This truly begs the question of how all 3 would do in a DBX test - not so much which is better but rather if listeners can hear a difference.Sidetrack a bit, do you have a measurement of the Spring or spring 2 vs. the may and terminator to show?
This truly begs the question of how all 3 would do in a DBX test - not so much which is better but rather if listeners can hear a difference.Sidetrack a bit, do you have a measurement of the Spring or spring 2 vs. the may and terminator to show?
Thank you.I actually disagree here in the same way a mechanical watch holds value for some folks.
Likewise the actual internals of this thing are a sight to behold.
Now is it $4,000 good? That, I can't say, seeing as it's the best R2R I've seen in all respects by a mile.
I agree with what you say in principle, but the primary goal of someone buying this isn't outright sound quality, but this brings it(and competes with Dac chips), and then the luxury furnishing expected of a device in this price bracket.
It certainly appears that the new Topping D90 DAC has hit this threshold. Obviously, Holo Audio and others can come up with an R2R that measure above 130 SINAD at some point, but then we are just paying for amazing feats of engineering skill (like those high complication watches) rather than anything we can hear.Thank you.
If all that were left were the latest Topping DS chip DAC built to the lowest cost in a suicide net factory, this hobby would be pretty stale.
There wouldn’t be anyone left to send to the guillotine, and you’d only be arguing over whose speakers measured the flattest.
BORING!
Or... I can continue saving up for an air-cooled Porsche 911...
YES, when the 996 was first released, the dealer tried to convince me to pick up one of many lightly used 993s he had in stock - stupid young guy I was, I remember completely ignoring everything he said about the 993.Don't you wish you had picked up one or two of those back when they could be had without much saving required?
I remember when they were practically giving 912's away...and the 911's weren't much higher.
They are true classics...
Assuming it measures "just OK", what are the alternatives you would be considering for $4,000 (or less)?I wish someone would measure the May in NOS/DSD mode with oversampling to DSD 256/512 via either Roon or HQPlayer, that is what I ma really interested in. I do not care much about the PCM conversion.
Assuming it measures "just OK", what are the alternatives you would be considering for $4,000 (or less)?
Then you better off save up for a 993, I have one friend keep lend me his and it’s a phenomenal car giving you great handling yet need proper skills to drive. As impressive the holo audio spring and May are I bet the audible improvement from a proper 9038 dac is minimal unless you enjoy nos mode with native pcm decoding then there’s audible differenceNone, i already have a very, very good DIY DAC with ESS 9038, especially optimized for DSD 256 playback. Only DACs I would consider purchasing would be those with potentially even better performance. The May is one of those. Also the Mola Mola (Tambaqui or Makua). Jussi of Signalyist/HQPlayer has measured the Holo Audio Spring, and found better performance with DSD than PCM, I would not be surprised to see slightly better performance with May with DSD vs. PCM. With DSD 256 input of course. I would like to see a little cleaner multitone, and a little better linearity.
Then you better off save up for a 993, I have one friend keep lend me his and it’s a phenomenal car giving you great handling yet need proper skills to drive. As impressive the holo audio spring and May are I bet the audible improvement from a proper 9038 dac is minimal unless you enjoy nos mode with native pcm decoding then there’s audible difference
I have built about 6 ESS based DACs, my current one is a no compromise 9038 build. I also am working on a discrete DSD DAC based on the DSC-2 approach. Both of the best DACs I have ever heard use discrete conversion schemes. See Bruno Putzeys’ comments on why he chose to go discrete on the Tambaqui DAC in the review thread on this forum. I suspect he is right, the Tambaqui is the best DAC I have ever heard, with a combination of both resolution, and ease of presentation that I find very rare. Hence, I am very interested in any DAC which might perform that way. I also am very interested in over sampling in software, where the power of a computer can be used to run much more powerful oversampling approaches than is possible in a small DAC chip (see HQPlayer). The May in NOS DSD mode may be a possible solution, with DSD 256 input from HQPlayer. I am not interested in the traditional style NOS DAC for PCM with low rate input, there is way to much compromise in resolution there.
So, I do hear the difference between, say, the Tambaqui, and an ESS based DAC, it is subtle, in a sense (if one is just looking at SINAD, or just considering noise floor, etc) but on another level, the difference is very significant. It may be that the delta sigma artifacts, “idle tones”, for example, which Mr. Putzeys mentions, are actually audible artifacts which disturb the listening process.
No doubt the ESS 9038 is very good, I am just looking for that next level.
Idle tones are largely a problem of the past, but if they do occur, they are in the megahertz range. If you suspect idle tones, check with a spectrum analyser.It may be that the delta sigma artifacts, “idle tones”, for example, which Mr. Putzeys mentions, are actually audible artifacts which disturb the listening process.
What does that have to do with how sigma-delta modulators work?mansr, have you listened to the Tambaqui in a very good system context?
What does that have to do with how sigma-delta modulators work?
I said that idle tones are unlikely to be an issue with modern DAC chips, and you responded by asking if I'd heard the Tambaqui.Huh?
I know the Purifi team has suggested that they feel DAC chip design is stagnant, and that they would like to design a chip themselves using new approaches, but I suspect it would be very hard for them to get the resources together for that... maybe not though, they have a rally sharp team with a lot of experience in both high end audio and chip development.