Articles, Reviews and Measurements of Audio Products
Woo Audio WA7 & WA7tp DAC and Headphone Amp Review
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Woo Audio tube WA7 DAC and headphone amplifier together with its companion WA7tp tube power supply. It is on kind loan from a member. The cost of the pair is USD $1,599 so not cheap. As of this writing, shipping is free but I assume you would otherwise have to pay for it.
Note: this is the generation 1 of the WA7. The generation 2 is supposed to have a better DAC (?).
I remember running into Woo Audio amp a few years ago and drooled over its industrial design. The WA7 series is not quite up there with the rest of the units but still benefits from its massive plastic transparent top to give it elegance and drool appeal:
Strangely, the power supply has a rotary control which does nothing. You push it in and it power cycles on and off. A multi-pin short cable attaches the two. Reading the reviews, there are complaints that no AC power cord comes with WA7tp. What the heck?
As...
Note: this is the generation 1 of the WA7. The generation 2 is supposed to have a better DAC (?).
I remember running into Woo Audio amp a few years ago and drooled over its industrial design. The WA7 series is not quite up there with the rest of the units but still benefits from its massive plastic transparent top to give it elegance and drool appeal:
Strangely, the power supply has a rotary control which does nothing. You push it in and it power cycles on and off. A multi-pin short cable attaches the two. Reading the reviews, there are complaints that no AC power cord comes with WA7tp. What the heck?
As...
Review and Measurements of Sound BlasterX G6
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Sound BlasterX G6. I purchased it last month for USD $150 from Amazon including shipping.
Typical of PC audio connectivity devices, the Sound BlasterX G6 is a combo device which includes an audio DAC, ADC, and headphone amplifier. This being targeted towards gamers, there are a lot of specific features in that regard which I did not test. My focus here is the pure audio performance.
The Sound BlasterX G6 looks better in pictures than in person due to lightweight, plastic case:
No, there are no batteries. The unit is USB powered and I used photoshop to erase the USB cable. I hope those of you picking on my photography are happy!
The volume control is a rotary encoder so turns forever in either direction. There are no notches but overall feel/stiffness is not bad. I did however find that there was a lag between turning the dial and my Roon player registering the change.
As...
Typical of PC audio connectivity devices, the Sound BlasterX G6 is a combo device which includes an audio DAC, ADC, and headphone amplifier. This being targeted towards gamers, there are a lot of specific features in that regard which I did not test. My focus here is the pure audio performance.
The Sound BlasterX G6 looks better in pictures than in person due to lightweight, plastic case:
No, there are no batteries. The unit is USB powered and I used photoshop to erase the USB cable. I hope those of you picking on my photography are happy!
The volume control is a rotary encoder so turns forever in either direction. There are no notches but overall feel/stiffness is not bad. I did however find that there was a lag between turning the dial and my Roon player registering the change.
As...
Review and Measurements of Gustard DAC-X26
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Gustard DAC-X26 stereo audio dac. It is was kindly sent to me by Shenzhen Audio for testing. The DAC-X26 normally costs USD $1,299 but seems to be on sale at Shenzhen Audio for $1,169 as of this writing. Note that I have no relationship with either Shenzhen Audio or Gustard. And nothing was communicated other than wanting to send the unit in for testing.
The Gustard DAC-X26 is one heavy box. You can't tell it from the picture but it I promise you, it is:
I like the super clear display showing everything you need to know at a glance. There is a remote which I did not use for this testing.
The back panel has the inputs you expect including I²S input:
There are two independent linear power supplies with their own transformers...
The Gustard DAC-X26 is one heavy box. You can't tell it from the picture but it I promise you, it is:
I like the super clear display showing everything you need to know at a glance. There is a remote which I did not use for this testing.
The back panel has the inputs you expect including I²S input:
There are two independent linear power supplies with their own transformers...
