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SONCOZ SGD1 Audio DAC Review

miero

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@WolfX-700 thanks for the measuring noise floor. To me it seems that most of distortion (IMD hump too) will be close to the (summed) noise floor.
 

WolfX-700

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Yes. That's why I attached my measurements since the ESS hump only deteriorates IMD measurements at mid levels. At high levels the ESS wins of course. BTW that 2005 soundcard uses CS4382.

Yes, I responded to forum members' request to reveal the IMD spectrum at medium signal strength. But I found that I forgot to put the picture under High level (for comparison)
 

Veri

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I agree. This seems to be adding more work for @amirm as he's getting drawn into a comparison after he's finished the normal amount of work he would need to do for a review. It's obviously better for us but it seems like Amir's time is already stretched with the number of reviews he does.
Can't please everyone. Measure one unit: small sample size! Two measurements of same device: waste of resources!

Ehh~...
 

solderdude

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Amir has been acused of borking measurements.
2 independent measurers with similar test equipment doing same measurements has merits for this as well..
 

Thomas savage

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I think an independent review by an independent source is a better verification of the same manufacturer and unit.

If a manufacturer has serious problems in quality control, etc., it is easy to find such multiple independent measurements.

IMO This will help improve ASR's overall reputation.
I agree but maybe @pozz can link the reviews when they are for the same product, precisely for the reasons you mention.

To this end ASR developing standardized methods for review measurements that are to be published here would be of great benefit to.

There's a bit to sort out so we maximise the value and respect the effort you are putting in.

Again @WolfX-700 ,I have huge admiration for the selfless, open and egoless way you have conducted yourself here and thank you for the great work you doing.

Just don't get more likes than Amirm , else I will have to listen to all the crying behind the scenes. He's already jealous of your wolf's , clearly they would eat the pink panthers for breakfast.
 

maxxevv

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fredoamigo

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index.php

I really like the separation plate between the power supply and the circuits there are many other manufacturers who are very expensive , who do not bother with this kind of "subtleties"...
it underlines the care and seriousness of the construction .
 
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pozz

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I agree but maybe @pozz can link the reviews when they are for the same product, precisely for the reasons you mention.

To this end ASR developing standardized methods for review measurements that are to be published here would be of great benefit to.

There's a bit to sort out so we maximise the value and respect the effort you are putting in.

Again @WolfX-700 ,I have huge admiration for the selfless, open and egoless way you have conducted yourself here and thank you for the great work you doing.

Just don't get more likes than Amirm , else I will have to listen to all the crying behind the scenes. He's already jealous of your wolf's , clearly they would eat the pink panthers for breakfast.
So it's not completely obvious because of the format, but until we make an a interactive version the way it works is that you can look up the device and the updates I know about in the master review index:
Issue is that I can't follow every debate and update, which is why I've asked reviewers to PM me anytime they have something new to submit.
 

WolfX-700

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This got me wondering, based on yours and Amir's SMPTE curve, its best results are around -5dB signal level ? ( if I understood that correctly that is, as I don't completely understand this concept even though I have read AP's own FAQ on the subject : https://www.ap.com/technical-library/more-about-imd/ ), so would the above at -5dB be relevant in this case ? As I normally leave my DAC output at close to 0 dB anyway.

Considering the complexity of music-they have various loudness levels. So IMD at various levels (this measurement has been simplified a lot) is very meaningful.

0db here refers to the loudest part of the music ... (in fact, it is generally not used)
 

WolfX-700

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So it's not completely obvious because of the format, but until we make an a interactive version the way it works is that you can look up the device and the updates I know about in the master review index:
Issue is that I can't follow every debate and update, which is why I've asked reviewers to PM me anytime they have something new to submit.

I missed this part. I will follow this for future measurements and reviews.
 

bennetng

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This got me wondering, based on yours and Amir's SMPTE curve, its best results are around -5dB signal level ? ( if I understood that correctly that is, as I don't completely understand this concept even though I have read AP's own FAQ on the subject : https://www.ap.com/technical-library/more-about-imd/ ), so would the above at -5dB be relevant in this case ? As I normally leave my DAC output at close to 0 dB anyway.
Since real music has varying amplitude so this value can vary as well.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...oncoz-sgd1-audio-dac-review.10295/post-282855

If your playback app supports volume management then you can even save the desired playback level so there is no need to manually adjust the volume for each song/album every time you listen to them.

https://archimago.blogspot.com/2019/06/guest-post-why-we-should-use-software.html
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-music-players-foobar-jriver.7412/post-188141
 

miero

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0dB is maximum value of a sampled point, but "true peak" or "intersample over" of the recording could be much higher:
- https://techblog.izotope.com/2015/08/24/true-peak-detection/
- https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/intersample-over-test.3730/
- http://www.analog-precision.com/Dow...rsample_Overs_using_the_Intersample_Guard.pdf

For example 20kHz square wave at 0dBFS sampled at 44100kHz contains intersample overs with +8.15dB amplitude. These will be generated during oversampling in the DAC.
 
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Purité Audio

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Very smart bit of kit though,
Keith
 

Shadrach

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Thanks for the review amirm and Mr Wolf. (Pulp fiction anyone?)
This hump. I realise to those who are seeking a higher standard it's unsatisfactory given some units don't exhibit it, but what if anything would one hear when such a hump is present?
 

D700

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The volume control is a rotary encoder. The ring around it indicates volume level. I sort of expected a numerical display to the left of it. You can easily set the input and filter types by how long you push the encoder in, and then rotating it.
Amirm, I'm not familiar with the term rotary encoder, can't recall you calling that out before. What is significance of that component? Beautiful unit.
 

miero

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0dB is maximum value of a sampled point, but "true peak" or "intersample over" of the recording could be much higher:
- https://techblog.izotope.com/2015/08/24/true-peak-detection/
- https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/intersample-over-test.3730/
- http://www.analog-precision.com/Dow...rsample_Overs_using_the_Intersample_Guard.pdf

For example 20kHz square wave at 0dBFS sampled at 44100kHz contains intersample overs with +8.15dB amplitude. These will be generated during oversampling in the DAC.
Would it be possible to run THD vs. freq with a square signal at -1dBFS? It could show how much dynamic headroom is there on a DAC.

I am aware this is not a valid signal that could be recorded by ADC, but in a world of compressed music this happens, unfortunatelly.
 
D

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I agree but maybe @pozz can link the reviews when they are for the same product, precisely for the reasons you mention.

To this end ASR developing standardized methods for review measurements that are to be published here would be of great benefit to.

There's a bit to sort out so we maximise the value and respect the effort you are putting in.

Again @WolfX-700 ,I have huge admiration for the selfless, open and egoless way you have conducted yourself here and thank you for the great work you doing.

Just don't get more likes than Amirm , else I will have to listen to all the crying behind the scenes. He's already jealous of your wolf's , clearly they would eat the pink panthers for breakfast.

Since this thread is a Review within a Review, could we at least agree to to have each review in its own thread?
Who’s to respond to questions on measurements, original reviewer or second reviewer?
 

bennetng

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