Comparing Massdrop THX 789 and RME ADI-2 DAC's amp

[attle]

hello guys,

I have been eyeing these two devices for the past few weeks, I know in theory the massdrop should perform better than the RME, however in a practical sense will i hear any meaningful difference with my ears? Thanks.

 

[daftcombo]

I have not heard any of those devices myself but from my experience and from the figures I saw here: no.

 

[attle]

I have not heard any of those devices myself but from my experience and from the figures I saw here: no.

ok thanks for the feedback.

 

[LTig]

hello guys,

I have been eyeing these two devices for the past few weeks, I know in theory the massdrop should perform better than the RME, however in a practical sense will i hear any meaningful difference with my ears? Thanks.

These are different beasts. The RME is a DAC with EQ and other useful features and a phone amp which has no analog input. The THX is a phone amp and has no digital input. What do you really need?

If you need both analog and digital inputs and EQ and the money is no problem go for the RME ADI-2 PRO fs.

 

[daftcombo]

True that if you buy a THX, you still need a DAC.

The ADI-2 Pro fs measures a bit worse than ADI-2 DAC, right?

 

[andreasmaaan]

The ADI-2 Pro fs measures a bit worse than ADI-2 DAC, right?

Not to my knowledge. You may be confusing it with the Adi-2 Pro (non FS)?

 

[LTig]

The ADI-2 Pro fs measures a bit worse than ADI-2 DAC, right?

We don't know it, because Amir has not yet measured it. I have a few measurements here and here but not the jitter test. Since it is the best speced piece of hardware here I can measure it only with itsself, and this is IMHO not possible with jitter test.

Amir has measured the ADI-2 PRO (without fs) and compared it to the ADI-2 DAC (with fs). Since RME is known to deliver what is specified and the newer ADI-2 Pro fs has the same high precision clock as the ADI-2 DAC we can safely assume that they measure the same.

 

[daftcombo]

You both are right.
Any difference between fs & fs black edition except the colour?

 

[Jimmy]

RME provides measurements in their product manuals, and the relevant data for both the Adi 2 DAC and the Pro FS is exactly the same, so the only real difference is functional.

Regarding the THX789, sadly, it is basically unobtainable, I guess they should partner with some manufacturer like SMSL or Topping and sell it as a regular product keeping the original price as close as possible.

 

[andreasmaaan]

You both are right.
Any difference between fs & fs black edition except the colour?

Just the colour I believe

 

[LTig]

You both are right.
Any difference between fs & fs black edition except the colour?

The price of the black is higher (at least here).

 

[Jimmy]

The black edition is intended for home use, and can't be rack mounted, otherwise they are the same.

Price is similar, normally the black one sells for 50 extra euros in europe, however I prefer the looks of the regular model (silver/blue).

 

[VintageFlanker]

Regarding the THX789, sadly, it is basically unobtainable, I guess they should partner with some manufacturer like SMSL or Topping and sell it as a regular product keeping the original price as close as possible.

Funny to read that months after.

 

[Tks]

Here it is from the man himself. This should put an end to any machinations on this matter for good.

I would like to clarify this a bit more because people often ask about using the Atom or THX with the ADI, seeing that those devices have partly much better specs. The Atom (and THX) are both analog devices and are measured that way. The ADI's Extreme Power stage can not be measured like that, as one always has the included DAC in the signal path. The ADI's phones output stage is much better than the values the DAC provides. If not then we would not be able to deliver the DAC's data sheet specs at the phones output.

Putting the Atom or THX behind the ADI, connected via RCA or XLR, will limit their performance to that of the DAC. In this regard the above comparison of noise between Atom and DAC might be a bit misleading. Connecting the Atom to the DAC's XLR output would not result in less noise at all. Nor would one get to see the super low THD values of the THX.

Therefore the Atom behind the ADI-2 Pro or DAC is a setup that brings no improvement at all (instead it bypasses the various protection mechanisms that the Extreme Power stage offers). The THX on the other hand has more power and offers balanced operation, which can be a valid reason to add it to a setup.