Review and Measurements of Sabaj D5 DAC & Amp

[solderdude]

This is a good question, I'm curious to know about the quality of the amp in the D5 compared to the almighty 789.

Not nearly as good as 789 (of course) and even below JDS labs Atom.
See Amir's first post and comments in the headphone measurement section.
More suited for low impedance headphones, less suited for high impedance headphones.
See the headphone out as an added bonus, not as one of its main features.
How audible differences will be at 'normal listening levels' remains to be seen.
Subjectively the 789 will make a huge differences. Objectively when staying within the max. current and voltage limits of the amplifier section of the D5 it won't make much, if any, difference.

 

[Patrick1958]

Not nearly as good as 789 (of course) and even below JDS labs Atom.
See Amir's first post and comments in the headphone measurement section.
More suited for low impedance headphones, less suited for high impedance headphones.
See the headphone out as an added bonus, not as one of its main features.
How audible differences will be at 'normal listening levels' remains to be seen.
Subjectively the 789 will make a huge differences. Objectively when staying within the max. current and voltage limits of the amplifier section of the D5 it won't make much, if any, difference.

You are referring to the SE output? IMO the balanced output has more than enough to drive my high impedance headphones

 

[solderdude]

Yes, 1/4 inch TRS output (because of the Atom being mentioned by Amir)
Balanced is double the output voltage for high impedance headphones (+6dB)

The amplifier section is not on par with the DAC part but certainly on XLR out more than good enough to drive all headphones.
Technically the 789 is better, audibly it will be a real challenge (impossible) to tell them apart when driven within its parameters in a blind test.

 

[marco07]

Good to know, running my Aivas from SE at the moment waiting for XLR adapter to arrive. So far so good... to be continued.

 

[solderdude]

The Sendy's need quite a bit of power as their efficiency is low.
Outut power in balanced will be around 1W (in 32 Ohm) which is 3dB more than in single ended.
The reason output power does not quadruple (as it does for high impedance headphones) is because the amplifier is current limited to around 170mA(rms) (250mA peak) but at least it can play 3dB louder.

 

[zym1010]

Not nearly as good as 789 (of course) and even below JDS labs Atom.
See Amir's first post and comments in the headphone measurement section.
More suited for low impedance headphones, less suited for high impedance headphones.
See the headphone out as an added bonus, not as one of its main features.
How audible differences will be at 'normal listening levels' remains to be seen.
Subjectively the 789 will make a huge differences. Objectively when staying within the max. current and voltage limits of the amplifier section of the D5 it won't make much, if any, difference.

Why "Subjectively the 789 will make a huge differences." on one hand and "How audible differences will be at 'normal listening levels' remains to be seen." on the other? I'm a bit confused.

 

[solderdude]

Because there is no clear relation between sighted and blind listening.

Also when amps comply to some minimal specs but only differ in output level/power then both amps will perform and sound the same as long as the limits of the least powerfull amps are not exceeded.
Trouble is that is not always immediatly audible as 'clipping' when it does.

 

[DeepSpace57]

if someone says there is nothing detectable between the amp-balanced output of D5 and the xlr-outputs (DAC) of D5, I will just laugh. Ok, snake-oil splashes on everwhere in this hobby, and I completely understand also that we need such a forum to understand the real measurements and identify which one is snake oil or low performing product.

However, when I used to enjoying D5`s lineout (DAC), never turned back to its amp department. I will have 789 within 5-6 days. I will let you know of the performance of this pair. Please take in to account Amir keeps saying for many HiFi components `if you do not like its amp, you can take a look at 789` in their listening review parts.

I believe the beautiful part of D5 is when you save money, you can always buy an amp to improve your hi-fi system without needing a DAC.

 

[Julf]

It is not placebo.

I wish I could get $1 for each person claiming/believing that . How do you know it isn't placebo?

 

[ZeDestructor]

I wish I could get $1 for each person claiming/believing that . How do you know it isn't placebo?

Meanwhile, here I am, unable to hear the difference between WASAPI shared mode and WASAPI mixed mode...

 

[gad]

Hello smart guys,

Anyone know for sure if the S'D5 is compatible with squeezebox touch edo enabled usb?

not so smart due to natural age related neuron loss

gad-

 

[zym1010]

I am failing to get the Sabaj D5 getting recognised as a USB DAC by my Android based Nvidia Shield. Is this a problem with all Android devices? Any firmware updates or fixes?

D5 gets recognized effortlessly on iPad + Neutron Music Player http://neutronmp.com/

 

[Fabio]

I am failing to get the Sabaj D5 getting recognised as a USB DAC by my Android based Nvidia Shield. Is this a problem with all Android devices? Any firmware updates or fixes?

Working flawlessly with a note 8 + uapp

 

[glajman]

Ok, I'm listening to my D5 for about a week. There are a few issues that I'm having.

- My volume knob does not work sometimes. After I toggle my power switch (or reset the dac like it's in the manual), everything works again. To note, I can use the remote to lower the volume when the knob isn't working.

