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@DACs_Lover, John already gave us all the answers in the thread above already. Read it and look at my grid. Aside from the academic discussion, the practical answer is that the LA4 is already irrelevant in you system. Your system is only as good as you weakest component and in your case that’s...

I would never put that ugly looking thing in my listening room. Looks like a chair. Put a cushion on top and it would be the perfect place for your cat for the winter, but who knows, might be too much heat for it. And 400 lbs, no thanks, i will keep my tiny champ.

Amin to that! That’s why in my OP i stated that i am not aiming to knock them down. They have a lot going for them. They have an amazing team! Great service, great warranty, solidly engineered products, built to last, and here in the US. John has done a fantastic job educating us audiophiles and...

For $70k, you can get 2 monoblock AHB2s with slightly better specs from what i see and with the $64k change get yourself a brand new 335hp Audi A6

It’s true that Benchmark don’t refresh their products often and there is some validity to the statement that they have introduced most of these products at different times, hence the different designs and lack of consistency. The DAC2 was released in 2012 and the design carries to today in the...

If you have fairly efficient speakers, I would go with the AHB2. My speakers have 91db SPL and it drives them to very loud levels. it adds 20dbs. So technically it can cleanly achieve 111dbs. That's ear damaging loud to me. I have used one for 6 years and haven't looked back. I can't speak to...

I agree with you in general. I’ve always kept my previous amps on top for better air circulation and heat dissipation. To be honest, it might be more of a preference in this case since the AHB2 doesn’t have the usual heating concerns. It runs very cool. Unfortunately, Benchmark doesn’t give us...

Good point about the UV meters. I love them but, I understand they are not everyone’s cup of tea. A good solution might be having several screen options, like for example in the Oppo HA-1. There could be a UV meters option, a digital bars option or have a blank/dark display for anyone who finds...

I also have mine in black as i think the brushed aluminum looks better in black. Obviously this is an entirely personal and subjective preference. Having only a DAC3, which is tiny on top of the AHB2 is much more tolerable. But once the LA4/HPA4 is inserted, the stack’s poor visual planning...

I referred to it as a visual mess in my email to Rory and to your point, i told him that those issues are largely cosmetic and can be easily fixed. There would be a very small cost for a very large visual benefit. It’s really a shame, for all the effort that John and the engineering team have...

In this post I will address the one criticism I have about Benchmark products and I would love to hear what others think on this topic. Please note that the intent of this post is not to knock down the products but for us buyers and users to give valuable feedback to Benchmark so hopefully they...

Thank you very much for your prompt responses and the detailed explanations, John! You really helped me piece it all together and visualize it. So i will attempt to verbalize my thoughts as a summary. My hat is off to you and the Benchmark engineering team for designing these ultra...

Good question, I am still trying to fully understand the relationship between speaker SPL and system resolution. Interesting article from John on the relationship between speaker sensitivity and amplifier power...

I can't hear absolutely any noise, nothing if I put my ear on the speaker and obviously that is because my speakers don't have the efficiency of the Benchmark system. So, the ultimate question is, is that a good thing or a bad thing? If you can't hear a thing it means that the speakers are the...

Thank you, @John_Siau! Your explanations were super helpful for me and I think for anyone interested in understanding the benefits of adding an LA4 to the system. Following your detailed explanation I put together a grid, to help those of us interested visualize the SNR relationships between...

Hi, I don’t have a technical background, so could someone please explain the progressive loss of resolution at DAC3 volume levels right below below unity gain and lower when the LA4 is not a part of the chain? I understand that the DAC3 uses a digital attenuator, which would attenuate the signal...

I use SoundSource (it’s a gem) to allow systemwise use of plug-ins and then Fabfilter Pro Q-3 so you can apply EQ to any app, Tidal, Apple Music, etc.

Hi all, i just joined the forum and saw the thread and wanted to share my AHB2 experience. I bought my AHB2/DAC2 HGC COMBO shortly after the AHB2 came out at the end of 2014 and i have been extremely pleased. I wholeheartedly agree with those who stated that you buy this once and you are happy...