Article: dCS Bartok Review

[austinpop]

1 hour ago, mrkwr said:

Coming late to this, but I must say like others that it’s a really great review: I particularly value the comparisons to other DACs and between config options. Most reviews just say the unit sounds great which – as you say – is just table stakes at the price point, so gives you precisely zero new information. 

 

FWIW, I spent 2–3 weeks doing an extended home trial and direct comparison of the Bartok with my Benchmark DAC3 HGC earlier this year (mid-March). Music sources were streaming from Qobuz and from local files on a basic WD NAS, some hi-res inc. 96/192 and DSD, mostly 16/44. For the Benchmark I was using the bottom-of-the-range Auralic Mini to handle the streaming, so roughly a £2750 combo compared to £10,000 for the Bartok (ignoring the headphone amp, though the review sample did have this). Downstream I was listening to Harbeth SL5+ Anniversary Editions via a Benchmark AHB2. I also listened on headphones, which while a little bit more revealing is something I rarely do as I much prefer the experience of listening via speakers. (The more so since developing mild tinnitus.)

 

I listen primarily to classical music (I  play piano and violin to a fairly high amateur standard, and go to a lot of classical concerts, so have a good idea of what I want these instruments to sound like), and for me the priority is perceived realism/naturalism of acoustic instruments and groups from solo piano/violin up to full symphony and chorus. I also enjoy a much contemporary jazz and listened to a fair bit of this during the trial. 

 

My findings:

 

* It wasn’t always easy to tell the two apart: often you had to listen very closely to pick up minor details. Probably half the tracks I listened to fell into this category: I simply couldn’t have distinguished which DAC was playing without really focussing hard (and sometimes not even then).

* Other times, there was a clearly perceivable advantage to the dCS: this was most frequently in terms of either (a) greater perceived naturalism/realism (especialy on human voice or violin) or (b) more presence/body to the bass (e.g. double bass in jazz ensemble, bass section in orchestra). In other cases the dCS advantage was one of better separating musical voices, e.g. allowing easier following of separate lines/polyphony and clarification of complex textures, or more vivid presentation (dynamics?). 

 

Overall, though, my personal conclusion was that although the DCS offered real advantages, and that the differences all played directly to my priorities, the benefits of the dCS were not sufficiently large to warrant the additional cost – the “problem” was that the Benchmark is just too good, even if not *quite* as good as the dCS. 

 

I ended up sending back the dCS rather reluctanly, as I’d seen myself as the sort of listener that would enjoy being a dCS owner, but was forced to admit the Benchmark came too close for me to spend the extra cash. I also bore in mind that this comparison was done with a very modest streaming unit upstream of the Benchmark (the Aries Mini) which could potentially be upgraded for significantly less than the cost of upgrading to the dCS.

 

Just one listener’s opinion, of course …

 

(PS: I ended up spending the cash I’d earmarked on renovating my Steinway Model O, so it’s still gone in the service of music (re)production!)

 

What a wonderful post! Thanks for your comments. This is exactly the approach I advocate:

• audition it in your own system, and
• apply your own judgement to whether performance gains are worth the cost.

Enjoy the music!

[jacquesr]

Thank you so much for the very insightful and useful review.

Is it safe to say an EtherRegen could improve things further?

Thanks

[austinpop]

Hi Jacques,

 

While I can’t speak for the ER, as I have never heard it with the Bartok, my expectation, based on my experience with the SOtM switch with the Bartok, is that it should make a positive impact. 
 

The good thing is the ER comes with a 30 day guarantee, so you can try it for yourself. Ethernet enhancements seem to be very system-dependent.

[AVphile]

I first started reading audio equipment reviews in 1970, courtesy then of J. Gordon Holt's Stereophile.  Without reservation, your review of the dCS Bartok is the finest I have ever read, and by now all those reviews must total in the tens of thousands.

 

I have reached the point where I am content with my system, which I have carefully assembled over the past 15 years and have "finished" in 2019 with the purchase of a Lumin T2 music server/DAC and related power conditioning and cable (power, Ethernet, and analog) acquisitions.  Your, sir, have caused me a high class problem -- whether I should continue to save my pennies so that someday I might replace my very satisfactory T2 with the dCS Bartok.  I thank you for causing this distress! 😉

[austinpop]

Wow thank you - that is high praise indeed! I am glad you enjoyed the article and found it useful.

[Middy]

I've been buying more lottery tickets because of this review. You getting quoted on different manufacturers web sites is an honour and a privileged responsibility. The general quality of writing on AS has gone up  quite a few notches lately. I hated Tears for fears and those 80s NR bands growing up... Now I'm contemplating getting that album to play on my future lottery win Bartok on Wilson speakers.

You have set the bar so high we will expect you to be in the next Olympics Austinpop ....😁

Good luck for 2020

 

Dave

[Geir Fagervik]

This review is so good! It helps me when considering buying this Dac. You are so thorough. I like that you compare it with different Dac`s of different prices, and also how the sound quality differs upstream. This is serious and expensive equipment, that needs careful considerations before a purchace. You give this review just as high quality as the product of review. I now have read this review and the one for Aurender Acs10, and audiophilestyle will be on of my reference sources for information going forward. Cudos!

[Martin Herløv Andersen]

I am SUPER impressed with your review.

The depth of the review and technical skills you are posses are at another level.

Keep them coming 🙂

 

One question, how much did you listen to the dac in a stereo setup?

Most reviews of the Bartok is as a headphone amp and I am interested in the Bartok only as a dac.

I admit I don't like head phones for anything else than work.

[austinpop]

2 hours ago, Martin Herløv Andersen said:

I am SUPER impressed with your review.

The depth of the review and technical skills you are posses are at another level.

Keep them coming 🙂

 

Thanks, I appreciate your kind words.

 

2 hours ago, Martin Herløv Andersen said:

One question, how much did you listen to the dac in a stereo setup?

 

I'm assuming by "stereo setup" you're referring to a speaker-based setup?

 

It would be fair to say that the bulk of the listening I did with the Bartók during the time I had the review sample was with headphones, as that is my primary listening system at home. That said, I did enough listening on the speaker setup described in my review to assess it thoroughly. According to my notes, it was 4 distinct listening sessions of 3-4 hours each.

[asdf1000]

Hi @AMP

 

I believe Bartok features a StreamUnlimited board, which supports both Airplay 2 and Chromecast Built-in.

 

What's the reason these 2 things are not supported on Bartok?

 

Thanks !

 

[TFEC West]

This is one of the best component reviews I’ve ever read, and that includes reviews in publications like Stereophile and TAS. Well done sir, and thank you! 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