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Empirical Audio Overdrive DAC: King of the Hill?

I received the Overdrive DAC a month ago and have been listening to it without a preamp interposed between the Overdrive and my Luxman M-600a monoblocks to Evolution Acoustics MMmini2s.

I have rarely heard sound this transparent and realistic. I am a strong believer that top priority in digital systems should go to transport/DAC. Not all DACs and digital transports are the same; there are MAJOR differences. The off-ramp->I2s->Overdrive front-end is one of the best I have ever heard; digital or analog. I am getting natural, organic, lifelike music I never thought possible from a computer front-end. Only the DAC 202 is comparable, but I don't think the 202 could beat it in a head-to-head match.
128x128dallasjustice
edorr
714 posts
 
I am planning to do a double blind shootout between the overdrice SE and my PWD MKII sometime this summer, so stay tuned.
mcondon
233 posts
 
Edorr, I would be interested in your comparison of the PWD to the Overdrive. I have only owned one other DAC, the Northstar M192, before I bought the PWD (now upgraded to the MK2 version). Sound quality is definitely much better than it was with the Northstar, as it should be, considering the price differential.

Steve, that is very generous to offer a demo unit to compare side by side with other DACs on the market. Not too many established manufacturers will lend out gear for comparisons.
edorr
714 posts
 
To be precise, I would actually buy the Overdrive with a 30 day return option, allowing me to do the shootout. Still a generous policy of course.
deluxman
18 posts
 
Edorr..did you get a chance to compare the overdrive with perfectwave mk ii?
edorr
714 posts
 
Nope. I decided to jump right into the 5 figure segment instead, and ended up buying the EMM Labs DAC2X, which is a lot better than the PWD MKII (gap is bigger than I expected).
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