Audiolab MDAC

[tubesound]

As I don't have a hum in the first place. I guess there might be some problem in Audiolab's async USB coding. Many people report that even Audio Research DAC8 can be improved by a high quality USB to SPDIF converter.

 

[rsantisteve]

I think mdac has 2 good reasons to get it Vs. arcam Rdac: the pre-amplifier for the headphones , the volume, and of course you don't need a integrated amplifier or 2 more pieces.

With a power amp it 's enough, and you can find good amps at the same price as an mid integrated amp.

For example, what' s your opinion about tAudiolab 8200P ? And joined with the MDac should be interesting, no?

Or maybe another choice would be interesting.

 

[GammaG]

I have been told this and that on various brand names of DACS. From CA Dac Magic+, PeachTree DAC*IT, BitFrost Schiit DAC, Musical Fidelity V-Dac II, AudioLab M-DAC. I also looked at the North Star Design USB dac 32, but this one might be out of my price range!

 

The M-DAC appears to have some good reviews. I have had the chance to listen to the CA dac magic plus, and thought that the sound from it was fairly good. I have not listened to any of the other dacs I have listed above. From what I have gathered, most of the sound differences appear to be from the dac chips these companies put into them, as well as the power supplies. I will say that I am no expert with dacs, but from what I have experienced, as far as using the CA dac magic plus, it is evident that bypassing my NAD cd player (using the digital output), which uses Burr-Brown Sigma-Delta 24 bit dac versus the Twin Wolfson WM8740 24bit dac used in the dac magic plus, seems to have a better detailed sound. I may stand to be corrected on this as I said I am not an expert in this field. The AudioLab M-DAC uses the ESS Sabre32 9018 chip, which I have not had the opportunity to listen to.

 

Perhaps someone here that has the knowledge about this, and may have had the chance to hear some of the dacs I have mentioned, could give their input. I am just trying to make the best choice for a dac, before purchasing one.

 

Thanks again!

 

John G.

 

 

 

[ensrettet]

I ordered my MDAC mid-November and was lucky enough to be part of the Feb 13th batch that landed in the UK, so it got installed last week.

 

Initial impressions, its a very solid unit, build quality seems good.

 

First listen used a USB connection from my music PC (normally used with M1 DAC) and using the built-in headphone amp.

With no running in, the sound seemed flat, no detail, no soundstage and seperation, almost like listening to low quality lossy material.

 

Connecting by coax via SOtM USB-S/PDIF converter didn't seem to make a difference for better or worse.

Connecting it to my M1 HPA headphone amp did improve things but not enough for me to enjoy listening.

 

After 10 hours or so of Enya on repeat, the bass became more pronounced and I started to hear a bit more detail.

 

Although this sounds negative, I had the same reaction when I bought my Arcam rDAC and compared it to my M1 DAC. I'm happy to give it time to run in properly and will be ordering the M-PAX power supply when it becomes available.

 

Regards,

Martin

 

 

 

[GammaG]

I am curious as to the M-PAX power supply you had mentioned. Is this an upgrade PS for the M-DAC?

 

I was really considering purchasing the M-DAC as I have heard it has some good reviews. Have you tried using it with loud speakers? I was curious to see if that would make a noticeable difference.

 

Thanks,

 

John G.

 

[uwe061]

I got my M-DAC ten days ago and after the first listening i was disappointed - but some days of non-stop-playing later it's getting better and better. A lot of details, huge Soundstage, very good timing, deep bass, very "analog"... Now i am really satisfied. I think this type of organic capacitors needs a lot of burn-in-time.

The M-Pax will be not only an PS upgrade, it will adds some analog inputs also and you can use your M-DAC as an analog + digital pre amplifier. There will be also an 24/192 galvanically isolated "transporter" in the future. The M-Pax and the transporter are branded as "Lakewest" - these are not audiolab products.

 

Best regards,

Uwe

 

[GammaG]

I was thinking about the PS that comes originally on the M-DAC. I mean if one pays around a grand for this dac, you would think that they would have incorporated a PS that would be comparable to the M-PAX. I would imagine that this is another marketing tactic for extra revenue. I am not 100% on this, just commenting on posts that I have read here.

 

Is the M-Pax available through Audio Lab?

 

Also, have you been listening with loud speakers or head-phones?

 

Thanks in advanced!

 

John G.

 

[jemhayward]

The PSU that comes with the MDAC is certainly of the size and quality you'd expect with a DAC of this price. It's huge, heavy, and may be all the circuits need. It's certainly not a wall wart, and the MPAX as a PSU may not actually improve on it. The MPAX adds more facilities to the MDAC but also turns it into a £1000 GBP DAC. So if your budget is £600 just get a stock MDAC and enjoy it. If you were thinking about buying a DAC up to the £7k region, just get a MDAC with MPAX and spend the rest on music.

 

[GammaG]

Perhaps you can explain to me if the M-DAC has such a good PS, why would one need to get the M-PAX?

 

By the way, Do you know what the price is for this M-PAX?

 

Thanks!

 

[jemhayward]

No one knows yet as the MPAX doesn't exist yet. On another forum John Westlake has said that it will only be released if it does improve the sound, but I suspect many people will buy it to get the analogue inputs. I think that it will also provide separate left and right power supplies, but my only knowledge is based on reading forum posts. It sounds as if it will be a rather more sophisticated unit than, say, a Naim HICAP.

 

[rsantisteve]

Can anybody give us a comment about the headphone signal?

 

Thank your for your opinions.

 

[rooob]

John Westlake no longer works for Audiolab, the ps and transport will be released under his own product banner.

With regards to the M-DACS power supply this would have been built to a price so it can be easily improved on, according to JW galvanic isolation for its usb input was ditched by Audiolab in order to keep the price down.

 

[Cans]

Hi all,

I have an M-Dac, I have a Young Dac with a linear PSU, I have an HRT Headstreamer. I've also owned a Beresford Caiman Gatorised and a DacMagic Plus.

The M-Dac is good for the money, the headphone output is also excellent and there is little noise from the PSU. It is detailed and the sound can be tweaked using the filters. It is no match for the Young Dac.

The Young (with the linear PSU) has a less harsh, more detailed sound and supports up to 384 khz through usb. So if you have SACD stuff that's 352 khz, the Young'll play it through USB.

I have 44.1, 48, 88, 96, 192 and 352 khz files. The bigger the khz the better they sound. Provided they're not vinyl rips which are dependent on the quality of the turntable etc. And provided they have been remastered with the appropriate care.

All Dacs have their own qualities. The M-Dac is great, but to compare it to the Young is a tall order indeed, but quite flattering given that the Young is £1200 without another £200 for the PSU upgrade.

Hope this helps anyone considering buying it, if you don't need a headphone output then I reckon the Dacmagic Plus was a superb sound for the money, the headphone output was no good tho.

 

[GammaG]

I have been in search for a good dac for some time now, and would have to agree with you that the CA dac magic+ is a good sounding dac.

 

I had a chance to audition one not long ago. I connected the magic+ to my pc, and also connected the digital output on my NAD C542 cd player, made a noticeable sound improvement on both components.

 

After further reading and in search of a really good sounding dac, I have decided that I am going to purchase a Peachtree audio NovaPre. If by chance the NovaPre doesn't work out well for me, I am sure that I would have no problem selling it and trying another dac

 

John G.