Digital source upgrade....

BTW what do people think of the M-Audio Super DAC? ISTR there was some raving about this little box a little while ago...and it's only $300

Michael.

 

Michael,

I would wait to hear the DP... :JPS:

 

Got one of those M-Audio DAC's. Needs an upsampler to get the best out of it. Tone uses a Monarchy. The M-Audio DAC is only £170, I plan on using it to improve the sound of my computer.

 

I don't know how much the AV32R DP costs, but it's a lot more than I'm willing to spend. For now I'm happy with a Marantz SR4200 for AV and I want to spend my money on stereo :JPS:

Michael.

 

Stereo also needs a good pre-amp, DACs, and maybe TMREQ...

 

Another suggestion I've had from a couple of people (not on ZG) is the Lindemann CD1 SE (there's one for sale here for 2290 Euros) - anyone know anything about them?

http://www.lindemann-audiotechnik.de/

Michael.

 

I think the Tag Dac went up to around £500 last I heard which stopped me buying it...

 

That's theft, German style

FWIW, I recommend avoiding using a cheap DVD player as a transport, and steering clear of the Dac20. Usage of both will only result in severe upgraditis unless you are a less than discerning listener

I thank you

 

Ah merlin - a post designed to raise the hackles of CJROSS if ever there was one :devil:

I'm with you on the cheap DVD player as transport, but as far as the DAC20 goes, it's an incredible bit of kit for the money. You have to be prepared to spend considerably more (as I now am) to get better - at around the £1K or less mark there's little to beat it IMO.

Michael.

 

Whats wrong with a DVD player as transport? Apart from the fact it isnt big, designer, and expensive?

 

I think the DVD transport is a practical and sound idea. If people say dont use a cheap one, then what would be recommended???

Anyone? CJ? Merlin?

 

Paul - in my experience, cheap DVD players don't make good CD transports. They certainly don't make good CD players.

With both my DAC20 and the Chord DAC64 I had for a little while I compared using my modded Marantz CD50SE (which isn't big, designer and expensive either btw ) with my Tosh SD220E DVD player as transports and in both cases the Tosh SD220E was quite noticeably worse. Particularly bad was a marked drop in soundstage and ambience.

There's nothing wrong with DVD players as transports per-se and if you like what you're getting in using one then there's no need to change.

Michael.

 

:moony: :moony: :moony:

Sorry Michael, I'm bored at work. What's up anyway, don't they get a summer North of the Border


FWIW, if you are going to fork out £500 on the Tag, plus let's say £250 on a cheapo DVD, I have heard a number of integrateds, that will cost less and sound better SH (the Arcam 9 being a good example). And, as for you Michael, I'd just save up for that 861 on Audiogon, and forget about the Dac Side

I thank you

 

Heh heh, nice one Mike I am a less than discerning listener then , but a happy one at that (BTW the 717 was £600 when I purchased it does that classify as “cheap†? BTW dudes me & Merlin have had this particular discussion before yonks ago on another forum. I will concede that if you are intent on wringing out every ounce of performance from redbook then a dedicated CD Transport is a must : how about this one (TAG CDT20 Transport : One for sale exdem at Moorgate for £650 FYI : http://www.demon.co.uk/moorgate/forsale.htm), but for those of us who feel jitter recovery is adequate in the DAC design alone then I dont miss much with what I have got & I also get the benefit of DVD-V material either downmixed from 5.1 or 16/48PCM stereo, via a good hifi system I find it hair on the neck raising stuff IMHO.

Michael roll it all into one IMO, a good universal player ala Pioneer 757I, Denon 2900 / Yamaha 2300 / Marantz 8300 / Onkyo etc etc, with a Chord 64 going full guns : all bases covered and SACD/DVDA to boot for your AV rig.

BTW For those reticent about cheapo DVD-Vs as trannies what about this :

WWW.MODWRIGHT.COM

Pioneer DVD Player Mods
We have been very pleased with the exceptional value that the Pioneer line of entry level DVD players offer for use as transports with an external DAC, and for standalone use.
The players in this range include the DV-414, DV-525, DV-333, DV343, etc., represented in chronological order. These units can commonly be purchased new for less than $200. Combine this with the price of the transport or standalone mods, and you are able to have a sub $400 transport and a sub $500 standalone digital front end for CDs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, audio DVDs (not DVD-As), and DVD movies. The DV-525 has long been the reference transport in ModWright's music system.

Products
Pioneer Transport Mods for Use With an External DAC
This mod optimizes the unit for use as a transport, but in no way disables the video function of the player or its ability to play music as a standalone player.

