2. digital
  3. 185656-147162

Do I really Need a Digital to Digital Converter?

Over the last few years I have continued to upgrade my digital front end and currently use an Auralic G2 (with upgraded power supply) and a Musician Pegasus R2R DAC. Some of the (mostly Asian) DAC manufacturers also make digital to digital converters (like the Denefrips Iris and Hermes).

So my questions are, if what these DDCs do so important, why aren’t they built into into DACs or Streamers in the first place. Are they only incorporated in higher end digital gear but not gear at the level I am using?. What will adding one of these bring to the table or should I just upgrade my DAC or Streamer to get the same result? Do I really need another piece of gear and another set of cables to clutter up my rack?

Appreciate input from anyone who as direct experience with these DDCs in their audio journey.

alvinnir2

Showing 4 responses by alvinnir2

alvinnir2's avatar
alvinnir2 OP
129 posts
 

Soix has a good point, same dac, maybe same result. The search begins

alvinnir2's avatar
alvinnir2 OP
129 posts
 

So opinions seem to vary and with no real consensus it probably means I should consider getting a used DDC and if it doesn't improve things in a worthwhile way, I can always resell it at minimal to no loss. From my understanding both my streamer and DAC implement USB in a very favourable way and this is how I do connect them. I have tried other DAC inputs (AES and Coax) but have preferred the USB route. I mostly stream Tidal but also play music from an internal drive in the Auralic G2 where I have some files of higher than CD resolution.

alvinnir2's avatar
alvinnir2 OP
129 posts
 

@trivema

I use the Auralic via ethernet but as the router is one floor up from my system I use a TP link powerline adapter to get my ethernet. This set up was left over from a Lumin streamer I was using before that did not do wifi. I connect my Auralic to my DAC via USB although I could use coax, optical or, AES. I agree any of these options are cleaner than USB from a computer.

Soix used a DDC with the same DAC as mine and such first hand experience makes his opinion valuable to me. However, I don’t know what streamer he was using and how much of a factor your streamer plays into what benefit you get from a DDC. Do some streamer incorporate circuitry such that the benefits of a DDC are less than with others? Probably so and that’s why even though the advice we give and get in in this forum community is great, sometimes you just got to take the plunge and buy and try.

Geez.... I miss the old days where brick and mortar dealers were common and would sometimes let you take gear to try out at home before you made a purchase.

alvinnir2's avatar
alvinnir2 OP
129 posts
 

@ j_andrews

I appreciate what the BP DAC brings to the table and have heard that the Aries, although  musical, has that little sizzle. Perhaps if you tried an R2R DAC higher up the food chain you might find you get more detail but without the sizzle.

When I was looking at R2R DACs, I discounted the Aries for that reason and went with the Musician Pegasus while also considering the Denafrips Pontus as they both were described as being detailed but without the sizzle as you call it.

More to discover