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Exogal Comet DAC

hi I'm looking for a new dac to replace my Audiomeca Ambrosia.....and my sights are set on the Auralic Vega and Exogal Comet. Not particularly interested in DSD at the moment ( and i had a Chord Qute HD) so i did have a taste of DSD for awhile, but not impressed with the offering so far....but i like what i have read about the Auralic Vega (never heard it) and I like the fact that the new Exogal Comet is made by former Wadia engineers.

so anyone heard the new Exogal yet? impressions?

i like all classical, most jazz, alternative rock (i.e Old REM, ) , grunge (Sound Garden, Nirvana, Pearl Jam) and some world.

thanks in advance

my system:
YBA Signature preamp and amp, reference 3A integral speakers, interconnect and power cabling by Nordost (valhalla and odin), and speaker cables by Hidiamond, Audiomeca Roma Turntable and SB Touch for steaming to DAC...lots of power conditioning by Exactpower, with room treatments and ASI resonators
ie
arh
366 posts
 
No hype. I have had the following
Sony 5400, Mytek stereo 192, Audio Note 2.1b, Teredak Chamelion. The Metrum is simply far better than the rest. If you stream a lot its USB implementation is great. If you really love music this is a wonderful product. By the way with dacs the transport is very important. I use an Audio Note CDT-2
Alan
wisnon
700 posts
 
What is the price point?
ie OP
38 posts
 
@wisnon:2500-3000

@arh: i had the AN 2.1B...nice and open, but i had two other DACs that i preferred to it (Audial Model S and my Audiomeca)
wisnon
700 posts
 
At that price range, there are lots of options.

BMC Pure Dac
Hugo
Lampi Amber
Hegel HD12
Ayre QBD-9 DSD
The new Marantz for $800 (Gorgeous)
The soon released iFi iDSD Mini
Ag insider logo xs@2x
charding
12 posts
 
Well with those goals in mind, I'd seriously consider the Comet. I've been accused by many as having some of the most eclectic taste in music and I haven't found a type of music this DAC doesn't handle exceptionally well. I've thrown a wide range of music at it including: Steely Dan, Billy Joel, KMFDM, Yello, Yo-Yo Ma, every form of New Wave and 80's synth pop you can think of. Vocals, acoustic, strings, and my unplugged collection which includes Allanis Morissette, Alice in Chains and Nirvanna. It also does exceptionally well at delivering excellent attack and decay on dynamic music (electronic, metal, industrial etc...). I'm probably most impressed by how nice of a job it does playing various bit and sample rates...from iTunes downloads, to red book, to HD tracks 24/192, it does justice to whatever format I've thrown at it. I consider my impression to be non-bias for two reasons: I don't own the DAC (at least not yet) and therefore have no ownership pride to fuel my comments, and the way of which I was exposed to this DAC made me skeptical before ever hearing it...

I've also red positive press on the Metrum that Alon mentions above, but have no first hand experience with it to use as a comparison. I have heard the Mytek 192 that Alon mentions above and IMHO the Comet leaves it in the dust.

In terms of space, depth etc... I've not heard it's equal at presenting a scary deep background, with correct scale and holographic presentation normally reserved for the $15k and up range. I'm really impressed with how this DAC handles both delicate musical passages and kick you in the face musical scale. I went to the RMAF this year, and am confident in my statement that this DAC could EASILY hold it's own against and DAC in any of the many rooms I auditioned. For sake of reference, my system consists of the following:

Wilson WP7
JL Audio Fathom F113
Shunyata Talos and the Shunyata Alpha power cords (which are amazing)
Marantz AV8801 (which the Comets easily bests as a DAC)
OPPO 105 (which the comet also bests as a DAC by a sizable margin)
BAT VK31SE preamp
Transparant Audio reference speaker cables
Shunyata Cobra balanced interconnects.
Mac Mini for use as a music server

I hope I've been able to assist.

Chris
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