Singxer SDA-6

[SwissBear]

4 minutes ago, w1000i said:

How do you control volume ? I see -60bd for min vol.

 

I am using HQPlayer to adjust volume 

[Tavy]

@SwissBearYes, thank you for testing. Did you noticed any noise-floor increase when DoP is detected. In my case I have noticed on speaker first and checked with headphones after that and the noise increase was very clear. I have almost decided to return it to be changed as it seams that SPDIF interface has some issues and I suspect it is not only the FW responsible. BTW, the issues with the clock is still present but only when changing from 96kHz to 44 kHz sampling rates (I was wrong saying that the it was fixed by adding delay).

Again, no issues with USB but the sound using the AES/EBU is far more musical compared to USB at least for the music I love (classical and jazz).

[Tavy]

@mevdincThe sound of SDA-6 is very good, I love it. I only hope to have the SPDIF interface working as it should. The only negative point I see so far is the volume difference PCM vs DSD which will request to adjust the volume between the two formats - this is very poor design decision to my view. It made the D90 MQA sound very dull. If you plan to use the USB, it works flawless but the full musicality is revealed when using AES/EBU, at least when using my streamer (Auralic Aries G1).

[Miska]

1 hour ago, Tavy said:

The only negative point I see so far is the volume difference PCM vs DSD which will request to adjust the volume between the two formats - this is very poor design decision to my view. It made the D90 MQA sound very dull.

 

DSD should be 3 - 6 dB quieter than PCM. By design. Otherwise you have risk of overloading some analog stage somewhere. 0 dB DSD equals to -6 dB PCM. However, DSD spec allows temporary peaks to reach +3.15 dB.

 

OTOH, PCM albums vary in loudness too, so you may need to adjust volume also between PCM albums.

 

Not an issue for me though either, since I always run DACs are their optimal format. So never switching between PCM and DSD for example. These kind of DACs I just run at DSD256 always.

 

[SwissBear]

4 hours ago, Tavy said:

@SwissBearYes, thank you for testing. Did you noticed any noise-floor increase when DoP is detected. In my case I have noticed on speaker first and checked with headphones after that and the noise increase was very clear. I have almost decided to return it to be changed as it seams that SPDIF interface has some issues and I suspect it is not only the FW responsible. BTW, the issues with the clock is still present but only when changing from 96kHz to 44 kHz sampling rates (I was wrong saying that the it was fixed by adding delay).

Again, no issues with USB but the sound using the AES/EBU is far more musical compared to USB at least for the music I love (classical and jazz).

 

No, I didn't notice any adverse effect using DoP with the AES/EBU input.

For the purpose of record, as I am using an external 10 MHz clock with 75Ohm impedance, I have the switch 8 positioned to "OFF". As this switch is also involved in the PLL adjustment of the AES/EBU input, could you check with this switch to "OFF" too ? 

 

A few ideas though, as I was myself a big fan of AES/EBU before switching back to USB when I moved to HQPlayer.

1. AES/EBU is limiting you to file resolutions which are probably not the sweet-spot of this DAC. If you want to enjoy the best of this DAC, you might want to try HQPlayer upsampling to DSD256 or DSD512 and use the NOS mode of the DAC.

2. One of the reasons why you do no have the same feeling of musicality with USB compared to AES/EBU might be related to galvanic isolation, where USB is notoriously difficult to handle. You might want to try other solutions like HQPlayer streaming to a well powered NAA connected to your DAC.

3. I noticed that the USB input of the SDA-6 took longer to "open" itself up when burning in.

Just my 2c :-)

[Tavy]

I don't plan to use any kind of up-sampling using different filters - I prefer the NOS mode and the sound of this DAC was what I was looking for. Seams that it was a HW fault in my unit and has to be changed. And indeed the USB is starting to show an increased musicality after one week so I might give it another shot.

Regarding different output volume for DSD vs PCM, this should have been resolved by design avoiding making volume adjustment during audition. It is not a real issue for me as I usually don't mix them as I play full albums at once so I can make the adjustment when the format is changed

[SwissBear]

29 minutes ago, Tavy said:

Seams that it was a HW fault in my unit and has to be changed.

 

Did you try the switch thing ?

[Tavy]

33 minutes ago, SwissBear said:

 

Did you try the switch thing ?

Yes, I have put the SW OFF (thank you for this suggestion) and the sound was OK (but you loose one of the major benefit) and that is why I will send the unit for replacement (or even cancel my order - I did not take any decision yet).

Can you please try without external clock - SW 8 ON and see if you notice the problem?

[SwissBear]

3 hours ago, Tavy said:

Yes, I have put the SW OFF (thank you for this suggestion) and the sound was OK (but you loose one of the major benefit) and that is why I will send the unit for replacement (or even cancel my order - I did not take any decision yet).

Can you please try without external clock - SW 8 ON and see if you notice the problem?

 

Yes it works with the PLL locked by me. No problem detected. 

[w1000i]

4 hours ago, Tavy said:

I don't plan to use any kind of up-sampling using different filters - I prefer the NOS mode and the sound of this DAC was what I was looking for. Seams that it was a HW fault in my unit and has to be changed. And indeed the USB is starting to show an increased musicality after one week so I might give it another shot.

Regarding different output volume for DSD vs PCM, this should have been resolved by design avoiding making volume adjustment during audition. It is not a real issue for me as I usually don't mix them as I play full albums at once so I can make the adjustment when the format is changed

The NOS in this DAC will show more benefit if you feed it a higher sampling signal.

