Article: dCS Rossini DAC Review

[miguelito]

I am listening to a Rossini + Master Clock to an Audio Note Kondo Ongaku to AvantGarde Duo Mezzo speakers - so pretty much what you described. See my signature for more.

 

Sounds awesome, involving and alive. 

[miguelito]

41 minutes ago, Deyorew said:

While I was reading this review I became very jealous......of how you somehow have all the great MFSL and AF sacd titles in digital DSD form on your server. How do you have these?

I have a PS3 and it works great. I then use ISO2DSD to convert the ISO to individual DSF files, and finally tag the DSF files with Yate (there are many programs than can tag DSF files).

[miguelito]

2 hours ago, amir57bs said:

No body told me avantgarde is emotional.

I would argue most high quality speakers, if properly set up and with the appropriate electronics, can be emotional. I am not going to engage past this comment.

[miguelito]

6 hours ago, Keith_W said:

think the Rossini has a rather dry, clinical presentation that some people won't like. It is also extraordinarily precise - attacks and decays are super fast and super clean. 

 

Not true in my system at all. If anything it is a deeper color presentation than some other DAC’s I’ve used (EmmLabs, TAD).

 

[miguelito]

7 hours ago, kaka said:

I read through your review waiting for the section on what happens when a DCS (or other) external clock is added to the dac, but it wasn't there. Are you intending doing that at some point?

I purchsased the clock based on recommendations of people I trust. I have not done on/off test, not interested in A/B that sorry. These days I am super busy with work and when I am home I want to relax, not tinker. Maybe some day...

 

If you have a fairly high end and well set up system, I strongly suggest you try and evaluate a component in your system for a few days at least.

[miguelito]

4 hours ago, ted_b said:

Not in either my Mofi DSD rip nor my redbook flac; the guitar that begins Blowin In The Wind is clearly, as Chris states, in the right speaker. 

Just purchased the DSD album from AcousticSounds. Dylan is on my "to learn" list. 

 

Yes, guitar is on the right. Interesting that the DSD version is clearly a slightly different mix from the one on TIDAL. Sounds amazing btw...

 

Anyone willing to teach me or point me to the way into Dylan? Thx!

[miguelito]

I will give you my impression of Rossini... I moved to Rossini+Clock from an EMM Labs XDS1-v2. EMM was ok, but it is a bit of a sterile sound. And I am saying that with a Kondo Ongaku and AvantGarde speakers, definitely not a sterile sounding chain compared to others. 

 

Compared to this, the Rossini had depth, decay, richness in the notes (especially solo piano), and female voices sounded real (they were a bit metallic on the EMM). 

 

But the way I tend to make up my mind about gear is by how it pulls me into music, how it just grabs my attention. I was cooking one night and playing Bill Evans' "Everybody Digs Bill Evans" (XLD rip from the XRCD version) and I had to stop and listen to the music. That's it.

 

Maybe I shoulda made space for a Vivaldi... Ha!

[miguelito]

2 hours ago, wdw said:

See the latest from Stereophile article by JVS on the music show where he writes about a new Rossini Transport which will play both CD and SACD. 

The Rossini player, ie the one with a transport, does not. I seem to recall that a review on Stereophile had the Rossini playing with a Paganini transport which would work just fine and play CD & SACD.

 

The big issue with high end transport mechanisms such as the Teac VRDS is that they stopped making them and the chipsets a few years ago. My understanding is dCS spent a small fortune buying a bunch of Teac transports for the Vivaldi. 

[miguelito]

2 hours ago, rando said:

What might be absurd is 90% of what you wrote justifying the other 10%.  I don't need to live with a friend's wife to know her cooking is better than I get at home.  It might, and probably does, get better the more one experiences it.  Doesn't absolve that first bite  of merit.  (I get both sides married well outside this analogy.)

 

This of course assumes taste.  Which I won't go so far as to comment on the surplus or starvation ranks of those possessing it attendant to this discussion.  

It depends... The point is in most cases the changes are subtle and I find it the same as Priaptor: I need to listen to the piece in my system for a little time to understand what it is all about. And at that I might not even be able to give you a concrete reason why I do or don't like it as in what gets said in reviews.

[miguelito]

1 hour ago, amir57bs said:

dCS mask low level dynamics and cause less contrast.

Could it be that the Audio Note is a NOS DAC and as such is creating a tremendous amount of images making it sound better in systems that deal better with this kind of noise?

[miguelito]

1 hour ago, Priaptor said:

like I said, I own the competitor to the Vivaldi stack and have no dog in this fight other than to put the drive by “reviews” into perspective which in my opinion has little if any legitimacy 

And what is that? MSB?

[miguelito]

2 hours ago, Priaptor said:

One of the other nice nice things about my upgrade to the Select II was my ability to get rid of my Ref10 preamp as the pre stage on the Select II is that good.

Interestingly, this is one of the features I actually ended up loving in the Rossini: The volume control.

 

My Kondo Ongaku does not have a remote, so volume adjustment - I find it critical to listen at the right volume - was a pain. What I do now is set the range of volume in Roon between -15dB and 0dB, set a moderately high volume on Ongaku, and then I can fine tune right from my iPad. It is absolutely great. And works with MQA as well since it is done after rendering. 

[miguelito]

2 hours ago, rando said:

Say I go to multiple symphonic concerts in multiple venues multiple times a month.  Lovely performances all, yet somehow I make use of what mental capacity I've been graced with and experience as a listener to overrule emotion.  To make a solid considered decision whether that performance I just walked out of was, despite the brief time I spent taking it in, absolutely spectacular or just one of many at a high level.

 

I think you see where I'm going with this and should consider expelling whatever bad air you think my previous post injected.  Fair enough?

