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New DACs
Dec 5, 2020 20:33:13 GMT
via mobile
Post by julesd68 on Dec 5, 2020 20:33:13 GMT
Nice one Clive. I always thought that Gustard had a lot of potential - let's hope the pre is the business!
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Post by Clive on Dec 7, 2020 22:34:32 GMT
The Gustard A22 fully balanced AKM4499 DAC arrived today. It’s connected to my ATB via USB and our 65 inch TV via optical. The amp is the Ncore based Lindemann Power 500 driving MarkaudioSota Tower speakers. It’s still early days but my gamble looks like paying off. Resolution, texture and dynamics are very good and a step up over the Qutest. The USB may be improved from the original..I only say this because the review versions of the A22 had to be set for either Windows or Mac/Pi, there’s now no such setting. The remote volume is great...no need for a preamp.
The unit is hefty and well made, it’s not a cheap, flimsy thing. The cost was $960 plus £26 tax, shipping included. I’ve yet to try the Lindemann Bridge via spdif in place of the ATB. More updates to come.
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Post by John on Dec 8, 2020 4:30:34 GMT
I always wanted to try a Gustard they look well made
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Post by Clive on Dec 8, 2020 9:01:10 GMT
I could hear the DAC improving as time went by last night...just on the TV. I'll report back with updates.
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Post by markk02474 on Dec 8, 2020 14:23:06 GMT
Interesting! It looks like an evolutionary design, a lot of the basic topology remains the same. I wonder what the 'advanced regeneration power supply system' adds to the PSU story? '4 very low sideband noise clocks' may actually be the best part of the revised design. I've no idea what a 'audionotte fast-sunny stepless capacitor' is! The layout looks beautiful...  I recently bought this DAC. It sounds great, but I have not yet had a chance to compare directly with other DACS. Wide open soundstage, natural sound, silent background, and lifelike dynamics. It is big for a DAC, full 17" width and nearly as deep. Heavy too. The advanced regeneration power supply system is the digital power supply (whole lower board). It charges up supercapacitors then disconnects from the AC and runs off them until needing recharging. When first powering on, the DAC takes 2 minutes, 45 seconds to charge up. Nagra is doing this with some products and perhaps Audio-gd. People used batteries prior to supercapacitors. There are Mundorf, Audionote, and REL Multicap (formerly MIT Multicap) capacitors used. L.K.S., now Mustec has been known for listening while developing and not just trying for the best specs. There are MANY other advanced features, mostly listed on www.mu-sound.com/DA005-detail.htmlA mystery why nobody has yet reviewed it. Maybe the Danafrips Venus II sounds better at a similar price? |
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Post by John on Dec 8, 2020 17:11:28 GMT
I really looks like you got yourself a really good DAC
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Post by MartinT on Dec 8, 2020 18:13:51 GMT
The successor to my LKS MH-DA004 (now heavily modded). Nice purchase! Have LKS been renamed to Musetec, then?
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Post by markk02474 on Dec 9, 2020 10:36:53 GMT
The successor to my LKS MH-DA004 (now heavily modded). Nice purchase! Have LKS been renamed to Musetec, then? Yes, Mustec is the new name. I'm not sure yet what mods I would do. Take out the power switch, maybe the fuse. The jumpers are claimed to be Mundorf silver wire! There is a big steel bolt holding down the transformer, so I would like to replace that with nylon and some dampening under it since it is a source of 60 Hz vibration (I'm in Boston, MA). Perhaps some mu-metal shielding to protect the audio section. The analog transformer is already in a stainless steel case. I never had an 004, so unfamiliar with the mods for it. I've been a little challenged to open the case so far - very tight cabinet and may need to remove all the torx bolts to get the top loose! I'm pretty confident the engineers at Mustec have spent many hours tweaking the design and I'm likely to make things worse with changes. With twice the budget, I doubt they had to cut corners. I am still sorting things out. I used an Ifi SPDIF iPurifier on my old Gustard X20 to great effect, even more when adding the DC iPurifier to the iPower wart for it. I purchased the second generation products for the new DAC, but not yet done much A-B comparisons. What would be an even better SPDIF reclocker? A USB reclocker? |
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Post by MartinT on Dec 9, 2020 11:16:01 GMT
My 004 mods are mostly better quality reservoir and decoupling capacitors, a couple of regulator changes for lower noise ones, lots of copper and ferrite shielding around the two transformers and a new Coherent ultra-low phase noise clock. It sits on Black ravioli Big Pads and there is a granite placemat on top. The power cable is a Coherent 6D and the fuse an SR Orange. It runs from my P10 regenerator.
