Emotiva XDA 2- DAC....questions on DAC & music

[locopoco]

Hi All,

Posting after a real long time....

Well, to fill in on the background - after a lot of research (here!!) and some auditions later i had bit the bullet with Marantz PM6004 & KEF Q300s last november.

After almost 6 months of listening, I am fairly happy and since this is my first set-up and i have nothing else to compare it to.....

I need the esteemed members advice on 2 parameters:

1.) Music source - most of the music resides on my lappy -( mp3 - 128kbps)...i have read everywhere that one could not go lower than this

So, i am looking at upgrading and adding to my music collection on 320kbps/FLAC. Please help me on where to find music in these formats. Atleast there are some sites (HD tracks etc) where English music is available but it is fairly expensive. Are there any cheaper alternatives?

And any sources for hindi music in 320/flac.....

This would be a great help and put me on a journey to upgrade the quality of my music

2.) I was also thinking of simultaneously indulging in a DAC....my parents are visiting my bro in States. I do not why but while i was searching for my amp i was always smitten with emotiva....now, suddenly, i realised that i can own a emotiva product....not an amp but a DAC.

Any ideas on how the XDA2 performs...the reviews seem decent and it is priced at $269 and also acts as a pre-amp.

one important query - the product spec says " Universal AC voltageautomatic 115VAC/230VAC operation"

Does this mean, it will work in India without the need of a voltage transformer?

cheers,

locopoco

 

[docd]

Most Emotiva products are dual voltage and the selection is automatic. You just plug in and use. That's how I use my Emotiva UMC 200 and UPA 700. Sorry I can't help you for XDA 2. Haven't heard it. But reviews are favorable.

 

[vin_eme]

Locopoco,

you can also try Schiit Bifrost Uber DAC. I have it...its beats many of expensive DACs out of competition....
My Gear : NAD 375BEE, Tannoy DC6T SE

cheers,
Vince

 

[locopoco]

Thnx docd

I think i will also write to emotiva and get a confirmation on the voltage.

btw, how has your experience been with the emotiva products....Later, i am planning to induce my bro to get a emotiva amp

Vince bro, you have amazing gear....

I had heard NAD 326 while finalizing the amp.....i was simply blown by the power available on the 326....i can only imagine how the 375 would be.

Also, I have heard great things about Schiit DACs...... my only gripe is they are way way over my budget....I just checked on Bifrost Uber DAC....it retails well over $500.

Where the XDA - 2 is coming at about $269 !

Though, i am pretty sure Schiit is a superior product....so well, the budget wins over the heart....

any views on the XDA 2?


Hey people, any suggestions for the music.....the DAC is gonna be as good as useless if i keep playing the 128kbps mp3s.....


cheers,

 

[docd]

locopoco,
Emotiva products are VFM. Build quality is excellent and performance is great. You will not be disappointed. Added advantage of dual voltage so no step down transformer required. However try to audition before you buy.Your own ears are the best judge. You have a good system. Addition of a DAC will definitely improve your sound quality especially since you use a laptop as a source. You can also try this USB 24/192 Asynchronous DAC - DACiTx | Peachtree Audio.
I use their Decco 65 amp and its quite good.

 

[IndianEars]

Why dont you rip a few of your own CDs, to 320 K mp3 or even Flac or wav files ?

You can then campare and see what you are missing.

iTunes can rip to 320K mp3.

Try EAC ( Freeware) to rip to Flac .

All the best on your discovering adventure !

 

[locopoco]

Indian ears.....

Gee, we are all Indian ears, naa !!

I only have a very small collection of CDs....so, yes, maybe i will rip them in flac and kind of find out the difference.

I actually had been to some sites (don't remember which ones, now) wherein one could hear songs in different levels of compression - 128kbps, 192, 256 etc....

I tried some songs and yes, i did notice a considerable difference in quality.

So, the q again remains......where does one go for high quality music source !

docd bro,

I have heard good things (and some real glowing reviews....is it that good??) about peach tree as well Cambridge Audio DACs....but again the peachtree costs about $399 significantly more than the $269 for emotiva XDA 2.

cheers

 

[srinisundar]

Never heard XDA-2, but i can tell one of the worst DAC i have heard is XDA-1.

Not even come sounded near to the basic HRT streamer or Nuforce DAC...It can be used only for convenience or only with the chain of Emotiva components..

 

[dheerajin]

I have two DACs NAD & Schiit Gungnir...and observation is-
if your system is not revealing...you wont find any difference between two.
if revealing then here comes the noise part in picture...Gungnir is almost noiseless and NAD has some noise and after switching from NAD to Gungnir you will feel calm relaxing sound because of absent noise ..

