Should I Get a DAC ?


Currently I am using an ARC CD3 mk2 in my system connected to a Rogue tube preamp. The CD3 using an Audience Powerchord sounds terrific; very dynamic with excellent imaging, but it is SS and with that comes some harshness when playing certain CDs.
I listen to classical music exclusively and was wondering if adding an asynchronous TUBE DAC to the output of the CDP would provide a more analogue presentation.

I have a hearing issue that makes high frequencies intolerable and when I used a Jolida CDP previously, the tube output helped with my problem. Of course, the Jolida isn’t in the same league as the ARC.

My budget is about $500 not including cables and I’ve been looking at the Jolida Glass Tube DAC.

The ARC has an excellent master clock and from what I understand about digital, the external DAC would then reclock the stream. That is why I’m looking for advice from those who know digital. What are your thoughts?
lowrider57

Showing 1 response by almarg

03-07-14: Lowrider57
I can hear up to 19kHz, but it's actually a small range of high frequencies that bother me.
Some promising suggestions have been offered above. It seems to me, though, that what would be an ideal solution for the issue you have described is a notch filter/bandstop filter operating in the digital domain, which would allow arbitrary adjustment of the center frequency and the width of the notch, and also of the amount of attenuation introduced within that notch. You would adjust all of those parameters so as to attenuate or filter out just the bothersome frequencies.

There is one device I am aware of which provides that capability and is generally well regarded among audiophiles and sells for a relatively modest price ($1099, which happens to be exactly the same amount as the cost of a Synchro-Mesh + your stated $500 DAC budget). That is the DSPeaker Anti-Mode 2.0 Dual Core, available within the USA here. As you'll see, return privileges are offered, but not without some cost and other conditions.

The Dual Core includes a DAC function, and I believe its design would make an external re-clocker unnecessary, even if the source had relatively high jitter. However its only digital input is optical, which your CD3 does not provide. So an approach to consider would be selling the CD3 and replacing it with a much less expensive transport having an optical output. Perhaps that would even net out at a total cost of less than zero.

Or, if you were to try the Synchro-Mesh + DAC approach first and it doesn't prove to be an adequate solution you could then try the Dual Core with the CD3, using the Synchro-Mesh in between as a coax to optical converter as well as a reclocker.

Best regards,
-- Al