Reranked and added some new IEMs (and removed some namely tia trio), also added a dedicated section to speaker amps for the susvara since people keep asking and that’s one of the few headphones it can kinda make sense with. Added another blurb. Getting closer and closer to getting done with most of it (not like I’ll stop updating though)
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Going to be trying out some streamers and servers, mainly just because they’re interesting and the dacs I have at this point are so wildly sensitive it makes it easy to assess them for the most part. Interested in trying both higher and lower end stuff, kinda into 2 categories
Things to rival or beat my k50:
Innuos Statement Next-Gen
Ideon Absolute Stream + Absolute time
Antipodes Oladra (or more accurately what will come out after that)
and JCAT XACT S1
with the innuos and ideon being likely up first
And I’d really like to get another demo with a taiko extreme since that thing was amazing and leagues above anything else I’ve ever heard
Things to try just for fun:
Magna Mano Ultra mk3 Farad
CAD Audio Transport
Pi2Design Mercury v2 (or pi2aes 2.0)
if Sonore comes up with something new I’ll be on that as well
Holo Red
If there’s anything interesting that’s come out lately when it comes to streamers/servers (without a dac or built in amp) that might be worth checking out let me know
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The Holo Red looks like it could be an interesting one to take a look at, it’s possibly the only DDC that I’ve seen which has USB out (probably because it is a streamer too). I also wonder how much something like that would help with the P6P’s USB input, I’ve switched to Bluetooth for more serious listening to see if I see a difference on my pc 
Oh that’s a good idea, forgot that existed lol. It does really look like it fills a pretty niche role that other don’t, being able to be used as both a ddc and streamer, will add it to the list, interesting price point. Supports squeeze so should be able to test it no problem. On that note lol
This is getting removed, didn’t know it was roon only, yuck lol
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recently saw someone get an ldms server from lucas audio lab…had no idea about them until recently: https://www.lucasaudiolab.com/
also hifirose is apparently releasing a streamer only device, that’s all I heard though
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I heard them mentioned once, didn’t really look into them, very interesting.
A bit less interested in hifirose given the thread on sonus lol
Oh yeah lol but it doesn’t have all those extra stuff so could be promising… maybe
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Hey @M0N , do sub 1000$/€ dacs handle spatial depth well?
I’ve been looking for a dac that would do 3D spatial information, especially depth and at the same time be musical (having at least some body and texture).
I’ve considered some, Bifrost 2/64 (apparently has harshness in the treble), Denafrips Ares (has lag), Denafrips and it’s musician clones (can’t have XLR and RCA connected at the same time, and RCA in noticeably inferior), SMSL D1SE2 (it’s chinese, so possible warranty issues, and i don’t want to pay for MQA).
How do the Soekris stuff handle spatial information (1421, 1541/2541)?
Depends on the dac of course but I think closer to the 1k ish range you start to get some sense of “hey this is spatially interesting” and some focus on some aspects of stage, although very much a game of tradeoffs with a lot of them and what you want to focus on spatially at least. I think most all the new sub 500 stuff I’ve heard is spatially good enough and more “it does the job” range and not anything worth mentioning (most have good enough placement and imaging but don’t really capture the sense of actual space well imo), but again overgeneralizing.
I think if you place a strong focus on depth there can be a few potential options that fill the role well enough for the range
I’ve not heard the new 2/64, the old og bf2 didn’t have that issue whatsoever, although I’d say spatially it was a bit more width focused than depth. I do hear the 2/64 versions might have more of a focus on depth than width, which while not apples to apples I did try a MM2 and I gotta say I wasn’t the biggest fan of it in some aspects spatially but was depth focused, and treble didn’t bother me and it’s not a fair comparison
It does, but unless latency is a top priority imo it wasn’t really all that bad even for watching videos casually, although if you’re playing comp games or super anal about movies it might be a concern. Non issue for just listening to music though. I have seen more people report more latency than I personally experienced, so it could be a bit system dependent
Depth wise though it’s quite good in that regard, not as wide and grand as the bf2 but does go deeper
Admittedly most things aren’t going to like having both inputs connected at the same time or split out, generally if something is made with balanced in mind, single ended will suffer, that’s just the sort of trade off you have to make with most balanced designs and not exclusive to denafrips
I’ve only heard the first D1 and it was pretty good, I don’t know if I’d say I liked it over the bf2 or ares ii but it was a solid showing overall which I wasn’t expecting
Pretty great if you value accuracy and neutrality in presentation. It’s not as holographic as the denafrips nor as wide and large ish sounding as a bf2, but it’s very overall accurate for placement and has very solid depth, it’s fairly spatially well rounded, although it’s going to be more track and system dependent imo, as it’s not something that’s exaggerated or leans more in one direction than the other. I think it would be a solid pick if you value overall accuracy of space, but if you’re looking for something with more immediate wow factor you might be better served by something else
It’s important to know what system you’d be looking to pair for, what’s the rest of the setup it’s going in, and what other sonic aspects would you want to prioritize?
