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I can't tell the difference

I have a primate I21 integrated amp, bowers and wilkins cm5 speakers, and a slim devices squeezebox. I recently purchased a musialcal fidelity v-dac thinking the squeezebox's dac might be my weak spot. I've done a blind comparison between the sb3's dac and the v-dac but I can't tell the difference between the two.

I really thought that the v-dac should have been a significant upgrade seeing as how it costs the same as the sb3 which has a lesser burr-brown chip and a ton of other componets where with the v-dac you are just paying for the dac and nothing else.

Should I be able to hear the difference here? How much do I need to spend to upgrade my source?
mustard
mustard OP
10 posts
 
Anyone have any thoughts on the Bel Canto DAC 2? I've seen it listed used in my price range. I know it is an older model, but I like it's simplicity -- I don't need a usb input, balanced outs, or anything else.
honest1
572 posts
 
Just goes to show, the speakers and amp are more important than the (digital) source.
rrog
1,958 posts
 
It doesn't make sense that you didn't hear a difference. You should have heard something whether or not it was an improvement.

This makes me wonder about your system's resolution.
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
to Rrog: Sometimes it actually is just the same. i bought a new Bryston DAC and found after many various swapping around that it sounded the same as my 10 year old Adcom DA700. I mean down to the exact iota. i could not tell of any change with the switch of the selector when both were from the same CD transport. i can say yeah, SOMETHING should be a little different.. i can tell if a single cord has changed.. etc. But i was suprised at the sameness of the DACS. I took back the Bryston. Why pay two grand for the same old same old.
So it may just be a coincidence that they do, in fact are nearly identical in performance.
I have Maggies 3.6 Bryston 4Bsst*2 Bryston BP26 Audio Research Sp-15 Adcom DA700 a pile of transports... and a bunch of PC/conditioners
I added a tube buffer.. just to play with.. that is easy to hear a difference...
ryanmartinson
34 posts
 
This really makes me wonder, as I've never purchased a DAC, but often thought about it, if it's going to make much of a difference. DAC reviews make it seem like they make a world of difference, but when it comes down to it, do they? How do DACs rate on cost to impact ratio?

Ryan
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