Looking to score a Pontus but they get snapped up on the used market pretty quick. What is the best place to buy one new? I've seen shenzen audio and vinshine. Any other reputable outlets?
@kw6I think the clock in the Hermes is the same oven controlled crystal oscillator (OCXO) that Denafrips puts in their Terminator II, which are much more accurate than the FEMTO clock in the Pontus II, as well as the TCXO clock in the more expensive Venus II. I think I read that OCXO is around an order of magnitude or greater more temperature stable than TXCO. You'd have to read up on the details of the different types, but a Raspberry Pi beating my Hermes+Pontus II setup in USB sound quality would surprise me.
The one thing I was stressing earlier in this discussion was my finding that the power cable quality/compatibility made a sizable difference in the sound quality of my Hermes, so that would not likely be part of the experiment you are referring to.
I also got the Hermes because of the various inputs... such as toslink optical for a TV.
If you use the IFI Zen streamer with USB out to a Pontus II, you'll be relying on the Pontus II's on-board FEMTO clock quality. However, the IFI Zen streamer is much less expensive than a Hermes + a streamer/computer.
Ok thanks gladmo. Read that the Raspberry I2S contraption out performs the Hermes. My other option is to get IFI Zen stream and use USB out. What do you think?
@kw6You may have caught it in the discussion, but just like ozzy relayed from Alvin at Vinshine Audio, and corroborated by my experience, the Denafrips DDCs can be worth the price if you are using a USB connection from your source. If you have a higher end source outputting a non-USB signal then I would reconsider the value you think it will add to the Pontus II. In my case, laptop USB as source (soon to be a dedicated Microsoft Surface Pro 7 tablet with high quality USB cable) using the Hermes with a high quality power cable substantially outperforms the Node via coax/optical in dynamism, details, imaging, extension at both ends, and fullness/liveliness of presentation. Node is going to find a new home.
I'm also using OS with slow filter. Hearing pretty much what you guys noticed.
@gladmo, interesting you found the coax and optical sound similar. With my previous dac I was limited to optical. Still gonna try a coax to connect to my Node 2. Will see what happens.
Alvin says that I probably won’t notice a big difference with DDC since I am using a Lumin streamer. He says it is needed more when using a computer as a source. So if I do anything it would be to step up to the Venus II. But the Pontus sounds so good, I’m in no hurry to do that just yet.
BTW, are you using the Pontus in the NOS mode? Initially I thought NOS sounded better, but now that I’ve got a few hours on the Pontus, I prefer OS with the slow filter more often than not.
@ozzy62
Good question. I've been comparing my laptop USB output to an unmodified Bluesound Node 2021 out via both coax and optical to the Hermes with Krakatoa PC (then I2S to Pontus II), and also connected directly to Pontus II via coax and optical. All of those combinations for the Node sound pretty similar with a minor discernible edge when routing through the Hermes, but connecting the laptop to the Hermes with a cheap, thin USB cable is on another level. Transients are much more defined. I've been testing this with tracks that have very high pitch percussive sounds, such as triangles, chimes, and even the reverb itself that's been added to guitars/bass, synths, and sampled sound effects (a la Yosi Horikawa). Laptop USB to Pontus II is quite nice too, but it's missing the various effects that really precise transients adds, IME.
Hey @ozzy62, you mentioned that you may be considering the Iris reclocker in this thread, so I thought you may be interested in a cool discovery a made in my Denafrips setup.
I'm running USB into a Hermes DDC, then to Pontus II DAC via I2S. The really fascinating thing I ran into was the big improvement in sound quality when I upgraded the power cable on the Hermes. I initially thought the power cable choice on the Hermes would have the least sonic impact of all components in my system, so I have been lazy about swapping it out with something better. But, I found that going from a generic 16 AWG power cable to an Acoustic Zen Krakatoa cable (9 AWG, 6N Zero Crystal Copper + Silver) is an incredible improvement to imaging and focus, and to overall resolution. I was really happy about that because the Krakatoa, although very sharp/acute in details, thins out the low end too much on my system when it's used on the Pontus II, as well as on other components. But it's a fantastic match with the Hermes, fwiw to you.
My Pontus II landed today after all. Five days from Singapore is damn impressive. The build quality is hard to fault, and the sound after a couple hours warm up is pretty good. I’m sure the best is yet to come.
Mine arrived at the distribution facility, 40 miles from my home, at 4:06 am this morning. I can't believe they couldn't get it on the delivery truck for today. Says Friday is the date. F&*kin Fedex........
I have a Lumin U1 mini. I have a myriad of cables to try, balanced, coax, BNC and USB. If the Pontus ends up being a keeper, I may invest in the Iris and go I2S.
I liked the Lampi, it did a lot of things right. But the timbre just seemed off. The upper midrange was spotlit to a degree. Not noticeable on all recordings, but there on some. It was quick, detailed and dynamic, but just didn't engage me for some reason.
I'd be really interested in knowing your thoughts on the Pontus vs Lampi. I was hot on the hunt for a Lampi or the Pontus. the Terminator came at a steal so I jumped all over it.
N100SC has usb2.0 and coax. On the Termi, DSD 1024 / PCM 1536 is via usb only. Not really a big deal nevertheless id still like to be able to play with it.
USB is a superior interface. SP/DIF has issues - depending on the mode, the clock is the sender (not good) and without a dedicated clock wire (clock is derived) timing/jitter is suspect.
I picked up a Terminator with the updated DSD board with the notion that I'd be able to enjoy the full spectrum of the Dac's resolution...well, turns out that the Terminator's isn't compatible with the usb2.0 port in my Aurender streamer. I reached out to Alvin and he quickly responded. Apparently I need a usb firmware upgrade which requires a windows computer and some knowledge of wtf your doing...neither of which I have. 🤦♂️🤷🏼♂️ The point I'm trying to convey here is...go new with Alvin and avoid the headaches.
i am pretty sure it’ll be fine with the lumin, although i sold my lumin before this ’series 2’ dena stuff came out
it is some compatibility issue only just with the node coax digital out, for 96k and above, the dena input circuit won’t read it - i have not had this problem with any of the some 40 other dacs i have run over the past couple years... just this current gen of denafrips ones for some reason has this stupid problem
glad you got your pontus ordered, it is an excellent dac and great value
of the several dena dacs i have tried i kept only the pontus
what streamer will you use? the current gen dena gear have an issue receiving higher res bitstreams from the b-s node, so be forewarned if that happens to be your streamer
Bought a Benchmark DAC3 B, extemely happy with it. However, I did consider the Pontus 2 quite heavily. It was literally a toss up. Was very nervous about a return if necessary. Has anyone had any issues with their Pontus 2, and had to return them for any reason. Their unit is very reasonably priced. Just very nervous about the above. Robert TN Thanks
I have to agree with the above responses regarding Vinshine and Alvin Chee... I bought my Terminator-Plus from Vinshine/Alvin and he is all about customer-service, quick response communications, and time commitments. Highly recommended ! Going to get the highlly-regarded Jay's-Audio CDT2-Mk3 C/D Transport via Vinshine too. Beware of e-Bay and other non-authorized sellers of new Denafrips or Jay's-Audio equipment as it may not have any warranty !
From what I recall, Vinshine (in Singapore with Alvin Chee, the proprietor) is the only official dealer for all things Denafrips. I bought my Denafrips Ares II directly from him and he has been amazing to work with ! Outstanding customer servcie as I asked a ton of questions before placing the order. I would not go anyplace else due to potential warranty issues.
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