ZEN DAC SIGNATURE V2: Description: Digital-to-analog converter with XMOS 16-core processor and fully balanced dual-mono circuitry; DAC: Burr-Brown Bit-Perfect DSD & DXD DAC. Input: USB 3.0 (USB 2.0 compatible); Input voltage: DC 5V/2.5A (external power supply included); Outputs: Balanced 4.4mm, 2V/6.2V max. variable, 4.2V fixed; Unbalanced RCA, 1V/3.3V max. variable, 2.1V fixed. Formats: PCM 44.1/48/88.2/96/176.4/192/352.8/384kHz; DSD 2.8/3.1/5.6/6.2/11.2/12.4MHz; 353/384kHz DXD; MQA decoding and rendering. Analog volume potentiometer, volume fixed or…
search
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital source: MacBook Air (M1, 2020) as Roon Core, Roon 1.8>. AudioQuest DragonFly Cobalt.
Integrated amplifier: MBL N51.
Loudspeakers: MBL Radialstrahler 120.
Headphones: HiFiMan HE400S and Drop x HE4XX; Sennheiser HD 650; Sonus Faber Pryma 0|1.
Sidebar 3: iFi ZenCAN Measurements
I measured the iFi ZEN CAN's and ZEN DAC Signature's performance with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 As We See It).
Looking first at the ZEN CAN, I measured two versions. One, labeled "6XX," with the serial number 5501000735, included equalization for specific Sennheiser headphones. The other, labeled "HFM," with the serial number 5312001087, included equalization for specific HiFiMan headphones.
Other than the equalization, the two versions of the ZEN CAN measured identically. The maximum gain for unbalanced…
Sidebar 4: iFi ZenDAC Signature V2 Measurements
Turning to the ZEN DAC Signature, I measured both the original version, serial number 5502000155, and the V2 version with which JMu did most of her auditioning, which had the serial number 5320000008. The two versions measured identically in all but one respect, which was the maximum output level in variable gain mode. The V2's maximum output in this mode was 2.07V balanced and 1.04V unbalanced, both values 6dB lower than the maximum outputs in fixed gain mode. While the original ZEN DAC's maximum levels in fixed mode were almost identical…
darTZeel NHB-18NS Mk.2 Measurements, from February 2022 (Vol.45 No.2):
After Michael Fremer reviewed the darTZeel NHB-18NS full-function preamplifier in the June 2006 issue of Stereophile, he bought the review sample. He subsequently replaced it with the NHB-18NS Mk.2, which he wrote about in June 2017. It has been his reference preamplifier ever since.
Although I performed a complete set of measurements on the original NHB-18NS, I never did so on the Mk.2. As darTZeel had sent a new sample of the Mk.2 along with the NHB-108 Model Two power amplifier that Jason Victor Serinus will…
The January and February 2022 issues of Stereophile feature followup reviews of three products: the darTZeel NHB-18NS Mk.2 preamplifier; the Sutherland Little Loco Mk.2 phono preamplifier; and the Mola Mola Tambaqui D/A processor.
Michael Fremer reviewed the original darTZeel NHB-18NS full-function preamplifier (it includes a moving-coil phono stage) in the June 2006 issue of Stereophile. He bought the review sample, then replaced it with the NHB-18NS Mk.2, which he wrote about in June 2017.
Although I performed a complete set of measurements on the original NHB-18NS, I never did…
Back in the mid-1960s, I was the unusual white, suburban preteen who, for reasons I've long pondered and never fully understood, was drawn much less powerfully to the Beatles than to blues and R&B. I was a bit of a jazz snob, too. Given these leanings, it's no surprise that one of the half-dozen or so albums that fried my impressionable young brain was that seamless blend of blues, R&B, and jazz, Ray Charles at Newport.
Though it was cut on July 5, 1958, at the still-new jazz festival, for some reason I always had the year at '57 and didn't realize my error until recently; I had…
You may have heard that many hi-fi companies—manufacturers, distributors, and dealers—have done very well during the pandemic years. Some reported their best years in business—ever. With COVID-19 forcing people to stay at home, people sought diversion through home entertainment, including music. The industry benefited.
This is exciting news: It's good for all of us when the industry thrives. But another, less welcome thing has been happening, too: Prices have started rising.
In one sense, this is hardly surprising: It's supply and demand, right? If demand increases but supply is…
Jay Jay French has a book out, but it's not what you might think, or not exactly.
French earned fame in the 1980s as the lead guitarist for transvestite metal band Twisted Sister, which produced some of the most recognizable—and widely licensed—rock music in history: "We're Not Gonna Take It." "I Wanna Rock."
These days, French stays busy in other ways. He has a podcast in which he chats with other musicians, members of the music industry, and miscellaneous folks. He's a Beatles scholar with an impressive cache of Beatles records and memorabilia—he seems to have kept everything,…
"When it starts to impact your ability to get to gigs, play gigs, get to rehearsals, meet with producers, get forward momentum to your career, it's not good. The band had fits and starts and fits and starts. Within two years, the singer and the drummer got in a fight, and the singer had brought a rifle ... because we were playing in upstate Massachusetts and there was a family of hunters who lived in the same building that the band was staying in and they said to Michael [O'Neill, the founding lead vocalist], "Next time you come up, we'll go hunting.
"I walked in and watched this…