DAC to the Future

[Fretless]

Right, we now have the Topping D30 on office duty and me getting really dissatisfied with the bedroom set, having heard what it can do. Amp is still a Sansui AU217 with old-style wooden Cube3's.

Swapping a couple of things has got me pretty happy again - I do enjoy a last bit of music as I fall asleep, or early in the morning, and this installation is getting a lot of use. Not least because it has been the only time I've had to play music on a lot of recent days.

Tried the Cambridge DacMagic 100 but that just came across as dull and woolly, even though it had been sounding fine before.
Switching over to a DacMagic Plus did tighten things up a lot, but the solid detail of the D30 wasn't being approached.

Raiding the headphone system in the lounge for the Plus also provided me with a higher-grade digital source, an Allo DigiOne player which I plugged into the Chinese LPSU that I recently acquired.

Now this setup is singing again. The DMPlus has a fuller, rounder character than the D30, but lacks the sharp, informative edge that DAC displays.

But mainly I want to enjoy my sounds in a relaxing way and this DMPlus / DigiOne combo fits that bill just perfectly.

[Simon Hickie]

Sounds good Fretless! I've gone for the Khadas Tone Board from Amazon. It also does DSD, and on all the comparative reviews I've seen, it performs well above its price point. It's a bare board, but I can either install it in a DIY cigar box, or buy one in from a supplier in France. On the S/PDIF cable, I've gone for a Belden 1694a cable with Canare plugs job. It's supposed to be the closest you can get to a true 75 ohm cable without going for BNC connectors. Every review & forum I've been on suggests that this Belden cable is hard to beat as a digital interconnect. I've also gone for a 1.5 meter length - something to do with it being the optimal length to prevent reflections in the cable - paper here: http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue14/spdif.htm

[Simon Hickie]

The Khadas Tone Board has arrived and is now installed. First impressions are very positive. Despite only having a few hours on the clock, it's pretty obvious to me that it's outperforming the AQ Dragonfly Red. In particular, orchestral instruments are more textured and with better defined leading edges. I have it running off the old laptop with the stock Khadas USB cable for power and signal. Once I have the HifiBerry Dii+ Pro installed, that will another step forward.

[George Hincapie]

Right, we now have the Topping D30 on office duty and me getting really dissatisfied with the bedroom set, having heard what it can do. Amp is still a Sansui AU217 with old-style wooden Cube3's.

Swapping a couple of things has got me pretty happy again - I do enjoy a last bit of music as I fall asleep, or early in the morning, and this installation is getting a lot of use. Not least because it has been the only time I've had to play music on a lot of recent days.

Tried the Cambridge DacMagic 100 but that just came across as dull and woolly, even though it had been sounding fine before.
Switching over to a DacMagic Plus did tighten things up a lot, but the solid detail of the D30 wasn't being approached.

Raiding the headphone system in the lounge for the Plus also provided me with a higher-grade digital source, an Allo DigiOne player which I plugged into the Chinese LPSU that I recently acquired.

Now this setup is singing again. The DMPlus has a fuller, rounder character than the D30, but lacks the sharp, informative edge that DAC displays.

But mainly I want to enjoy my sounds in a relaxing way and this DMPlus / DigiOne combo fits that bill just perfectly.

I bought an MCRU LPSU for the DMP some years ago, and found it to improve SQ in a genuinely significant way. Perhaps something to mull over.

Have a good weekend.

[CN211276]

I bought the MCRU LPS for my Qutest not long ago and it has made a worthwhile difference. I put off the purchase because of some less than enthusiastic reports. On closer scrutiny all of the less favorabe reorts were in systems with speakers I do not rate. That, along with the return option, made up my mind.

[Fretless]

On the Cambridge Dacmagic. I have a SBooster LPSU for them but even using that with the DacMagic 100, the Topping D30 (on a wall-wart) blew it completely away.

The DacMagic Plus and SBooster has a rounder sound than the Topping and is as enjoyable - at 5x the price.

Very curious to see what a linear supply can do for the D30.

[karatestu]

MCRU linear psu ? Is that made by Nick Gorham ? If so it must be awesome.

[CN211276]

MCRU linear psu ? Is that made by Nick Gorham ? If so it must be awesome.

It is made by Nick. Also have a MCRU PS for my streamer. aHe makes one now for the M-Scaler, but any PS which does not come with it invalidates the warentry.

[karatestu]

MCRU linear psu ? Is that made by Nick Gorham ? If so it must be awesome.

It is made by Nick. Also have a MCRU PS for my streamer. aHe makes one now for the M-Scaler, but any PS which does not come with it invalidates the warentry.

Wait til the warentry has run out then get one

[Fretless]

Bargain hunters in for some 'ChiFi' might want to check out the SMSL Official Store in AliExpress - they have a clearance section where old and used models are offered at advantageous prices.

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/ ... 189971.1_5

SMSL have built up a reputation for good-sounding and reliable products.

There are a couple of nice DSD DAC's there as well.
Hmmm....