benchmark dac1

[dean999]

how good is this DAC in relation to others in a similar price range?

is there anything better than the benchmark DAC1 for less money?

my system is as follows: panny blu ray> onkyo 875> lexicon cx7 power amp> monitir audio pl300 speakers.

would it be worth adding a DAC and which one would go best with my kit. max budget for DAC £1100.

thank
dean

 

[alexs2]

how good is this DAC in relation to others in a similar price range?

is there anything better than the benchmark DAC1 for less money?

my system is as follows: panny blu ray> onkyo 875> lexicon cx7 power amp> monitir audio pl300 speakers.

would it be worth adding a DAC and which one would go best with my kit. max budget for DAC £1100.

thank
dean

It's an excellent DAC,and has the bonus of being an equally good headphone amp.

Do also listen to the Chord,and just so you don't miss out on bargains,please also try the DacMagic....it is only £200ish,but compares very well with DACs up to £1k.
That's from my own experiences,comparing it with a Perpetual Technologies DAC/upsampler,and a few others in the price range in between.

 

[hanser]

I can recommend the Aqvox USB 2 DAC. A lot of parameters like filter, upsampling or phase are user selectable for individually achieving best results.

 

[Mr_Sukebe]

I heard a DAC1 a few years back, didn't really like it. VERY dry, which is partly how it creates it's "super detailed" presentation.

More relevant is the fact that you're thinking of putting it through your 875. I've said it before and I'll say it again, every AV receiver I've listened to so far has had a cheap and nasty pre-amp stage (and I've heard the 875 at home).
Frankly you'd be better off finding a good AV processor and using that as the DAC. I'm assuming you want HD support, so a good starting point would be something like the Audiolab 8000AP. If you're OK with legacy kit, I'd expect a Proceed AV2 to stomp all over your 875, even with a DAC1 attached.

 

[dean999]

thanks to all who have posted, i am very grateful.

i shall using a DAC to connect to the Avondal Audio preamp. the onkyo 875 is only a temporary measure, it will take about 8 weeks for the Avondale preamp to be handmade.

thanks again
dean

 

[Mark Grant]

Something else to consider is Beresford Caiman
Home HI-FI

or Lavry DA10 or maybe DA11
Lavry Engineering - Unsurpassed Excellence

Apogee
Apogee Electronics > Products > Mini-DAC


There are many other high quality dacs that rarely get a mention.

You need your preamp first though so you can do comparisons with real hi fi and not an AVamp.


Mark.

 

[IWC Dopplel]

I am about have a list to audition around the £1-3k markish :

Lavry DA10
Naim
Tron (NOS and very minimalist)
Audio Note 2.1(Also NOS and very minimalist)
Weiss DAC2
Ayre
Wadia
And possibly a secondhand Chord DAC64 (very good reports)

 

[dean999]

I am about have a list to audition around the £1-3k markish :

Lavry DA10
Naim
Tron (NOS and very minimalist)
Audio Note 2.1(Also NOS and very minimalist)
Weiss DAC2
Ayre
Wadia
And possibly a secondhand Chord DAC64 (very good reports)

hi IWC

look forward to your findings

regards
dean

 

[alexs2]

I am about have a list to audition around the £1-3k markish :

Lavry DA10
Naim
Tron (NOS and very minimalist)
Audio Note 2.1(Also NOS and very minimalist)
Weiss DAC2
Ayre
Wadia
And possibly a secondhand Chord DAC64 (very good reports)

Chord DAC64 is a very nice DAC,but again on the "dry" side if that's an issue,but sonically very similar to the Perpetual Technologies DAC,which is how I came to hear both....

Occasionally Levinson DACs appear on the usual auction sites etc,and can again be well worth a look and listen....detailed and very smooth.

 

[IWC Dopplel]

I am very interested in the Weiss, very good rep.

I found this explanation of Jitter very helpful and interesting on theri web site :

Weiss :: HYDRA

 

[Welwynnick]

I found this explanation of Jitter very helpful and interesting on theri web site :
Weiss :: HYDRA

Once jitter contaminates a digital signal, it propagates through the system, often increasing as it passes through various devices. Jitter is actually an analog signal which attaches itself to the digital waveform like a virus. Because the basic element of any digital device is an analog switching transistor, the jitter virus is everywhere. Power supply noise in the form of AC voltage and current spikes caused by finite switching times, in turn causes crosstalk noise etc..etc.

Hurrah! Real understanding.

Nick

 

[jamesl01]

Another vote for the Beresford Caiman here. This is a spectacular DAC for the money (circa £250). I use one in between my Sonos ZP80 and Arcam AV9. In my opinion, the Caiman digs out just as much detail as the dac1 does, but without sounding overly analytical (and at a quarter of the price of course).

 

[Mr_Sukebe]

Another vote for the Beresford Caiman here. This is a spectacular DAC for the money (circa £250). I use one in between my Sonos ZP80 and Arcam AV9. In my opinion, the Caiman digs out just as much detail as the dac1 does, but without sounding overly analytical (and at a quarter of the price of course).

Interesting feedback. Were you using the AV9 when you compared the DAC1 to the Caiman?