Review and Measurements of LH Labs GO2Pro Infinity DAC & Amp
This is a review and detailed measurements of the LH Labs GO2Pro Infinity portable DAC and headphone amplifier. It is on kind loan from a member. It costs USD $480 including a 20% discount as of this writing. So full retain price is a whopping $600!
I tested the regular GO2Pro version a while back but it was with my less standardized tests.
The GO2Pro Infinity is a chunky unit the size of a mobile phone but much thicker and heavier:
I like that the sides are chamfered which makes them fit the hand better and poke you less.
The color and graphics also give the unit a somewhat luxury look, separating it from the crowd of products in this category (battery operated headphone DAC+amp).
There are separate USB jacks for data and charging. I wish the data one could do both for desktop use.
The on/off switch is a stiff slider which I guess is good so it won't accidentally turn on by itself and drain the battery.
I was not a fan...
I tested the regular GO2Pro version a while back but it was with my less standardized tests.
The GO2Pro Infinity is a chunky unit the size of a mobile phone but much thicker and heavier:
I like that the sides are chamfered which makes them fit the hand better and poke you less.
The color and graphics also give the unit a somewhat luxury look, separating it from the crowd of products in this category (battery operated headphone DAC+amp).
There are separate USB jacks for data and charging. I wish the data one could do both for desktop use.
The on/off switch is a stiff slider which I guess is good so it won't accidentally turn on by itself and drain the battery.
I was not a fan...
Review and Measurements of Holo Audio Cyan DSD DAC
This is a review and detailed measurements of Kitsune Hifi's Holo Audio Cyan DAC with DSD option. It is on kind loan from a member. The Cyan comes either in PCM R2R with headphone amp or just DSD (you can also get both). The cost for the DSD version is USD $1099. I am assuming you have to pay shipping on top of that.
While the pedigree of off-the-shelf DIY case cannot be erased, the Cyan DAC adds enough touches to make it look nicer than the crowd:
I am especially fond of the dot matrix white LEDs. Not a good choice in the bedroom likely but otherwise, it is bright and legible.
As noted, the headphone amp option is deleted from the DSD version but oddly the volume control and jacks are left there. I guess it saved them manufacturing cost to make another front panel without those holes. From what I recall, even the headphone circuits are in there but just disabled. The reason being that the DSD stream doesn't allow digital...
While the pedigree of off-the-shelf DIY case cannot be erased, the Cyan DAC adds enough touches to make it look nicer than the crowd:
I am especially fond of the dot matrix white LEDs. Not a good choice in the bedroom likely but otherwise, it is bright and legible.
As noted, the headphone amp option is deleted from the DSD version but oddly the volume control and jacks are left there. I guess it saved them manufacturing cost to make another front panel without those holes. From what I recall, even the headphone circuits are in there but just disabled. The reason being that the DSD stream doesn't allow digital...
Review and Measurements of NAD 7050 Streaming Amp
This is a review and detailed measurements of the NAD 7050 integrated DAC, amplifier and streaming playback. It is on kind loan from a member. It appears the product was announced in 2014 and since discontinued as I can't find it on sale anywhere. The cost was USD $999 from what I can gather.
The unit can be used both horizontally and vertically. A rotational sensor changes the display orientation conveniently. Here is its upright position which I consider better for sound since the electrons can naturally free fall into the speaker terminals:
The outside has what appears to be some sort of rubber glued to it. It is soft to touch but picks up dirt very easily and is impossible to clean due to sticky nature of it.
The large knobs imply great feel which they don't have. They wobble as you rotate them. The larger knob is the volume control which had an odd delay in updating the display as you rotated it. Overall, a good effort...
The unit can be used both horizontally and vertically. A rotational sensor changes the display orientation conveniently. Here is its upright position which I consider better for sound since the electrons can naturally free fall into the speaker terminals:
The outside has what appears to be some sort of rubber glued to it. It is soft to touch but picks up dirt very easily and is impossible to clean due to sticky nature of it.
The large knobs imply great feel which they don't have. They wobble as you rotate them. The larger knob is the volume control which had an odd delay in updating the display as you rotated it. Overall, a good effort...
