I just checked LAiV's website and both silver and black are down to preorder status for the next batch. Time for the audio elves to get busy.
All the best,
Nonoise
Back to the DAC
Just a bit of an update. When I inquired about a DAC upgrade in a recent post, it was suggested that I look at upgrading my cables first. Since then, I have done so (see my virtual system for that). Not over the top stuff, but a definite improvement over the mostly stock, generic cables I originally had.
System is sounding pretty darn good, but like most of us, you always wonder what a more expensive DAC will offer in the way of sound quality improvements.
Many of the recommended, higher priced DACs seem to include streamers and/or offer pre-amp capabilities. I have a good streamer and pre-amp and really don’t want all those components in one box.
Have any of you experienced a DAC which offers the sound qualities of highly praised units like the Mola Mola Tambaqui, DCS Lina, T&A 200, Weiss DAC501, etc. which their only function is a DAC?
Showing 8 responses by nonoise
@navyachts , Yes...about 2 hours ago and he was really taken by it saying if your budget is below $10K, then this will punch your audio ticket (pardon my paraphrasing). 😄 He's keeping his review sample. I've got a funny feeling they're gonna run out of these soon if not already. All the best, |
@ervikingo If I remember correctly, the LAiV has 8 preprogramed I2s settings that you can toggle through. Hope it works out for you and eager to hear how you feel about it. There's more video reviews coming online and one reviewer who made his own home built Lampizator DAC model (pimped out the way he likes it) says it compares very favorably to it and on another, the owner of Quailo Audio said if he had to choose between his Holo May DAC and the LAiV, he'd opt for the LAiV. The Hype Train is leaving the station. Let's hope it arrives at its destination. 👍 All the best, |
@navyachts Yeah, it's the new kid on the block but I thought that from the couple sources linked being rather reputable makes it worth considering. Enjoy the Playback Designs Merlot! All the best, |
By the way, here's Laiv's website. For some reason I couldn't get it to take in the above post. Cheers. |
@navyachts That Laiv DAC supplanted Srajan Ebans Terminator+, Sonnet Pasithea, Cen.Grand, and COS for a fraction of their costs. The leader behind Laiv hails from Denafrips, who went on his way. Not only do they have a return policy and warranty program, they're also working on a distributor in the US. Here's the review of it at 6moons, and here's another video/podcast of it. Just advance the timeline of it to get to the Laiv discussion. It starts at 15:19,
All the best, |