Has Anyone Auditioned an LKS MH-DA004 DAC?


Seems like a lot of DAC for the money.  ($1450-$1600)
melm
I’m bringing this thread back as I have recently replaced my Chord 2Qute with the LKS MH-DA004. There is also not a whole lot of info/reviews out there on this great component.

Here are my comparisons between my 2Qute and the LKS 004: There is no comparison! Just kidding. I’ve owned and enjoyed the 2Qute for over 2 years and it is also an outstanding DAC for the price.

I’d have to say the only thing that the 2Qute has on the LKS 004 is a touch more dynamics. It’s a little more jumpier and playful, this comes even more into play at low volume listening. But I couldn’t consider this a deal breaker by any means.

The LKS 004 trumps it everywhere else, including bass energy. It plays low(er), controlled and doesn’t leave me wanting in this aspect at all. The soundstage is massive but not artificial sounding in the least. It may have added a bit more width but the depth and feeling of spaciousness is where it really shines over the 2Qute. Details, especially micro details are much more apparent. I would never have considered the 2Qute to have any glare/etch on the treble but somehow the LKS has managed to bring forth more treble air and information while being even smoother. Mid range is beautiful and engaging.

Physically this DAC is a beauty, build quality is top notch. She’s heavy and well crafted. I don’t need to get into the high quality parts used on this unit as it’s been previously mentioned.

It’s also a really nice feature having a remote as I use my 2 channel for movies and now I don’t need to get up to switch inputs. You can also switch filters/bandwidth setting/brightness, on/off etc with the remote.

I’m quite happy with my purchase and can only hope it is as reliable as my Chord has been!

I'd share pics but this forum is horrible for that.  


Thanks to everyone who gave their impressions. This is a pretty exciting dac. Right now I have an hd800s, zmf Auteur and Atticus and was running them out of a burson conductor sl 9018. A great dac and amp but I just upgraded to an hdv820 which blows the Burson away in every way.

I wonder if I can still make a big gain in sound quality adding this dac to my chain rather then using the built in dac of the hdv.

A few questions for those of you running this dac in your chains are any of you doing it in USB mode ? If so how does that compared to other input modes? 

I know one member mentioned in some ways it was better than dave but another member said it was behind the 2qute in at least dynamics. This makes me a bit confused as to where it genuinely stands among other totl dacs.

Are there any further thoughts how it compares to other high end dacs such as yggy 2 or qutest/Hugo ?

What's the deal with sbaf? Their thread over there on this dac is filled with nothing but hostility.

Thanks !


@smodtactical Great gear! I’m sure you get a lot of enjoyment there.

As for the LKS 004 besting your current set up, it’s hard to say without knowing your own sound preferences, the characteristics of your phones/speakers and what you hope to gain. I would venture to say you would get a performance upgrade using the LKS as an external DAC but the price vs performance ratio may not be worth it at this point?  And of course, the more revealing your gear, the more changes you'll notice. 

I currently run the LKS 004 using the USB input and it sounds great, absolutely no qualms from me vs the co axial route in my system. I’m using an Audioquest Cinnamon cable with a Curious cable on the way. I’m excited to see what this cable swap brings as there are a lot of positive reviews kicking around.

I’m sure you’ve looked at the 81 page thread about this DAC over on Head-Fi. I’ve read the whole thing and the one reviewer did mention the Chord Dave bested the LKS 004 in musicality and dynamics I believe. I can’t even afford to be in the same room as the Dave but it sounds like this DAC can hold its own, although I’m speculative of it besting some $10k + DACs. But stranger things have happened!

I did found the 2Qute to have a bouncier sound vs the LKS. Generally there will be some give and take with any gear swaps of course. But ultimate synergy is my goal.

I also read that thread on Super Best Audio Forum. Very arrogant and stand offish, turned me right off.


@hfaddict Thanks for the reply. I did read that thread and was impressed that the lks was considered to be in the same league than the Dave.

I'm also impressed by claims it beats yggy 1 ! And as a ds dac u wouldnt have to warm it up which is very appealing.

In terms of my setup I enjoy it immensely it just sounds fantastic but I wonder if I can sound even better with an external dac.

I may also buy a custom made tube amp so this dac will serve as a source that also.