Looking used around the 1-2k price range can yield potential significant step over the sub 1k new in overall spatial performance, depending on what’s out there and what system you’re putting it in
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From my experience, as someone who had the Bf2 and then upgraded to the 2/64, I did not find this to be the case. I found that things shifted to an overall more balanced sound, which meant that there was more treble emphasis than the OG Bf2 had, but there was by no means any harshness.
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I’ve heard some mixed things about the upgrade overall, some are a fan, some absolutely aren’t, would assume it would probably come down to preference and the chain. Need to hear one eventually at some point lol
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Thanks 
My chain is now Zen dac v1 → G111 MK1 → Verum 1 & DT 900 pro.
I’m waiting patiently for the modhouse planar to release, if that ends up being good.
I also have some harman kardon speaker amp and a pair of BW CM1.
I think that the G111 is ok for now and the headphone upgrade will happen later, so dac upgrade could make sense, but i don’t think i’m going for over 1K considering my current gear.
The soekris stuff does seem interesting, and i kind of like how they look 
.
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I mean the soekris pair awesome with the lake people and violectric stuff, I’d really go that direction if you wanted to take a more neutral lean and plan to stay with the amp or move up the line. I do think that just saving up and going for the 2541 makes the most sense, it’s something that you can carry forward if you like it, and honestly worth the jump over the 1421 imo. The XLR on the unit is better, but not by much to really worry about for the price. The jump from the zen to soekris will be pretty large lol, especially as you move up with nicer and nicer cans. Will be a different overall signature from the zen though, more overall neutral and linear focused
Generally the nice thing about the soekris and vio/lake people pairing wise when it comes to space is that the vio/lake people tend to be more wide but a bit more hazy in depth and placement which the soekris pulls in the stage a bit more but in return makes it a lot more accurate and pinpoint, still keeping in the more studio focused nature of both.
I will say the G111 likely isn’t the best fit for the verum as that’s likely really pushing it as the power band is more shifted up on the lake people and vio stuff to where it will perform better with more mid to higher impedance cans compared to the super low load of the verum 1
I think also in that price range something interesting depth wise used would be a chord qutest around 1200 but that’s got a pretty strong house sound overall, tends to be hit or miss with some. I’d also give a nod to the ares ii as a solid pairing for something a bit more immediately exciting (although not as technical and refined as the soekris imo). The bf2 was nice but didn’t pair was well as the soekris and potentially ares ii, although perhaps the new bifrost will pair better, don’t know. If you could find a schiit gumby a2 that also would be a pretty great pairing (as it takes a different focus from the bf2 and yggy a2 especially spatially where it’s more depth focused and cleaner in placement although other aspects of that dac might not be to some’s taste)
Really one of the bigger steals you can get in the used dac market might be pushing it price wise, but if you can find an exogal comet plus around 1300 used and grab a ddc like a singxer su2 or matrix xspdif, that’s really really good for the money, pretty slept on performance wise, and would fit a more depth focused option. Only concerns there would be that you want to find one with a remote since their app doesn’t work properly anymore for controlling volume on the unit. The reason for a ddc right off the bat is also because usb is a bit lackluster on the unit quality wise, so that also adds a bit more initial cost upfront (although getting a better digital source is beneficial for most dacs)
Admittedly anything above a soekris 2541 or higher would probably be a bit overkill for your current cans and amp, but it would absolutely be worthwhile if you plan to upgrade either the cans or the amp (or both) in the future
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I do watch videos and play games, so Ares is a no-go.
And it might be hard to get some of those recommended repaired (exogal, gumby) if they end up breaking.
Bifrost 2/64 could be a possibility, but it would cost probably couple of hundred if i ended up not liking it and decided to return it (EU). There’s really conflicting opinions on it, some complain about the treble and some have no problems.
There’s also the “soon” releasing soekris 1221, but with (possibly) 500€ price point, the technicalities might just not be enough to justify dac purchase.
With VAT the 2541 would cost 1500€ new but i’ve seen a couple go used for 1k, so saving some cash and waiting patiently the 2541 might be a good choice. Plus it could work as a pre-amp for speaker setup .
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Ah if you’re EU then yeah I wouldn’t consider the exogal or schiit stuff. The qutest might still be an option used since those are frequent enough from what I see. Not sure of the used landscape outside NA so can’t say too much there of what might be worth considering lol
Nice nice, will be curious on whatever you end up with lol, let me know how it is
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Hi Mon!