Level I Transport Mods:
Upgrade rectifiers to ultrafast soft-recovery diodes
Add an IEC socket to allow the use of upgrade power cords
Modify and improve the power supply filtering with the use of Panasonic capacitors, bypassed with Solen poly caps
Upgrade stock digital out jack to a high-quality Cardas rhodium plated RCA
Modify digital out circuit to include the addition of a high-quality 75ohm pulse transformer and upgraded digital out resistor to Caddock precision metal film resistor
The digital out circuit path is simplified and the output filter cap is upgraded to a Black Gate.

Level II Transport Mods (Including the above mods and the following):
Key digital decoupling caps are upgraded to Black Gate FK and Nx-HiQ caps
Upgrade main AC filter cap from a Panasonic capacitor to Black Gate's best WK "Power Tank" cap, bypassed with an Auricap Film cap instead of Solen poly capacitors
Upgrade IEC socket to a filtered IEC socket
Level I Mod Price: $225 + shipping
Level II Mod Price: $375 + shipping.

NEW - Bybee filter upgrades for Pioneer Transport mods:
ModWright has recently become an OEM for Bybee filters - see www.bybeetech.com - and we are VERY pleased to report that they GREATLY improve the performance of the Pioneer DVD and other transports. The upgrade includes installing a pair of Bybee filters in the AC mains for deep-cleaning the power into the player (no matter how good your AC filtering is, these WILL improve things further).
I was, quite frankly, amazed at the improvements that the Bybee upgrade brought to the sound of the Level II modified Pioneer transport.

Bybee Upgrade Price (available with Level I or Level II mods): $160

I seen a Pioneer 656 in the HFNs classifieds last month, with these mods (Level 2 mods) for £425. Not bad IMHO if you feel a non tweaked DVD player is not up to scratch for passing “bits†into a high quality DAC reclokcer/buffer job such as a DAC20/MFA3.24/Chord 64. Wont be long before we see this in the UK from Trichord / Audiocom.

 

Arcam Alpha 9 is very good but I prefer the DAC20. In any case, I don't think that anyone would go out and buy a DAC20 and DVD player as a HiFi solution. They might already have a DVD player and want to improve on CD sound, or they might want to use just one box for CDs and DVDs and still have decent CD sound - after all, an Alpha 9 won't play DVDs

FWIW, £500 is too much for a DAC20. £450 tops is what one should pay given that that's what Tag were selling them for at the end.

Where do you see an 861 on Audigon? I wonder how low the s/h prices of the ML 390S go

Michael.

 

You could try here Both appear !

 

Well Mike B, you just missed one for $4k, you canhave my 860IX if you like

 

Seconded. Technobear and I, I don't think will ever agree on this but I prefer the DAC 20 too. The Alpha 9 is good, and it's balance seems remarkably similar to my Alpha 8, but with more of everything. Where I find the 8 on it's own a bit soperific, the 9 is more lively and reponds better to support changes etc. Overall though I kept feeling that it had a sort of slightly nagging shouty quality, mild but it put me off a bit.

I was in the minority at a bake off at Robbo's though, most of the people at that bake-off preferred the Alpha 9 on it's own rather than it feeding he DAC20 IIRC.

If you're after a bargain s/h player, the Alpha 9 must be right up with the top contenders IMO.

Cheers

 

Some of those Audiogon ads look very tempting but then 99% of them will only ship to the US, I don't know how payment for these things usually works and then there's all the customs/VAT etc bollox when importing from the US, not to mention differing mains voltage/frequency for kit that doesn't have a universal transformer. Last but not least, it would be a brave soul indeed who'd send of $3-4K to some unknown private individual i the US with the hope of receiving some goods in return. At least eBay has the feedback system!

I think in the end, however tempting the bargains on Audiogon might be, I won't be buying from there. There are similar bargains to be had on a number of similar German sites (www.audio-markt.de, www.highendmarkt.de etc) which avoid many of the problems and with cheap flights etc. it wouldn't be out of the question to collect personally - much more reassuring

Michael.

 

Couldn't resist you old buffer

With regards to your opinions concerning that panacea known as a universal player, all I can say is that I have yet to find an all in one which leaves my hair as shiney and bouncy as when using seperate shampoo and conditioner

I'd far rather take two boxes into the shower, I don't take compromise very well you see. 861 it is then Michael, don't twat about with alternatives. You know you will only be upgrading to the Wadia at some point anyway.

I thank you