The ES9038Pro chipset is capable of extracting huge detail and setting a very nice soundstage.
Let me know how your 005 sounds.
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Post by markk02474 on Dec 9, 2020 11:51:47 GMT
It does sound fantastic on good CDs, so good that I want to bin all my mediocre sounding ones!
One of my reference test CDs is Sharma and Hussain MRCD1010, a live performance with natural microphone techniques. Every cough, footfall, and even the air handling system sounds real. OK, the HVAC isn't quite natural as one tends not to notice in real life, but starting and stopping the recording makes it obvious. Sort of like the background din on the Enterprise starship. Oh, but the drumming. The attacks and dynamics are lifelike as is the texture of the drum skin. When everything gets busy, the sound does get a bit congested. Not sure what is to blame. I've ordered a Purifi based VTV amp which may help. Currently using a much modified Crown Macro Reference, a few years ago given Sparkos labs vregs for the front end. It has low noise and massive power, but the front end uses a class-A biased opamp and I have one black gate NX in the signal path because of the biasing. I wished I had bought more of these caps given what people want for them now!
The soundstage seems unlimited in height and width. Not getting tremendous depth yet.
So far, just running USB straight out of my desktop PC, besides the disks from Oppo BD-83SE to Ifi SPDIF iPurifier2. The Gigabyte motherboard claims filtered, low noise USB ports. Would like to learn reclocking/filtering options for it, or just go streamer.
I've also gotten a pure sine wave lithium battery camping generator for the front end. Not hearing much difference from my home made filtering so far. Still breaking in.
In the next week or two I hope to bring it to visit a local guy using a Lampizator in his very nice system for a comparison.
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Post by MartinT on Dec 9, 2020 12:27:22 GMT
I'll look for that album when I get home.
Pretty much the best reclocker out there is the Mutec MC-3 that I'm using. Less pricy is the Oehlbach that several members here are using.
Why not start a blog and I can move these posts over?
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Post by markk02474 on Dec 9, 2020 17:01:40 GMT
I'll look for that album when I get home. Pretty much the best reclocker out there is the Mutec MC-3 that I'm using. Less pricy is the Oehlbach that several members here are using. Why not start a blog and I can move these posts over? Oh, the Mutec is not too bad. There are far more expensive boxes doing much the same. A blog? Like a new discussion thread just for the 005? Can do later today. Not sure if I made the point about the 005, but it is dynamics. It is life-like. 0-100 in nil. The kind of thing that reminds me of a great 78 rpm disk through a SET to horn speakers dynamic. |
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Post by MartinT on Dec 9, 2020 17:08:07 GMT
Yep, I know what you mean about dynamics, I get a good slab of that from the 004. The punchiness and vibrancy sometimes catches me out and the bass is subterranean.
No, I meant a blog about your system in the Blogs section. By all means, start a thread about the 005 in the Source Components section if you like.
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Post by mikeyb on Dec 10, 2020 17:17:53 GMT
Denafrips Pontus one you watch out for @ $1700
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Post by Clive on Dec 10, 2020 22:39:47 GMT
Tonight I compared the ATB with Uptone reclocker to the Lindemann Bridge into the Gustard A22. It’s a slightly unfair test in some ways as it pits usb vs spdif. First off I have to comment that the ATB sounds better without upsampling...more focus and smoother/less sharp. However configured...the Lindemann into the very revealing A22 fairs much better than the ATB. Both streamers were powered from the same Supercap PS.
I can’t say for sure what I heard wasn’t down to the usb vs spdif inputs on the A22 but my belief is that the Lindemann is simply better sorted...and it should be considering it’s price. I could make the ATB to sound acceptable but even so it was trailing. I’m sure some of the extra lengths a few here go to with the ATB reaps significant benefits.
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Post by MartinT on Dec 11, 2020 6:19:54 GMT
That follows my findings, Clive, as well as the general view that S/PDIF tends to be better sorted than USB on DACs.
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Post by John on Jan 8, 2021 20:55:50 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Jan 14, 2021 18:23:38 GMT
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Post by wannarock2 on Jun 15, 2021 15:27:13 GMT
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Post by julesd68 on Jun 15, 2021 17:03:35 GMT
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📶NAS > Gustard x26p DAC > Benchmark LA4 Pre-Amp > NAD M22-V2 Amplifier > Revel F228Be Speakers