I’m thinking of picking up an RNHP this summer, but currently only have a Jotenheim (V1), so I need a DAC as well. I was debating between the following options:
- Magni Multibit - it doesn’t look like you’ve put your thoughts on this one/tried it, but let me know if you have any!
- Geshelli J2 - It looks like you don’t pair these together often, is that because the J2 is primarily balanced? To me, they’re similar enough in price to be considered but maybe this is a mismatch, so I would love your thoughts on this as well
- Bifrost V2 - This seems to be your standard recommendation, but seeing as it is over twice the price as the other two, I would look for a more similarly priced DAC, with this as a “there’s nothing better for the price” option.
Thanks!
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Nice nice, with what cans?
If you’re talking about the MM2, I have somewhat mixed feelings on it. On one hand, it’s very nice for the price in comparison to other options, actually unique for the range, on the other, it feels like it’s very specific and situational, like it was going for a specific sound over everything else and somewhat didn’t focus on being as complete of a dac. Basically I think it sounds a bit gimmicky, but in a good sort of way if that makes sense lol. I will say it wouldn’t personally be my first pick with a RNHP unless you had very specific preferences
It’s actually a great pairing, really really nice for the range, at least for the AKM version, not heard the others. Would absolutely suggest it in that range, would also be my personal preference for something more complete sounding vs the MM2
So I think it’s worth it, that being said, it really depends on what cans you’re planning to use if it’s worth it. I’ve also not heard the new 2/64, so I can only really vouch for the OG BF2. But really, I think it’s worth the cost in most cases unless you’re running more entry level or midrange cans (although in that case, the rnhp would be a weird pick anyways lol)
I think it would really come down to what cans you were running, and what your sonic preferences are as well for what to ultimately go for, but I think the BF2 if you can swing it is a pick that just really works well in most cases, and if you can’t, the J2 is also fantastic at it’s range as well. I also really like the allo revolution dac in the same range as the j2, but I think the J2 might have wider synergy with a larger range of cans with the neve
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Oh hi Mon I spent my time trying out varous R2R dacs but none of them touched my soul and reverberated in my throat the same way the K9 pro AKM or the DX300 does. Its almost like alot of the micro texture was thrown out of the window to get bigger contrast and silky smooth highs. It almost sounds hifi esque(ironic I know but its the best discriptor) and very sterile.
I guess if that is the true summit fi Im happy sticking to the 1,000 doller range where its mildy coloured(except for the boosted transients) and mostly gives a garbage in garbage out since I enjoy that sense of synesthesia which was what got me in.
Thank you for this rant piece and feel free to remove it if it isnt related enough.
I don’t mind lol
Out of curiosity what did you end up trying r2r wise? I know you mentioned holo in a past post and I’d agree with it being overly contrasty and artificial
From my experience some r2r dacs are specifically excellent and focus on the lower level stuff like microdynamics, texture, nuance, etc, but it really all depends on the dac and the implementation. Some also take a more artificial flatter lean, all depends. Also when you get up there, the digital source also becomes pretty important. Personally I wouldn’t say your experience is representative of what I’d consider a lot of the good higher end dacs can provide (from my experience lol), but all comes down to the dacs at hand, the rest of the setup, and how you’ve heard them, all can influence that and things
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Good pont I shouldnt have lumped them all together.
dCS lina, mola mola tambaqui, gustard R26 and not sure if this belongs here since its FPGA based Cord Dave+M scaler.
dCS lina and Dave+M scaler I found to be stright up not my taste with the lina being way too warm and smeary(interestingly if you try to listen under the fog its quite detailed though) overall I kind of liked it but Ithat overemphasis on analog sounding just throws me off;
Dave is quite the opposite and while everything was well saperated and kind of sounds correct after ahile I found that the dynamics for whatever reason moves in steps and while for “well recorded” stuff isnt really a issue when you listen to brickwalled stuff the issues of stepped dynamics become very apperent since alot of whats going on happens within that 6dB window and it seems to run in 0.1dB steps when a 60.03dB and 60.06dB play back to back its quite jarring having 60.00dB jump to 60.10dB(note that all numbers are fudged but there to explain what Im hearing)
The mola mola tambaqui I really liked because it has the best midrange texture but for whatever reason alot of the microdetails just seem to be smoothed out. Something I think would work well for home cinema but not really for eletronic blues and symphonic metal. I really liked it on post metal and country music though.
Gustard is just Gustard, never really liked their signature of all dyanmics no detail and their R26 is still the same but better than their chip H16 little brother.
Thats about all I have access to ATM at lest without the buying power to drop 5k usd deposit.
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