I would say that there are zero doubts that the DACs in question do not provide a true NOS function. I say that partly because this "Golden Sound" reviewer is very thorough in supporting his claim: and, more importantly, because Alvin has tacitly admitted it. I doubt very much that there would be any significant audible difference between *true* NOS and the Denafrips filter, but from a marketing standpoint, I would say that it is a potentially significant issue.
If it sounds good it is good as far as I'm concerned (Hence the Pontus on order). But I'd rather not have have the button labeled NOS if it's not NOS.
Use both the AresII and a RME ADI-2 and have been comparing them for the last month. The AresII has become my go-to DAC for all music. Wanted to add that the review above is one of the best I have ever viewed. Agree completely with his musical analysis and the technical explanations are precise and telling. Will be looking for more reviews by this person.
First and foremost, merry Christmas!! Perhaps Denafrips could solve this by describing the feature as “Quasi-NOS”? That way it would be up-front and no one would have any objections to the interpolated version? Especially since there is no NOS or Filter silkscreening on the panels of the physical product, it’s just an instruction manual issue.
…Please note that comment refers to the ARES II. More expensive models DO have “NOS” silkscreened on the front panel. (Factoring that in, they should abbreviate the label to Q-NOS so they can squeeze the text in! ;D) Personally, I have no objection to the Denafrips interpretation of “NOS”. I am more concerned about the Buffer issue.
Any comparisons between Venus II vs Holo Audio Spring 3 KTE? Denafrips offers DDC which to me complicates things - the DAC would need a DDC to sound its best while the Spring just the DAC itself.
I've heard that connecting the Node 130 via USB (available since a few days) does not fix the skipping issues. Has anyone here tried that?
There isn’t any audible difference. The “NOS” setting produces the same effect as a true NOS DAC — pronounced bass and rolled-off highs.
Even if that were true – and I'd like to see evidence – it would miss the central point, which is that the product was/is being misrepresented. Should an amplifier manufacturer that claimed balanced inputs be given a pass if they were actually unbalanced, even if they were to sound the same?
The USB input is immune to the skipping issue. It's the other inputs that (some, not all) have a problem with. Sadly I am no longer a Venus II owner. I just couldn't get it to work with my Oppo 205. Even with the latest beta firmware update a couple of weeks ago. It took a while but Alvin was really good about making things right. I miss that lovely sound in between the skips! Not sure what will replace it. I wish there were more ladder DAC's to choose from.
no idea but usb shouldnt have any issues. even with coaxial and toslink i dont have any issues other than that one time i updated the node firmware.
In addition to Holo, "Soekris" do R2R DACs. Top of their range is the "dac2541": Soekris Audio ApS, Products dac1541 I haven't heard any of the Soekris products so it's definitely a "FYI" contribution - good luck with your search. [Edited to add] A web search for "R2R dacs" will turn up a few more results.
Sorry to hear that, Edo. Fortunately for me I still have the option of returning my Denafrips DAC to the local distributor if things don’t work out. Also, since I listen 95% of the time to analogue, the Denafrips is not so critical otherwise it would be gone by now.
Metrum Acoustics is another manufacturer that has R2R Ladder DACs to offer in VenusII price range. Just FYI.
The Holo Spring 3 KTE is probably the DAC I'd like most but I'm having a hard time coughing up that much cash just now. Political, social and ecological considerations seem to be creeping into more and more of my purchase decisions too, but I won't say any more about that here. Thanks for the suggestions guys! Since my last preamp upgrade seems to have unexpectedly boosted my digital front end more than my turntable I may readjust the balance by improving my phono stage. I like my analog front end to be better than my digital to compensate for the extra effort it takes to play vinyl.
Pontus has landed! It's a lot heavier than it looks. (And it looks quite heavy) Hooked it up and it's a nice improvement over the Node 2i's internal DAC straight of of the box. I'm going to let it run for a couple of days and see what that does.
Was listening to Darko's audio podcast yesterday. Darko and Michael Lavorgna were ranking their favorite DACs over the past year, at all price points. The Ares II and Pontus II were both on the list. Interestingly, they discussed preferring OS (oversampling) mode over NOS (non-oversampling) mode. I've been using NOS mode on my Pontus II since I use HQPlayer with Roon, but I might switch to OS for a few weeks to see if I can tell a difference. (I run my CD player through it, too, so that might be a good test.)