Denafrips ARES II USB R2R DAC Review

[kchap]

Pardon my ignorance, but are you saying that all you will ever need to spend on a DAC is $100.

That might be a little low, depends on features. I'd say more like $150; USD just to be clear. If you want a decent HP amp etc it will be more. And I'm sure there will be bargains that are around the $100 mark. I've pay a bit more because I like the warm fuzzy glow of showing off.

 

[billyjoebob]

That might be a little low, depends on features. I'd say more like $150; USD just to be clear. If you want a decent HP amp etc it will be more. And I'm sure there will be bargains that are around the $100 mark. I've pay a bit more because I like the warm fuzzy glow of showing off.

For the extra $50, all you get is a fuzzy glow? No sound improvement?
What DAC are you using?

 

[Killingbeans]

I can`t imagine why someone would say such things without actually having experienced them and really believing it.

That's the most bothersome thing about perceptual bias. The experience is real, and it's very believable. It's just not caused by the DAC.

To me the guy does not appear to be a unhonest person.

He probably is perfectly honest. People who experience placebo effects from fake medicin are not devious either.

 

[kchap]

No audible

For the extra $50, all you get is a fuzzy glow? No sound improvement?
What DAC are you using?

No audible difference. And I did say the I thought $150 (USD) was closer to the mark. A topping D10B will cost you $140 (USD). The D10S is a $120 (USD). I picked the Toppings because I had some experience with them but, there are other brands.

 

[Killingbeans]

Pardon my ignorance, but are you saying that all you will ever need to spend on a DAC is $100.

Look at this $9 Apple dongle, and compare it to the review in the first post of the thread we're in:

Review: Apple vs Google USB-C Headphone Adapters

This is a review, detailed measurements and comparison of Apple's USB-C adapter to the current and last version of Google Pixel headphone adapters. The Apple adapter costs just $9 including one day shipping for free. The Google dongle costs $12. Not that any of these are large by any stretch...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Not a huge difference.

 

[billyjoebob]

No audible

No audible difference. And I did say the I thought $150 (USD) was closer to the mark. A topping D10B will cost you $140 (USD). The D10S is a $120 (USD). I picked the Toppings because I had some experience with them but, there are other brands.

So what do you get for from topping d90?

 

[Killingbeans]

Bragging rights.

 

[billyjoebob]

Look at this $9 Apple dongle, and compare it to the review in the first post of the thread we're in:

Review: Apple vs Google USB-C Headphone Adapters

This is a review, detailed measurements and comparison of Apple's USB-C adapter to the current and last version of Google Pixel headphone adapters. The Apple adapter costs just $9 including one day shipping for free. The Google dongle costs $12. Not that any of these are large by any stretch...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Not a huge difference.

Look at this $9 Apple dongle, and compare it to the review in the first post of the thread we're in:

Review: Apple vs Google USB-C Headphone Adapters

This is a review, detailed measurements and comparison of Apple's USB-C adapter to the current and last version of Google Pixel headphone adapters. The Apple adapter costs just $9 including one day shipping for free. The Google dongle costs $12. Not that any of these are large by any stretch...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Not a huge difference.

Sorry, I can't get with this.
That is saying that a cell phone and an apple dongle will be all you ever need.

 

[billyjoebob]

Bragging rights.

No seriously!
Why would a great company like topping make a device like the d90 with NO audible difference from the d10. It does not make any sense!

 

[Killingbeans]

That is saying that a cell phone and an apple dongle will be all you ever need.

Well, what can I say?... If USB-C in and mini-jack out is enough for your needs, then I really don't see why not.

Of course there's plenty of other reasons to spend money on a DAC than just sound quality.

 

[raif71]

No seriously!
Why would a great company like topping make a device like the d90 with NO audible difference from the d10. It does not make any sense!

On top of my head, more power, balanced connections, led display etc.

 

[Killingbeans]

Why would a great company like topping make a device like the d90 with NO audible difference from the d10. It does not make any sense!

Supply and demand. People want high SINAD DACs, and Topping delivers.

And yes, like raif71 says above; more functionality.

 

[Rottmannash]

No seriously!
Why would a great company like topping make a device like the d90 with NO audible difference from the d10. It does not make any sense!

Because they can. Why did Bugatti make the Chiron?

 

[BDWoody]

For the extra $50, all you get is a fuzzy glow? No sound improvement?
What DAC are you using?

Sorry, I can't get with this.
That is saying that a cell phone and an apple dongle will be all you ever need.

If the only issue is sound quality, more money won't get you there. Inputs/outputs, balanced, fancy case, volume control, output voltage, remote control, warranty, looks, feel, etc. all are part of why you may want more than a dongle.

These are engineered solid state devices, not instruments that are part of some grand tuning exercise.

A DAC being audibly transparent in anything other than pathological or boundary conditions is the exception, not the rule. Been that way for a couple decades now.

Transducers are another story...

 

[billyjoebob]

Because they can. Why did Bugatti make the Chiron?

Not a good example!
The chiron has a top speed of 260mph.
That is a MAJOR upgrade from say a carmry or even a corvette.
Now if the chiron had the same top speed as the camry, then that would be an even comparion.

 

[mansr]

The chiron has a top speed of 260mph.
That is a MAJOR upgrade from say a carmry or even a corvette.

Not if the legal limit is 70 mph.

 

[Killingbeans]

I think the D90 is more like a minivan with the performance of a Chiron and a ton of accessories.

You only use it to shuttle the kids to and from school, and it does that job just fine, even though you never use any of the crazy performance. But a normal minivan (D10) does it equally fine.

 

[helom]

Many audiophiles love the idea of R2R DACs. They see this technology as more "analogue" than delta-sigma, even though it's not.

It’s a more raw conversion in the case of the Denafrips DACs. And their rendition of a 24bit 1kHz sinewave is smooth as can be. You could argue that makes no audible difference but I think maybe there’s something to it in the way it’s less fatiguing over long listening sessions. In that way it can be similar to vinyl. I don’t think it sounds like vinyl but does sound incredibly different from a conventional DS DAC. Many here will never know because they’re too content (and arrogant) believing their systems totaling $1.5K are as good as hi-fi gets—their greatest aspiration being to own a pair metallic sounding Revels someday.

 

[gvl]

incredibly different

Incredibly? Really? In a blind test?

 

[gvl]

You really can’t though. I’ve tried such with the Topping D90 and Schiit Lokius. Doesn’t work that way. It’s not a less bright or less forward sound that separates the Ares from other DACs. You really have to live with one for a while to understand. A lot of conjecture on this thread and very little actual experience.

I lived with a Metrum Pavane for a while. So I know exactly what you mean. I was very pleased. Then I bought a Khadas Tone board for $80 and sold the Pavane two weeks after because I could no longer listen to it.