I agree completely with Jon2020.... At about 200/250 hours, K-01 starts becoming a very enjoyable machine... Just be aware that... "You ain't heard nopn'" yet.... There is likely to be even better to come for a spell. So, if you are not yet in rapture at this point, be patient and postpone panicking and placing an Agon ad for a while.
On the other hand, if panic / buyer's remorse could not be avoided, Do not worry about it.... Some lucky adoptive parent will pick up the "little" beauty and love its music on your behalf.
Concerning filter/upsampling settings.... I felt in my own system that 4X + S_dly2 offered a balance of resolution versus musicality that suited me. On the other hand, I might not have broken in the DSD engine to completion. Besides... A personal preference is exactly that... A personal, and often temporary matter.
Bottomline, K-01 is an amazingly flexible tool... It can deliver enjoyment to many, but not to all, within a variable amount of break-in time... Let us leave "Beliefs" and the pursuit of absolutes where they belong.
G. |
Gents, let us return to audio-centric topics please. G. |
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The Weiss 202 DAC supports Thunderbolt. However, Thunderbolt in its various incarnations, is One connection technology that I do not recall being discussed on this thread.
Is the Weiss 202 Thunderbolt implementation merely a blip in an otherwise thunderboltless evolution of DAC designs, or is this a beginning of a trend, and we might see more such implementations in the future?
Are there theoretical or practical advantages of Thunderbolt over USB and SPDIF? ... E.g. Higher jitter immunity, signal isolation, Other?
Steve... Alex... Al... What say you?
Saluti, G.
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Hi Matt, if I recall correctly, K-01 might have some dedicated USB drivers on a CD shipped with the unit or downloadable from the Esoteric site. Were negative comments you heard related to use of K-01 with these dedicated drivers, or USB input via standard Windows / Mac drivers?
G. |
Hi Steve, if I understand correctly, your future lower end DAC will support DSD, while your higher end OV-SX will not.
This is fascinating... I am curious as of the reason for your strategy?
Saluti, G. |
Thank you Steve, are you suggesting that you will implement DSD in a different / higher end OV product sporting a DAC chip with native DSD support?
Guido |
OK my tubophile friends... Would you really mind continuing this exciting -- yet DAC-unrelated -- convo on some more aptly titled discussion thread? Sorry, but my eyes --- oopsie, meant ears -- are glazing over. G. |
Hi Matt, how long will you have access to the APL DSD-S? As some internals in the unit have been replaced, the slight treble burr is likely caused by new chips/solder and is likely to go away in a couple of extra weeks of break-in. |
Matt, will you be trying out the DAC card for the Burmester 077?
G. |
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Details on the reference-level APL DSD-M DAC can be found at:
http://aplhifi.com/products/dsd-m |
Thank you Nickolas, your findings corroborate my own experience with the Rowland Aeris.... At about 800 hours Aeris sounds "quite good", but its magic is not unleashed until the device stabilizes completely.... And that does not happen until at least the 1200 hour mark... But might be even further in time.
G. |
Hi Nickolas,
Are you using the USB input on Aeris, or are you feeding it through SPDIF?
What is your source device?
To what device do you output Aeris? |
Thank you Nickolas, what audible differences have you experience on Aeris between the USB connection and the SPDIF connection?
What challenges have some reviewers found with managing Aeris volume directly into amps? In my system, I attenuate the DAC down to zero volume, and then gradually dial up to comfortable level... The 1dB resolution works well for my Rowland M925 monos.
G. |
Hi Nick, That's interesting... I have used Aeris with the Rowland Criterion pre, and more recently directly into my Rowland M925 amps... I like both, with the former sounding a little softer, and the latter more resolving.... All together, I prefer Aeris directly into the amps, and have not experienced any loss of harmonic or microdynamic resolution at lower volume.
Guido |
Hi Nickolas, my source device is the Esoteric X-01 player... Hence, I have fed Aeris with redbook via SPDIF... I have no direct experience with higher resolution files into Aeris.
G. |
Hi Steve, as soon as you have a detailed description / specs of the OV-SX, please post a link to it here!
Saluti, Guido |
Hi Matt, your K-01 findings match my own 100% this far. Very curious about K-01 behavior as a pure DAC using USB input.... Never used K-01 as a DAC.
G. |
Thank you Audiolabirynth, as I have never listened to this Yamy, I have no opinions on whether the Yamaha CD-S3000 will vanquish any giants or otherwise cause any explosive bowel movements in the aforementioned... But here is the device's home page... Blessed be the Googlesphere!
