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digititis
Dec 3, 2021 12:20:05 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Dec 3, 2021 12:20:05 GMT
Tragic news, the plane carrying the DACbuster has been downed by rogue forces over the South China Seas. My intelligence sources suggest that Agent MartinT was possibly the culprit behind this heinous act of industrial sabotage.
In light of this as a temporary measure I have ordered a Topping D70S... I'm already planning the 'downing' of the D70S due to some astonishingly unlikely catastrophe. Ah yes, the hurricane in Highgate that came out of nowhere, leaving all to waste and ruin. |
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digititis
Dec 3, 2021 12:24:28 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Dec 3, 2021 12:24:28 GMT
The D70S has a very similar sturdy metal casing used by its predecessor with minimal cosmetic changes. I think it also shares the same basic but functional and dimmable screen. Same plastic remote.
The main differences are that the S has MQA and Bluetooth, neither of which I need. So the question is has the basic performance been improved, bearing in mind the chip is the same - 2 X AK4497.
Hopefully I will soon find out.
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digititis
Dec 3, 2021 13:04:14 GMT
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Post by John on Dec 3, 2021 13:04:14 GMT
Looking forward to hearing your impressions
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Post by julesd68 on Dec 3, 2021 14:06:16 GMT
Well after two hours warm up with the rest of the system this morning, I had the chance to try some of my best test tracks. Initial impressions are not overwhelming with Gillian Welch's stellar song 'Tennessee' - I'm struggling to make out any difference for better or worse than the D70 - it sounds similarly wonderful. Nelly Furtado's 'One Trick Pony' however does sound immediately different! Less congested, clearer, more rez in the midrange and punchier bass. Nils Löfgren's 'Drum and Bass Intro' simply gives the sensation of hearing more rez and dynamics. The drums are even more mind-blowing than previously. An astonishing test track, the best I have heard it for sure. Computer Magic's clever cover of Laura Branigan's 'Self Control' again sounds less congested in the mids and keyboards resolving better in the treble. David Guetta's 'Let's Love' also sounds a little more transparent as does Sofia Portanet's new track 'Real Face' with extra detail, air and separation - not night and day, but *very* worthwhile extra insights into the music. The Scorpions 'Bad Boys Running Wild' (live) gives me more detail from the crashtastic cymbals, whilst Black n Blue's 'Target' gives me just a bit more rez in the crunching guitars. Classical will be another day! This is all tested with the new Pro-ject pre - will be interesting to try my passive as well. All in all most satisfying indeed - Topping took what was already a decent design and made it better. A proper upgrade for what turned out to be a very modest cost.  |
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Post by MartinT on Dec 3, 2021 20:22:12 GMT
Glad you're enjoying it, Jules.
I love Laura Branigan's Self Control and it was fun listening to it and other music by Danielle Johnson.
Nelly Furtado's One Trick Pony sounds congested on a poor system but it opens up and has tremendous power with a revealing system.
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Post by John on Dec 3, 2021 20:52:20 GMT
I really enjoyed the d70 when I had one and good to hear they have improved on it
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 22, 2022 18:24:54 GMT
Amazingly enough, today was the first time I have been able to fire up the system since December! So my news is that the U18 is in the house, tested via I2S to my recently acquired Topping D70S. With any tracks on my test playlists I am experiencing an immediate appreciation of higher rez, more detail and ‘purer’ sound - a more ‘in the room’ experience where I think I’m getting closer to reality whatever that is. Also getting those lovely little moments where I think I’ve not heard a certain detail in a track before. Bass is undoubtedly deeper and tighter which means music has more impact - a stunningly visceral experience when you reach for the volume button. A cavernous and palpable soundstage with dynamics a go-go, it certainly rocks the house. Nelly Furtado's 'One Trick Pony' sounded absolutely immense in every way. But, there is a ‘but’ - on certain tracks I’m getting some ‘glare’ whereby I want to turn the music down. This seems to be primarily on tracks with heavy guitar. It’s not something that I have come across before in the system.  Here are my next steps before making a final assessment of the U18 - - test the same system with AES - swap out the Project preamp for my passive with buffer and then test with both I2S and AES - test another active pre And before anyone says anything about ditching preamps, the Topping DACs I have used sound *way* better in my system with some kind of pre - going straight to power amp from the DAC sounds muddy in comparison, so I will be continuing with either an active or passive pre.  |
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Post by John on Mar 22, 2022 19:15:06 GMT
I wonder if Martin Blue Jean cable might be the solution for you Jules The I2s pushes the music quite forward but it is not what I would describe as glare If you can test AES that might tell you more if it is the cable or something else in the chain The Topping DAC output could be better. Remember. both Martin and myself are using the balanced XLR through a better preamp section So my suggestion is a better DAC |
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 22, 2022 19:54:03 GMT
Lol another DAC isn't on the menu right now John as you can probably guess!
