I currently have a MF A3-24 which I like very much. I have been looking for a DAC which takes 192KHz input (A3-24 is limited to 96KHz), so looked into the new M1. It was reviewed well in the March Stereophile. In the new Stereophile (June) in the Follow-up section, John Adkinson notes that with 192KHz inputs, the output rolls off pretty much the same as with 96KHz - at just over 40 KHz. I would expect it to extend out to close to 1/2 the sampling freqency. He notes that, but does not make a big deal about it. But, it seems like MF increased the input sampling freqency up to 192KHz but did not update the D to A and/or output accordingly. So, although it takes in 192KHz, it does not seem to take advantage of it.
That also brings up the question as to whether other manufactures may be doing the same thing. Everyone wants to have 192KHz performance, but it seems they also need to change the D to A to take advantage of 192KHz, not just the input. I would just assume that they were doing so. But maybe not, especially at this low to mid level price point. Or am I missing something?
I have the same cut of music in SACD, 24/88 and 24/192 format. SACD is played in DSD mode. The 24/88 is played at 96khz sampling rate while the 24/192 is played at 192khz sampling rate. At the end, the 24/88 wins. Upsampling 24/88 to 24/192 degrades the sound quality.
There are a few caveats from the above comparison: - The SACD could be better with a better transport. - The 24/192 could be better if the DAC is properly implemented. - All these are results of using Oppo-95 alone. Using other DACs or transports might give a different ranking.
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
