Absolute top tier DAC for standard res Redbook CD

I will try the Romulus Sig as a DAC, not a spinner. The fact that it spins Is a bonus. The point about impedance mismatches is a very interesting one and makes me think that the Allnic D5000 may have a similar issue. It's all about system synergy in the end.

I have had several tell me the ODSE beat the Emm DAC2X on their evaluation. And the Meitner was much more analytical and sterile then the ODSE. All I can say is that the DAC2X was not sterile; It was clean and natural with aire and an almost ephemeral ability to reproduce the instruments, the vocals and the space between.

My neighbor acquired a Berkeley Ref DAC and the Berk usb to spdif converter. It will be here within a week. I'll report when I can. It should be here the same time that the MSB will be here, and the Emm DAC2X is on a 2-3 week extended audition so I should have all 3 at the same time, along with the Romulus. Wow. That should be a good competition.

Stay tuned.

09-27-15: Mattnshilp
The point about impedance mismatches is a very interesting one and makes me think that the Allnic D5000 may have a similar issue.

Matt, no, I doubt that the relatively low input impedance of your Burmester preamp had anything to do with your impressions of the D-5000's sonics. In contrast to the capacitively coupled outputs of the Aesthetix DAC, which can be expected to cause a large rise in output impedance in the bottom octave or two, the Allnic has transformer coupled outputs. And consistent with that it is described in its manual as having an output impedance that is a "constant" (as a function of frequency) 150 ohms.

That kind of output characteristic shouldn't result in any issues driving the input impedance of your preamp, or, for that matter, driving longish cables.

Of course transformers can have issues of their own, but given the apparent quality of this unit, and the statements made in the manual about Allnic's expertise in designing and manufacturing their own transformers, I suspect that the reason(s) for your less than glowing impressions of it are related to something else.

Best regards,
-- Al

Those were my impressions of the Allnic too, it sounded thin and not colorful like a tube dac could. My Lamp Big6 just killed it, just like it did everything else. Congrats on finding the speaker, that's probably the biggest step.

No time for listening. Sigh. Been so busy trying to get everything done before RMAF. Leaving very early Friday morning.

Anyone else going???

Hi Matt,
I have been following your thread for quite some time. If you're going to RMAF, you might try listening to the Vapor Audio Room, if your speaker search is not completely over.

Mas