My 1st stand alone DAC was a Rega DACr & was eye-opening for sure. Filters were a negligible gimmick but still, was a fine piece & played great. Next was a Line Magnetic LM-502ca @smoorenc (still have it) and that was/is a fabulous DAC especially having Brimar 12au7s swapped in. These days I mostly use a Canor DAC 2.10 that uses 6922 tubes (now stuffed with Siemans E88cc) and its about as god my system is ever gonna sound. I'm at the tweak stage as all other components are dialed in. So, yes, my 1st DAC made a noticeable difference and as I've gone slowly up the ladder, each new DAC has been an equally impactful upgrade. Just my experience
Do you recall "instant improvement" from your first stand-alone DAC ?
After weeks of research I recently ordered my first external DAC. My system is modest by most accounts... Van Alstine SET400 amp, T-10 tube pre-amp, Salk HT2-TL speakers, WiiM Ultra streamer/DAC. It sounds very good to me... resolving, clear, excellent bass, mids, highs. Then I started reading and asking about streamers and DACs and it seems my system could sound better. So I did a lot of reading and ultimately ordered a used Merason Frerot with factory wal wort power supply. Now the anxiety of second-guessing my choice and what it will sound like in my system. Cuz there are no stores near me to demo DACS. Eventually I will likely upgrade the streamer.
What did you notice the most about your first stand-alone DAC... more clarity, richness, scary good vocals, extended highs, more airy highs, more and better bass ? Better soundstage and imaging ? All the above ?
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Over the last 10 yrs have slowly been putting together my 2-channel system...several mistakes along the way. My TT & analog side I worked on first (over 6 years)...now complete...no future changes. The digital path I struggled with...started with a Bluesound node into my integrated amp with a internal DAC card (McIntosh 2 card)...worked well for 5 yrs until I saved enough to take the plunge to upgrade/finish my digital system. Went with a Aurender N20 streamer into a Berkley Audio DAC & really good interconnects (these made a noticeable difference too). Yes, the first play was a night & day difference from my previous path. Done! Very interesting to do an A/B/C/D/E comparison between a direct stream (I use Tidal) vs Tidal Max vs Aurender hard-drive vs CD vs vs SACD vs TT analog using the same song selection…I still feel nothing compares to a live show in a small venue with good acoustics!
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Nothing earth-shattering, IMHE. Compared to speakers, tubes, or TT, DAC differences are at best flavoring. I compared a $250 Topping D50III with a $5K Holoaudio May 2 DAC, and while there were *slightest* differences, one was not objectively better than the other. For some recordings I liked one better, for others the other. And I did a side-by-side comparison, having both plugged in, grouped in Roon, volume matched, so could switch back and forth on preamp for instant comparison. Differences in recordings are greater than differences between delta sigma and RR DAC, so differences between DS DACs are even smaller. The is confirmed by comparing on headphones the Dragonfly series (red, black, cobalt). I had difficulties convincing myself that I heard any differences. This is at the low end of price spectrum, where one would expect the greatest improvements.
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I agree. All DACs sounds different little. These little differences are insignificant and don't matter since veils and glare produced by separate DACs mask delicate music behind speakers. Also, far laid-back mid-range (human voice) in all systems (except mine) is even harder to hear. Alex/Wavetouch audio |
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