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Which DAC measurements do you like to see next?

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amirm

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The specs look good. What I am worried about is that it will not measure well and I will be out $70. :)

Hey Amirm,

Thanks for the quick response.

Indeed not expecting much for the $ and hence shared here as I am not aware of such portable dsd dac that does spdif output for mentioned flexibility.

Btw, seems like matrix spdif-2 was never measured as I am deciding between the diyinhk pro3z and the more well equipped matrix spdif-2 albiet at usd379 vs usd216 ? I have the to be returned loaned pro3z with uniquely xmos216 as a usb-spdif bridge in my rather hiend car audio system which sounds great and was hoping matrix spdif-2 will sound at least just as great if not better.

I also have the hifime UH1 and smsl x-usb that sound significantly more veiled and lifeless when compared to to pro3z .. especially the UH1.

Cheers.

Richard
 
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amirm

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Massdrop Grace SDAC Balanced (summer 2019...)
Good grief. These are become crowdsourcing projects now.

1538984748219.png
 

Veri

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Btw, seems like matrix spdif-2 was never measured as I am deciding between the diyinhk pro3z and the more well equipped matrix spdif-2 albiet at usd379 vs usd216 ? I have the to be returned loaned pro3z with uniquely xmos216 as a usb-spdif bridge in my rather hiend car audio system which sounds great and was hoping matrix spdif-2 will sound at least just as great if not better.

I also have the hifime UH1 and smsl x-usb that sound significantly more veiled and lifeless when compared to to pro3z .. especially the UH1.

S/PDIF signal really shouldn't impact sound quality, at all, on anything but the shittiest dacs that perform next to no filtering on the incoming digital signal :confused:
 
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S/PDIF signal really shouldn't impact sound quality, at all, on anything but the shittiest dacs that perform next to no filtering on the incoming digital signal :confused:

Hi Veri,

The dac in question is a decade old but hiend Alpine PXA-H900 multichannel car processor back in its days that I enjoy very much that receives both coaxial and optical spdif as well as analog inputs.

Not sure if acceptable to say with measurement that I can never provide but I can do ABC blind test and pick up the diyinhk pro3z usb-spdif bridge from my android headunit 100% of the time against the smsl x-usb and hifime UH1 .. just that it is 2 sec for the UH1 vs 5 sec for the smsl x-usb.

Hence I am interested in the matrix spdif2 compared to the pro3z that I need to reluctantly return to its owners.

If Amirm will advise ok and I have his shipping address, I can pack the UH1 to him since I will never use it again .. the smsl x-usb is kept as spare or standby until either a pro3z or matrix spdif2.

Cheers.

Richard
 

Veri

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The matrix spdif2 is really quite pricy honestly. Btw, amir already measured 4 spdif converters so far in case you didn't see them all:

https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...-of-gustard-u12-usb-to-s-pdif-converter.2166/
https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...s-of-smsl-x-usb-digital-audio-converter.2432/
https://audiosciencereview.com/foru...nts-of-schiit-eitr-usb-to-s-pdif-bridge.3753/
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...llo-digione-signature-and-diyinhk-pro3z.4660/

IIRC the topping d10 also had its spdif output tested somewhere in another topic (can't recall which thread though!).
 
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Hi Veri,

Thanks a million !!

Last link showed me the measurement of pro3z which I had somehow missed .. took me a while to read thru them but admittedly understand very little to help in my decision of getting either the pro3z or matrix spdif2 due to my own lack of knowledge.

Perhaps I can push my luck a little and share more on what I am trying to acheive:

1. My setup is for active car audio system with android HU for usb audio output to mentioned alpine pxa-h900 dac/processor for multi-channel crossover points, time alignment etc. and pxa-900 has coaxial and optical input
2. I need a usb-spdif bridge to achieve this and had been using the smsl x-usb after the hifime uh1 which was clearly more lifeless until my friend loaned me his pro3z few weeks ago that clearly improved the sound quality further with more details, depth, transparency etc. and hence much more listenable. As such, I have absolutely no doubt that the needed usb-spdif bridge makes a big difference .. and all these are without external psu.
3. Yes, I need dc/usb powered bridge since fixing in car with the lt3045 psu on the way to me as it seems from reading forums that such external psu typically improves "performance" to claim audible difference.

