Narnian
Active Member
Well I have spent the last few hours listening to my 3800H with the following test combinations with several songs.
1. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->3800H->Revel M105
2. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->Sabaj A20D DAC->(analog)->3800H->Revel M105
3. Tidal->3800H (HEOS)->Revel M105
4. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->Sabaj A20D DAC->(analog)->Aiyima A07 amp->Revel M105
And the winner is … a 4-way tie. I cannot tell the difference. I played the songs through to get an overall feel as well as selected individual instruments and compared snippets to see if the bass through cymbals and voices sounded any different.
So my hopes of a better DAC helping to mitigate my hearing loss are dashed.
If anything #3 would have the advantage since no extra costs are involved. HEOS has moved up from a D- in my book to a C grade with an improved interface in the new X Series. But I do like the WIIM interface better which I give a B to so it may stay.
Also the Aiyima amp is a winner in its own right. I was not expecting a $60 amp to perform that well.
1. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->3800H->Revel M105
2. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->Sabaj A20D DAC->(analog)->3800H->Revel M105
3. Tidal->3800H (HEOS)->Revel M105
4. Tidal->WIIM->(optical)->Sabaj A20D DAC->(analog)->Aiyima A07 amp->Revel M105
And the winner is … a 4-way tie. I cannot tell the difference. I played the songs through to get an overall feel as well as selected individual instruments and compared snippets to see if the bass through cymbals and voices sounded any different.
So my hopes of a better DAC helping to mitigate my hearing loss are dashed.
If anything #3 would have the advantage since no extra costs are involved. HEOS has moved up from a D- in my book to a C grade with an improved interface in the new X Series. But I do like the WIIM interface better which I give a B to so it may stay.
Also the Aiyima amp is a winner in its own right. I was not expecting a $60 amp to perform that well.