Absolute top tier DAC for standard res Redbook CD
Disheartening that digital hasn't yet caught up to turntables. No one can say you didn't put any time into trying, Matt! I'll remain blissfully ignorant since getting into vinyl isn't realistic. Maybe there is merit to MQA? Do members here, generally speaking, make an effort to select the best digital mastering work for a given album? - Josh |
"Go to Ikea and buy a pair of bamboo cutting boards and put them under your amps or your rack; it tightens up the image a tad and they are $15- each… I put two under my main rack." ^Vibration control is one area that I haven't addressed. Stillpoints products are among the cost-no-object. Might be interesting for you to check them out and perhaps some others. "I kept a 7'x9' piece of the carpet as an area rug but the rest was pulled and replaced with faux wood vinyl - looks pretty good actually." ^Matt- is your carpet polyester or the like with glue backing? Wondering if a genuine wool hand-made ("oriental") carpet won't make a difference? Anyone else have a view? -Josh |
Reproduced sound is OUR passion though and certainly we can expect only a select few to get it. If that weren't the case, then we'd have to expect ourselves to dive head-long into everyone's passions. Matt- I'm going to be real curious to see how your digital front end turns out in several months once the speakers and other pieces are in place. I'd simply recommend not to forget the critical role that the digital mastering engineer plays in what we hear. Whereas not all vinyl is cut equally, likewise, not all CD mastering efforts are equal. -Josh |
Matt- which DACs are on the short list to contend with your Empirical once you've settled on speakers, etc.? I'm curious as to how the DirectStream with Yale firmware would stack up against the ODSE and also a higher priced DAC such as totaldac D1-twelve. Does anyone following this thread have the Yale firmware yet? -Josh |
Fantastic stuff, guys! Appreciated. Would be nice if even more folks would chime in here as Matt has really got an epic thread going. I'm sticking with my Cary Audio 306 SACD Pro, which was introduced in 2008, for now. No gear budget. Can't wait to take an epic leap in sound quality. I'd be tempted if there was a different situation in the SACD disc spinner market since I actually do want that option. Maybe legal and easy DSD ripping is not far behind? Gotta wonder what Playback Designs will do now that Esoteric no longer sells their Transports (due to SACD patent holder no longer selling the chip sets)? -Josh |
Hi Matt- yes, my experience has been that hearing speakers or electronics in another system has little value. Gotta hear it at home and ideally for a decent stretch of time. I'm looking to put a "short list" of CD/SACD players and stand alone DACs into the context of the design- delta sigma, R2R, etc. And then note for each the analog stage design, power supply or other important distinguishing engineering. Thought it might be a nice way to put them into some perspective and then see how it evolves over time. -Josh |
R-2R ladder: MSB DAC V totaldac d1-twelve Which of these other DACs are R2R ladder? Aesthetix Pandora/Romulus APL DSD-S Auralic Vega Berkeley Alpha Reference Boulder 1021 CH Precision C1 Chord DAVE dCS "Ring DAC" EMM Labs DAC2x Empirical Audio Overdrive SE Esoteric Grandioso D1 exaSound e22 Jeff Rowland Aeris Lampizator GG Nagra HD DAC Playback Designs MPS / MPD - 5 PS Audio DirectStream Zanden Model 5000 Appreciated, Josh |
Mitch2- much appreciate your views on digital transports. I'll be following Matt's journey, which I believe will eventually get around to transport/DAC. I'm interested in the integrated storage transports- 2TB should be plenty for a music collection expected to reach 3,000 albums (80/20 redbook/hi-res) by 2020. I think? Anyhow, I wonder if Roon's features will show up with Antipodes, Aurender, etc? I'd like to have that dynamic interaction of my collection with info from the internet. I'll try to be ready to buy in another year, which could be good timing. Meantime, I'll enjoy my Cary 306 SACD Pro and I'll continue adding to my music collection! Finally, thanks again to all those contributing to this thread. Cheers, Josh |
This Goldmund situation is disturbing as I'm way out my element. Are any of you able to distill the function of these speakers? Maybe start with the device which transmits the left/right digital(?) output to the receiver on the speaker. Is this technology audiophile approved? So then there's a DAC in each speaker and, as I gather, a DSP crossover rather than hardware. Whew. Wow. This set-up would be a game changer. Aside from Goldmund, who else in the hi-end is pursuing it? -Josh |
Goldmund ProLogos Plus Wireless Ok, so let's say that Matt has a digital transport such as Antipodes and doesn't utilized Goldmund's room correction device. Which digital output is used for the dongle(s)? Once the digital signal is received (by L/R speakers), then what happens prior to pre/power amplification? Specifically, how is PCM and DSD handled? What does the DSP do? Are the pre/power amps, which are mounted in the speaker cabinet, well designed compared to others at the $20,000 price point? Are the drivers well designed compared to other speakers at roughly the $30,000 price point? I'm really hoping Matt will be able to home demo. I'm extremely skeptical. Seventy grand will buy quite an impressive traditional component system. I'd fully expect a system at that price to absolutely wipe the floor with mine (Cary electronics/Focal speakers- less than half price). -Josh |
