Review and Measurements of Okto DAC8 8Ch DAC & Amp

[Okto Research]

We are filling these up for you:

 

[Dave H]

We are filling these up for you:

View attachment 34475

That's great news.

 

[Ozymandias]

I've had the RME ADI-2 DAC now for about 3 months and really love it with my current setup (MacBook pro with JRiver streaming music over usb to the DAC, DAC directly driving a Benchmark AHB2 amp, and Buchardt S400 speakers). 2 of the features on the RME I've come to rely on are the auto ref level (mechanism to set the reference level automatically in order to maximize SNR as volume is adjusted) and the loudness feature (they allow the user to set the level at which the loudness adjustment starts to be gradually applied making it easy to tailor the adjustment to your listening environment). @Okto Research Are there any plans in the roadmap to implement features like the RME's auto reference level and loudness for the DAC8? Also is there a manual available for the DAC8? I couldn't find one on the website.

I'm about to upgrade my setup to 4.0 . I already have the rear speakers ordered and have a second AHB2 that just arrived. All I need now is a multi-channel DAC. I'm trying to choose between the Okto DAC8 or buying an RME ADI-2 Pro FS which can be combined with my ADI-2 DAC to form a multi-channel DAC (the Pro FS can act as master and sync clock of the ADI-2 DAC over SPDIF and I can use CoreAudio to aggregate the 2 into a single device for JRiver).

 

[JP]

That was a great image you posted recently,I was wondering if it is not to much trouble,
could you post it again when you change to the black face plate.

 

[SpyB]

View attachment 34664


View attachment 34665

Looks really good in Black,another excellent image/thanks for the close up of the display.
I see what you mean by your last comment on the display,
OKTO!! this display could be better.
Thank you again for your effort

 

[SpyB]

Looks really good in Black,another excellent image/thanks for the close up of the display.
I see what you mean by your last comment on the display,

OKTO!! this display could be better.
Thank you again for your effort

So I think OKTO are putting a lot of effort into the electrical and mechanical design
of their DAC,and the display should not let it down.

If it costs more to implement a very high resolution display,so be it
do it, and charge a bit more to compensate for the cost, or give the purchaser
the option

Here are some DAC's that have very good display's,and I am not referring to the size
or color of the display,only to the clean font's presented to show that such a display
exists.

I do not think these DAC's are worth the money,
Ideon about 18,000US
resonessencelabs $6000US

Although they do show that a clean clear display is possible,and I do not think
the purchase price is because of the display.

I could have posted images,although images can be deceptive/so here are video's
that show the display's mentioned in the flesh.

(Ideon Absolute DAC)

(Ideon Absolute DAC)

(Invicta) display is at 4m 30sec

The OPPO HA-1 also had a very good display and did not cost anywhere near the asking price of these DAC's
So I think that a better display is not a big cost factor in the design of a DAC or any device needing a display.

For too long we have been made to accept the antiquated dot matrix type of display or the jagged rendition
of fonts and numerals.

Time to change/Time to say NO!! I do not accept this and I want a better display

 

[g29]

...
Time to change/Time to say NO!! I do not accept this and I want a better display

Do you intend to watch or listen to your DAC ?

 

[amirm]

Time to change/Time to say NO!! I do not accept this and I want a better display

I have tested a lot of DACs and Okto has one of the best looking ones. I am surprised you need something better. The display is larger and super responsive.

 

[wineds]

So I think OKTO are putting a lot of effort into the electrical and mechanical design
of their DAC,and the display should not let it down.

If it costs more to implement a very high resolution display,so be it
do it, and charge a bit more to compensate for the cost, or give the purchaser
the option

Here are some DAC's that have very good display's,and I am not referring to the size
or color of the display,only to the clean font's presented to show that such a display
exists.

I do not think these DAC's are worth the money,
Ideon about 18,000US
resonessencelabs $6000US

Although they do show that a clean clear display is possible,and I do not think
the purchase price is because of the display.

I could have posted images,although images can be deceptive/so here are video's
that show the display's mentioned in the flesh.

(Ideon Absolute DAC)

(Ideon Absolute DAC)

(Invicta) display is at 4m 30sec

The OPPO HA-1 also had a very good display and did not cost anywhere near the asking price of these DAC's
So I think that a better display is not a big cost factor in the design of a DAC or any device needing a display.