[Tavy]

42 minutes ago, w1000i said:

The NOS in this DAC will show more benefit if you feed it a higher sampling signal.

Indeed, but I prefer the original sampling rate (and yes, higher is better)

[Miska]

17 hours ago, Tavy said:

Regarding different output volume for DSD vs PCM, this should have been resolved by design avoiding making volume adjustment during audition.

 

Ultimately it depends on mastering of the record you are listening and not on DAC design.

 

But AKM chips have DSD output level at -3.5 dB ref DSD +6 dB vs PCM 0 dBFS. If you want them to be "at same level", set the DSD side to DSD Direct mode and PCM side digital volume to -3.5 dB.

 

18 hours ago, Tavy said:

I don't plan to use any kind of up-sampling using different filters - I prefer the NOS mode and the sound of this DAC was what I was looking for.

 

With the SDM DAC chips, you still have the "copy the same sample N time" oversampling.

 

Using "NOS mode" at input rates below 352.8k gives technically pretty horrible results.

 

[DomiJi]

Hello :)

 

i've recieved my SDA-6 Pro the last week and i'm still in the burn-in period. 

 

But what i can hear so far it is a phenomenal DAC and i like it much more than my "old" Gustard X16 DAC with U16 DDC.

 

At the moment i use the USB interface directly feed by my Intel NUC with Roon ROCK and a linear power supply. 

 

The SQ is exceptional. Very smooth but still detailed. The soundstage is fairly wide but not deep. 

 

I still experiment a bit if PCM upsampled to 384k or DSD512 sounds better on this device.

 

Best

Dominik

[DomiJi]

I've tested the 10 MHz Clock input of my SDA-6 with my Oscilloquartz 8663 OCXO 10 MHz Clock. This clock produces phenomenal results with my Gustard U16 DDC. But with the SDA-6 it doesn't made a big difference. 

 

Does anyone tested some other clocks as well?

[R1200CL]

26 minutes ago, DomiJi said:

Does anyone tested some other clocks as well?

I will soon (in a week I hope) test my SU-2 with AfterDark King version clock. I need also to figure out if I have to tell the SU-2 if it shall switch from internal to external clock. I tried with a BG7TBL clock. I couldn’t hear any difference. 

 

As it’s a mystery how this external clock input is working, I doubt it will help much. 

[DomiJi]

With my Gustard U16 DDC i hear a significant improvemend but with the SDA 6 i can not tell a difference. 

 

The clock itself is specwise very good and equipt with a LPS. 

[w1000i]

2 minutes ago, DomiJi said:

With my Gustard U16 DDC i hear a significant improvemend but with the SDA 6 i can not tell a difference. 

 

The clock itself is specwise very good and equipt with a LPS. 

You think SDA-6 good enough without U16 ?

[DomiJi]

I think the SDA 6 is as good as it is. I would not couple it with a DDC because it is not worth all the money. You need a DDC, HDMI cable, power cord and space for another device on your desk. With all these things in mind i would probably just buy a higher tier DAC.

 

The USB input is really, really good. When i connect an external OCXO to the SDA-6 the difference for me is totally negligible.

[mevdinc]

On 1/31/2021 at 11:44 PM, w1000i said:

https://shenzhenaudio.com/products/singxer-sda-6-primary-direct-solution-cchd-957-femtosecond-clock-of-usb-nos-model-dsd512-ak4499-dac-decoder

Offer 30 days trail.

 

However, SDA-6 have better preamp than D90 with discreet resistors and quality Capacitors.

Other thing, it mentioned in their website that the help develop 2nd generation XMOS USB Chip if the translation is correct which give them a high credibility as a manufacturer.

Hi,

You say that SDA-6 has a better preamp; does it actually have a preamp/analog volume control? Or did you mean that it has a better analog conversion/output stage?
 

[DomiJi]

8 minutes ago, mevdinc said:

Hi,

You say that SDA-6 has a better preamp; does it actually have a preamp/analog volume control? Or did you mean that it has a better analog conversion/output stage?
 

 

The SDA-6 doesn't have a volume control...

[w1000i]

I got mine and these some internal pictures.

 

 

[DomiJi]

What format do other SDA 6 owners prefer? PCM or DSD? 

 

I use DSD upsampling via Roon with smooth minimal filter... 

[sonodynesrp205]

1 minute ago, DomiJi said:

What format do other SDA 6 owners prefer? PCM or DSD? 

 

I use DSD upsampling via Roon with smooth minimal filter... 

Can I ask what is your "transport" for SDA-6?

 

regards,
Simon

[DomiJi]

1 minute ago, sonodynesrp205 said:

Can I ask what is your "transport" for SDA-6?

 

regards,
Simon

 

Roon ROCK: Intel NUC (i5, 16GB, Ssd) with fanless case and 19v linear power supply. 

[Tavy]

19 minutes ago, DomiJi said:

What format do other SDA 6 owners prefer? PCM or DSD? 

 

I use DSD upsampling via Roon with smooth minimal filter... 

With D90 DAC I have used the same DSD upsampling but with SDA-6 there is no need - NOS is the best solution. Of course it depends on your audio system and how good the analogue audio filters are . In my case I use Yamaha AS2200 with ProAc DT8 speakers. I use ROON with only room correction activated.