Take it to the Music Forum, mates. Talking DACs here. QUOTE="jeffmackwood, post: 27814959, member: 76816"]That version is available on Spotify and there's six (6) Massey Hall tracks on it: Mothers Talk, Broken / Head Over Heels, Memories Fade, The Working Hour, Everybody Wants to Rule the World, and Shout. Not a bad selection from the thirteen tracks available on the stand-alone Massey Hall album. Jeff[/QUOTE]
Boy! Do those Tears for Fears Massey Hall tracks available on Spotify... ever sound good through my Schiit Modi 3+ DAC! Jeff
I wasn't making at dig at your DACs price (it's about what I paid for my Schiit Modi Multibit), although I am a bit leery of the "amazing" part of your thread title, apart from the fact that you're loving what your hearing, which is great!
I've heard not subtle improvements from my previous DAC, retail of about $3k, up to my current DAC which retails for $5600. It's hard to textualize, but I know what I hear and it's not hard to hear a difference. So now I'm going the total opposite way and will be putting in a $299 DAC this week, to see how it does. All three will be on the same, level playing field, being fed from a renderer at DSD256, upsampled via HQ Player. So I don't question whether there are differences. There are - it's the nature of advancements in digital audio these days (and have little to do with "measurements") and what manufacturers are willing to do to chase that last nth percentile of increased realism and sound quality and for a trite term, retaining "musicality." Whether or not those difference matter to someone, or most especially if those differences are worth the price difference? That's not a debate. That's a personal decision.
New DAC spinning even better through Rega Elex-R integrated. Listening to a Live at the Lighthouse (jazz) playlist
New DAC has some hours on it now. Listening to Richard Goode Beethoven Sonatas tonite. Disc 7 on right now. Up until I purchased the JDS EL DAC II I was mostly disappointed in digital versions of piano pieces. Happy to say Beethoven by Goode is sounding just wonderful. A lot of nuances. And the piano sounds open not congested and restricted. It's a very wonderful experience.
I'm enjoying the noises coming from my GF's Topping DAC I got her a few weeks ago. As per usual she cannot tell the difference. I have to admit my evaluation is "it sounds perfectly nice!" This is sorted tech. My advice, buy at the bottom and work up. You may find audio nirvana starting at $150 rather than starting at $5000.
Surprisingly there is still a lot of variation in the technical performance of DACs and players etc. Signal to noise ratio varies a lot. 'Noisy' DACs still exist! In theory what you want is a SNR wide enough to capture the full dynamic range of the source which in turn depends on its bit depth. This is seldom achieved in practice as the range of 24bit greatly exceeds what typical DACs and (especially) amplifiers can achieve. Does any of this matter subjectively? I used to think so but then I owned a Sugden A21a amp, which measures appallingly but is one of the most beautiful sounding bits of kit I've ever owned. Same viz Rega amps where the SNR is pretty poor but they are extremely involving. That being said, if I change the DACs in my system I can consistently and reliably identify which is playing and which I prefer. I haven't made up my mind basically!
Problem with trial and error is, depending on return fees and restocking shipping etc, you may end up spending more. I think I am there with my DAC now. If I were 100% satisfied with my phono pre I'd be in total Nirvana heaven.
Yes thanks!!! Piano is kinda my main test of a component. It's such a difficult instrument to record, and to play back. Most any kit will play something like sax well. Brass, if recorded and mastered well, is easier, too. Then you get to more difficult instruments --- guitar, voice, and piano. And if you're a drummer like I am, you're often frustrated trying to pick out the ride cymbal in a small jazz ensemble and it's wash, stick sound, and decay. Hearing the piano sparkle on sonatas where there isn't anything in mix except the piano was a real treat with the JDS EL DAC II. That sealed the deal for me. It has over a month's worth of use now; many many hours of play and even more just being on 24x for days at a time.
I didn’t have the Venus II handy when I had the ifi and the Holo May. And I can say unequivocally they do not sound much alike (he says with grim music playing). IFi sounded, in comparison, flat dimensionally, it lost the space in the room and the imaging cues that make acoustic music feel “real.” From a tonality standpoint it was more about a lack of detail in the iFi versus the May. And I’d be lying if I didn’t have some expectation bias at play. I certainly wanted the iFi to wow me but it just felt uninvolving. I swapped back and forth a few times on my reference tracks. Didn’t have the ability to do this blinded. And it’s not like the iFi sounded bad. It’d be a great dac in many situations. But in a highly resolving, very quiet room and system, it did not punch above its weight. As for Venus vs May - it’s a bit of a matter of taste and IMO everything I enjoyed about Venus, May just does all of it a little more conspicuously and highlights detail and imaging cues so well while not losing anything for musicality or slam or overall enjoyment. It ain’t cheap, but I can’t say it doesn’t deliver for me.
I got one for a friend who had a big birthday. From what I could see, it's one of the best received less expansive DACs around, and the one most likely to have decent customer support if needed. My friend is LOVING it. So congratulations on your purchase!
I'm wondering how big a part your new Lintons have to do with this new found appreciation for digital. Whether it's the dac, the speakers, the ELex, or the combination, glad it's working for you.
I agree. If you spend more than $150-200 let it be for features, ergonomics, pride of ownership, or looks. I don’t believe you will get better sound for more money.
Whatever this one is doing, it appears to NOT be an example of what you are describing. It measures well: JDS Labs EL DAC II Review | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum
I think you will get better sound for more money...up to a point. System limitations, hearing limitations. Better power supply, better analog output stage=better sound, regardless of type of DAC. Also type of DAC makes a difference...DS vs. R2R/multibit=different sound. Whether it's better is up to the user. Many people who grew up with/are in the vinyl camp prefer R2R. Many people who grew up on digital prefer DS. A generalzation to be sure.
