I haven't heard MSB or the Denafrips DAC. I have great synergy in my system and see no reason to listen to every new DAC out there. At some point you have to be content in this hobby. After a year of listening to various components I'm content.
MSB select II vs all dacs ?
Wherever I read I see unanimous praise for the MSB Select II. Of course this DAC is super pricey and out of the reach of many (including me). I wanted to know for anyone who has heard it have you also heard a DAC that approached it in sonic performance? One name that was thrown around by a few people I know is the Rockna Wavedream. Anyone make that comparison?
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@mikelavigne--What does the rest of your system look like if I may ? like this; https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/615 my pictures and gear list are about a year old. it's mostly the same......but soon i will be updating it regarding recent additions to the digital and vinyl. |
smodtactical, I tried the mscaler in my system and prefer the Dave by itself. There is something that sounds unnatural, not right to my ears when I inserted the mscaler. I went from a PS Audio Directstream DAC to Brcasti M1 to Jeff Rowland Aeris to the Dave. In addition, I've listened to Esoteric, Rockna, and the Mscaler in my system. Unless I come into a lot of money the Dave is my DAC of choice. |
smodtactical, I've had the Rockna Wavedream Edition, not the Signature in my system. My wife and I preferred the Chord Dave DAC and decided to keep it. Initially the Rockna Wavedream Edition appeared to have more detail, but lacked the open soundstage of the Dave. After comparing the two for several days it was apparent that in my system the Dave was more natural, with details, but the detail wasn't forward sounding. Based on my conversation with a fellow audiophile, the Rockna Wavedream Signature is on amother level, providing more detail, but retaining an overall forward sound. I decided not to pursue the Rockna Wavedream Signature. |
What DACs that were much cheaper than the Select 2 have even grabbed your attention? Say something under $20k? i’m not sure i’m the right guy to answer that question, as it’s been a couple of years since i was really paying attention in that dac market segment. i certainly liked the Lampi GG, the GG1.5 and the Pacific (just a bit over $20k) plus certainly the Aqua Formula too. there are a number of competent dacs in that $10k to $25k range and i can’t say any stand out......but i’ve not deep dived into them since i went with the MSB Select II. right now other than the 7-box CH Precision and the NADAC i mention above the other dacs i’ve liked alot are the MSB Reference ($40k+) and the Trinity Dac ($50k+) which i owned in 2016. i’ve heard and liked the Aries Cerat Kassandra II at RMAF, which i think is around $40k, and there are 2 steps up above that version for up to $84k i’ve not heard. i hope that helps. i’m sort of caught up in optimizing my Select II with my new Extreme server and listening to lots of music. |
@smodtactical-- i was at Axpona in April, and RMAF in October, but don't recall hearing the Rockna Wavedream dac specifically; sorry. but i sometimes go in rooms and i don't immediately connect, and move on. i take pictures of most rooms i enter, and sometimes that jogs my memory. i will review those pics again when i have time. if i've heard it, it did not grab my attention, and that is not necessarily any commentary on the Rockna. i will likely go to RMAF again in September and if it's there i will listen to it. |
@astewart8944--two years ago in Feb of 17’ i did audition the original Formula dac in my system directly compared to the Lampizator GG 1.5 and the Nagra HD and preferred the Formula for it’s greater space, lower noise, and more neutral and fast presentation. it just complimented my system better than those other two. at that point i owned the GG1.5, and expected to buy the Nagra HD. but the Formula (one of the first to be imported into the North America), surprised me. i owned that Formula until that June, when i finally gave in to my ears and acquired the Select II. i could easily live with that Formula dac and still consider it a ’giant-killer’ if a $14k list price dac can be considered a bargain. it did everything right to my ears and i found nothing that bothered me. coming from the GG1.5, and having the Nagra HD there too, the Formula stayed on the natural side of the neutrality line, but never sounded colored......or veiled. i never did hear the Formula xHD version in my system. my understanding is that the xHD version is a bit less transparent, and more toward ’lush’. for my system, that might not be how i would like it. but i’m just speculating, |
Mike, Scott has been absolutely wonderful in his support, despite my purchasing the Found-Music 2A3s used (from Art S.) He has visited once and is planning another visit after the trip your way. For those of you that may not know Scott Sheaffer of Found-Music, or his work, I encourage you to look him up should you have an interest in analog setup, cabling, SE amps, etc. |
This is a dealers email comment to me about comparisons he did. So take it for what it is. He liked the Mola Mola Tambaqui over these others listed below. $90K+ MSB, dCS Vivaldi, Playback Design, Lampizator, D1 Esoteric, Mytek, Berkeley, Aqua , Weiss and a few more I am sure I am forgetting of course PS AUDIO and Auralic Vega |
David, oh yes, loved those Found Music 2a3 amps. too bad i did not have the right speakers for them. still on my short list of favorite amps. congrats on owning those. a local friend, member jazdoc, has a 40+ watt set of Found Music mono block amps i do get to hear on a regular basis, and they always sound superb. i’ll see Scott Sheaffer (Found Music builder/designer) next week. he is almost done with a new DIN cable for my new Durand Tosca tone arm. can’t wait to hear it in the system......and see Scott. |
hello David, as my Select II sits it would list for $116,450. other dacs I have enjoyed......in no particular order; I would not call this second tier; but I prefer what hear from my Select II to what I’ve heard from these. so these are ’less preferred’. I could easily live with any of these. CH Precision mono dac with clock and 3 power supplies (7 boxes)----it’s more spendy---$150k Merging Technologies NADAC w/power supply and clock---much better now with the clock and power supply upgrades than my previous experience.----around $60k there are others I know about but I’ve not heard them recently. I'm doing this off the top of my head. more might come to mind and I will add them. |
@mikelavigne Can you share the list price for your current DAC 'system' with powerbases, modules, etc. included? Realizing there isn't a comparison (you personally found) that could go head to head with your current setup, which other DACs would you say are worth considering, even if second tier, per your experience? Thank you. |
I own the MSB Select II with the dual powerbases and 33 Femto Clock. had if for 2 years now. as far as direct comparison with other dacs the closest I’ve done is listening to the Select II at shows and then listening to other top dacs in other systems at shows. this was how I originally decided to purchase the Select II as I was trying to hear another dac at shows that could do what I heard the Select II doing at a lower price. I could not so, after 2 years of trying, I bought it. comparing top dacs directly is a bit challenging, even if you have them both together. for instance, the Select II is modular (customers can easily change modules in seconds) so it has the ability to quickly modify it’s inputs to allow for optimization of various interfaces. a year ago I got the new Renderer V2 which was a step up over USB. but with digital things change quickly, and a month ago I got a new server, the SGM Extreme. the Extreme has some special optimization for USB. Also; recently MSB introduced a new interface that optimizes USB and adds fibre to reduce noise, the MSB Pro USB. turns out that with the Extreme USB slightly pulls ahead of the Ethernet with the Renderer, then adding the Pro USB there is now a significant step up over the Renderer. what I’m saying is that comparing dacs also must take into account of all the interface advantages of each particular dac. and the MSB Select II has a huge advantage over other dacs with it’s modularity and in-house development which promotes, in a very timely way, keeping the product at the very tip top cutting edge of digital interface developments. lastly; what I compare my MSB Select II to every day is my top level vinyl and top level reel to reel tape. those surpass any other digital choice. the Select II pushes the analog to be it’s best. it’s that good. |
