Narnian
Active Member
Finally did a test the last two days of a different DAC to see if I can hear a difference.
I have a Marantz NR1200 which supposedly uses the AK4458VN chipset in a dual channel mode (it has multiple channels) and have been running a WIIM into it using optical. When I used the RCA outs on the WIIM to use it’s internal DAC I could hear it was inferior to the Marantz internal in clarity and sound stage one so I had some discernment capability.
Yesterday I received a Topping DX3 Pro+ DAC (ES9038Q2M) and have tested it running the WIIM optical into it and then analog RCA into the Marantz.
After playing about a dozen test songs multiple times doing A/B tests I have come to the conclusion I cannot hear a substantial difference between using the internal DAC and the external Topping DAC. They had a very subtle difference in sound but nothing I could clearly pinpoint to say one was better that the other.
I am not running this through headphones but through my Revel M105 speakers.
I have 3 months to return it thanks to Amazon so I will keep doing some testing and will report back if anything jumps out at me after I dig deeper into the Topping capabilities.
I have a Marantz NR1200 which supposedly uses the AK4458VN chipset in a dual channel mode (it has multiple channels) and have been running a WIIM into it using optical. When I used the RCA outs on the WIIM to use it’s internal DAC I could hear it was inferior to the Marantz internal in clarity and sound stage one so I had some discernment capability.
Yesterday I received a Topping DX3 Pro+ DAC (ES9038Q2M) and have tested it running the WIIM optical into it and then analog RCA into the Marantz.
After playing about a dozen test songs multiple times doing A/B tests I have come to the conclusion I cannot hear a substantial difference between using the internal DAC and the external Topping DAC. They had a very subtle difference in sound but nothing I could clearly pinpoint to say one was better that the other.
I am not running this through headphones but through my Revel M105 speakers.
I have 3 months to return it thanks to Amazon so I will keep doing some testing and will report back if anything jumps out at me after I dig deeper into the Topping capabilities.
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