The All Purpose Advice Thread

You did post a thread but evidently somebody with The Power moved your post here, where it should have been in the first place (a new thread for every question is unnecessary and unproductive - just leads to clutter).

Your budget makes things a bit easier, as (good) choices are limited. First look through the Cheap DAC-off thread, then browse further in the Digital subforum for individual threads on any that take your interest.

I think most people's first suggestion given your budget would be Modi 3, unless you're considering it for mobile use as well - in which case maybe ifi Nano BL or Fulla 2 (both DAC/Amp units but with line-out so can be used with external amps too).

 

It’s just seemed to be a better amp but I’ve heard reports of it overheating. Maybe someone could argue that the Massdrop THX is more neutral tonally due to class a warmth and slam but I would counter that the Massdrop is so compressed and uninvolving that I don’t care. It might not reveal dac and recording differences (I don’t know) but you’re going to be buying the Bryston BHA-1 for its sound while I can’t see anyone buying the Massderp for its sound unless they hate dynamics and are redditor types who couldn’t recognize dynamics if you punched them in the face. The amps in non-bargain bin interfaces and pro dacs are just way better than the likes of the THX, Neurochrome Headamp, and O2 anyway.

 

Which headphone amps (that reveal dac and recording differences) do you recommend for the HD600/650? Are you still using the Asgard 2?
I liked what you wrote about dacs recently, lots of interesting input.

 

No I got rid of the Asgard 2 as it was warm as hell and universalizing. I use the amp in the Dangerous Source.

 

I just finished building a Bottlehead Crack (no Speedball). I'm super impressed by the sound of this thing. It has a lot of bass and a very euphonic sound with my hd650s. I plan on chilling with it as is for awhile to get used to its sound, but in the meantime I'm curious about what the Speedball upgrade does for the sound. Anyone listen to both?

 

More neutral, tighter, less gooey, warm overall sound.. improved macrodynamics and just generally cleaner presentation. My preferred take on the BH Crack is to optimizeit for E80CC tubes. I could absolutely live with that config it for a long time (w/ HD650).

 

I'm scared of this.

 

Interesting. What is involved in optimizing for the E80CC tube? Does that imply some different electronics? Also, how much work is the speedball upgrade compared to the original crack build?

 

Have anybody owned or listened the questyle cas192D Dac?

 

Yes, owned it a few years ago. What would you like to know?

 

If it is better dac than yggdrasil.also i want to know why you sell it.thanx

 

I sold it because of poor transients & speed. I was getting neurotic with the filters, they were all equivalent but annoying in different ways. The Questyle is one of the DACs that chased me back into NOSland.

Other than that its a denser colorful sound. It's that tuning you get when all the reviewers scream about how analog it sounds because they found a way to mimic tape saturation and gave it a fat bottom. Think Exogal Comet. The Questyle sound is between the Comet & Soekris leaning more towards the former. I've not heard the Schiit but hope that gives you some points of reference.

 

What you suggest?buying or not?

 

So, the preamp output of my Vali 2 started doing something funny yesterday when I tried a new speaker amp. When connected to the new amp (and now the old, which had zero issues prior) via RCA cables, all ouputs are muted. So with headphones in, no output through the headphones. Headphones unplugged, no output through the amp. Both amps work fine with a 3.5mm to dual RCA cable from my phone. With the preamp cables unplugged from either amp, the Vali 2 headphone output works like normal. The issue started on powerup of the Vali 2 with the new amp plugged in and on.

Any idea what might be going on or how I might troubleshoot? The old amp is an Adcom 5200 that worked fine. The new one was a Tripath 2024 board that I reboxed and hadn't had issues with before.

 

Not sure if this is the right thread, mods move if needed:

Have tried about 8-9 amp mfgs (1-4 models per mfg, depending on availability) in the last few months that could/would be considered TOTL by myself (and probably by some or many others). Some over long periods of time/extended loans, some I knew I wasn't interested in after <5min. After all of the auditioning, I see my end game set up for several (5-10+) years looking like the below.

