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Chord DAVE Review (DAC & HP Amp)
- Thread starter amirm
- Start date
Can you find one?
Your welcome
DonR
Major Contributor
Is there a positive objective review?
Pure objectivity doesn't exist.
It’s not you would get nothing in return for 14.000 EUR.
* a nice milling job (maybe the best of this package)
* a questionable user interface ("how bad you want the UX to be?" - "Yes.")
* a great spin doctored FPGA-marketing story (hats off!)
* a kind of DAC (measuring somehow meh?)
* a nice milling job (maybe the best of this package)
* a questionable user interface ("how bad you want the UX to be?" - "Yes.")
* a great spin doctored FPGA-marketing story (hats off!)
* a kind of DAC (measuring somehow meh?)
Keep in mind that top-tier ASR SINAD is firmly in the inaudible zone now. So if you like the other things about the DAVE enough and you have that sort of budget, go for it. Or wait for the next one. Or spend more on a dCS stack, as you prefer. But if money is tight—and it often is now that the heel of the capitalist jackboot has been grinding the middle classes into the dirt for decades—lots of benefit to be had following advice here.
And know one who understands data would compare an apple to an orange and say they are in the same distribution. Are there other objective reviews that provide similar measurements and say that it performed well for the money?
OP
- Thread Starter
- #991
You forgot to add, "Confucius says."
Nothing in the world is pure. The dish you eat from is not purely clean. But it doesn't need to be. It only needs to be pure enough to not make you sick. So don't raise the bar for audio when you are not using the same bar for anything else.
OP
- Thread Starter
- #992
True dat. But you can't average numbers and letters. My reviews are unique (but shouldn't be):
1. The review is based on data that is devoid of opinion. Apply this to other reviews and you are not left with much.
2. The data can be replicated and disputed. Such was not done by the company or anyone else.
3. Things like the high price can be verified by any reader. So can't be disputed.
4. I only recommend 1/3 of all devices I ever review. Show me another reviewer that has this track record. To the extent the others like everything they review, the fact that they are all positive means nothing as far as accuracy.
I could go on but be careful where you put your trust based on arguments instead of data.
VQR
Member
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The main difference in Amir's and other reviews is the absence of subjective preference for the DAVE. The measurements line up with those of Stereophile, ditto with Golden Sound's, but what's different is the objective analysis between the DAVE and other competing products.
Rest of the reviews just said the measurements are good, which is fine, but neglect to mention the better measuring alternatives. There was no proof given for any scientific preference by any reviewer, nor proper listening tests or measurements given by CHORD.
Relying on unsubstantiated subjective preferences for DAC's isn't Amir's MO. This wouldn't be the Audio Science Review if reviews and discussion didn't strive to quantify and qualify good sound in a scientific manner. It's easy for placebo from price, visual differences, level mismatch, and switching in a non-blind AB to provide subjective preference for DAVE. Other outlets might be OK not trying to control for existing placebo, but I and most here prefer the style on ASR of relying on what's repeatable and objective.
The Chord Dave is still in the blue region, which means that despite all of its measured flaws, it will still sound great. It should sound better than anything in the green region.
So taken in isolation, the DAVE is great.
What is tough is that the DAVE is expensive and there are newer products which probably sound just as good and are cheaper.
Those cheaper devices may have trade offs like customer support, aesthetics, etc.
I agree with all you've said, but I'll take you up on the "It should sound better than anything in the green region". I'd be surprised if anyone could tell the difference between DACS in the green & blue region, maybe even the orange region, but I'd be comfortable to strive for green & above.
AND is costs $14,000. So if no one can tell the difference then there is definitely no reason to ever consider this compared to dacs and headphone amps that together cost 1/28th or 1/14th the price and have all the same features or more.I agree with all you've said, but I'll take you up on the "It should sound better than anything in the green region". I'd be surprised if anyone could tell the difference between DACS in the green & blue region, maybe even the orange region, but I'd be comfortable to strive for green & above.
The real problem with this thing is the price...and it's a real problem in our hobby that needs to be aggressively challenged each time a megabuck component is put on the market.
I don't know why people say this, when there are a number of reasons—they just don't relate to measured performance basics, etc.
Using words emotively rather than accurately I guess
I know, hyperbole, not a big issue, just a bit odd.
Not just the HiFi scene, the same, or similar, could be said of Watches, Cars, etc etc etc. You're on a lost cause.
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The difference with watches is no one is claiming a Patek Phillipe is keeping better time than a Casio. Or that it provides information that can’t be measured. Now if owners of them were claiming their experience of time was so much clearer and more present that someone with a mud man, then they would be equivalent.
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