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/cd-players/cd-s3000_u/ |
Steve, you will find the Yamaha CD-S3000 at MusicDirect for $5995:
http://www.musicdirect.com/p-161295-yamaha-cd-s3000-sacdcd-player.aspx |
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Wisnon, what are the Technics devices you obliquely refer to... And what about links to their home pages and/or reviews?
G. |
Yep... except that the Technics page site is not compatible with screen reading technology... Ah well *groans!* G. |
Hi Matt, your K-01 findings seem to be the opposite of my own... I found S_dly2/4X to be most emotionally absorbing for long term listening, while DSD/OFF seemed me more of an seat-edge experience that I could endure for a limited time.
Now I am wondering if I perhaps did not give the DSD circuit enough time to break in.
G. |
Hi Matt, can you tell us more detail about your preference of K-01 S-dly2/4X over DSD/off for classical music?
Saluti, Guido |
Sandisk has announced a 512GB full size SD/XC card in September 2014. List Price is a little steep at $799. This might be the largest SD/XC currently available. See:
http://www.theverge.com/2014/9/12/6139057/sandisks-512gb-sd-card-is-the-biggest-in-the-world
I suspect we might see 1TB cards in 12 to 18 months.... Meantime, 512GB in a solid state media player is nothing to sneeze about already. G. And this card targeting photographers and vidographers should be fast enough to minimize any jitter caused by data reads.
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And if your DAC supports USB thumbdrives, 1TB USB sticks are already available. See for example this hefty Kingston
device, currently priced at Amazon for $997:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00E65QM8O/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1418496148&sr=8-1
G. |
Steve, what is the function of the diamond in the volume knob?
G. |
May I suggest an option sens-diamonds... Some users might prefer an understated look. G. |
Wisnon, Vienna Die Muzik are in fact Matt's current speakers.
Richfield_hunter, I have heard the opportunity of auditionhing Vandersteen 7s several times at RMAF... Units set up with TLC by Mr. Vandersteen himself... Pleasing, yet -- like Matt -- I was never enraptured... Different strokes, n'est pas?!
G.
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True enough, hotel rooms, larger show suites, etc.... Are not ideal.... Never the less, they are structural equalizers... They make things equally poor for everyone. Yet, in the unfavorable environment, equipment and speakers, and... professional setup make a difference.
I have fallen in love with Vienna speakers not because of their published specs or semi-technical marketing blurbs, neither because of reviews or user reportsthe, but because of the Vienna sound at RMAF, in hotel suites... structural Limitations and all. A combination of the speakers, the professional setup by Kevin Wolff and Rod Tomson, and the ancillary electronics. The end result in my system confirmed and amplified my opinions of Mahlers and Die Muzik. Needless to say, your mileage/reactions may vary.
Conversely, Vandersteen speakers did not stir my emotions, in spite that Richard V. had lovingly optimized their position and settings for the specific room acoustics, and that ancillary electronics and cabling were often brands and models that I enjoyed elsewhere. Thus, I did not feel any urgency to extend my exposure to equipment that had not caught my emotions.
Am I ever consistent with.... "on't try 'em at home unless I gathered positive audible data points already? Uhrn.... No. Hi Fidelity power cords are a case in point... Persuaded by Harve (Fplanner2000), sight unseen (or is it sound unheard) I started a review project on the CT-1 PCs a couple of weeks ago... Absolutely stunning stuff.... I will start posting my listening notes as soon as I have fixed grammar etc... But.... cables do not weigh 200 Lbs each, and do not require a team of brawny blokes to hoist them to my music loft *grins!*
G. |
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Hi Al, Rick Schultz's PC creations are special indeed.... I really need to get my act together... Clean up my listening notes, and start posting my progressive observations on these marvels.
G. |
Matt, Raidho speakers tend to like largish rooms, and lots of space behind them... They can be challanging to set up... overexhuberant mid bass is not unheard of.
G. |
Hmmm, "Fixing" acoustic anomalies by applying subwoofers out of phase to perform destructive low band-pass interference... Fascinating... Sounds like fighting a fire with... Well, fire.
Might work to a point. Yet, I am skeptical about the long term appeal of the end product... Seems a one-way route down an endless audiophrenic rabbit-hole.
G. |
No, I am more concerned about the music's interpretation. G. |
Fascinating... Does the carpet provenance make a difference.... Tabriz vs Ardebil? Age... design... Knot count... Backing.... vegetable/mineral dies vs synthetic... Virgin wool vs recycled... Artful flaws... What about antique silk rugs? Perhaps NOS carpets would be ideal?
