Meitner MA3i DAC Review

@yyzsantabarbara to your other point with amps not being able to cope with D1’s detail retrieval. It’s essentially all about synergy. You have a maximum transparency amp with same sonic traits as D1 and you just compounded the sonic signature. Schiit HP amp is probably more laid back sounding and had better synergy with ruthlessly resolving D1. Your Coda Class A amps are resolving but on a warmer side of the spectrum so they match properly with D1.
It’s all about system matching as you know.
My take on Meitner DAC is they struck a good balance of detail retrieval and musicality. Where D1 is all about making you drink that detail retrieval from the firehose (you used a good analogy). I haven’t heard the D1 so going purely based on the comparison you provided.
Both approaches have their place. And you can make both work. It all boils down to your preference. 

I was thinking about how to best do the streaming after that ChatGPT response I posted, and I decided to do the following.

1) My Ubiquiti network switch is one of the best with 2 fibre outputs. I am already using 1 for the Sonore OpticalRendu. I sold my other Sonore OpticalRendu last week and now have that output free for the Meitner. I will get a long fibre cable, maybe up to 50-feet to give me future flexibility.

2) Buy a low-cost network switch to take the fibre as input from my Ubiquiti switch

3) Buy a very short Ethernet cable, under 1 foot would work. and connect to the RJ45 on the switch and then to the Meitner. I will spend a bit of cash on the Ethernet cable.

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With regards to the resolution on the D-1 DAC

• 1) The Schiit Aegir v1 is not a headphone amp but a low watt Class A 2-channel amp that I am using for headphones. The closet comparison amp is a Nelson Pass First Watt Class A amp
• The only headphone amps I have had an issue with were the 2 tube headphone amps. I am thinking the tube amps may not be the best for the D-1. My sample set is small, and this is my ears tend to be very sensitive to even tiny anomalies in the sound

• The D-1 is unlike any other uber detail gear you may have heard, think Benchmark DACs, their AHB2 amp, SimAudio North Collection amps. etc. These things are almost as detailed but there is something that still seems as if is it not as clear as it could be. The D-1 is unlike all of these things. I used this analogy on head-fi, the "the very best DACs I have heard (at any price) feel like you are looking through a very clean window, with the D-1 that window is removed". I consider the D-1 a different class of DAC.

I love the Meitner because of the attributes you have mentioned, When I compared it to the 2x more expensive Playback Designs MPD-8 ($26k) with the RAAL 1995 Magna phones I much preferred the Meitner MA3i with the Magna. 

I should add that the Magna is also a very detailed phone. A warmer phone with the tube amps maybe fine.

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The very best sound (2-channel) I have in the house is with fibre streaming to the D-1. The next best is my SACD disks played as follows:

• Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray player ($240 used)
• GeerFAB D.BOB DSD extractor ($650)
• Meitner MA3i (too much $$)

The following setup requires support for DoP on the SPDIF input of the DAC. The D-1 does not support this, but the Meitner does and the Meitner is very advanced in the digital features.

I will compare the Qobuz and Tidal apps against ROON on the Magna phones.

The Meitner and the Allnic HPA 15000 amp are the best sounding phones I have ever heard. The long-term plan is to buy the baby brother, Allnic ASRA headphone amp ($6.5k). I heard this last month, and it is excellent. 

@yyzsantabarbara if I understood correctly you are planning to plug a 1ft long Ethernet cable into Meitner. If that is correct it means your switch would be 1ft away from the DAC. May not be optimal from noise isolation standpoint. 

Let me know if you hear anything different from qobuz and tidal connect than you hear with roon. 

Are you saying a longer Ethernet cable is better to keep the switch further out?