Here is where I need advice: For those who have 2 or more TOTL type/level set ups, do you actually end up using both/multiple set ups regularly? Or do you mostly (75%+) use your "main/favorite" setup anyways? The below will be (to me) a lot to spend on this hobby over the next 2-3 years and I haven't had what I would genuinely consider a TOTL level set up for 1+ year before to know how I'd use it long term. I have absolutely no problem cutting out stuff from the below (I won't say what items/which ones, but it'd be 2 amps left and 2 DACs left) if they aren't going to get used regularly enough. Disclaimer - yes, I do already spend $ on "more important things" in life.

Here is what I'm considering and what I hear (very briefly) with each one - enough to briefly explain why I want each one. Note that this post is NOT intended to be a product review in any way, shape, or form.. Anything in bold I don't have yet.

Amps (3-4)
- DNA Stellaris - I liked this amp the most out of them all. Does so many things so well for me.
- Maybe EC AF for a more forward/not as relaxed DNA house sound while still maintaining almost all of the technicalities OR maybe ampsandsounds Mogwai SE with transformers for a fun thicccc sound while still being technically competent (not sure if thiccccc will get old/annoying over time though).
- Liquid Platinum - for when I don't want to 30 min for the big amps to heat up. A slightly warmer and easy Cavalli house sound as well for relaxing. Similarly, good for relaxing because it isn't so resolving that it brings out all of the imperfections in your recordings/sources/etc - this is not a knock on the LP (I also listen to a lot of music that is mastered/balanced/produced good but not great. Listening on Stellaris and EC were too revealing of all of the little faults and it actually annoyed me a little). Small enough to bring around as needed too. MAYBE $200-300 more in tubes, or maybe be smart and realize that 6922s can only do so much and it's pointless to sink more $ into this.
- One solid state amp for when I use IEMs or don't want the "tube sound". Using rhead arcam right now, it's enough to keep me happy for a while, but would eventually like to kick it up a little more.

DACs (3):
- RME ADI 2 DAC: I prefer DS for some genres, typically busier music, much where speed and transients matter more. Also EQ if absolutely needed or messing around.
- Soekris DAC1421: Cleaner more analytical sound compared to many DACs I've heard while still having what I like about multibit sound.
- Yggdrasil OR Holo Springs lvl3: Yggdrasil has a really fun but still accurate sound but the constant clicking gets old really fast for me. Holo Springs in my limited experience has a little more detail but is a little less "fun" sounding (closer to Soekris sound, but not so close that I would skip the lvl3). Have heard a few DACs that very marginally outperform the above, but they also cost more than 2x the above, not worth it for me.

Edit: Note that the transducers are not finalized. I will definitely be keeping LCD3, Clear, and HD6xx + all 3 UE IEMs though.

 

Best DAC for £500 or under? I ideally would like balanced out and USB in but it's not a must. Other than that, I just want it to sound good. I'm replacing an old Theta DSPro Basic IIIa due to it's high Vout which makes it a pain due to me having to set digital volume very low whenever I listen to music. No Schiit or SMSL please.

 

Why do you need balanced? That really restricts the quality of dac you can get at that price point.

 

I recommend to give up the balanced out unless your amp has balanced input only, or you have to use unusually long interconnects for some reason.
If you can accept that, I believe Soekris dac1321 might be a pretty good choice. It's the smaller sibling of the dac1541 that received very good reception even here, on SBAF. Uses the same ladder, same FPGA, etc same Xmos USB, etc. The main difference is in simpler PSU, not being balanced, and the lack of built-in headphone amplifier.

 

I cannot directly answer your question because the setups I use are for different purpose. The TOTL has 2 amplifiers for 2 listeners. The other setup, which could be considered TOTL, is used for speakers. The mid-fidelity is small enough to bring to meets, allowing someone who may not have heard solid-state, solid-state with a non-traditional sound (BW2), tube-hybrid, or pure tube, a chance to hear these for themselves. I would like to set these meets up more regularly, and most likely will once school finishes. But a great treat at the last meet was watching people settle into some deeper listening, and hearing the smaller, "shimmery" details through the S7 that were missing on the BW2.

As far as what I listen to, day-to-day, I use the BW2.

 

I think that the reports about overheating of BHA-1 are somewhat exaggerated. When I bought it two years ago I was concerned about heat and kept on the top shelf of the rack. Now it is on all the time, used as headphone amp and preamp, never overheating, I mean it is as warm as BHA-2 underneath. And if it starts overheating, well I still have 17.5 years of warranty left