I've got a number more tests to get through to find out if it's an I2S / cable / preamp issue. I'm sure there is more to come from this unit but way too early to say of it's a keeper
I hope to be having another session later in the week when I will try AES.
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Post by MartinT on Mar 22, 2022 19:58:44 GMT
Nice findings, Jules. Do you know how many hours are on the U18? From my experience, it really needs 100 hours to give of its best.
John is right, the I2S cable is critical for good results. I'll be sticking with the Blue Jeans FE as less hot and aggressive than the AVplay. A really nice rounded cable with great performance for peanuts money.
AES will sound immediately less forward and easier on the ear, but don't give up on I2S as the resolution becomes infectious.
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Post by wannarock2 on Mar 22, 2022 20:29:06 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 22, 2022 20:34:04 GMT
Nice findings, Jules. Do you know how many hours are on the U18? From my experience, it really needs 100 hours to give of its best. John is right, the I2S cable is critical for good results. I'll be sticking with the Blue Jeans FE as less hot and aggressive than the AVplay. A really nice rounded cable with great performance for peanuts money. AES will sound immediately less forward and easier on the ear, but don't give up on I2S as the resolution becomes infectious. I'm using an Audioquest Pearl HDMI cable - not expensive either but I've no idea how it rates as I have no other reference point. I'll explore the other options before spending on another cable but how much was your cable with shipping? The one classical track I tried I wasn't happy with the violin timbre, it had seemed more natural previously. That will be something I will really need to address. Not sure about hours on the clock with the U18 but would indeed like to make it all work as on a number of tracks the extra rez was great. |
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 22, 2022 20:38:37 GMT
The Topping D70S is an excellent transparent DAC. No upgrade needed. Since it’s been three months or so since you have fully listened to your system, you may need to get reacquainted with how it sounded back then. Take it one step at a time in adding/replacing items (U18, pre, cables etc.). If it is done all at once it is really hard to determine what is working for your ear and what is not. Anyway, my 2 pence.  You’re absolutely right - I have to resist the temptation to make more than one system change per session, which can be difficult when you have new toys to play with! |
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Post by MartinT on Mar 22, 2022 21:15:19 GMT
I'll explore the other options before spending on another cable but how much was your cable with shipping? £26.65 including Fedex shipping from the US for a 30cm Blue Jeans HDMI FE. |
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digititis
Mar 22, 2022 22:29:23 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 22, 2022 22:29:23 GMT
Next session I will plumb in my fancy pure silver USB cable and see if it makes things better / worse / the same. Today I just used a vanilla cable for convenience.
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digititis
Mar 24, 2022 15:13:12 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 24, 2022 15:13:12 GMT
I was just thinking - is it possible that the extra rez from the U18 is finally showing up some source limitation with Spoti 320?
I guess that's something to consider. I wonder if Spoti will be upgraded this century ...
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Post by MartinT on Mar 24, 2022 15:52:06 GMT
Yes, I do hear Spotify's limitations more easily although it's still remarkably good.
As always, the limitations are usually more obvious with classical music - things like massed choirs.
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digititis
Mar 25, 2022 21:13:29 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 25, 2022 21:13:29 GMT
Does anyone ever get the spontaneous urge to rearrange equipment on the rack?
I just did and a minimal bit of rejigging has allowed me to use shorter USB and RCA cables.
Who knows if it will sound any different but keeps everything a little neater ...
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Post by MartinT on Mar 25, 2022 21:48:18 GMT
I've optimised positioning and cable lengths so much I can't think of another layout that'll work!
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Post by jandl100 on Mar 26, 2022 8:19:39 GMT
Aha, spontaneous equipment rearranging. A sure sign of OCD.  Curiously, it's not something I do. Once or twice over the decades, I've tried for tidy. It doesn't seem to last. There's usually too much kit coming and going for it to be a sensible thing for me to worry about! |
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📶NAS > Gustard x26p DAC > Benchmark LA4 Pre-Amp > NAD M22-V2 Amplifier > Revel F228Be Speakers
