in the Associated Equipment list.  I know the mention of microRendu support issue for the DAC under review.  Just wondering if you plan to do a review of the dCS product and if it will become your goto D to D device ensconced in your system.

[mrvco]

6 hours ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

You're free to read as you wish, but I don't write for people to read between the lines. 

 

Well hopefully they get the USB issues addressed in a timely manner.  I do find it interesting that AR used a "not designed for audio" chip in their DAC.  Other than the Yggy, how common is this approach?

[The Computer Audiophile]

7 minutes ago, mrvco said:

 

Well hopefully they get the USB issues addressed in a timely manner.  I do find it interesting that AR used a "not designed for audio" chip in their DAC.  Other than the Yggy, how common is this approach?

 

The DAC chip is designed for audio. There is a DSP chip in the DAC 9 that isn't doing what it was designed to do.

[Ralf11]

How did you discover this?  Did you trace ... ah... traces on the PCB?  Or use a logic probe, or??

[The Computer Audiophile]

39 minutes ago, Ralf11 said:

How did you discover this?  Did you trace ... ah... traces on the PCB?  Or use a logic probe, or??

 

At the launch of the product in Italy last year they briefly mentioned it and said no information would be given about it.

[Silly goose]

24 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

At the launch of the product in Italy last year they briefly mentioned it and said no information would be made given about it.

They probably made a wise decision. Otherwise they would have folks giving a full review on it without ever hearing it. 

[ChrisG]

FWIW, I used to have an ARC Reference DAC and I replaced it with a Yggy 'cause Yggy was clearly better. 

[Peterks]

Would anybody know from where one could obtain a CD-quality (or better) copy of "One Nite alone ...." at a reasonable price? I have found the MP3 version on archive.org.

Many thanks

Peter

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

5 hours ago, Peterks said:

Would anybody know from where one could obtain a CD-quality (or better) copy of "One Nite alone ...." at a reasonable price? I have found the MP3 version on archive.org.

Many thanks

Peter

 

 

Reasonable price is the key. This one is so rare, I don't think you'll find it for a reasonable price. 

[miguelito]

The issue with the USB implementation should be reason alone for this product to tank and for questioning ARC's sanity. Seriously. It's one of those "The ARC brand is not what I thought" moments. Seriously fucked up.

[miguelito]

8 hours ago, Peterks said:

Would anybody know from where one could obtain a CD-quality (or better) copy of "One Nite alone ...." at a reasonable price? I have found the MP3 version on archive.org.

Many thanks

Peter

 

Bought a CD on ebay recently. Shipped from Europe. Worth the effort.

 

Edit: I paid $50 for the CD and it is not the version with the great album art. Still worth it. 

 

Edit 2: Yikes! Just checked ebay again... 

[HighDefinition]

Here at Audio Research, we own up to the shortcomings of the USB interface and have been working diligently on a replacement interface since we first discovered the limitations late last year. Unfortunately, our original design placed the priority on Windows as our primary platform for validation testing. Moving forward, the focus and majority of our validation testing will be on Linux and macOS platforms.

As Chris mentions in his review, we are committed to releasing an update this year. Original owners who have registered their product will be notified and given preferential treatment.

We are happy to report this weekend, we completed our first round of Linux compatibility testing with a new USB solution. The real challenge is ensuring any new solution we develop will retrofit all of our current products such as the DAC9 as well as much of our legacy product. Our engineering team is working to rectify the issue quickly.

The DAC9 has great architecture and the proof is in the listening. We sincerely apologize for the inconveniences caused by the limitations of the USB interface. We care deeply about our customer’s happiness and when we find limitations like this, we take finding a fix very seriously. For those facing these limitations, we recommend the following workarounds:

• For macOS platforms: set your player software to only use PCM up to 192kHz.

• For Linux platforms: use a USB to SPDIF converter such as the Aurender UC 100 USB/SPDIF converter.

• For Windows platforms: enjoy the full capability of the USB interface.

[miguelito]

@HighDefinition: Great you guys are owning up to this. A number of servers in the Linux platform, especially high end ones, should have been in your test suite for sure. 

 

Still, I commend you owning up to the issue and would expect you to minimize the burden on your users. 

[limniscate]

Quote

FWIW, I used to have an ARC Reference DAC and I replaced it with a Yggy 'cause Yggy was clearly better. 

Funny, I was thinking about upgrading my Yggy to the ARC Ref DAC.

[ChrisG]

15 hours ago, limniscate said:

Funny, I was thinking about upgrading my Yggy to the ARC Ref DAC.

From my experience, I'd work with a dealer and try it at home before you buy. 

[Peterks]

On 15/04/2017 at 0:26 PM, The Computer Audiophile said:

 

Reasonable price is the key. This one is so rare, I don't think you'll find it for a reasonable price. 

Thanks Chris, that was exactly my point. Would be great if it could be obtained from one of the download services ... well, the MP3 version is ok and I will just have to keep an eye on the auction sites.

 

[Peterks]

On 15/04/2017 at 3:18 PM, miguelito said:

Bought a CD on ebay recently. Shipped from Europe. Worth the effort.

 

Edit: I paid $50 for the CD and it is not the version with the great album art. Still worth it. 

 

Edit 2: Yikes! Just checked ebay again... 

More or less my experience ? Thank you miguelito.

[Doak]

Apparently the ONLY reason someone would buy this item is because it has the AR name on it. 

[Taxman]

Is the RigiSystems USB-innerface commonly used? I can't get my mac to cooperate with a brand new TAD D1000Mk2 CD/Dac and was thinking if it could be the same issue!?

[The Computer Audiophile]

8 hours ago, Doak said:

Apparently the ONLY reason someone would buy this item is because it has the AR name on it. 

 

They wouldn't consider the great sound quality?

[The Computer Audiophile]

2 hours ago, Taxman said:

Is the RigiSystems USB-innerface commonly used? I can't get my mac to cooperate with a brand new TAD D1000Mk2 CD/Dac and was thinking if it could be the same issue!?

 

It's not commonly used.