That's part of the idea. Not everyone can afford to squander £170, let alone £600. But as you know, each of my DACS were regarded as "a lot of bangs for your bucks" on their launch. But 90% might be far too conservative. Be prepared to go higher ;).
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How would the the new one compare with the 7520? Is it much better?
your reputation proceeds you Stan...
lot to live up to!
(no pressure) :)
That was my question as well but compared to the 7510 6/4. The answer was all about definition, but as not many people have heard the bushmaster, there's not much to go on. Definitely high hopes, if it's going for around £170 you can put me down on the waiting list please!
Remember when I first mentioned the performance gains of the Gator and how much it was going to cost? Lot's of raised eyebrows then as to what such a cheap upgrade could realistically accomplish.
As for comparison with the TC-7510/TC-7520: I prefer to leave those answers to someone impartial :). Colin has however done a small write up on his findings when he compared his Caiman and Gatorized Caiman against the Bushmaster. It's in this thread a page or two prior to this page.
Can you add me to the list please Stanley :)
Add me at the very top of the list for the Bushmaster, Stan. The reason I'm being this uncivilized is that I live on the other side of the planet, so I would need a fair head start if I am to be among the first to fully review it.
Is it the 'first come, first served' list, or the 'first served, first come'?
A hypothetically controversial question: will Bushmaster require as long a burn in time as Caiman did? I remember it took ages for me before Caiman reached the point of showing all its formidable strengths. I would assume, by looking at a streamlined and quite spartan design of the new Master, that it shouldn't require that much burn in, because of the fewer pathways of execution yadda, yadda, yadda. But then again, what do I know?
If it takes ample time for it to burn in, I'll make arrangements to leave it on in the office for a constant weekend burn in before deflowering it at home:)
To be honestly perfect, I've been itching to see if there is a reasonable upgrade path from Caiman, and so far have been only a bit impressed by the Naim's DAC; however, at $4,000.00 a piece, and sounding only marginally 'wetter' than Gatorized Caiman, I didn't feel it was worth the trouble (even if it was four times cheaper).
Here is hoping that Bushmaster will bring me that coveted 'wetness' in sound that I've been only hearing on some of the insanely expensive systems.
I've not actually heard the 7520 or 7510. I went straight to the Caiman as I wanted the best in this price range.
All I can say about the Bushmaster is that it actually completely blows the Caiman away. The difference is not at all subtle in my opinion. There is more than just a few layers of much hash removed from the sound, - its like having an open window to the performance that I've not heard before in my system. Like I mentioned earlier today, I kind of wish Stan had not brought the Bushmaster by for a listen as I now have a three month wait knowing what is going to be possible for £170.
Lord know how much I'd have to spend on a DAC to get anything that sounded close in the meantime.:scratch:
I might be wrong, but I think he means the realism/that elusive open window to the performance that's like actually being there with the musicians live in front of you. That's what the Bushmaster does best above anything else in my opinion.