Do some DACs "handle" sibilance better than others?


I recently watched a  Hans B. review of the Ferrum Wandla in which he states that it "handles sibilance well," or something to that effect. Up to that point, I'd never come across such a comment, so I'm wondering whether anyone here has found that certain DACs are more/less prone to sibilance?  

 

 

 

stuartk

I meant: "all other things being equal", can one DAC present more apparent sibilance than another?
 

@stuartk I think with DACs, especially when we’re talking $5,000 and up category, it would be extremely unlikely to have a DAC render sibilance to the levels where it would become an issue. Yes some DACs would emphasize that particular frequency range more than others but I’m fairly certain about accuracy of reproduction. It wouldn’t be an issue unless other elements contribute to it. 
Most likely room, speakers and cables will be the problem areas. So yeah it is possible but unlikely. 

I have a modest digital chain; tube DAC has some nice NOS Mullard’s 

I’ve added some room treatments and playing around with speaker positioning.

One track I like to use for testing is Rachelle Farrell “I Can Explain” - her dynamic range is crazy, piano, bass, drums are powerful. 

Moving the speakers back by about 1 foot smoothed out her vocal a lot.

A couple of months ago I bought and subsequently sold a well reviewed preamp that I could not listen to because of the additional silence that I heard that was not there with any of three other preamps or bypassing the preamp.

Sting, Paul Simon, Rod Stewart were some of the voices. Interesting it was mostly male vocalists. 

OP, My main observation is just that sibilance is likely influenced by much greater factors than a DAC.

It’s understandable why Hans B.’s comment caught your attention, as most reviewers don’t typically link DACs directly to sibilance. My point is not that Hans B. is a shill. My point is that when reviewers make definitive statements about how a component will sound in your system, they effectively become marketers. Why? Because they simply cannot know your room acoustics, your speakers, your cables, or your personal hearing sensitivities. These are all much larger factors that contribute significantly to how sibilance (or any frequency anomaly) manifests in your listening environment. 

Reviewers like Hans are in their own controlled (or uncontrolled) spaces with their specific equipment. They can’t predict how a DAC will interact with your unique setup. Ultimately, addressing sibilance often requires looking at the bigger picture of your audio chain and listening space rather than isolating one component like a DAC — even if your desire is not to make it worse. It’s just much more likely that the DAC is not relevant. My two cents.