Sometimes systems sound different from each other but that doesn't mean one is better than the other necessarily. Sometimes they are just different.
Very true
Then and Now
I may be one of the few that still had their original audiophile rig from around 2010 and can compare it directly to the current system. I hadn't really thought about having this possibility before tonight, so here's what I did:
Then System
- Integra 50.1 Receiver (direct mode) fed with an optical input
- Focal 836v floor standing speakers
Now System
- Maverick Audio TubeMagic D2 DAC with upgraded Sparkos Labs op amps and a 1950s Western Electric 396A tube
- Pathos Classic One MkIII Integrated Amplifier with 1960s Mullard Tubes
- Focal 836v floor standing speakers
I didn't spend a lot of time listening to them, but I was reminded of hearing Jason Stoddard of Schiit Audio essentially saying that after a couple of beers it's hard to tell the difference between DACs. There's clearly a difference between Then and Now, but Then doesn't sound all that bad.
Anyone else able to make a similar comparison?