My 2019 Update Thread - My final system I think.

[Jimbo]

I think DACs are like a box of chocolates in that they are all slightly different but each one may just the one you are looking for and we all have different tastes driven by different systems and listening preferences.

I agree with Martin that Digital and DACs in particular are a done deal and manufactures are simply producing new models by either adding more features or simply changing the box! Ok there are technical differences such as FPGA, R2R or the latest and greatest Delta sigma chips but these all play about with slight variations on a theme as it were and of course there is all the other stuff surrounding the "chip" such as power supply and op amps etc which can be manipulated.

Of course manufactures are always trying to come up with new designs in order to get us to part with our money but critical listening invariably results in very little progress.


For me DACs fall mainly into two camps. Warm and full with a big soundstage or forensic and analytical. Some may straddle the two but in the end it all depends on what you value and what you are looking for? Of course folk are always seduced by the latest and greatest and if you spend loads of money on a DAC it must be the best surely?

[Macca]

I think DACs get treated like they are pickup cartridges and I'm not sure that's right.

Any system will probably have some other area it can be improved before looking at what the DAC's doing.

Like that million pound system I heard. Full DCS stack which alone must be £100K plus but system unlistenable with ripping distortion on the top end. On an audiophile plinky-plonk jazz recording!

Not the DCS doing that but why have a £100K DAC when there's clearly a bigger issue to solve?

[Gazjam]

Whasaat?
speak up young man!

Have to admit when I got the Sony pre-amp I was a bit concerned that its DAC wouldn't be up to it, and as all inputs are digitised there's no way to bypass it.

Concerns went away with the first few bars of music!

Agree that there's always ways of pushing the envelope with the DAC technology. I'm sure that the Topping it replaced would trash it in the measurements. But I think we passed the limits of our hearing a long time back. And my hearing's not getting better with time (or any other bit of me for that matter...)

[Macca]

Whasaat?
speak up young man!

These bloody youngsters, always mumbling!

[Gazjam]

Its



Reckon 10,000+ hrs on my preamp tubes is plenty
Left channels been getting wee bit hissy and overall volumes dropped a bit, so needed sorted.
Pre-amps lost a bit of its magic last few months

Posties been...

[Jimbo]

Some special glass bottles?

[Gazjam]

Yeah James,
and long overdue!

Apos Ray Select 12AU7 tubes, matched pair.
New production.





My Preamp uses valves in its input stage.
Having been stung going down the NOS rabbit hole when I ran a 300B power amp, strictly new Manufacture tubes for me.

Previous preamp tubes were Genalex Gold Lions, apparently up there with best of new production tubes?
A lot of the PS Audio amps use valves, so theres always Tube Rolling threads over on PS Audio forums.

The Apos Ray valve was getting a lot of press there, and elsewhere.
So took a punt on them.

Not the cheapest but a big step up from the Gold Lions apparently.
Shall see, plumbed them in today, getting some hours on them playing away in the background.

Amp seems to have a lot more grip straight out the box, big part of that will them just being fresh tubes, but watching with interest as more hours go on them.
Absolutely silent, which is great the hissy channel was annoying the hell out of me.


Out with the Old, in with the New.





MUCH better

[Macca]

That's neat that it tells you how many hours they've clocked up.

[Jimbo]

Nice tubes Gary. I actually use a combination of NOS and new manufactured tubes in my preamp. NOS in the Phono stage and new in the regulation stage. My NOS are definitely NOS and matched and come from a very good source and I could not be without them as they sound superb. However they did not have the same benefits in the regulation stage so went for new modern tubes with a good strong ouput.

[Gazjam]

That's neat that it tells you how many hours they've clocked up.

Yeah,
When you put amp in standby it switches off the tubes to preserve them, and stops the clock.

Also,
when you power the amp up from standby, the timer takes 30 secs or so to get the tubes up to temp.
Pretty cool.

Had to reset clock to zero when I put the new ones in. (almost forgot!)