As I wish for best sound quality in this car audio setup, I tried to read up to understand more on usb-spdif bridge and chanced upon matrix spdif2 with positive feedback but often used beyond my use case and not in comparison with pro3z. It is certainly more expensive at usd375 vs usd216 for the pro3z but has more future proof functionalities beyond using it now as a usb-spdif bridge which I certainly do not mind.

As such, I am hoping for some inputs that matrix spdif2 for usb-spdif bridge will further increase sound quality (or at least not any worse) like what I can heard from moving from smsl x-usb and hifime UH1 to justify spending another usd140 else no doubt I have to get back then to pro3z and waste $ selling of the matrix spdif at a loss.

Btw, i also just bought and received the Topping D50 dsd dac after reading Amirm's recommendation for planned dsd playback and analog input to my PXA-H900. This is not recommended by most audiophile friend since with added D-A and A-D stages but I was keen to hear it out myself on possible dsd playback in the car without downsampling via usb pro audio appinstalled in the android headunit even before the PXA-H900. There is always use of dsd dac for my office audio setup in addition to the Luxman D06 dsd dac in my home setup and not wasted.

Thanks again and best regards.

Richard
 

Veri

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@richard_crl032 if I were you I'd simply buy the pro3z since you were already quite happy with using it. Why spend more? :)

Getting the matrix and/or a fancy power supply is really just buying into people's wild claims on forums, neither of this has been verified to really make a difference, you are betting a lot of money on questionable information.
 
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@richard_crl032 if I were you I'd simply buy the pro3z since you were already quite happy with using it. Why spend more? :)

Getting the matrix and/or a fancy power supply is really just buying into wild people's claims on forums, neither of this has been verified to really make a difference, you are betting a lot of money on questionable information.

Hi Veri,

Good advice and the usual audiophile itch I guess to be looking for any, if at all, improvement on the preferred and fixed source of android HU for its flexibility.

Thanks again for your advice.

Cheers.

Richard
 

FrantzM

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Hi

My audiophile philosophy has changed considerably those past few years culminating with me listening to a system, for now, based on the exceedingly cheap but IMHO good JBL LSR308, "Bucket Subs" subwoofers and minDSP as the crossover ... This is an interim solution as I will likely move toward something else. I am itching for a Linkwitz LX 521.4 or perhaps in a different direction a JBL M2 + subS as in multiple subs...
This could be a repost but I can see that many DACs measure well enough in most metrics that it seems that choosing a DAC is a matter of convenience, features, price and aesthetics as in looks...
We are reaching IME a threshold where we need to know what makes a difference in term of sound. Many have maintained and there is a valid body of work behind these assertions that once normalized, most of those DACs will sound the same. Thus it begs some questions: What do we want from our DACs? Is it a race to the bottom? That is get the cheapest and be happy? Or is there some differences that needs to be understood? Looking at the SINAD for exemple only some utterly mediocre DACs emerge; most fit the "likely inaudible" enveloppe... but do they? .. Are those DACs ( many were tested to be recommended), sound the same under the same conditions?
Those are the measurements I would like to see and headlined: Those that could make a difference in day to day use...not those that approaches the limit of the theoretical henceforth inaudible ... Perhaps asking for too much but it was worth asking IMHO.
 

Jacona

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Looks like they are merging the FiiO E10k and the Q1 MkII together.
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/fii...now-the-all-new-desktop-dac-amplifier.889473/

The DAC probably got some improvements and now has DSD support and USB-C.
Shame that single-ended power is actually lower than the current E10k while you have to use the balanced output to equal the E10k.

Wish they just shove a DAC into the K5 and make a nice all in one unit.
 
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amirm

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Measurements from Questyle Audio entry-level DACs would be great.
They are quite pricey so too expensive for me to buy. I do get fair bit of requests for them though. How about contacting them and telling them you won't consider their DAC unless they send it in for measurement? More and more companies are doing that these days.
 

Stein

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I'm curious about the hidizs DH1000; it's a portable, dual balanced headphone amp/dac that costs less than 300$

Love the sleek look with the minimalistic design and tempered glass.
 
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amirm

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I'm curious about the hidizs DH1000; it's a portable, dual balanced headphone amp/dac that costs less than 300$

Love the sleek look with the minimalistic design and tempered glass.
It is very nice looking. Too expensive for me to buy it but I just sent them an email to see if they will provide one for review.
 
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