Beresford Bushmaster DAC Reviews

[lurcher]

E leans a little toward B sharp, so to speak

I guess you mean E#/F not B#.

I wonder if want you are hearing is down to the spectral component in the output. The actual pitch that any sound from a DAC is locked to is (in most cases, not so much Async USB) the source clock and is not under the DAC's control.

[highstream]

Stanley, I think you miss my point. You have 1) sonic prejudices, 2) real costs of development and production and running a small business, and 3) a desire for your product to sell and presumably to make you something of an income. To make a go of it at 150 GBP a shot, some compromises have to be made. From extended listening of some highly touted <$400 Dacs, I've gotten a sense of what some common ones are. But from several thousand miles away, all I can do is try to get a sense of what yours were from others' reviews and by asking questions. Trying to find common language is part of it (reading reviews, it's amazing how many Dacs and cables are described as neutral, yet don't sound at all alike, taken on their own).

Thanks to all for your comments.

[highstream]

I guess you mean E#/F not B#.

I wonder if want you are hearing is down to the spectral component in the output. The actual pitch that any sound from a DAC is locked to is (in most cases, not so much Async USB) the source clock and is not under the DAC's control.

I meant D#, not B#, thanks. I don't know from a technical view, but when I listen to a Dac in a couple of very different systems, and it has lots of details, transparency and soundstage, but voices and instruments don't sound right while they do with another Dac, whether on the dry side or bright, then I know something is wrong. When I later see the first Dac's company described as having a "dry" house sound across their product line, while many reviewers describe their products as "neutral," please understand the point of my questioning with ones that I won't be able to audition, at least not without a fair amount of cost. It usually pays to look gift horses in the mouth.

[StanleyB]

Stan, you are coming across as a little defensive and there is no need to be, you may end up losing a potential sale if you are not careful. Gene, your best bet is to try and grab a listen to a Bushmaster before you buy one and then you can make your own judgement on whether it is for you or not using your own ears. That's my best advice for you

Sometimes I have no choice but to address these recurring comments from people looking to buy a DAC but who seem to "know" all about cost price and have musician friends etc. I wonder why they even bother to ask what to get instead of just selecting the "highest price first" option in the search menu in ebay.

[synsei]

Sometimes I have no choice but to address these recurring comments from people looking to buy a DAC but who seem to "know" all about cost price and have musician friends etc. I wonder why they even bother to ask what to get instead of just selecting the "highest price first" option in the search menu in ebay.

Slow and steady wins the race Stan, as painful as that can be sometimes, especially for the wallet...

Perhaps you should develop a 'statement' DAC Stan, just a limited run mind you. Pull out all the stops on the old promotional machine: 'Hand-rolled by virgins', 'internally wired with purest Angel Hair', 'every unit breathed on personally by Noel Keywood' etc, etc, and use it to promote just how closely the BM compares to it in performance. It might work...

[StanleyB]

Slow and steady wins the race Stan, as painful as that can be sometimes, especially for the wallet...

Perhaps you should develop a 'statement' DAC Stan, just a limited run mind you. Pull out all the stops on the old promotional machine: 'Hand-rolled by virgins', 'internally wired with purest Angel Hair', 'every unit breathed on personally by Noel Keywood' etc, etc, and use it to promote just how closely the BM compares to it in performance. It might work...

The BM is largely hand built by mainly highly skilled people over the age of 50 who would otherwise not have a job to go to. I deliberately decided on that manufacturing route after wasting time on more than 500 job applications and realizing that it's a tough task getting a job once over 50. Selling direct helps to keep the price down by about 30 to 60% of the price one would otherwise have to pay in a shop. But it is obvious that the savings made by direct selling also puts the product in a lower price bracket that triggers the impression that it is an inferior product. A full whack price structure might actually be a far better marketing idea. People tend to overlook the fact that a BM with aftermarket linear PSU is around £325 to £400. I wouldn't call that cheap.

[Clive]

It strikes me that musicians focus on pitch whereas non-musicians and audiences seem to care more about the whole performance and how real it sounds.

[synsei]

The BM is largely hand built by mainly highly skilled people over the age of 50 who would otherwise not have a job to go to. I deliberately decided on that manufacturing route after wasting time on more than 500 job applications and realizing that it's a tough task getting a job once over 50. Selling direct helps to keep the price down by about 30 to 60% of the price one would otherwise have to pay in a shop. But it is obvious that the savings made by direct selling also puts the product in a lower price bracket that triggers the impression that it is an inferior product. A full whack price structure might actually be a far better marketing idea. People tend to overlook the fact that a BM with aftermarket linear PSU is around £325 to £400. I wouldn't call that cheap.

Neither would I and my comment was very much tongue in cheek and aimed at those with more money than sense...

[StanleyB]

As to more expensive DACs, there's always more detail retrieval, wider and deeper soundstage etc. I would say that the only aspect of the BM that is obviously not high end is in its dynamic portrayal, which doesn't have the knockout clout of my Ayre disc player.

The audio output from a DAC chip is a linear signal. In order to get the impression of a wider dynamic range a separate audio stage is needed that is voiced with a logarithmic slope. So the louder passages are amplified a bit/lot more than the quieter passages. But you might get a chance soon to try out the prototype of something that will demonstrate that principle. As you know from your own customized mods the BM has a lot more unlocked features embedded in its design that I am slowly working my way through .

[StanleyB]

Neither would I and my comment was very much tongue in cheek and aimed at those with more money than sense...

I am aware of that so don't think for one moment that I am in any way offended. My customer base is mainly occupied by people with more sense than money with the odd exception of course.