Jeff Rowlands Amp and Dac vs. VAC amp and DAC

Rinpoche,

I know everyone is dying to ask but is not asking.
So, I will ask the obvious - have you decided what to get?

J. :)

".....I am finding the wait a bit brutal, but patience is going to pay off down the line."

+1, Rinpoche.

The wait is killing me more. :)

You remind me of myself when I first started in this crazy hobby more than 2 decades ago.
It was the same then - too many choices and too many decisions to make but only 1 final decision can be made. You will learn that you have to pay to gain experience in this hobby - to get the best overall sound, from all the different components, that suits you and your room.
Opening your wallet often is the only one inescapable fact in this hobby..

Happy hunting!

J.

Rinpoche,
As you let on more and more about yourself in this hobby - Mark Levinson gear with B&W 802's for 15 years, and your consideration of cables, you have exposed yourself - audiophilia nervosa is already lurking inside you.  You are just at the denial stage! 😅
What gave you away?  - when you think about cables, you are done for. ☺

Good luck with your hunt! 😂

Rinpoche,

I feel your pain.
About a month after your first post, no amp, no interconnects, no music, no inspiration.......

J. :(:(:(

"If you like more the guitar by Antonio Marin Montero - you probably want VAC amp, if the one by Conde - probably Rowland." - Inna

"As for the guitarists, I liked both. But I really liked the piece by Gonzalez. T(W)hat amp would that constitute?"  - Rinpoche

"Gonzalez, as they say, worked for 20 years in Montero shop, and I can hear that. Besides, his guitar has rosewood back and sides not cypress. Excellent sound indeed." - Inna  

Inna,
If Gonzalez worked 20 years in the Montero shop, then the amp that goes with Gonzalez would be VAC? - if I understand it correctly.

J.

Rinpoche,
I am writing down my prediction as follows :- SWCRABVHWI.
Let's see what happens.  Good luck!
J. :)

Total system synergy also includes the way the system interacts with the environment it is in.
Place 2 identical sytems in 2 different rooms and both will sound different.
Place 2 identical systems in the same room but with different environments, like with one having a television in between the speakers, and again, both will sound different.

A system can sound only as good as the environment it is in.

J. :)

Rinpoche,

Those letters are code for my prediction which will be revealed after you have made your decision. They are meaningless for now.
As to your room, what I mean is the amp you choose will sound different in your room compared to someone else’s.
Relax, just choose your amp, bring it home and you can rearrange your room if necessary, after that. No point rearranging now as you need to know how it sounds first. You can move things around later to make your system sound better. Who knows, your system may jist sound great without any rearrangement!
One step at a time. :)

Haha. Al is reading way too much into the code with his technical brain. It actually isn't that complicated.  Let's wait and see.

Regards.
Jon.  :)

"Pretty sure SWCRABVHWI is a song on Cream's Disraeli Gears."

Cool!

J. :)

SWCRABVHWI =>
She Will Choose Rowland And Be Very Happy With It.

Congrats and Happy Birthday, Rinpoche!

J. :) :) :) 

Hi Rinpoche,

Here is my little prediction for your upcoming AQ cable :-
WGWAWWTW.

Also, I may have missed it in the thread but what are you using as cd player?

Rgds.
J. :)

Rinpoche,
Are you playing from a laptop/music server?
J.

So you are using the usb input of the dac which is similar to what I am doing now. I don't have any suggestion for a music server as I am sooo very happy with my recently acquired Esotetic N-05 usb dac.
When I find a local music server dealer who allows a home audition, then I would be able to compare with the current set-up, which is a whole lot better than my previous standalone Esoteric K-01 player.

Enjoy! J.

Some reading for Mac usb and usb audio :-

http://djtechtools.com/2010/07/14/macbook-usb-port-inequality/

http://www.audiostream.com/content/usb-audio-gremlins-exposed-beyond-1s-and-0s-ifi-audio#evM2XaGXX7s...
(See 5. The corollary for us would be Listen -> Experiment/tweak/rearrange -> Relisten, circum et circum)

To recap,
Mac with iTunes  > long usb cable > Aeris dac > AQ Wel > JR 625S > Wilson Sabrinas.
System doubles for TV audio with TV in between speakers.

A few points :-
1: CD ripping with iTunes - lossy or lossless compression - AIFF/ALAC or just MP3?
2. TV in between speakers - ? interference from EMR, RFI
- ? interference with soundstage
3. JR 625S - v. expensive amps, still on demo at home or fully paid for?
4. AQ Wel - ? forgotten
5. Now looking at preamp despite good sound direct from dac to amps which are not well burned in yet
6. Aeris dac and Wilson Sabrinas - bought or gifted? broken in? separate components that came without amps?
7. Devialet - expensive but...not working?

Very puzzling......