Matt- would a chart such as this be of value? Name| Model| Country| Chief Engineer| D/A | Analog| Aesthetix Pandora/Romulus USA Jim White APL DSD-S Bulgaria Alex Peychev Auralic Vega China Xuanqian Wang Berkeley Alpha Reference USA Michael Ritter Boulder 1021 USA Jeff Nelson CH Precision C1 Switzerland Chord DAVE UK John Franks dCS "Ring DAC" UK EMM Labs DAC2x Canada Ed Meitner Empirical Audio Overdrive SE USA Steve Nugent Esoteric Grandioso D1 Japan exaSound e22 Canada Jeff Rowland Aeris USA Lampizator GG Poland Lukasz Fikus MSB DAC V USA Lawrence Gullman Nagra HD DAC Switzerland Playback Designs MPS / MPD - 5 USA Andreas Koch PS Audio DirectStream USA Ted Smith totaldac d1-twelve France Vincent Brient Zanden Model 5000 Japan If so, then maybe a member or two could assist with D/A conversion design, Analog Out, and Power Supply. Just enough high level info to give some perspective. Regards, Josh |
R-2R list in production 2015: Aqua HiFi La Scala PCM1704-K (4) Dual mono CH Precision C1 PCM1704 (8) Dual mono Computer Audio Design CAD 1543 DAC Philips TDA1543/N2 (16) Metrum Acoustics Pavane Propietary "Transient" chips MSB DAC V Discrete (proprietary) Schiit Yggdrasil AD5791 BRUZ (4) totaldac d1-twelve 6 discrete ladders per channel (600 vishay foil resistors) Trinity Electronic Design Trinity DAC PCM1704 Many differences with these (and any DAC) beyond D/A conversion of course. Maybe I'll add details if warranted. Any others for this list? Figure this may be interesting once Matt get backs to DACs. |
Georgelofi- the Totaldac Server is not a DAC. There is a d1-Integral at around $10,000 (I think) which includes an entry level DAC. What I'd like to see from Totaldac is fewer confusing configurations and much more competitive pricing for the flagship set-up. How about simply a traditional digital transport (server; 2TB+ storage) and the 3-box d1-twelve at around $15,000. The "system-twelve", which includes NAS storage, is currently priced at over 30,000 Euro. Yikes. Maybe Vincent should move out of France if that is creating costs? Anyhow, I hope Totaldac doesn't end up becoming a luxury brand as there are more than enough already to satisfy the biggest spenders. Regards, Josh |
EC Designs Mosaic T Hoping some of you can audition this one. Epic thread "Building the ultimate NOS DAC using TDA1541A" on DIY audio. (the chip was dropped along the way for custom design) |
Jh901- the short answer is, yes. The better recording make a huge difference! Even if still "just" at 16/44. Thanks, Matt. Sorry to hear about DAVE! Just to be more clear, I was referring to mastering quality. A great recording can be ruined if the engineer doesn't transfer to digital very well. Anyhow, hope you are able to focus on music once again soon. - Josh |
Nice sales pitch, Al. No reason for me to doubt claims about SGM 2015, but one of these days pricing audio gear for the luxury spenders must end. Competition is heating up. Computer parts are cheap. Don't take it personal. The Antipodes was priced around $4,500 until an "agreement" was made to sell it for $6,500 in the US. Anyhow, you got your free advertising. |
Matt - looking forward to your thoughts on the DaVinci. Playback Designs has a new "Dream series" coming which will include an SACD transport with integrated Syrah server (MPT-8) and a new DAC (MPD-8). Will be out of my price range, but this is the functionality I'd like. Wonder if this new DAC will best Merlot appreciably? Keep in mind. Hopefully, PS Audio will consider the integrated server concept. -Josh |
Davinci2 has R2R for PCM and separate conversion (FPGA?) for DSD, right? How about the Boulder 2120 as far as D/A conversion? How does the latest PS Audio and Playback Designs Sonoma compare with each other and to the very top of the hi-end? I can't bail on SACD transport just yet, so upgrading my Cary 306 SACD Pro to PS Audio is close to a decent price point for me when on sale and I'd could still spin physical discs for a while before going hard drive. |
Then it's about "best for PCM RedBook" as you stated. And of course the talk will come down to technology. George, respectfully, knock it off. Everyone reading this thread is familiar with your R2R dogma. I have personally had great results with D/S, but if I designed an R2R from scratch, it might be equally good. Steve, your ethernet DAC only accepts PCM. How do you recommend converting DSD? |
Matt, hopefully you will end up coming across the Playback Designs Dream Series line. Andreas Koch has quite a resume and was involved in getting PS Audio's engineer into FPGA. The Playback Designs MPS-5 (flagship SACD player) came to market about 10 years ago, but the firmware has been updated numerous times. Additionally, a fully upgraded MPS-5 includes an improved clock generator. I'm of the impression, and not my own personal observation, that the fully upgraded MPS-5 will beat the Merlot DAC. One wouldn't be reaching too far to believe that it may beat the latest DirectStream. The Dream Series DAC will have MSRP $22,000. Matching SACD transport $15,000. Would be interesting to get your impressions compared with ultra hi-end units you've enjoyed! |
Matt, will you be auditioning the new Playback Designs MPD-8? I'm not sure how many of the statement level DACs you've enjoyed employ FPGA. Might be informative for thread followers if you spend some time with it. Also, and a bit off-topic, which A/C cables and conditioner/distribution do you use? Thanks, Josh |
Power cords and hi end distribution/conditioning are essential. I have Shunyata Denali and Alpha/Delta cables. Take all that away and my listening experience simply isn't "hi end" as I now appreciate it. Audioquest Hurricane and their flagship conditioners are very well regarded. Passive approach is my style, so no PS Audio. |
Wadax Atlantis Reference Sure do hope Matt will dig a bit deeper. Is the Wadax the true "ultimate reference"? Does Soulution's flagship compare? And what of Playback Design's MPD-8?! As for "r2r georgehifi", I sincerely hope you are well. No need to follow up yet again in this thread. Take care of yourself. |
