Another new DAC: Audio Mirror

Great post.  Thank you.  

I think you missed the larger point.  Perhaps read the post again as when all the dacs sound very good it often comes down to system synergy and sonic preferences.  

One comment on your Orchid. You have not placed the Mullard ECC189/CV5331 tube in it. Talk to SewG here as he put that tube in the Orchid and it took the Orchid up another level again.  No joke. 

Easily a 15% plus upgrade sonically. The WE tube is not close according to Stew. You get that special magic that you are talking about. If you did that your Orchid would still come in at 1/2 the cost of the AM and I bet you like the sound more! 

Yes it does.  User StewG can help you with a link to the supplier. Only $25 and high quality. He was floored by how much better the dac sounded with this tube over the WE tube. He said it was HUGE! 

Great update. A more fair comparison would be the AM SE to the Orchid upgraded with the mod package I have been performing. The upgraded Orchid performs at a much higher level across the board vs a stock unit. The difference is not small. The Orchid really responds nicely to well chosen internal upgrades.

The total cost of an upgraded Orchid is about $900 less than the AM SE. This would be an interesting comparison. Hope to listen to the AM SE soon.   

@vassils

I get why you feel that way. However, we also know in audio many things make us scratch our heads. The upgraded Orchid is in another league, as you say, vs. stock so a comparison would be interesting and don’t count the Orchid out. I have owned and modified enough gear to know the upgraded Orchid is very special. It is also some $900 less than the maxed out AM SE.

No way to know for sure without direct comparison. My gut is they will be close and will offer different strengths. Subjective preference would determine the best one for a given person. Just a guess like your guess. Love to compare both directly to know.

I have at least heard The Orchid, upgraded Orchid and $1800 AM dac so my speculation is born out of a little direct experience/knowledge.

I agree with what @rx8man shared earlier. It is just a great time to buy a reasonably priced dac, wether upgraded or not, and experience such enjoyable sound. We have so many great choices!  Audio Mirror, MHDT, Lampizator Amber 3, Border Patrol and others.  Digital has never sounded so good for reasonable money.  

Duelunds won’t fit in the Orchid. You could/may fit a small .47-1uf value, but I would not use a value that low in the dac. Frankly the Odam & Cutf combo is every bit as good if not better. In this particular unit the Odam & Cuft bypass combo (2.2uf & .01uf) are a better match. Great synergy of combined strengths of the stock unit and this cap combo. I have used all the Duelund caps for years and am very familiar with them as well as Jupiter copper foils.

What exact parts were used in the upgraded Orchid? Very important as I know from experience a specific recipe works best for the type of sound you and many like. Did it have the SR Orange fuse? Was the Amber 3 newer or fully broken in with at least 300 hours of play time? The Amber needs at least 250 hours to come into its own.  Also, tube rolling and an SR Orange fuse do wonders for this dac.   Just the one 12au7 needs attention.  It takes time and a little attention to details to make the Amber really sing beautifully. 

Lastly,  in addition to these questions one must also consider system synergy and subjective preferences. No doubt these play a substantial role in the dac one would prefer.  

What exact parts were used in the upgraded Orchid? Very important as I know from experience a specific recipe works best for the type of sound you and many like. Did it have the SR Orange fuse? Was the Amber 3 newer or fully broken in with at least 300 hours of play time? The Amber needs at least 250 hours to come into its own.  Also, tube rolling and an SR Orange fuse do wonders for this dac.   Just the one 12au7 needs attention.  It takes time and a little attention to details to make the Amber really sing beautifully. 

Lastly,  in addition to these questions one must also consider system synergy and subjective preferences. No doubt these play a substantial role in the dac one would prefer.