@gdhal You are receiving good advice and suggestions from the previous posters.
The 15 day return window is really too short to evaluate the Yggy properly. It really applies if you just don't care for the sound performance when you first set it up. I believe there is a restocking fee, which given the strong resale market makes it wiser to take your time and resell later if it doesn't work out for you.
I'll repeat what's already been said before:
- Give it time. Live with it for awhile and then go back to your previous setup.
- Your comparison isn't 1 to 1.
- Better cables will make a difference.
- Isolating the Yggy properly will deliver significant upside results.
Keep us posted on your findings. Best of luck.
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Using an isolation platform and footers. There are many options.
I have the SR Tranquility Base as the platform. And both the Anvil Turntable Footers and Ingress RollerBlocks have made positive differences in overall performance (as did the SR MIGs).
I'll reiterate, there are many options across a wide range of design and cost.
If you decide to keep the Yggy, I encourage you to consider isolating it. |
Bill, you make a valid point with respect to the OP. And I agree. If at the end of the day gdhal doesn't hear significant differences, it is an easy choice to make...either way works.
The other aspect of this is value. We all value the differences by our own measuring sticks.
If you are referring to the isolation / resonance control I've applied, I'd say to my ears the result is significant. These things vary by person, so I offered it as an option should the OP keep the Yggy. |
Bill, Understood. And many great DACs out there. |
I should have the Denafrips Terminator in my system by the end of the month. If you are right...oh the pain (to the wallet). : ) |
@gdhal Since it looks like you are planning on keeping the Yggy past the 15 day window, here’s something to consider.
Throw away the critical evaluation hat. I really mean it.
Enjoy your music for a month or so. Then listen to each setup for a few days each. Be introspective about which one you seem to keep wanting to come back to.
(When listening via the Oppo, keep the Yggy on. You don’t need to run signal through it).
You are lucky because both components are well regarded and have active followings. Either will be easy to resell. Consider the differential you lose to be a very worthwhile investment towards your learning and movement along the journey. |
@gdhal Good write up, a couple of posts ago. Glad it is working out for you.
the Yggy’s usefulness increases as the “density” of the instruments increase and the overall quality of the recording is increased
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A good comparison indeed, though the difference is closer to 5K than 10. |
I ... have tested $100 DACs such as the ODAC all the way up to the Chord Dave and Ayre QX-5 Twenty. None of the DACs made as big of an improvement as adding a Sonore microrendu or SOtM sMS-200 Ultra. WOW! |
@gdhal Hal, Thanks for sharing the link and bringing it to our attention.
Do you have a feel for the performance of your Yggy with the B analog board, now that you have had some more time with it? Thank you. |
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@gdhal Thanks for your update and findings. Much appreciated. |
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Being (somewhat of) a headphone guy, I like the Dot Guru site and their reviews, etc.
I wish the reviewer had also used at least two other headphones (The Ether Cs are closed) with at least one being Open.
And I wish he had used an additional headphone amp - given his preference for tubes, his choice of the Questyle in dual mono balanced was surprising. In my opinion, more of a Like-Like choice. |
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@parsons +1 Great points. the resulting PACE gives the impression of just the slightest, but very noticeable, perception of "slowing down" of a song that you know very well..... Often the tonal qualities, detail, and even soundstage are there as you would hope for, but something about it still doesn't sound "right"...will sometime sound just the slightest bit delayed from what you are used to. LIke it's just slightly dragging the whole song. I find it apparent irrespective of "It needs to be a song that you have listened to for years to really notice it." |
Hi Hal. I thought I was being clear in my two previous posts. I'm copying a couple of sections, since you ask (and I don't want to assume, in any way) [repeat, I don't want to assume]. Best, - David. From Wikipedia: "Timing in music refers to the ability to "keep time" accurately and to synchronise to an ensemble,[1] as well as to expressive timing—subtle adjustment of note or beat duration, or of tempo, for aesthetic effect.
Research in music cognition has shown that time as a subjective structuring of events in music differs from the concept of time in physics.[2] Listeners to music do not perceive rhythm on a continuous scale, but recognise rhythmic categories that function as a reference relative to which the deviations in timing can be appreciated.[3][4] In fact temporal patterns in music combine two different time scales—rhythmic durations such as half and quarter notes on the one hand, and on the other, the continuous timing variations that characterize an expressive musical performance." From: https://www.musical-u.com/learn/how-to-improve-your-rhythm-and-timing/"Having a reliable sense of rhythm is a hallmark of any good musician and it’s one of the things which can immediately distinguish an amateur from a pro. HIGHLIGHTING >>>: Our sensitivity to rhythm when listening to music is subtle but powerful, and any inaccuracies quickly give the listener and uneasy sense that things aren’t working quite right. In music rhythm is widely considered as the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions, whereas “timing” refers to the ability to keep accurately to the regular beat and synchronize with an ensemble. With such a fundamental and broad definition, hopefully you can see why having a strong sense of rhythm isn’t just for the drummers!" |
Hi, Hal. Timing is timing. It's obvious when it is off. It's obvious in live performances when one musician is 'off.' Nothing subtle about it.
To @parsons point, timing issues are common during break in, and his post made a relevant and a very good point. I have found the same to be true during component break in.
However, 'timing' is not limited to components being broken in. There are components that (when fully broken in) handle timing better than other components. A live recording or studio recording doesn't change that. |