G. |
You are right Matt, looking at the web site, Rockna Audio looks, at least on paper, very interesting. The DAC is all based on FPGA, and the server combines a spinning disk player with a server / memory player. I have not found any US prices, the company being based in Roumania.
http://www.rockna-audio.com
The US importer is:
AudioPrana LLC
69 Boston Ave Medford, Massachusetts 02155-3521 United States
Tel.: 617 669 3275
audioprana@gmail.com
G. |
All, the name of the VA music speaker in German is "Die Muzik", rather than "Der Muzik".... Muzik in German, French, Italian, and Spanish is a feminine noun, not masculine. Hence... "Die Muzik". G.
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Hi Coli, could you explain the word "incorrect" as referred to your former Direct Stream DAC? G.
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Thank you George, how about citing the top "very well implemented R2R Ladder Multibit dac's" that you are most fond of?
Regards, G. |
All, sorry for OT...
A couple of months ago I started to play with the High Fidelity CT-1 power cords designed by Rick Schultz in Dallas (TX).... Ah yes, thank you Harve FPlanner2000 for the suggestion.
I was somewhat skeptical before connecting the creatures into my system because of the unusual coaxial construction and underlying technology based on abundant application of strong permanent magnets. But to make a long story short, these CT-1 cords are exceptional for all parameters I can think of... What floors me is that they are just the entry level PCs of the High Fidelity line.
I have started to post a multi-part review of the CT-1 series at:
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?fcabl&1437589292&openusid&zzGuidocorona&4&&
Hope to see you all there... Now returning this fine thread to its regularly unscheduled programming *grins!*
Guido |
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Thank you Agear for the link.
As for your purple oneliner... Masterful as usual... With just a hint of tasteless... A veritable Agearism at its best. ;)
Congrats, G. |
Heard CH Precision DAC at RMAF. I was very much looking forward to the experience because of the glowing reports I read about it. Unfortunately the system sounded grating and harsh, whithout a hint of what sounds "musical" to my ears. Asked the gent -- I believe that was the US distributor -- if the device was perhaps new out of the box and needed some break-in. I was told in no uncertain terms that the device was sounding exactly as it should... CH Precision products sound right just out of the box and do not require any break-in... And that clearly I do not understand good sound.
Left the suite befuddled... Went to visit the MSB folks... Amazing sound of music enveloped me.
Go figure!
G. |
Hey Agear, If I can point out a flaw in your otherwise excellent purplesome... I do not "splash', I usually slosh and wallow instead.
Concerning Matt's condition, meds won't help. According to Dr. Aloysius Qwantz Schmaltzenstein-Gavronsky, our collective Audiophrenia is a prionic infection. If you got it, you bought the farm. See:
http://positive-feedback.com/Issue46/audiophrenia.htm
G. |
Agear... I'll drink to that! G. |
hi paul, Joseph are very fine speakers... Heard them several times.... Last driven by the Rowland M825, and the result was exceptionally involving.
please explain... "problem with outside their passband"
Regards, G. |
Thank you Al and Bill for the technical explanation... When I heard Joseph speakers at RMAF 2013, they definitely pleased me without reservations.... I enjoyed the suite so much that I returned to it a few timesfor more good music ... Which is not a particularly common outcome for me *grins!*
G. |
Wisnon, what is the concern for SSDs or other solid state mass storage module housed inside the DAC chassis? |
Wisnon, operating an external Samsung 850 Pro connected via some SATA cable through a DC battery might improve some audible parms... I contend that eliminating the cable all together will improve time coupling by a couple of nanoseconds if nothing else... And a DAC-wide battery power or even better an ultra-cap PS would benefit the entire DAC device.
As for the bit twiddling, it is performed because of general purpose machines doing mountains of read/writes that tend to fragment the storage map. in our case, such background storage management demon need not be activated at all. |
Hi Matt, flugel (Kanstul 1525) and trumpet (Adams A4 Large Bore) are totally amazing... These days I am experimenting with mouthpieces: Curry, ACB, and soon Flip Oakes. MPs make an enormous difference on the total sound of a horn, without any of them necessarily being the "best"... Each creates a unique Nirvana.... And with prices ranging from $56 to about $350 a piece, you can experiment without too many adverse reactions from the "Bposs".
Btw, this is what my A4 sounds like, using a relatively shallow ACB TA-3CS Heavy mouthpiece:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/53640097/ACB%20-%20Adams%20A4%20trumpet%20brushed%20silver%20plate%20--%20192K.wav
On battery supplies... Batteries are a draconian way to isolate a line level device from AC grundge... But is it the best way? For one thing, ultra-caps are superior at delivering broad/fast transients... Furthermore, a well designed AC supply should be able to isolate the device as much as a DC battery supply... Case in point is your/my Criterion... Sounded identical in my system, whether I fed it from batteries, or through its SMPS.
G. |
On the contrary Mrpaul... Please do tell us your detailed impressions of the Antipodes DX. G. |
