Okto dac8 stereo DAC Review

[Sunship]

1,100 Euro Best In Class DAC with 58,000 Euro speakers! Time to work on affordable, high performance speakers!

Not with TAD drivers then

 

[Billy Budapest]

Any idea why Okto chose to use the ESS 9028 instead of the 9038PRO?

 

[gvl]

we just found our chief smelling officer

Do you always refer to yourself in a plural form? That's a sign of a mental condition, you should seek a professional consultation.

 

[phoenixdogfan]

This seems to be an exclusive and expensive solution but impressive.

My alternative is the OCTO8 + having my DDRC24 moddded to output SPIDF through two channels.

 

[Veri]

Any idea why Okto chose to use the ESS 9028 instead of the 9038PRO?

The required analog output stage between both is radically different, if I recall correctly Okto is not too interested in making a 9038Pro one, the 9028Pro hits the audio analyser's limits anyway what more could 9038 bring besides placebo?

 

[gvl]

Any idea why Okto chose to use the ESS 9028 instead of the 9038PRO?

9038 presents analog stage design challenges afaik, it may have a better potential but in reality it's hard to beat 9028 numbers, so why bother. In fact DAC8 already performing better than all 9038 DACs we've seen here.

 

[Veri]

9038 presents analog stage design challenges afaik, it may have a better potential but in reality it's hard to beat 9028 numbers, so why bother.

Exactly

 

[Billy Budapest]

9038 presents analog stage design challenges afaik, it may have a better potential but in reality it's hard to beat 9028 numbers, so why bother. In fact DAC8 already performing better than all 9038 DACs we've seen here.

Sure, but think of how much better they could do with a 9038PRO.

 

[Veri]

Sure, but think of how much better they could do with a 9038PRO.

How much better.. like, half a percent better? No seriously, this is already the best of the best. No need to feed this curiousity, Okto works perfect as an 9028 DAC if you want a worse performing 9038-based one by all means, get that and save some money.

 

[Billy Budapest]

The required analog output stage between both is radically different, if I recall correctly Okto is not too interested in making a 9038Pro one, the 9028Pro hits the audio analyser's limits anyway what more could 9038 bring besides placebo?

That’s almost like saying, what does 122 SINAD bring to the table over 115 SINAD. In practical terms, nothing. According to your logic, then why even do it?

 

[Billy Budapest]

How much better.. like, half a percent better? No seriously, this is already the best of the best. No need to feed this curiousity, Okto works perfect as an 9028 DAC if you want a worse performing 9038-based one by all means, get that and save some money.

The point is progress.

 

[gvl]

Sure, but think of how much better they could do with a 9038PRO.

Maybe, maybe not. I thought Pavel indicated he was interested in exploring 9038 for future work, we'll see.

 

[EchoChamber]

The external USB jumper is a necessity, because the standard format Raspberry Pi does not have USB routed to its onboard header. However, it is a plug-and-forget thing and a small price to pay for making it possible to accommodate a standard-format Raspberry Pi.

I think your solution is very elegant. The custom USB cable in the back is almost invisible and non obstructive. In an ideal world both boards would be able to communicate inside the chassis, but I think adopting a standard hardware like a Pi (that can be easily user customized, replaced and possibly upgraded), and choosing a no sonic compromise solution (with DSD support) is brilliant.

PS: fan boy here!

 

[Labjr]

Progress would be a $99 DAC with those specs.

 

[Veri]

That’s almost like saying, what does 122 SINAD bring to the table over 115 SINAD. In practical terms, nothing. According to your logic, then why even do it?

Did you miss the post where it was already shown, Amir's analyser cannot measure further than the performance seen here?
Yes, it's almost like I'm saying 122 SINAD and 122 SINAD are the same. Could it possible be??! The maths seem to check out

 

[MadMan]

Sure, but think of how much better they could do with a 9038PRO.

But also, think of how much it might add to the price if it requires a more complicated board, additional and more expensive parts (in addition to the DAC chip itself) etc etc. There's (almost) always that diminishing returns factor, but in this case I suspect it would be hugely out of proportion.

Don't obsess over 'XYZ part', just worry about the results that we actually use - in the case of a DAC, the analog output.

 

[Vasr]

Progress would be a $99 DAC with those specs.

Absolutely. But at least to half the price first.

The thing about the pricing for this stereo DAC is that it is totally out of whack with competition of which there are plenty in the 2-ch market, granted with not as good subjectively in industrial engineering and aesthetics for a traditional audio stack. It is like a well-crafted watch that you pay a premium for although cheaper ones will keep time just as well. So, it is a little bit of bragging rights involved as well. Would there be equal excitement if it was 5th or 6th down that SINAD list with no impact on audibility?

On the other hand the 8 channel Octa8 Pro has almost no competition and priced not much more above this.

 

[DaaDaa]

Absolutely. But at least to half the price first.

The thing about the pricing for this stereo DAC is that it is totally out of whack with competition of which there are plenty in the 2-ch market, granted with not as good subjectively in industrial engineering and aesthetics for a traditional audio stack. It is like a well-crafted watch that you pay a premium for although cheaper ones will keep time just as well. So, it is a little bit of bragging rights involved as well. Would there be equal excitement if it was 5th or 6th down that SINAD list with no impact on audibility?

On the other hand the 8 channel Octa8 Pro has almost no competition and priced not much more above this.

The 8 channel one is cheaper

 

[Xyrium]

I am very curious about the make of your headphones...or are you connecting to a HiFi...?

Please prove your results by starting a new thread and showing measurements.

Don't feed the tr0ll....

 

[John1959]

Any idea why Okto chose to use the ESS 9028 instead of the 9038PRO?

Yes, they started their development with the ES9028 when the 9038 was not available yet. When it came available they assessed any benefits of this later DAC chip for their design goals. The result was there where none. Except a higher current output of the 9038PRO both DAC chips are largely identical anyway. And only the 9038PRO has the annoying so called THD+Noise hump which is not easy to get rid of.