I did not checked the gungnir the day it landed, for optical input so after 3 moths when i checked..it was not working..so after contacting Schiit in US, they said ship it to US on your expense and we will ship it back after repair since it falls into the category of repair. So I did not do anything to repair after seeing indian customs behavior while importing.
its better to buy in india , there are lots of brand available and as per your system any descent DAC would sound good. since your parents are visiting try for used gear there. And for realistic improvement rip your CDs in Flac format through EAC rip for help check this link
http://www.hifivision.com/portable-...s/2157-ripping-flac-using-eac.html#post574245

cheers
dheeraj

 

[locopoco]

Srinisundar...

Gee, XDA-1 the worst DAC that you have heard

Haa, phew, that was a knock-out punch !

Dheeraj bro,

Even Vince was talking about the Schiit DACs....even whatever i read confirmed that they have extremely nice DACs..


Regarding your view on whether the system is revealing or not - what is your opinion on Marantz PM6004 & KEF Q300 in this respect..... i am sort of a newbie and do not know where to slot my system on how reveling it is.

From a product servicing factor, i think a purchase in India does make a lot of sense....i was just tempted to own some emotiva gear at what i think is a great price.

Will try n rip the CDs in FLAC...thnx for the link

 

[dheerajin]

Dheeraj bro,

Even Vince was talking about the Schiit DACs....even whatever i read confirmed that they have extremely nice DACs..


Regarding your view on whether the system is revealing or not - what is your opinion on Marantz PM6004 & KEF Q300 in this respect..... i am sort of a newbie and do not know where to slot my system on how reveling it is.

From a product servicing factor, i think a purchase in India does make a lot of sense....i was just tempted to own some emotiva gear at what i think is a great price.

Will try n rip the CDs in FLAC...thnx for the link

System is revealing or not , depends on synergy of the components of the system...like amp, cables, speakers...
Nowadays IFI-IDAC is available in india and it is very much affordable...check the reviews on net...
cheers

dheeraj

 

[locopoco]

I wrote to emotiva on whether the XDA-2 will work in India or not without a voltage transformer.

Well, the good news is that it would

Dheeraj bro, will check reviews of IFI IDAC too.

I am currently not focusing on the cables....figure, i will fix the source & DAC first and attack the cables later.

But, source is what is for me the biggest challenge right now....Am learning quite a bit of stuff although still far from having the eureka moment!!

 

[naj]

I wrote to emotiva on whether the XDA-2 will work in India or not without a voltage transformer.

Well, the good news is that it would

Dheeraj bro, will check reviews of IFI IDAC too.

I am currently not focusing on the cables....figure, i will fix the source & DAC first and attack the cables later.

But, source is what is for me the biggest challenge right now....Am learning quite a bit of stuff although still far from having the eureka moment!!

Hi!!

I have a EMO DAC - XDA 2.Am very happy . When I got it , the price was $ 350 one year ago. It's a good deal on price now, go for it.it's solid , functional , has lot of inputs and the company is great. They are shifting to "all US manufacturing " although components may be sourced from various places.

BTW - found EMO is a better Sounding head phone Amp / DAC when used with Head phones over the Audnist HUD MX-1 ( which I also have)

The Audnist HUD - MX1( although a Head phone DAC can be used to connect to a pre amp ).
Initially used the EMO preamp USP 1 by connecting to PC and sometimes thro the Audnist HUD .

Some observations using the Two DACs-
1)Current PC has a better sound card - Beats audio- when connected to a pre Amp thro The Headphone phone analog outs , the output is surprising good.. The sound is a little bright and the highs have a little coarse tone to it but that can be taken care using the Equilizer on the WMP or the Beats console.


2) By adding the Audnist MX1 , found the great improvement in sound quality , however felt the Highs missing and a lot of details missing on the shrils , jingles etc. Some of Lata di's Marathi high pitch bhagans seemed so mellow . Felt am lost some frequencies not only at the highs but some even at the lows.
One thing confused me was , this was not so when connected to headphones thro the Audnist DAC. It was bliss on the ATH m50 and even on Phiaton in ear buds.

3) Enter XDA2- even with above , decided to go for a dedicated EMO DAC , as my primary media source is a PC. The clean, crystal clear and refined output thro a DAC is hard to ignore. Faced the same problem but not as much as thro the Audnist DAC.
The lows were great after changing speakers from polk book shelves to Tekton Mlore. But still the highs were a little missing. Spoke to EMO and had a good discussion. They mentioned , the bright highs were a characteristic of the Beats sound card and was better engineered than normals ones.
Different DAC's will perform different way. He advised me to use XDA for a few days.Can still use the Beats dashboard even with using the DAC & the media players Equilizers are quite good to get the highs by adjusting.
In short reasoned out - output thro the Beats is a different experience and thro the DAC is totally different. Thro beats , the sound is open, large , coarse , unpredictable and great. Thro the EMO DAC Tamed!!

After about a year of using this DAC , am very happy. Missing the lower lows and will have a Sub shortly. Please read the online reviews and they have given thumbs up for this DAC.

Thanks-

 

[aarmath]

Never heard XDA-2, but i can tell one of the worst DAC i have heard is XDA-1.