For to long we have been made to accept the antiquated dot matrix type of display or the jagged rendition
of fonts and numerals.

Time to change/Time to say NO!! I do not accept this and I want a better display

Yeah they should be using 2x65" oled

 

[Dave H]

I personally have no problem with the Okto display, it looks more than adequate to me.

 

[SpyB]

Do you intend to watch or listen to your DAC ?

Yes I kind of expected a comment like this/I think you miss my point

 

[digicidal]

Agreed. It's much more important to be able to read it from the chair and not cost a fortune... this covers that.
If it were build primarily as a desktop audio device rather than a rack component... then I would agree with that criticism however.

 

[SpyB]

I have tested a lot of DACs and Okto has one of the best looking ones. I am surprised you need something better. The display is larger and super responsive.

Well look at the image posted a few posts back on this page/my point is the display is not as good as it should be,
nowhere near as good as the Ideon Dac

 

[SpyB]

Agreed. It's much more important to be able to read it from the chair and not cost a fortune... this covers that.
If it were build primarily as a desktop audio device rather than a rack component... then I would agree with that criticism however.

Yes correct it is important for the display to be readable in a listing room environment,and also in a desktop installation

 

[SpyB]

Yeah they should be using 2x65" oled

Very intelligent comment

 

[digicidal]

Yes correct it is important for the display to be readable in a listing room environment,and also in a desktop instalation

Well, I agree and disagree on that. On my desktop I'd rather have something that's an appropriate size for a desktop as well (like the RME ADI-2 DAC). In my rack I don't plan on getting that close, and I might even cover it entirely or turn it off (if that's an option).

I'd love to see a higher resolution display there with smooth fonts - I don't disagree with you on that per se... but if it added $200 to the price for just that - I'll take the pixels.

Considering the price vs. features... I'd say Okto has the right priorities. If they were charging $5K+... then I'd say you're 100% correct. I wouldn't call the display on the exaSound e38 Mark II 8-Channel DAC "high-res" either, though scaled better for desktop use. Then again it's much more expensive even on sale so we're still not comparing apples.

 

[g29]

Yes I kind of expected a comment like this/I think you miss my point

From the size of the glyphs, it appears to be legible from across the room.

True, it isn't using anti-aliasing, but no matter how hard you listen, you probably won't be able to hear the display.

 

[SpyB]

Well it looks like I am alone with this view point,so no need for further discussion
I do think that the important things with a Dac and any electronics we use for our pleasure of recorded music,

Is measurements / design/ and sound quality and hopefully when we add the device to our system it has a positive result

And yes Aesthetics are last on the list,although they are very important as we do have to look at the device.

Therefor I feel that the manufactures/Designers are just not up to standard with their display offerings
Thanks for all your view points

 

[SpyB]

Well, I agree and disagree on that. On my desktop I'd rather have something that's an appropriate size for a desktop as well (like the RME ADI-2 DAC). In my rack I don't plan on getting that close, and I might even cover it entirely or turn it off (if that's an option).

I'd love to see a higher resolution display there with smooth fonts - I don't disagree with you on that per se... but if it added $200 to the price for just that - I'll take the pixels.

Considering the price vs. features... I'd say Okto has the right priorities. If they were charging $5K+... then I'd say you're 100% correct. I wouldn't call the display on the exaSound e38 Mark II 8-Channel DAC "high-res" either, though scaled better for desktop use. Then again it's much more expensive even on sale so we're still not comparing apples.

I do not think a Hi Res display would add $200 although I see your point and feel you are the only one who has seen mine/Thank you

 

[digicidal]

@SpyB Don't get me wrong - I'd love it if it were a full-color OLED display - and touchscreen at that - but I wouldn't expect to see it at this price point with this feature set. I could be wrong but to my knowledge this is the least expensive and most performant 8-channel DAC on the market currently (at least outside of horribly measuring AVR/PrePro versions) - and most of those have crappy displays as well.

I do not think a Hi Res display would add $200 although I see your point and feel you are the only one who has seen mine/Thank you

It wouldn't cost $200 for them (Okto)... but there's two of them (one on each side) and if you add in volume requirements... $200 might actually be on the low side. You're welcome.