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June 16, 2019 - 6:11pm
#1
Two unrelated questions
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So....I have started my own audio company and am not a manufacturer of speakers, importer of tube based equipment and retailers. As a result, I am in violation of the rules here if I engage in product based debates. For instance, I am a Musical Fidelity retailer so it is poor form for me to be piping up about other products.
That being said, I don't have good answers to your questions anyway. Hope all is well.
Glad to see you're still here. Not so glad to see you went and hamstrung yourself in the forum comment department :)
Don't suppose they allow totally hypothetical product discussions/debates by dealers such as yourself, do they?
The forum purpose is not to sell products but discussion is fine.
If you are bored, check out my sites - artaudio.us and VerdantAudio.com. If you have any questions about the product offering follow the link there. E-mails come straight to my phone.
Ah, so if I say I'm not buying anything, we're good, eh? Well, I hereby declare that I have visited both the above retailer's sites and understand that the only DACs he carries are 3 Musical Fidelity models that I have no intention of purchasing at this time.
After looking over the Recommended Components list from 2019, two non-oversampling DACs stand out - Schiit Yggdrasil and HoloSpring Kitsune Tuned Edition Level 3. Maybe I'll browse through Audiostream's lists too.
I was unaware of the debate around NOS DACSs. This is an interesting one and I am not sure your problem is with oversampling. Oversampling is intended to increase the accuracy of signal interpretation.
I have looked at a few lists of NOS DACs and can safely say I haven’t heard any of them.
My gut tells me that your problem is not with oversampling but you just don’t like the way you DAC or something else in your system sounds.
Have you tried other sources/DACs? How does the DAC in the receiver sound compared to the M51? I would test a couple other sources and see if you get the sound profile you are looking for. Even just bypass the DAC and use a headphone to RCA cable and attach the PC directly to your receiver.
Both Art Dudley and Michael Lavorgna, in various articles/posts, mentioned preferring NOS DACs. I get the impression they have a less "digital" sound, given AD's vinyl penchant. I don't necessarily dislike my DAC; but I think the combination of somewhat bright speakers, the DAC, and the probably poorly recorded music I listen to (rock being the main culprit) has a cumulative "digital" sound. I'm mainly curious to hear a NOS in comparison to an equally spec'd/priced OS type.
That is fair. I have no experience or familiarity with NOS DACs. I have seen a couple lists of them and I will admit, an interesting concept but I have never hear a single item on the list. Maybe Mytymous has a POV. I feel like he is the resident digital expert.
You could also see if maybe a few will be demo'd at like Capital Audio Fest. If I recall, you are in Albany. That is not the worst drive in the world. Certainly better than going all the way to Denver. I know it is a few months away but it could be a way to listen.
If you can stomach the terrible Japanese to English translation, go to kitsunehifi.com, find the HoloSpring Level 3 DAC page, scroll down to the NOS vs. OS article link and re-translate in your head. It's an interesting read if nothing else. Herb Reichert also uses a NOS DAC, the Schiit Yggdrasil, in his reference system. There's a link to his review of the HoloSpring DAC on the Kitsune webpage.
You mention lists of NOS DACs - where do you find something like that?
I'm a half hour south of Albany (and have offered chauffer services to Art Dudley, who lives in Schenectady, to no avail) and I will have to look into this Capital Audio Fest you speak of.....
https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/handss-non-oversampling-dac-comparison-master-list.4049/
This is from 2017 so not too old. There are a few that are older.
Interesting list. Holo Spring is on there, but I don't believe the other manufacturers have made it to Stereophile's pages. Maybe they should review.....
In 2012 Audiostream put together a list of NOS DACs. They might be a good site to dig into this on.
One that is not on this list that might interest you is the Border Patrol DAC. They are a bit below your budget but it has come up in a couple searches. My hunch is the tube is going to make a big difference in the sound profile.
Also check out Audio Mirror. They just launched a new DAC that looks interesting.
Other options might include just looking at tube based units though I have not dug into this. It could be that all tube units are NOS. I have not researched this extensively. What I do know is The Musical Fidelity NuVista CD player (way above your budget) is decidedly warm. The Primaluna Evo will likely have a warm sound profile but it will be a while before one comes available used and people rave about Ypsilon and Zanden though again, above your budget.
The beauty of tube units is rolling and the ability to tweak the sound to your tastes.
So.........
Now on day two of my brand new shiny Holo Audio Spring Level 3 DAC. WOOOOOOOOOOW!!
Waaay outperforms my NAD M51. Anyone who hasn't yet heard a NOS DAC needs to go try one. If it sounds this good in my shit system in a damn woodshop, imagine what it'll do in your setup...
I've had it on for 48 hours now, and it definitely benefited from the burn in time.