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Reference DACS: An overall perspective

There has been many threads the last few months regarding the sonic signature of some of the highest regarded reference DACS (Dcs,Meitner,Ensemble,Audio Note,Zanden,Reimyo,Accustic Arts) here on the GON. I have been very fortunate to audtion many of these wonderful pieces in my home or friend's systems. I wanted to share, in a systematic way, my impressions/opinions with you GON members for a two reasons: 1)That my experiences might be helpful to fellow members interested in audtioning these DACS. 2)Starting an interesting discussion regarding the different "sonic flavors" of these reference digital front ends. I totally agree with the statement, "if you have not heard it you don't have an opinion". Therefore, I have no comments regarding DACS from Weiss,Goldmund,Audio Aero and Burmester because I have never had the pleasure of audtioning them. I would love to hear from members who have and share their experiences with us. My overall impression is that these DACS(Dcs,Meitner,Ensemble,Audio Note,Zanden,Reimyo,Accustic Arts) can be grouped into two molar categories regarding their overall sonic signature. By the way, all of them can throw a large/deep soundstage with excellent layering in the acoustic space with "air" around individual players on that stage. However, than they start to part company into two major categories. Category #1) These DACS "flavors" revolve around pristine clarity, fine sharp details,speed,very extended top/bottom frequencies,and great PRAT. These DACS never sound "etched" or "in your face" but are more "upfront" then "layed back" in their presentation. The DACS, to my ear's, that go into this bracket are Dcs,Ensemble,Meitner. My personnal favorite in this group is the Ensemble, which I owned for two years. These DACS remind me of the sonic signature of speakers such as Wilson,Thiel,Dynaudio, Focal/JM Labs. Category #2) These DACS "flavors" revolve around a "musical/organic" sense, natural timbres,and an easy flowing liquidity. Their "less forward" presentation my give the impression of less detail, but I think in this case its an illusion fostered by their more relaxed/organic manner. The DACS, to my ear's, that go into this bracket are Audio Note,Zanden,Reimyo,Accustic Arts. I did find that the tube DACS did not have the top/bottom frequency extenstion and PRAT of the SS DACS in this bracket. For me, the Accustic Arts DAC1-MK3 gave me the best of both categories, therefore it is now the resident DAC in my system. These DACS remind me of the sonic signature of speakers such as Magnepan,Von Schweikert,Sonus Faber. Well, it's all just my opinion regarding these digital pieces, but I hope this post was at least informative/somewhat interesting and would lend itself to other GON members sharing their impressions, not about what DAC is the "BEST" in the world, but your personnal taste and synergy with your system.
teajay
exlibris
392 posts
 
In his article Digital Zen Dick Olsher wrote:
"In my experience, zero oversampling gives the impression of a more believable soundstage. The spatial impression in terms of depth and width perspectives is typically better defined relative to oversampling designs. It is as though the auditory system is presented with a better set of cues with which to synthesize a 3-D impression of the auditory stream."

This is what I've experienced as well. This is a quality that is outside of our "Category 1 vs. Category 2" dichotomy. Some DACs get this right and some don't.

If we were to present the "Category 1 vs. Category 2" model as a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being extremely Category 1 and 10 being extremely Category 2, then I'd might rate my preference as a 7. Having said this, I would rather own a DAC that registerd a 1 on this scale, and got the spatial impression right, than a DAC that was a 7 and got the spatial stuff wrong.

As Ajahu says, it is the difference between listening to "real music" as oppossed to a "wonderful hifi reproduction of music."
teajay OP
1,333 posts
 
Exlibris, sorry to disagree with you on this one, however I have found no correlation between non-upsampling DACS vs upsampling DACS regarding a more " believable soundstage". Now, all the non-upsampling DACS I have auditioned were tube based, and my hunch is that you might find this type of sonic presentation more pleasing then SS DACS.

So, I don't think that the spatial qualities of non-upsampling DACS is superior to upsampling DACS, in my experience, and that either strategy is superior to the other. Both upsampling and non-upsampling gear can offer great performance.
exlibris
392 posts
 
Teajay,
No worries; we'll just agree to disagree.
To be honest I probably haven't heard a big enough sample of both types in my system to really draw that conclusion.
As for 'tube vs. solid state,' I've never heard a tube DAC in my system. Like the Attraction DAC itself, everything has been SS (ARC; EMM; dCS; Accustic Arts; MSB).
teajay OP
1,333 posts
 
Just had a new acquaintance, who happens to sell hi-end gear and is an experienced audiophile, come over to listen to my rig.

His major references are Meitner and DCS. He was amazed at the sonic performance of the Accustic Arts DAC1 MK4. He found it to be just as detailed/dynamic as the above mentioned digital front ends, however he thought it was more "real and more naturally musical" to use his words.

Well, its always good for the old audiophile "EGO" to have someone knowledgable to give your rig kudos, but I wanted to share this because I think the MK4 really is one of the better references out there, at a reasonable cost. My new friend is seriously considering auditioning the Accustic Arts piece to replace his much more expensive DCS front end.
teajay OP
1,333 posts
 
I just wanted to check-in with Branimir, hope your having a delightful summer, and see if you have listened to any new DACS or CDPS since the last time you posted. If I remember you were going on holiday, but you were going to go to some high end shows or at least hear some of the new digital gear in your home systems.

I'm still very much enjoying my Accoustic Arts Dac1-mk4 and find it to be one of the better digital front ends I have had the pleasure of listening to. The only new DAC that I have recently listened to was the Goldmund, thought it was quite good, however it did not impressive to the point that I would pursue a home audition.
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