Benchmark Media Systems. Right or wrong

Benchmark Media Systems has an opinion. That’s all it is. Not right. Not wrong. As a manufacturer they should probably stay out of this though. 

I owned 2 Benchmark DACs. DAC 1 years ago and recently DAC 3 HGC. To me the benchmark sound is cool, dry, a more a matter of fact type sonic rendition of recorded music . I do agree though that the product is nicely built, rich in features and measures well. It’s priced accordingly. Just not my cup of tea. I was able to warm the DAC 3 sound with a good USB and power cables though but it didn’t do it for me. If you like it, good for you!

One other thing I will mention. When I called benchmark I spoke to a person pretty much right away. Their customer service is good. But whoever that was, I don’t remember now, recommended that I ditch my Pass Labs preamp and run the DAC 3 HGC direct to amp. I had already tried it by then and didn’t like the results. The claim was that my Pass preamp is noisy and degrades the sound quality. DAC 3 direct into amp resulted in flat, dry and forward presentation. It was significantly worse than having a preamp in the chain.
The volume control on DAC is definitely a useful feature if you’re in between preamps. But it’s not a replacement so no thanks….I like my preamp. 

Let’s just not forget that accurate doesn’t only mean tonal accuracy. It also means accuracy in conveying the emotion. Saying that benchmark equipment is more accurate than tube preamps, DACs and amps is incorrect. Some of the best guitar amps used by musicians during live performances are tube amps. A lot of masterpieces were recorded using tube equipment 50+ years ago and to this day these albums sound incredible. Accurate and emotionally engaging. 
Hey if you like the Benchmark sound, good for you. It doesn’t mean it’s the best and most accurate though. 

@mijostyn I don’t like distortion. I am also 100% sure you have no idea what the musicians in the studio sounded like to use as your baseline for judging how accurate or neutral a component really is. It’s all a perception. So let’s not go there. 

Guys - neutral is not a thing. Everything adds color. Including your room and the chair you sit in. Your big furry dog and a coffee table between you and the speakers will alter the delivery enough to render it inaccurate.

You can keep telling yourself benchmark is neutral but it’s not. It’s a studio monitor type component that allows you to do your work with enough information you need to do it. 
There are much more resolving, clearer and better sounding DACs out there. Same will apply to amps and presmps. My last two DACs pull more from the recording than the benchmark ever did. So your accuracy theory is once again a moot point. And as I stated earlier, add perception to this formula. You’re making an argument but it’s just not a very good one. 

In any case this was a snake oil debate…we went off on a tangent. 

 

mijostyn OP

8,196 posts

04-30-2024 at 07:13am

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@audphile1 If I blinded you you would never be able to tell the difference between most DACs.

If I cut one of your ears off you would be half blind. If I cut the other ear off you would be completely blind. This is because the hat that you were wearing when you came over to blind me would just fall over your eyes. We vcan then do a blind test where you will tell me if you can hear the difference.