How good is Benchmark DAC1 comparing to......

Though I don't always agree with "Audioengr", I will have to say that, after owning the Benchmark, his comments are pretty much on the money. I found this dac to be relatively clear and dynamic with a simplicity of sound that was hard to dislike . These were it's stong points. The weak points, in my opinion, were a slight leading edge haziness, or thinness to musical notes and voice. Music seemed to emanate from a plane with limited depth. You might say, a 4'X8'X2' plane instead of the 8'X10'X6' plane which was the type sound field provided by the dcs Elgar/Purcell rig that sat next to it. The manner in which music starts, evolves and decays in free space from the dcs rig is in a different class than the Benchmark, as well as many other dacs and/or players that I have heard.

Another player on hand was a Jolida JD-100 and, yes, I owned this too. I preferred it to the Benchmard simply becuase it seemed to impart a certain "heart and soul" that seemed to elude the Benchmark. The Benchmark was a bit strident or steril by comparison. However, this is not meant to reduce the Benchmark. It was still a superb dac for the money and, just may be what many are looking for. My comments are only my opinion, based on my specific system and preferences.

The Benchmark stikes me as a reviewer's tool being starkly clean and dynamic. If your preferences lie with modern digital sound venue, it just could be your final cup of tea. Remember, although I favor the dcs sound very much, there are many who don't find the specific sound to their liking. It is really a preference thing so, listening yourself is the best way to judge it, not what some reviewer says. After all, it is your ears that must do the listening.

For those that put more trust in reviewer's ears, there is a review in the newest issue of Sensible Sound that many should find interesting. Interesting in that they decided employ the double-blind listening approach in the interest of objectivity.

In a nutshell, the reviewers simply could not tell the difference between the Benchmark and a discontinued Sony XA20 machine.

Be sure to catch this issue if you are interested in one of the more objective reviews of the Benchmark floating around the audiophile press.

Nice post "Redkiwi". I too fail to understand the philosophy behind judgemental type decisions based on someone else's ears and a bit of vodoo math. Geeshh....

A quality debate and/or dialog is beneficial to everyone - and fun. And, for the most part, with perhaps the exception of a few posts, this thread has been enlightening. I have pretty much learned from experience how to riffle through posts concentrating on those of merit while at the same time riffling through those that go off course merely for the purpose of cooking up some innuendo. Fact is, in most internet chat type threads there is always quality dialog and, unfortunately there is usually always a dose of inappositeness.