Chord Dave - Missing soundstage width


Hi I am in the process of evaluating the Chord Dave.I have a Orchid dac and to my ears it has a wider soundstage than the Dave, but in every other aspect the Dave is the clear winner.
The Dave has height, depth and a way to make you feel that you are there. but not much sound outside the speaker boundaries.
Is my observation correct or does my system suck (;
Equipment: Primaluna HP integrated EL34 tubes. Tekton Design DI, A well treated room.Streaming with Tidal HIFI/Master
martin-andersen

Showing 2 responses by verdantaudio

The DAVE is an amazing DAC and I literally can't keep them in stock which is mind boggling for a DAC that is >$10K.  I will say that when I have one in my system (I swap depending on what I am showing) the idea that the soundstage wouldn't extend past my speakers is almost inconceivable.    

I would definitely say your system doesn't suck.  The double impacts are a wild speaker though.  They can be driven quite well with 15w of great power or they could be driven with 400w of power.  Wonderful sound but they also run at a relatively low impedance.

My hunch is that you might benefit from a step up in quality if amplification.  I had a similar experience with that amp while demoing a pair of B&W 805 D3s.  My gut tells me that you amp is the bottleneck.  

If you are looking for a bigger soundstage, I would recommend three potential amps that will completely change your listening experience.  

Check out:
Art Audio Carissa which is an 845 based SET.  You don't need the integrated edition because the preamp section on the DAVE is superb and can be connected straight to the power amp.  I have run this at home and it is truly spectacular.  (full disclosure, I am the importer and reseller for Art Audio - I have a used Carissa available)

Line Magnetic LM-845.  This has a brutally expensive tube compliment to upgrade/replace but this is a wonderful amp for the money and a brilliant product.  

Raven Audio - Check out their 6L6 based amps.  In my opinion, the king of all tubes in terms of soundstage is the 845 but the runner up is the 6L6.  


Regarding tracks:  

Liberty from Annette Askvik - This track is one of the most amazing I have hear from an imaging perspective.  Make sure your room is quiet and you should hear width and depth.  

Be Still My Beating Heart from Sting - another amazing track that if your speaker placement is correct should deliver incredible width and portions of this song should come from over your right shoulder.  There is a version on Fields of Gold that I use.  

Blackbird from Sarah McLachlan -  On Disk 2 of the Essential Sarah McLachlan.  This track is overall lovely but there are bells/glockenspiel that comes in from the left side in the middle of the track that should almost make your turn your head to the left if things are set up correctly.