Six DAC Comparison
I am in the middle of comparing the sound of six different DACs in my system. I own them all (I know weird) but one of them is still within a trial/return timeframe.
Not to share specific comparisons today, but a couple of observations so far are that first, they all definitely sound different from each other. On one hand, they all sound pretty good and play what is fed to them without significant flaws but on the other hand there are definite sonic differences that make it easy to understand how a person might like the sound of some of them while not liking others.
Second, raises the observation that most of them must be doing something to shape the sound in the manner the designer intended since one of the DACs, a Benchmark DAC3 HGA, was described by John Atkinson of Stereophile as providing "state-of-the-art measured performance." In the review, JA closed the measurements section by writing, "All I can say is "Wow!" I have also owned the Tambaqui (not in my current comparison), which also measured well ("The Mola Mola Tambaqui offers state-of-the-digital-art measured performance." - JA). The Benchmark reminds me sonically of the Tambaqui, both of which are excellent sounding DACs.
My point is that if the Benchmark is providing "state-of-the-art measured performance," then one could reasonably presume that the other five DACs, which sound different from the Benchmark, do not share similar ’state-of-the-art" measurements and are doing something to subtly or not so subtly alter the sound. Whether a person likes what they hear is a different issue.
@danager thanks for the info. Are you using the Thesycon or the Xmos driver from the JL Sounds download link ? Do you remember ? |
@danager thanks. Yes, Windows reports I2SoverUSB. I know this since I had Lampizator sometime back and it uses the same JL Sounds USB receiver board in their DACs. |
@mitch2 - Thanks again for your thoughtful reviews. As mentioned earlier in the thread, I found myself looking forward to each installment! While I’m very happy with my Merason Dac1 MKii for the moment, I’m intrigued by the Mojo dacs based on your review. Out of curiosity, have you had the opportunity to listen to any of the Lampizator Dacs as a point of reference? If so, any thoughts on how they compare to the Mojo and/or Merason dacs? |
A quick update to my HiFi Rose 150B / Mojo X ’24 post, above. After much back and froth [sp. intentional] with Benjamin and a fair bit of additional research on my part, it appears that the Rose’s manual at 3.5 Connection Between USB 3.0 Audio Output and External DAC is, what’s the word I’m looking for here -- oh, yes: whacked. As far as I can determine, the two USB 3.0 ports on the right side of the 150B’s back panel (which the Rose O.M. describes as the connection point for an external DAC) are actually inputs for things like external hard drives, thumb drives, and the like. To connect a 150B to the Mojo, go with an AES or RCA coax, and you should be fine. Getting a Windows-based laptop to play nice with the Mojo via USB is another story (figuring out which of JL’s drivers you need, DLing/installing, and other assorted techcromancy is required; sadly, this was beyond the limited training I received at Starfleet Academy). That said, Benjamin notes that Apple products are plug & play via USB, as are Lenovo devices. They have the necessary drivers baked in, whereas it appears Mr. Gates is fine with MP3s and some stock earbuds he found at the back of his desk drawer. YRMV, but I thought this might save a few folks some gnashing of teeth & rending of garments. |
