Beresford Bushmaster DAC Reviews

Theadmans I just read your post after my reply. Seems you've had a similar experience to me. I was almost about to accept a 2nd chip but then through my contact with Stan lost cconfidence in the product. Yes it sounded great but if I was going to run into issues this early on that couldn't be solved which were wrongly directed at the rest of my system then this was not something I could live with. To be honest this puts me off buying a Beresford product again.

I was gutted at first but at least now I have the Mdac to look forward to.

I can't help thinking that the problems might be temperature related. When you are in sleep mode it is easy to forget that you have left the DAC on. Maybe it is not a good idea to leave it on all the time.

Now I don't have sleep mode set it is obvious that the DAC is on with the very bright blue LED on. So I always switch it off - otherwise the lounge starts to look like some kind of science lab!

I haven't had any problems since I stopped using Sleep Mode. I would be interested to know if anyone with the Bushmaster had a problem with source selection with Sleep mode was not set ?

Mudan - Interestingly I notice from your equipment list that you also use a Tacima power block. Was your Bushmaster plugged into the Tacima like mine ?

This is difficult because I do not want to open up old wounds. I also think it is a little unfair to tar all Stans products with the same brush due to one potential issue with just one of his products. I owned a Caiman DAC for just over two years and it was, and still is, a fantastic product for the money.

I do believe there is is an issue with some BM's however and I also believe it revolves around the firmware. I should state that I am in no way technically qualified to diagnose what is actually going on and being the designer, Stan is the acknowledged expert on his own products. I am speaking from experience however and with the BM I had in my possession there was most certainly an issue with source selection.

Theadmans, yes I have a Tacima power bar with an Isotek IsoPlug and Russ Andrews Silencer. Into the Tacima power I have a basic Russ Andrews distribution block and this is what the DAC was plugged in to. So a fair bit of mains filtering as you can see..

I only owned my DAC for a few weeks and initially left it switched on for a couple of days running in with CD being kept on repeat as the source. So yes maybe some component has overheated in the DAC but who knows! Replacing the IC did not resolve the problem entirely either. In fact it fixed one problem but brought another so seems it's more control IC related.

synsei, naturally any designer wants to protect the reputation of their products and I know that the Caiman has been popular. I believe it also won a What Hi-Fi award or was given 5 stars. I wonder if WHF are planning to review the Bushmaster...

I totally agree that just because of one problematic product does not mean that all others will be similar but what I don't appreciate is there being no clear solution to my issue or admittance of the problem. Stan was always too ready to give my money back rather than provide a fix. When my DAC was received back he said there was no fault with it so clearly I am not 'suitable' for a Bushmaster. If the LEDs weren't so bright I may have kept it in a 'faulty' state.

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Originally Posted by mudan

... I was almost about to accept a 2nd chip but then through my contact with Stan lost cconfidence in the product. Yes it sounded great but if I was going to run into issues this early on that couldn't be solved which were wrongly directed at the rest of my system then this was not something I could live with. To be honest this puts me off buying a Beresford product again.

I was gutted at first but at least now I have the Mdac to look forward to.

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What did Stan say to you that permanently put you off buying his products? And how do you know that the issues you had were wrongly directed at the rest of your system? Maybe, as you suggest yourself a few posts back, the BM is more sensitive than the rest of your equipment. :scratch:

Oh, and please post your presumably outstanding experiences with the Mdac in a designated thread. ;)

I don't think it's fair for me to reveal my full contact here with Stan, however rather than provide a fix for the sleep function, on more than one occassion the response has been towards a refund. Yes it's always great to have your money back if you're not totally happy but all I wanted was a fully working DAC. I thought the DAC sounded great and wanted to keep it. A finger was pointed at my mains supply that may be creating spikes. If you read earlier, Theadmans has had the same response.

Well I've not bought the MDAC yet. As a previous Bushmaster owner I'm sure many would be interested in my experience with the MDAC and how it compares to the Bushmaster.

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Originally Posted by mudan

I was almost about to accept a 2nd chip but then through my contact with Stan lost cconfidence in the product

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This seems a little disingenuous, unless I'm missing something. So you didn't actually give Stan a chance to fix the problem (a minor problem at that, just involving the LEDs)? In which case, the negative vibes are a little unwarranted. I have owned three of Stan's devices and his customer service has always been exemplary. The devices (including my Bushmaster) have never gone wrong and are left switched on all the time - there is no heat problem as they generate precious little heat in the first place. Power glitches can be a menace and this may well be the source of your problems.

I would encourage Stan to comment on recent posts, mine included, to defend his position and his products. As well as carving out a fairly unique niche for his products, he consistently delivers a product that performs well above its station. Apart from the few regrettable issues some have experienced with their BM's I stand by what I have said about it many times before, the BM performs at least as well as other DAC's which retail for far more. I hope Stan can diagnose what is at the root of this issue and fix it as it would seem it isn't an isolated one. I am confident however that he will do so and that the BM will be even more successful as a result. I wish Stan every success in this :)

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Originally Posted by MartinT

This seems a little disingenuous, unless I'm missing something. So you didn't actually give Stan a chance to fix the problem (a minor problem at that, just involving the LEDs)? In which case, the negative vibes are a little unwarranted. I have owned three of Stan's devices and his customer service has always been exemplary. The devices (including my Bushmaster) have never gone wrong and are left switched on all the time - there is no heat problem as they generate precious little heat in the first place. Power glitches can be a menace and this may well be the source of your problems.

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Agree with this.

I've owned 4(!) of Stans Dacs over the years and have always had great satisfaction from them.
You will find that Stan is one of the good guys on here, always had good service from him.