Best DACs of 2018

[NorthSky]

To wit, here is a review of the losing DAC, the Border Patrol in that article: https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017...usb-digital-to-analogue-converter-se-version/


View attachment 11189

How come the conductor did not get swapped in his listening? Where is the blurring? Confusion? Coloration??? How did it get an Editor's Choice if it is so flawed according to the other reviewers you post?

So let's not talk about "universal truth." Such subjective reviews have no truth in them. Nothing that can remotely be relied upon to be correct.

So it is not our world that invalidates what they say. It is theirs!

That DAC costs over two grands in Canada; that's not what I call audio value in the year 2018.

 

[NorthSky]

Nope. Make the test blind and they will struggle to figure out which has these characteristics. I know, I do that kind of testing (sighted and blind) all the time. It is so easy to read into sound whatever you like. And it will feel "real." Problem is, science conclusively demonstrates that there is no truth there.

The only way to prove what you say is to do it, repeat the test under blind conditions. Then we'll see.

 

[SchwarzeWolke]

Why not go ahead and ask the guys at Audiostream if they can loan Amir the DACs.

 

[NorthSky]

Sure, let's invite them over here and we can talk some more.

 

[amirm]

That DAC costs over two grands in Canada; that's not what I call audio value in the year 2018.

That was the cheapest DAC they tested in your link:

 

[Thomas savage]

DACs are easy to start new threads; this time around they won't:

• The Great DAC-Off!

It’s the great jack-off..

 

[Purité Audio]

Doesn’t one of them now work for Audioquest cables?
Hi-fi magazines have been propagating these falsehoods for years and years it really is time it was stopped.
Keith

 

[NorthSky]

That was the cheapest DAC they tested in your link:

View attachment 11190

I took the price from the link you provided, and I quoted that post and link:
• https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017...usb-digital-to-analogue-converter-se-version/

"But here’s the real reason why you should care — the BorderPatrol DAC Sounds Great, Fully Capitalized. If you’ll pardon the hyperbole, at $1,850 with all the bells and whistles, this DAC blows the doors off of just about everything else. And no, not just in its weight class. I mean “just about everything else”. To clearly better it, I have to go to extraordinary lengths (and budgets) — and that’s crazy."
_____

$1,850 USD = $ 2,384.94 Cdn

 

[NorthSky]

It’s the great jack-off..

The Great DAC-Off!

 

[RayDunzl]

I'm stuck trying to figure out this accessory:

 

[NorthSky]

Blade Runner 2049 blaster.

The Great DAC-"Shootout"!

 

[RayDunzl]

I thought it was the Terminator...

The name was right.

 

[Wombat]

One company thought it was a DAC shoot-out.

 

[NorthSky]

I thought it was the Terminator...

View attachment 11197

The name was right.

See, someone had a good sense of humor. And he happened to have that blaster from Blade Runner 2049. You can get one on eBay for only $15, it shoots water, it's made of plastic, a plastic water gun replica. Or you can buy a fancier model for between $150 and $200; it comes attached to a wood base, inside a box with Blade Runner 2049 4K Blu-ray, 3D version, regular 1080p BR version, bonus BR disc and DVD (5-disc set). Or ... see below.
K was a replicant's exterminator, in the movie.

Google around and you'll find everything I just said.

 

[NorthSky]

Here:

 

[NorthSky]

Warning if you watch this video; there is a short annoying loud sound @ one point (5:17):

My best guess is that's the one used in The Great DAC-Off! picture.

 

[NorthSky]

Remember, in audio as in DACs as in music as in movies it's all supposed to be entertaining, fun.
But with real guns it's no fun.

 

[VanNeumann]

Does anyone know much about the MiniDSP HA-DSP DAC/AMP. https://www.minidsp.com/products/dsp-headphone-amp/ha-dsp.

Here is how they describe it:

The HA-DSP is a revolutionary new headphone DAC/amplifier from miniDSP. As well as providing three inputs (USB/Analog/Toslink), the miniDSP HA-DSP features a hitherto-unknown level of digital signal processing power and flexibility in a headphone amplifier: simple bass and treble adjustments, ten fully programmable parametric equalizer bands per channel, and a revolutionary FIR filtering/cross-feed matrix that allows implementation of extremely sophisticated headphone correction and cross-feed algorithms.

All this power is delivered by a 500MHz XMOS multi-core processor and a 400MHZ SHARC DSP. The onboard firmware is designed to seamlessly interface with laptops and desktops, iOS devices, and Android devices. And any other source can be connected via the analog input or optical digital input. When it comes to USB audio streaming, the HA-DSP supports both PCM and DSD formats.

Housed in a lightweight and compact enclosure, the HA-DSP can go anywhere you can. Its 3300 mAh battery provides ample power — enough for a full day (ten hours) of listening. The combination of DSP power, careful selection of high-quality components and a 32-bit ESS audiophile-quality DAC combine to create an unparalleled portable headphone experience.​

 

[RayDunzl]

Does anyone know much about the MiniDSP HA-DSP DAC/AMP

No.

Looks like a new product.

Here's some more info:

https://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/Product Brief - HA-DSP.pdf

https://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/HA-DSP User Manual.pdf

So it's a Sabre DAC with an ADC (for analog sources) and user programmable DSP in front, and positioned as a batteried portable headphone appliance. No line outputs.

My limited experience with miniDSP is good enough. If I wanted it I'd buy it. Expect their shipping from HongKong to take 2~3 days. FedEx might charge you import fees. I think I remember getting a bill later for $18 or so (US Customs Duty, whatever) in the past. I paid, so I don't know what happens if you don't.

Maybe it will become available from someone more local, if they go to the trouble to import it.

MiniDSP is headed by Tony Rouget.

 

[Frank Dernie]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...9-wives-94-children-and-33-grandchildren.html

A 66-year-old man in India's remote northeast has 39 wives, 94 children and 33 grandchildren, all living under one roof.

They all live in a four storied building with 100 rooms in a mountainous village in Mizoram state, sharing borders with Burma and Bangladesh, according to reports.

He has plenty of time, my great grandfather was 81 when his youngest child was born...