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verdantaudio

Responses from verdantaudio

Bricasti Model 1 Series II DAC
Upgrades are between end user and Bricasti.  My customer did not share how long the upgrade took so I don’t know.  Maybe another user here has upgraded.    
DAC Shootout Starts This Weekend
So the Lumin X1 came in to me from a friendly dealer who has one and allowed me to spend some time with it.   The X1 is a hefty unit with an outboard power supply, has a built-in volume control and is a full-fledged streamer with Lumin producing ... 
DAC Shootout Starts This Weekend
So...I have been in the process of re-basing our DAC knowledge base as the system has finally been forced to change.  Very simply, the Vivid Kaya 45s are sold and with that departure, I figured I ought to move to my new reference system for purpos... 
Bricasti Model 1 Series II DAC
I am a Bricasti dealer and when customers contact me about upgrading from the original DSD, Bricasti is regularly where they land.  I have not heard the new V2 yet but I do have a customer who has upgraded and has said it is better than the M1 SE ... 
What can beat Wilson XVX for less money?
There are a lot of speakers that can compete.  Not sure if they will be fundamentally better but will be different.  MBL and Avantgarde have radicaly different designs at the high end that could easily compete.   In terms of raw engineering, I wo... 
DAC Shootout Starts This Weekend
Yes.  Not in the same league.  It drifts a hair brighter.  The image is smaller and the level of detail is not quite in the same league.  Very simply, the output stage can’t deliver the way the MPD-6 or MPD-8 can.  That being said, you know it is ... 
Will a Chord Hugo 2 make a music streamer addition obsolete?
If you add a 2Go to your Hugo 2, it will add a functional streamer that serves as a roon end-point, accepts external storage, etc...  That said, you can add any streamer to the Hugo 2 but the 2Go is an elegant and portable solution.   Full disclo... 
Best Direction/Product Combo DAC/Streamer
@sgreg1 i have not tried that app.  Thanks for the tip.  I will find it and see how much better it is.    
How much does a DAC do the more expensive it is?
@simao I have tested dozens of DACs ranging from the Khadas Tone 2 up to the dCS Rossini w/ Clock.   All DACs are a trade off between detail, image size (height/width) and depth.  Almost all of these DACs offer some coloration or interpretation o... 
Best Direction/Product Combo DAC/Streamer
If you are looking for true streamer DAC - Naim, Lumin, Aurender, Auralic and HiFi rose are likely all good options.  They all make software that works really well.  Their are tons of units that have "streaming capability" but they rely on MConnec... 
What is your experience with amp power?
It varies wildly depending on the speaker and the amp.  Certain brands are best with huge amounts of power and are not just low efficiency low impedance as your rightly pointed out.   That said, with speakers of even modest efficiency, amp qualit... 
AGD Tempo in the house
They get progressively better.  That said, the Tempo can and does compete sonically with amps that are in the $10-$15K range.  I say that without a hair of hesitation.    As you rise in quality, the amps progressively get better.  The move from T... 
AGD Tempo in the house
BTW....I continue to LOVE the Tempo which is a wonderful amp.  I have also had the Alto and Andante preamps here and the Gran Vivace power amps.  They are all shockingly good at the prices they sell at.  I have done some direct comparisons vs. som... 
AGD Tempo in the house
I just asked Alberto.  He said the gain for the unit is 23dB and sensitivity is 2V RMS input.    
Best DACs under $7,000.00
Your enthusiasm is great for you and for others willing to mod things.  You could resell these modded units or have people pay for you to mod them.  Great business for you.  But for those of us who have minimal interest in modding things, whether ...