Scott Nixon Tubedac = WOW

Your post illustrates why the cost of a piece of equipment does not translate into listening pleasure for everyone. I was beginning to think that the DAC1 was sent from heaven with all the positive reviews, articles, posts, etc. But, I keep hearing the same words used, as you mentioned: detail, precision, accuracy. When I listen to vinyl I mostly listen for emotion, flow, natural voices and instruments. These are not exclusive of each other but are different flavors, like ice cream. Thanks for your post. I am interested to hear if others have compared the two and their reactions. For the money, the SN is hard to beat!

Hello fellow SN fans. You have experienced what owners of the Scott Nixon Tube DAC have been reporting for a long while. I have a friend that has tried almost every dac you can think of under $2,500. He ended up with a SN Tub DAC. He didn't stop there he has another tube dac on his 2nd systema and a Chibi Dac (solid state SN DAC) (spelling) in his 3rd room. I have tried personally several of the DAC's he has had in my system and I can confirm the SN tube dac has more body on the instruments and vocals.
Spatial resolution is great too. The SN Tube DAC does not alter the sound spectrum. I appears to stay neutral.
There are a few other DAC's I'd like to hear such as the Mew PS Audio Powerwave gear, and a couple others but all of them cost over $2500. So for under $600 you really get a great DAC in a Scott Nixon Tube DAC. I've been enjoying mine for well over 4 years while being used on an Oppo at first and now an Arcam DV78 which sounds remarkable. I like the fact that some of my bright CD's don't have that zippy top end with the SN DAC. Enjoy

Yes, the SN is very good indeed and I'm glad I purchased it.

I think my set up might have something to do with it as well. Focal Utopia Be speakers and Krell amplification. With the DAC1, the listener could get tired of the treble at times. A very resolving DAC and metal tweeters don't always play well. What I liked about DAC1 and Krell was that the amp has strong bass, a Krell characteristic, so it countered the leaness of the DAC1.

With the SN, the highs are smoother, not necessarily rolled off, but just smoother and less abrasive. And that's with some "high end" RCA cables from radio shack. I'm thinking of maybe replacing them with Nordost Red Dawn to match the rest of the loom, but it sounds great as is.

Also, after an extended listening session last night, the one thing I noticed was some slight low end bloat with certain material. Maybe a better IC and a different tube can alleviate some of that. Current tube is a JAN/Phillips mil version 6299.

One more thing, don't stack the DAC and transformer...HUUUUUMMMMMMM.

I also am a very satisfied owner of the SN TD-2 DAC. I recently bought the 4xac power supply from Scott, expecting a modest improvement, with a little more slam. Instead, my system became more detailed, even significantly so, which was surprising to me. I recommend you spend that $100 for the upgraded power supply and see for yourself.

No commercial connection - just an impressed customer.

Jult52, I have the 3xac power supply and I think it's more than adequate. It's not a wall wart, but it's own toroid in a matching ABS case. I suspect he 4xac is similar, but with higher current.

You've given me an idea though...since I already have the case, I might just get a bigger toroid and install it myself.