DAC vs No DAC

[pdhanwada]

To improve the source I introduced MHDT Havana a TUBED DAC lately in to my chain. I see some improvement. May be little amount of Fatigue is gone. When I change my source to DAC from my direct CD player , I dont see significant difference. May be my ears are not sensitive enough.

With respect to my speakers, Amp, preamp, It is a pretty good one. No complaints there. It does create good soundstage and image as is. A/B comparison didnt find big difference.

The bigger difference I found was when I removed the grills off my speakers. WHen I added mY REL sub to it.

May be I am missing something some where. It could be the transport, preamp, cables, room treatment(no treatment done) etc.

If Any guys from Hyd have experiance with DAC and with no DAC difference I would need to borrow some of their time to test it out.

Thanks
Pandu

 

[sunder]

To improve the source I introduced MHDT Havana a TUBED DAC lately in to my chain. I see some improvement. May be little amount of Fatigue is gone. When I change my source to DAC from my direct CD player , I dont see significant difference. May be my ears are not sensitive enough.

With respect to my speakers, Amp, preamp, It is a pretty good one. No complaints there. It does create good soundstage and image as is. A/B comparison didnt find big difference.

The bigger difference I found was when I removed the grills off my speakers. WHen I added mY REL sub to it.

May be I am missing something some where. It could be the transport, preamp, cables, room treatment(no treatment done) etc.

If Any guys from Hyd have experiance with DAC and with no DAC difference I would need to borrow some of their time to test it out.

Thanks
Pandu

Hi Pandu, where did you buy the Havana? In that what tube is fixed?
any indian dealers are here?
Thank you,
sunder.

 

[unleash_me]

To improve the source I introduced MHDT Havana a TUBED DAC lately in to my chain. I see some improvement. May be little amount of Fatigue is gone. When I change my source to DAC from my direct CD player , I dont see significant difference. May be my ears are not sensitive enough....May be I am missing something some where. It could be the transport, preamp, cables, room treatment(no treatment done) etc.

It could be any of those factors listed above. In my experience, Havana did bring lot of difference. I'm not going to throw a bunch of subjective superlatives to explain it. But for me, the dac was a welcome change. Infact, the biggest improvement came when I replaced the stock tube with a cryotreated NOS bendix 638 - you might want to try it. That was the only major change I made as such. I did however try different USB and power cables to see if there could be any positive sonic differences. But failing to notice any, I settled with MHDT cables itself. YMMV ofcourse.

Cheers.

 

[GeorgeO]

I have gotten so used to having the DAC in my chain that I really don't know what it sounds without it. I recently got a SB Duet which is supposed to have an upgraded chip, it does sound nice. I think the only way to discern the difference is to do a blind A/B -with and without DAC-comparison.

 

[pdhanwada]

Sunder: I got it shipped to US. From there one of my friend bought it to me. You can keep checking ebay, they sell thru EBAY or thru their website.

Unleashme: Apart from stock tube, I have JW 2c51 and a ericssion tube. I have been using the JW 2C51(1949 made). Will try the Ericssion one next week.

George: Blind A/B testing needs to be done. Any volunteers to help me out will be appreciated. As of now my preamp gets two pairs of inputs one from DIrectly CD player, the other CD -->DAC-->preamp. WIth my setup A/B testing can be done as is.

 

[sachin_k5]

What i have read about DACs is that if you have a good CDP or a good Pre Amp, the DAC won't show a significant difference.

 

[sunder]

It could be any of those factors listed above. In my experience, Havana did bring lot of difference. I'm not going to throw a bunch of subjective superlatives to explain it. But for me, the dac was a welcome change. Infact, the biggest improvement came when I replaced the stock tube with a cryotreated NOS bendix 638 - you might want to try it. That was the only major change I made as such. I did however try different USB and power cables to see if there could be any positive sonic differences. But failing to notice any, I settled with MHDT cables itself. YMMV ofcourse.

Cheers.

Dear unleash_me, I want one Cryo treated NOS 6385 or JW396a tube. Where
did you buy your cryoed 6385? Do you feel the difference between the cryoed and regular tubes? What is your opinion on Tesla 6cc42? and Tungsol 2c51? Thank you.
sunder.

 

[unleash_me]

Sundar, I've already replied to the same questions you asked few months back. Not tried the rest of the tubes you mentioned, yet.

Alternatively, if you can get hold of any, do try out the ones recommended by MHDT themselves for their DACs.

Cheers.

 

[rodthesod]

PD, Many manufacturers use the same company which makes a passable DAC, Burr Brown. To go into competition with them would be expensive. Some companies have, but their gear costs a huge amount, giving rise to the term diminishing returns when we discuss Hi Fi. The non Burr Brown makers gear is far superior which suggests Burr Brown is resting on its laurels. The probability is the DAC in your CD player is the same one in your stand alone.
Forget Hi Fi and get out and see some bands Live. Live music is far better than the rubbish we are made to listen to. A good portable radio was great when I was a kid, today I have an enormous amount tied up in Hi Fi and regret ever getting involved in it. People will have you believe every aspect of your system is at fault which is probably why you bought the stand alone DAC. Dont let them tell you your system is no good, ask your wife what she thinks. If she is pleased with it be satisfied. Get Down and boogie, not worry.