Not even come sounded near to the basic HRT streamer or Nuforce DAC...It can be used only for convenience or only with the chain of Emotiva components..

Bang on SS! There's a lot of hype about these brands & frankly I believe a few of the members of this esteemed forum have been blindly led astray by the hype.

I did stumble upon this - http://www.audio-gd.com/En audio-gd.htm

 

[kapvin]

Bang on SS! There's a lot of hype about these brands & frankly I believe a few of the members of this esteemed forum have been blindly led astray by the hype.

I did stumble upon this - http://www.audio-gd.com/En audio-gd.htm

I am not sure what the hype is about Emotiva. they are pretty clear that they sell quality goods for less. And that is true. that's also why they have a very high number of repeats as customers tend to be delighted and become loyal.

@OP - the emotiva XDA-2 is not very different from the XDA-1. AFAIk the DAC is the same. what changes is

1. the output stage - fully discrete Class A for XDA-1 and op-amp based for XDA-2
2. USB input - the usb input on the XDA-1 is old school and will only take 48khz input. and it sounds less than average. the XDA-2 has async usb and is supposed to sound very good.
3. Headphone amp.

if you trust srinisundar's advice then do not go for the XDA-2; it is not very different from XDA-1 on anything except on usb input. (where the XDA-1 is actually quite bad)

If you do trust the thoughts of people who own emotiva, by and large, you'll get a positive response.

your money, so really, only your choice..

 

[locopoco]

Well, well

After deliberating a lot - I asked my brother to place an order for XDA - 2 a couple of days back. Gotta check with him whether he has done it or not

After googling a wee bit on XDA, i concluded the following:

1.) Emotiva's gear was more famous for their power amps rather than DACs.

2.) There are some fab DACs like Schiit & Peach tree - which are very well recognized.

3.) XDA-2 is more VFM.

I had accidentally discovered emotiva when i was looking at buying an amp. It was just one of those things and well, i had taken a sort of liking to the brand.

I am not sure whether it is over hyped. It could well be. But, then it would cost me about 18-19k. In this money, i get a pre (i had not bargained for this, neither was it on my wish list, but am not complaining ) & a DAC.

I am not too much technically minded - but the DAC specs seemed to be good. So, i thought to myself - a pre + DAC + emotiva @ 18/19k... no harm in giving it a shot.

I remember going to the hi fi exhibition at BKC last october - where i saw the the mini X a - 100 which was available for 22k. At emotiva site, it is listed for $219.

Coming from that context, XDA-2 seemed like a deal.

I just hope it lives up to its promise!!

 

[srisaikat]

locopoco,

Having experiences as a user of various dacs like Schiit Gungnir, Audio-GD, Marantz NA-7004 (I have also used Emotiva Power Amp but not their DAC) I will recommend you Audio-gd NFB-11(2014) or NFB-15(2014) for your budget, if you can afford then go for NFB-3(2014) or NFB-2(2014). Audio-gd products are very well built and sound quality is very nice and seductive. NFB-11 is Sabre ES9018 based and NFB-11-5 of Wolfson WM8741 based. Please follow the link http://audio-gd.com/Products-EN.htm for further details.

 

[srisaikat]

Correction- mistype happened, *NFB-11-5 at the end, please read it as NFB-15.

One more thing I want to put in this regard. After a long listening session I found Audio-gd products are most analogue sounding so far. I never felt fatigue with Audio-gd dacs. If you are very keen for details then go for Sabre ESS9018 based Dacs, if you like little warm and smooth sound then WM8741 based DACs are more appropriate. As their power section are beefily build, so it generally takes longer burning period compared to others, and once that period is over your patience will be heavily rewarded.

 

[locopoco]

Hi Sri

Thnx for info..... but my bro had placed the order for XDA-2 last week only. I guess, it would be delivered to him within a day or so.


But, i have gained fairly valuable info on various DACs....and since XDA would be my first - after using it - i would exactly know what to go in for when i decide to upgrade !

Gee, some more noob questions:

1.) If i convert a CD in flac would it sound better?

2.)If a play a CD (from my lappy) thru' a DAC Vs playing a flac (of the same CD) via DAC - which one would sound better?

cheers,

 

[kapvin]

Hi Sri

Thnx for info..... but my bro had placed the order for XDA-2 last week only. I guess, it would be delivered to him within a day or so.


But, i have gained fairly valuable info on various DACs....and since XDA would be my first - after using it - i would exactly know what to go in for when i decide to upgrade !

Gee, some more noob questions:

1.) If i convert a CD in flac would it sound better?

2.)If a play a CD (from my lappy) thru' a DAC Vs playing a flac (of the same CD) via DAC - which one would sound better?

cheers,

1. A FLAC is bit perfect. SO at best you can get a 100% reproduction of the original. any "enhancement" is actually "different", not "better".

2. It depends on how the flac was ripped.. the cd mechanism is a big source of jitter. A well ripped Flac should sound better through an Async USB than all but the really good CD players. (all other things being equal)