 

[HiFiRuss71]

I had the chance to compare the Benchmark to the DacMagic and a Caiman up against the output from a Naim CDX2 via a Naim Pre/power combo through Living Voice Avatar OBXs, underpinned by a BK XXLS-400 sub. Guess who added that? I must say that regardless of price, if I weren't interested in AV, this is one of the best systems I've ever heard in terms of communicative ability with music.

The DacMagic was my father's, whilst the Caiman was owned by the Naim/LV system owner who bought it for his SB Duet. The Benchmark was one of several owned by the Medical Research Council (go figure!) by whom two of the listeners were employed.

At this point, I should clarify that when I'm with this crowd, I can drop my AV 'ears' and just engage in such ethereal qualities such as 'music' and the well worn "does it make my feet tap?" Indeed, one of that crowd reviews for TNT Audio and is thus entirely focused on the subjective, inspite of being engaged in a level of science that would make even the most objective audiophile's eyes water.

The correlation between ears present was pretty unanimous and that was the main surprise. All of us have a mind, are prepared to disagree and indeed, have done so over wine. This has delayed listening sessions in the past and is inconvenient.

Unanimously, the DAC1 rocked. It was clean, detailed and it played music in a way (given that it was fed from the SB Duet using FLAC) that actually had us wondering if the CDX2 had a place anymore.

The Caiman was felt to be good value and a fine piece of hi-fi, but after a few A-B comparisons, it just lacked a bit of life and colour. It was a bit flat and fairly clear to distinguish.

We all wanted to diss the CA DacMagic, if only to feel good about ourselves, but honesty prevailed. Bear in mind that the two MRC employees are involved in cognitive research (as in measuring the brain actual, not statistical analysis ) and therefore well aware of what 'tricks' a mind, then you'll see what I mean when I say when I say the guns were out. It took about an hour of A-Bing the DAC1 against the DacMagic to decide that the DAC1 pipped it with a slightly deeper soundstage, only to realise that the Naim CDX2 which everybody was sure was the 'musical' benchmark (small b) actually sounded more like the Dacmagic. Ho, Hum. They're very, very close and I wouldn't like to pick the DacMagic over the DAC1 in terms of pure DAC duties, although I will defer to anybody that uses headphones as the Benchmark is clearly well catered for in this department.

This doesn't make the DacMagic as good as DAC1, but it does confirm that it is stupid value regardless of what the fringe would have you believe.

Russell

 

[Medrep1]

Not a standalone DAC I know, but I have been stunned by the performance of the 840C.

Just a shame im on my second one now, and this is playing up too

 

[dean999]

Not a standalone DAC I know, but I have been stunned by the performance of the 840C.

Just a shame im on my second one now, and this is playing up too

sorry ot hear that dude

 

[dean999]

hi rusell.williams

thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with the various DACS which were pertinent to my query. it was quite an education and i am very grateful for that.

 

[IWC Dopplel]

I found that the DACMagic was better fed by a better feed, via a separate low impedence dedicated spur extension.

I am also going to give the 3.2A 12v Ac transformer from Maplins a go at £15 it is better built and twice the rating of the stock power supply. Some say improves things a little.

Also very interested in this Audiocom International

 

[IWC Dopplel]

Hurrah! Real understanding.

Nick

Yep, insightful. This means that everything has the potential to corrupt didgital signals with sonic implications, Even cables ?

 

[dean999]

I found that the DACMagic was better fed by a better feed, via a separate low impedence dedicated spur extension.

hi IWC

time for a thick question-i assume this dedicated spur extension has to be fitted by an electrician?

thanks for the maplin's tip.

dean

 

[IWC Dopplel]

Yep, Well I think so, I run a separate spur for each piece of equipment (13 spurs) and one spur using a 4 way extension, have a look here if you missed it.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/audi...s/1122120-power-amp-mains-requirements-2.html

This is for plugs that are not IEC and can't easily have a separate line direct. If I wanted to be picky I would have one plug only so a spur for each piece of equipment. But the DACMagic and 8033 are the only ones 'sharing' and the plugs are star earthed.

I do believe that you can do electrics in your own house in some cases, but not in someone else's house. I had an electrician do the main install.

 

[dean999]

i have just looked at the CA DACmagic online manual, page 12, it shows one can connect the DACmagic DIRECTLY TO THE POWERAMP.can this be right?

i thought if the DAC had a built in preamp like the benchmark dac pre then it was possible to connect directly to the power amp

 

[dean999]

hi IWC

thanks for the clarification.

just curious as to why you are looking at other dacs?

is the dacmagic not good enough, how much of an improvement are you looking for over the dacmagic?

cheers

 

[IWC Dopplel]

i have just looked at the CA DACmagic online manual, page 12, it shows one can connect the DACmagic DIRECTLY TO THE POWERAMP.can this be right?

i thought if the DAC had a built in preamp like the benchmark dac pre then it was possible to connect directly to the power amp

Without a volume wheel, you might want to leave the room

I wasn't aware the DACmagic had variable output voltage ?

 

[IWC Dopplel]

Unless this is where you have variable input perhaps ?