DAC upgrade I know is better

RME ADI-2 DAC. Costs half of your budget and will outperform anything within (and over) it. Also has a good headphone amplifier if you are into that sort of thing. Small form factor and very light. You don't even have to futz with improved power supplies because the included switching supply is also good.

 

That’s quite a claim.

 

I've got an RME ADI-2. I extensively demoed it against the Chord Qutest and found it to be better, plus it's several hundred dollars cheaper. It's a great DAC for the money, and I would think you would need to start spending in excess of $2,ooo or more to get substantially better. It has 5 band parametric EQ, so great if you have bass issues.

 

So Jimi what did you get I don't think you updated your thread?

RME: ADI-2 Pro

This is very interesting small I can easily fit it in the rack and it will pull double duty by replacing my Focusrite Forte that I use to record my needle drops. The only thing I don't like is having to use breakout cables to get ins and outs. That's how the Forte is it's just a grip. I don't like having to use 1/4 inch adapters for single-end cables but I could go fully balanced to the McIntosh. I can order it tonight for $1495 free shipping with 30 days to return it. Got me thinking.

 

The RME ADI-2 DAC and ADI-2 Pro AD/DA have been popular in the headphone community in part because they are an affordable balanced DAC for use with headphone amps that only have balanced inputs, and also due to the onboard parametric EQ (parametric EQ can be very helpful for some headphones) and other processing options. I've been able to hear the RME in a variety of good headphone setups.

I find the RME to have indistinct imaging and layering compared to what I'm personally after with headphone listening. Headphones have a small soundstage and compromised imaging to begin with. I want a DAC to precisely position sounds within the soundstage so sounds and instruments can dance around within the soundstage. I find headphone listening to be much much more interesting when sounds image well and I can hear where sounds/instruments are in the soundstage. DACs that don't image well end up sounding like sonic mush to me, and that makes headphone listening not so interesting. So a high priority for me in DACs is imaging. Other people have other priorities. Which is why audiophiles argue about DACs. We don't all listen for or prioritize the same sonic aspects. The Schiit multibits do good imaging like I'm after, which is a reason why I like them. Though I'm still always looking for better/different.

On the other hand. The ADI-2 Pro with both a good AD converter and good DA converter could be a very good option for you for needledrops. Using a good AD and DA from the same company and same device will likely yield very good and very transparent results. When the AD and DA are designed by the same person and designed with filters and analog sections that complement each other the results can be more transparent than taking a random good AD converter and pairing it with a random DA converter with a very different design philosophy. So the ADI-2 Pro could be a very good option for you.

 

After looking closer I think this is worth trying. Actually I probably won't use the breakout cable much. This would replace the Forte and the USB DAC in the McIntosh using the same USB cable. For the short term my RCA interconnects with 1/4 inch adapters will plug directly into it. If I feel like it down the road I can get balanced cables for direct connection to the McIntosh.

To be clear I ordered the $1485 unit.
On a side note part of me will dread having to re do all my needle drops.

 

OK, but differences these days between DACs are pretty subtle IMO. This technology has been pretty much worked out for 20+ years after all.

 

I would not be to surprised if the sound is nearly the same based on the dacs all having the same technology, I'm betting the fact that the USB dac work much smother than the McIntosh USB dac and I will have DSD. The Forte is nearly 10 years old maybe the ADI-2 Pro will be a little better.

 

Will someone overlook my ignorance and explain what "breakout cables" are?

 

The differences between DACs is subtle like the difference between your Rogue amp and your Adcom amp is subtle.
There are many DACs that are based on very similar designs and philosophy that do sound similar. There are also some that are based on different designs and philosophies that do sound noticeably (and to an audiophile, significantly) different from the typical DAC. And a lot in DAC choices has to do with system and sonic synergy.

 

A breakout cable for the RME looks like this: RMEBO968 - Professional Digital Breakout Cable for the HDSP 9632, DIGI96/8 PRO and PAD
It "breaks out" from a 9-pin connector on the back of the device to several different regular cable connections.

 

I totally get your point but just to be clear and this is what makes me an audiophile, The difference between the Adcom and the Bryston 4B was massive. The difference between the Bryston and the Rogue was simply amazing, so who knows how I will describe the ADI-2 Pro

 

ok, thank you - I needed a reminder, I haven't dealt with anything like that in years - the OP would need this cause he wants to avoid using his computer's usb?

 

Actually I believe it's the McIntosh usb input that has caused me problems this would allow me to bypass it.

 

In the case of the RME ADI-2 Pro the breakout cable gives you two additional/different digital inputs and two additional digital outputs (coax SPDIF in/out, AES-3 in/out). So if you want to use one of those digital in/out connections you'll need to plug in the breakout cable. Otherwise the breakout doesn't need to stay attached.

The reason for breakout cables is limited space on the back of the device for all of the possible and supported inputs/outputs. Breakout cables are more common on smaller devices than larger devices.

 

It will be interesting to find out how you hear the ADI-2 Pro compared to the DAC in the McIntosh preamp. I'm certainly curious because I'm curious about such things. So please keep us updated.

You're going to have fun with the AD features as well for needledrops. It should be a good upgrade from the Focusrite Forte.

 

The best I've heard to date is a Muji Studio DAC II, where I've replaced the stock Philips TDA1541A R1 with a TDA1541A S1, the 4x NE5534 with 2x Burson V5i-D and 2x Burson V6-D. I've not even upgraded the output or tube coupling caps yet. It's not running NOS.

It betters my Gieseler GroB + Kraftwerk PSU which has itself been known to better the Direct Stream.

Like you I find LP rips to better most other content.

 

Got my ADI 2pro today and my first impression is not great I hate to say. The ADI sounds good even a little punchier but the c2500 is way smoother.

 

What does smoother mean? And why is it preferable to you?

 

It hard to put into words. Cymbals and drums in general sound better. Everything sounds subtly more realistic.

There's a lot for an audiophile to not like. It's very complex. Nothing about it is intuitive. The digital volume and equilizer are always in the chain. Setting the record levels is difficult and possibly limited.

The headphone output (3&4) cuts out if I wiggle the plug around.

I'll wait until I do some recording but it's looking like this is going back.

 

If you want to surpass the dac in the c2500 you have to look at the 5K price range IMO.
I have the c2600 which is the newer version of what you have and the sound quality of its internal dac gets very close to the PS Audio Directstream territory.

Or it might be that the ADI needs some more time to smooth out.

 

I read several posts saying the 2600 was better in small ways. Although the way I use it mainly for vinyl and needle drops they are probably about the same sound quality wise. I wished I had the 2600 but I don't.
I think I just had a bit of upgrade-itis

 

i think the Eitr suggestion to be a good one.

 

I use a Mcintosh C2500 and use a Esoteric 07 DAC. I tried the internal DAC once when my 2500 was new and was unimpressed.

 

If anyone is interested here are 2 files both are 90 seconds of the last track on Black Sabbath 1.
One is the ADI-2 pro and the other is the Focusrite Forte device both USB sound cards. I like the Focusrite but the files are very close. So the dac has not impressed me and clearly no improvement for recording. If anyone listen which do you like?

Dropbox - BS 1.flac - Simplify your life
Dropbox - BS 2.flac - Simplify your life