- There is also an issue that the sound pitch get's lower or higher. Both occurred at different times. I'm not sure if I'm describing this correctly. But something odd happens with the sound, like it's lagging a bit. Reset fixes it. (Example: I'm listening to someone speak on youtube and sounds weird, after reset his voice sounds normal again)

- Also, when turning on the device. A big pop comes from the speakers. If I forget to turn down my volume it's really loud. I own a SMSL SU-8 (v1), this happens there as well but not this loud and it's not volume dependent.

- This isn't a functional issue, but the control/volume knob is god awful. It's wobbly(side to side, up and down) and has a really bad feeling while using it. But it works (when you aren't having the first issue I described), so it's really not a big deal (or should I say a deal breaker). But something to look at when Sabaj releases a successor (maybe).

Compared with SMSL SU-8, the sound is really similar. They are both great. Sabaj is maybe more detailed in certain situations, but this could be my brain playing tricks and me imagining things. But both are really good, especially for the price! I run Adam T7V's connected with balanced cables.

I bought the Sabaj D5 because I wanted a headphone/dac combination. Amrim tests showed good measurements for both dac and headphone amp. In the future I'm planing on pairing it with Audeze LCD-X. I would have stayed at Adam + SU-8, but the walls in my new place are made out of napkins and I don't want police knocking on my door "asking" me to turn it down a bit, couple of times a day.

Hope a firmware update fixes these issues and there isn't a thing like with the SU-8 (v1 vs v2, soldering wires etc. Which I haven't done).

 

[zym1010]

Compared with SMSL SU-8, the sound is really similar. They are both great. Sabaj is maybe more detailed in certain situations, but this could be my brain playing tricks and me imagining things. But both are really good, especially for the price! I run Adam T7V's connected with balanced cables.

Maybe using more resolving headphones can help differentiate the two better? Or maybe it's indeed "once you hit $100, you cannot tell the differences between DACs."

 

[glajman]

Maybe using more resolving headphones can help differentiate the two better? Or maybe it's indeed "once you hit $100, you cannot tell the differences between DACs."

Right, I mean, like I said. They are both really good. I would be perfectly happy with the SU-8. Like i can nitpick here and there (I think I heard something new on a track that I listen to a lot these days. But I didn't blind tested both DAC's) and to be quite frank it would be a different kind of masturbation for me to go into sound descriptions and search for something better. Both are good at reproducing music and more importantly they are both enjoyable to listen to (at least to me. I get that maybe people hear differences that I don't).

If I would describe the sound, it's neutral. I don't hear any "warmth" or "coldness", just the music so to say. Maybe that's why I'm happy with both .

But I'll report back if I get the LCD-X's. By reviews they should be really good and neutral sounding (judging by the reviews and marketed as studio monitors).

edit: It would be great if SMSL/Sabaj parent company fixes their teething issues before it leaves the factory, without leaving me to beta test it and discover issues. Both SU-8 and D5 had something wrong with it and that sucks. Because they are centimeters away of having a product that makes more expensive ones irrelevant (for me at least).

 

[zym1010]

Right, I mean, like I said. They are both really good. I would be perfectly happy with the SU-8. Like i can nitpick here and there (I think I heard something new on a track that I listen to a lot these days. But I didn't blind tested both DAC's) and to be quite frank it would be a different kind of masturbation for me to go into sound descriptions and search for something better. Both are good at reproducing music and more importantly they are both enjoyable to listen to (at least to me. I get that maybe people hear differences that I don't).

If I would describe the sound, it's neutral. I don't hear any "warmth" or "coldness", just the music so to say. Maybe that's why I'm happy with both .

But I'll report back if I get the LCD-X's. By reviews they should be really good and neutral sounding (judging by the reviews and marketed as studio monitors).

edit: It would be great if SMSL/Sabaj parent company fixes their teething issues before it leaves the factory, without leaving me to beta test it and discover issues. Both SU-8 and D5 had something wrong with it and that sucks. Because they are centimeters away of having a product that makes more expensive ones irrelevant (for me at least).

I think more resolving headphones definitely help in differentiating DACs. For example, HD 800 S is much clearer than HD650. That being said, differences between best DACs are probably really small. Check my review on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/review/RIZEK87ZUQ3OQ/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B07PYRM6J6

 

[glajman]

I think more resolving headphones definitely help in differentiating DACs. For example, HD 800 S is much clearer than HD650. That being said, differences between best DACs are probably really small. Check my review on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/review/RIZEK87ZUQ3OQ/ref=cm_cr_srp_d_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B07PYRM6J6

To be clear, I don't mean that D70 is miles behind D5---

As a relatively more objective audiophile, combined with Audio Science Review's excellent objective tests and my own great subjective experience, I think D5 will be my endgame DAC, in the foreseeable future.

This!

I agree with the review in the aggregate.

It made me chuckle a bit when I read that you have Mogami cables . I also rock Mogami's that I soldered (Small step for mankind, giant leap for me ).

 

[zym1010]

This!

I agree with the review in the aggregate.

It made me chuckle a bit when I read that you have Mogami cables . I also rock Mogami's that I soldered (Small step for mankind, giant leap for me ).

I purchased Mogami cables mostly for peace of mind... You cannot go wrong by using what recording professionals use, right?

 

[glajman]

True that zym .