cjm wrote:
DrJ: I'm teetering on the brink of getting another DAC. I'm looking for a DAC that can really claim to give a taste of high end sound, but affordably. The DAC1 caught my eye a couple of years back when the hullaballoo was first starting. The stupid pricing where a dollar price in the States was translated into a sterling price here, kept me from going ahead. I'm looking for a truthful sound, with a fullsome midrange - if that makes sense. I'd like to improve upon my existing setups and their ability to lay down a realistic stereo soundstage. I love to hear a sweet, detailed top end and a textured bass, though I'm not a bass freak.I want to avoid a sound which invites me to analyse rather than to relax and enjoy. I know all of that is subjective stuff, but it may give you some clues in giving your own feedback on how the DAC1 compares to the Lavryblack DA10. I'd also be interested in your views about just how irrelevant is transport to the sound the DAC1 is capable of generating.
Okay. DAC1 and DA10 will go for roughly the same price. Both of them are convertible to 240V if you order from the USA, the Lavry takes 100V-240V straight out of the box, while the DAC1 needs a different fuse and a tweak of a setting, all easily user-servicable, it would take a minute or two tops.
In terms of the sound you're after, I don't think you can lose with either unit, but as always it depends what kit you're mating it with.
I use my DAC1 as a PC DAC, while I use a Resolution Audio Opus 21 as my source, so I don't really use the DAC1 in a DAC/transport configuration (well, at least, not in the traditional sense.)
I did use it together with my old Shanling CD-T80 as I found the sound more accurate and, oddly enough, less hard and edgy. The Shanling was a tube based CDP, but not as laid back as any other tube equipment.
Anyway, when comparing the DAC1 fed by the PC's CD-ROM and the Shanling, the Shanling definitely had the edge, but I suspect this had more to do with the lenght of cable + PC noise + lack of audiophile focus that PC setups tend to have. Once I'd ripped the file to hard-drive, things improved, not sure why that was.
Outside of that, though, I've never noticed a transport to make too much difference. My X-Ray V3 through the DAC1 sounded great too. As long as your transport is of sufficient quality with reasonable jitter figures and a good, shielded cable, you're laughing.
Sound characteristics, as I said, depends on the equipment being used. Mine's mainly utilised in a headphone setup with a Ray Samuels Emmeline II 'The Raptor' amp and Sennheiser HD-650 headphones. The Raptor is surprisingly fast and accurate for a valve amp, but the Senns are known to be slightly warmer, so the combination beefs up any small issues you might find with the DAC1. Listening through the DAC1's own headphone out is a little more bright, but still nothing I'd consider unbearable by any means.
As long as the rest of your equipment isn't bright, the DAC1 shouldn't pose much of a problem.
The Lavry is a little more forgiving in terms of matching equipment, but at the expense of resolution. I don't like using the word detail because that can be mistaken for 'brightness', but you'll know what I mean when I say it just loses that extra bit of detail when compared to the DAC1. Given a brighter set of accompanying electronics, I'd head in the direction of the Lavry, but if I had a tube amp or a warm pair of speakers, I'd choose the DAC1. I just find that the detail coupled with good drive and dynamics blends well with my setup to create a fantastic midrange. The DAC1 is on the leaner side of neutral, again, this is addressed by the tubes, so I'm really happy with my DAC1.
The Lavry is quite large though, and I'm not overly keen on the strange volume control, which is like a stepped attenuator, but 'clicks' up and down with a digital readout of what level it's at. Some may like it, and it shouldn't really matter seeing as the DAC1 is stepped too, but I prefer the regular method. It's unimportant in the greater scheme, I think.
Hope this helps. I really don't think you can go wrong though, whichever you choose.
