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Digital Drive Upsamplers, DACs, jitter, shakes and analogue withdrawals, this is it. |
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Digital Drive Upsamplers, DACs, jitter, shakes and analogue withdrawals, this is it. |
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In Reply to: Old DACs vs. new ones? posted by J Corner on May 4, 2005 at 03:54:56:
They have converted me from being a vinyl addict & digital luddite into a digital only fan - disposed of most of the vinyl hardware & software some months ago.But it has been a long, hard and expensive road. However the good news is it is getting better and less expensive :-)
My original foray into digital via a Rotel 865BX left me unimpressed. Theta Data III/Theta DSPIIIa was improved but still not great. The breakthrough came via the expensive Meridian 800 series and that fitted nicely into my multi channel system.
Since then I've become a fan of modification of players and this has reaped significant improvement.
I tried an Audio Note DAC and was ultimately disappointed with its performance, mainly because of a mismatch with SS gear. It is designed for tube AN gear. Late last year the Aussie dealer kindly offered me a later version to trial but it has never materialised so I've given up on email enquiries. IMO, AN is a problematic product. For sure trial one as it has an excellent reputation, but be prepared for the lack of synergy I encountered.
The Benchmark DAC1 is not perfect by any means, but is the best value around at the moment. At the moment I'm listening to some music in the office here using a DAC1 and the reproduction is clean and most musical. Some of this is also attributable to the modifications done on the Denon 3000 CDP and the Plinius 8100 amp so one should not get carried away and expect Nirvana from any one item. It is a SYSTEM which is only as good as its weakest link so it is futile spending heaps on any one component and expecting a miraculous conversion.
That said, it is worth investing in a good DAC if the rest of the system is compatable. Those CDs are not nearly as bad recording wise as I used to think. Sure there are bad examples released as happens in any format, vinyl included, but generally the CDs here are good to excellent with a few absolutely stunning.
Now, as a confirmed nutter and fan of modification of digital gear I've taken the step a stage further and have had a Benchmark DAC1 modified by Steve Nugent of Empirical Audio. It is still in the US and I will not receive it for some weeks yet, but Steve reports dramatic results among the best, if not the best, he had heard from any DAC (including the much praised Dodson which I have not had the pleasure of hearing). The only mod I've baulked at is the installation of a Superclock III but at around $USD2,500 for the basic DAC1 & mods it could be one of the most cost effective ways to go.
For now I've got to be patient waiting to trial it out here and will give you a report, but you will have to wait until July as my daughter will not be bringing it back with her until late June :-(
John
Interesting times
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Follow Ups
- The latest batch are dramatically better in my experience - John C. - Aussie 18:23:04 05/04/05 (12)
- DAC1 mods - Jon L 21:27:32 05/04/05 (10)
- Re: DAC1 mods - Todd Krieger 12:59:57 05/05/05 (6)
- Then it would cease to be a Benchmark DAC1 but...... - rfbrw 12:13:39 05/08/05 (4)
- I doubt he'd wanna double filter - Monkey Bones 12:53:32 05/08/05 (3)
- Re: I doubt he'd wanna double filter - rfbrw 02:24:09 05/09/05 (2)
- round and round - Monkey Bones 09:10:59 05/09/05 (1)
- Re: Context,context,context. - rfbrw 19:23:53 05/09/05 (0)
- Why don't you do it? - Jon L 14:33:35 05/05/05 (0)
- Yes, a turbomod & op amp changes to a DAC1 - John C. - Aussie 22:24:46 05/04/05 (2)
- humm . . . - Bruce from DC 12:36:21 05/05/05 (1)
- Re: humm . . . - Terry Demol 06:52:48 05/08/05 (0)
- For those kinds of bucks, I certainly hope so. (nt) - Travis 18:33:11 05/04/05 (0)
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