Okto DAC 8 Stereo (Shout-out)
I know this DAC made a buzz via a Stereophile A+ rating a couple years back, and I can’t say how many times I casually checked if they were back in stock for purchase. A couple of weeks ago I happened to check and they were.
Previously I had read the lead times were up to 8 weeks for a build, but happy to report it arrived in just over a week to the states. Great communication and service from the Okto team. Unfortunately couldn’t get one with streaming on-board due to R-Pi shortages.
Seems well built, nice screen, and overall a smaller chassis than I thought. Hopefully won’t miss lack of single ended outputs. A note you can use this as a preamp and order to custom output voltage to match your power amp.
My initial impressions are as follows: This is the most transparent DAC I have ever heard, previously owning Denafrips Terminator, Holo Spring, Sonnet Morpheus, Aqua La Scala, PS audio PW DSD and others of lesser renown and quality. . The instrument separation is quite good, a wide and deep stage, and an almost eerily clarity that lacks any glassy edginess that sabre DAC based designs seem to be known for. Although I owned a HIFI rose and loved it.
Anyways, kudos to Okto and a heads up they are in stock. Great performance and a very affordable price!
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I can understand the Okto being perhaps more transparent than the Aqua La Scala, but it sounding better than it… not sure. Quite different sounding DACs I believe, but I have never heard the Okto. Are you able to provide more comparative feedback on other aspects of sound, in addition to transparency? |
@milpai you can certainly tell the difference between DACs in most systems, but what I’m suggesting with R2R (but also try for some other topologies) if that the better the source the wider the gap / scaling. |