Sort of side comment... I've been to a lot of concerts/jazz venues where, frankly, the sound was subpar, and in many cases the sound has been more involving at home than at the venues! But it is truly a different experience...

[miguelito]

1 hour ago, NOMBEDES said:

Gee, the description of Bobby D's "Freewheelin'" makes the digital version appear to sound better than the original, hell better than sitting in the room and hearing it live.  Better than CD, better than vinyl.  

 

I guess $25K and half a dozen filters are worth somethin'.

No idea... But I can tell you the DSD download is mesmerizing... And way better than the CD (it is a remaster).

[miguelito]

1 minute ago, Ron Scubadiver said:

$24k?  There has got to be something which works as well for about 10% of what it costs.  

Diminishing returns... I've thoroughly enjoyed music out of much much cheaper systems... But it is not the same.

[miguelito]

Since Chris mentioned the use of music as soothing, I will tell you guys a little story.

 

In May 1998 I was a student and went to Tokyo for a few weeks to assist in a high energy physics experiment. I was on IRC's audio groups and I had interacted with Jonathan Carr, of Lyra Cartridges fame. I told him I was coming and he invited me to a listening session at his apartment.

 

I arrived to his apartment on Saturday after lunch. His business partner was there, can't remember his name, a dutch fella or something. He had a few beauties... The turntable was what I seem to recall was a brand that now escapes me, fairly nice but not something off the charts. His Connosieur preamp, fully opened, was the phono stage and volume control. Amp was solid state but do not recall either. He also has a prototype Sony SACD player, a massive beast, which was opened up. We only listened to records.

 

When I arrived, I was actually sick. I had picked up a cold and was not feeling great. After 4-5 hours of listening to records, and having some of his capuccinno (sp?) I felt like a new man! Amazing. We went out for dinner to some restaurant at like 9-10pm. It was absolutely amazing. And absolutely gracious for Jon to do that to a poor student who could not possibly afford any of hist stuff...  

[miguelito]

1 minute ago, Ron Scubadiver said:

You are free to spend $24k on a DAC.  I easily spend more than that each year on things you would consider to be frivolous.   Not too many of us can discuss the merits of a product we don't have access to.

Ok, so do you suggest not discussing them at all?

 

And to be honest, to make a $24k DAC be in the right system, you're going to have to be talking about $100k+ system at the minimum in my opinion (unless it is a headphone setup).

[miguelito]

3 minutes ago, Ron Scubadiver said:

You are trying to bully me.  

No! I am asking what it is that you're saying. Can you clarify? 

[miguelito]

Just now, Ron Scubadiver said:

You are trying to bully me.

No.

[miguelito]

2 minutes ago, Ron Scubadiver said:

I have a dim view of products this expensive where the only possible difference with far less expensive products is the elusive and completely subjective pursuit of sound quality.  High end audio has become a carnival of many small manufacturers selling tiny quantities of very expensive items.  My gripe is not with this product alone, but with the entire high end scene.  Remember the $3,000 amp which got great reviews and turned out to be made from $150 worth of components?

So? Not everything is like that.

 

This thread is about the product reviewed and related things. 

 

This thread is not about your argument. Hence you're completely off topic, and frankly it is you who is bullying people here. 

 

If you wish to start a thread on your comment above, please feel free to do so!

[miguelito]

5 minutes ago, Ron Scubadiver said:

Do you make the rules here?  You asked for clarification.  You got it.  Now don't tell me I am off topic because you opened the discussion.  

Actually there are such rules here! 

 

Stop trolling and bullying!

[miguelito]

9 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

I really should have put it through my usual torture test of UPnP/DLNA, but I used Roon 99.99% of the time. I will do this and follow up. I feel like I really missed the boat on this one and owe it to the CA Community.

Suggest some people might be interested in your review of Audirvana's over UPnP to Rossini. It shows up on the A+ list but I never tried it.

[miguelito]

On 3/17/2018 at 7:59 PM, firedog said:

 

Others will jump all over me, but if I was starting a Dylan collection, the two albums I'd want are Highway 61 Revisited and Blood on the Tracks.

 

What you should really get is, The Original Mono Recordings, Box Set:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Original-Mono-Recordings-Bob-Dylan/dp/B003XRDYX2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1521330944&sr=8-1&keywords=dylan+original+mono+recordings+CD

 

The sound is fantastic and the entire 8 disc set is a bargain. I think you can get if for even less than the Amazon price if you look. And really, the SQ here is competitive with any other version you will spend your money on. You don't have to buy super expensive audiophile versions to get audiophile level sound. 

Got these and ripped them. I am a sucker for original and improved versions. Listening to Freewheelin, and it’s interesting to hear the mono version, but the DSD MoFi download is absolutely stunning by comparison. Fun to try both! 

 

One funny bit in the stereo version: the mic for Dylan’s voice and harmonica is obviously the same, but the “stereo” mix wanted to put the harmonica on the left channel, the voice slightly left of center. In “Bob Dylan’s Blues” you can hear he says a few things right when he’s playing the harmonica, and you here his voice where the harmonica is... Pitfalls of stereofying a single mic!  

[miguelito]

1 hour ago, Ralf11 said:

the lyrics are on his web site

 

*** are any of the SACDs or other stereo releases as good as the mono ones?

MoFi DSD download is stunning. Lyrics are in Roon, btw...

[miguelito]

9 hours ago, miguelito said:

MoFi DSD download is stunning. Lyrics are in Roon, btw...

This is the DSD download I purchased:

 

http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/98485/Bob_Dylan-The_Freewheelin_Bob_Dylan-DSD_Single_Rate_28MHz64fs_Download

 

However, it doesn't look to be a MoFi release. Roon's pick of the MoFi artwork threw me off. The sound quality is stunning regardless.