Review and Measurements of Musiland MU1 Headphone Adapter
This is a review and detailed measurements of the Musiland MU1 portable DAC and Headphone "dongle." It is on kind loan from an overseas member (the third of the package he sent me!). The MU1 costs $35 so quite a bit more than $10 price we are used to but in grand scheme of things, it is not much money if it brings more enjoyable than other throw-away dongles.
From the outside, the MU1 does have a premium feel compared to cheaper alternative:
We have that aftermarket braided wire which in this case is functional and gives the impression that it won't fall apart quickly. There is a proper logo so you know what you own too.
Getting this dongle working required using USB-2 port again as I was the case with the HTC dongle I reviewed earlier today. Unlike the other dongles though, I did not have to jump...
From the outside, the MU1 does have a premium feel compared to cheaper alternative:
We have that aftermarket braided wire which in this case is functional and gives the impression that it won't fall apart quickly. There is a proper logo so you know what you own too.
Getting this dongle working required using USB-2 port again as I was the case with the HTC dongle I reviewed earlier today. Unlike the other dongles though, I did not have to jump...
Review and Measurements of HTC Headphone Adapter
This is a review and detailed measurements of the HTC USB-C DAC and Headphone "dongle" aimed at mobile phone industry. It is on kind loan from an overseas member. I can only find overseas pricing for it but I think I found one site that listed it at USD $12. In that regard, it falls in the same price category of Google and Apple dongles.
As you can imagine, there is not much to this little adapter:
Hard to predict if the cable will fail sooner or later than its competitor.
Ghost in the Machine
When I received the HTC dongle, I had a heck of a time getting it to be recognized by Windows. I plugged it into the same USB-3 capable ports I use for testing every DAC. Here though, nothing would happen when I plugged it in. Reboot did not help either, nor would it show up in device manager in any way. I then tried it on my USB 2 front-panel and it worked! This is surprising as with other USB-C adapters, it is the other way...
As you can imagine, there is not much to this little adapter:
Hard to predict if the cable will fail sooner or later than its competitor.
Ghost in the Machine
When I received the HTC dongle, I had a heck of a time getting it to be recognized by Windows. I plugged it into the same USB-3 capable ports I use for testing every DAC. Here though, nothing would happen when I plugged it in. Reboot did not help either, nor would it show up in device manager in any way. I then tried it on my USB 2 front-panel and it worked! This is surprising as with other USB-C adapters, it is the other way...
Review and Measurements of Musiland MU2 Plus DAC & Amp
This is a review and detailed measurements of Musiland MU2 Plus DAC and portable headphone amplifier. It is on kind loan from a member. I am having trouble finding the company's website. It is not sold broadly but where I find it, it seems to cost $70.
The Mu2 Plus is featherweight but manages to have a bit of luxury feel to it with the color selection and sturdy metal build:
The controls have a nice, positive tactile feel although I could not get the volume adjustments to take in every press. With no indicator, it is a bit hard to know if you have pressed the buttons enough or not.
The flat ribbon cable is quite flexible which is nice but I wonder about its longevity. It is also a shame that it is not color matched to the rest of the unit.
Overall, the Musiland MU2 Plus leaves a positive impression in the land and to the eye.
The MU2 Plus is plug-and-play compatible with Windows 10 Creators Edition. I did not try to get it...
The Mu2 Plus is featherweight but manages to have a bit of luxury feel to it with the color selection and sturdy metal build:
The controls have a nice, positive tactile feel although I could not get the volume adjustments to take in every press. With no indicator, it is a bit hard to know if you have pressed the buttons enough or not.
The flat ribbon cable is quite flexible which is nice but I wonder about its longevity. It is also a shame that it is not color matched to the rest of the unit.
Overall, the Musiland MU2 Plus leaves a positive impression in the land and to the eye.
The MU2 Plus is plug-and-play compatible with Windows 10 Creators Edition. I did not try to get it...