SONCOZ SGD1 Audio DAC Review

[Tks]

(In audiofool reviewer's voice):

"Simply amazing! This DAC outperforms others costing ten times its price!"

Hmm last I seen, the version I was exposed to:

"Terrific DAC for the price and beats almost all others we've tested, but of course like everywhere else in life, there is a reason the totaldac costs $13,000+ the sound just doesn't compare at that point, measurments can never be substitute for the grace of the human auditory system as honed by nature for billions of years"

 

[solderdude]

Perhaps an interesting experiment.

Record the analog output of the test tones showing the IMD hump and one of a DAC without an IMD hump and then ABX those recordings on a DAC that does not have an IMD hump.

Could also do the same with 2 types of music.
When level matched ABX should be very feasable.

 

[KxDx]

measurments can never be substitute for the grace of the human auditory system as honed by nature for billions of years"

Is not enough. Why is there no "vomit" emoji?

That said... it's a sign of the times that they are subtly acknowledging Amir's work and recognize it as a threat to the industry they've built on lies and bullshit.

 

[WolfX-700]

Can we have a 60hz + 1khz imd as well? at -35db. I'm interested to see the pinch of imd at 14khz appear in mid band.

 

[JohnYang1997]

View attachment 41931

Thanks for the measurements. I gotta say it looks so weird.

 

[solderdude]

Can you record (or export) these measurements so they can be played back ?
I know they aren't nice to listen to but at least one can use their own ears to determine differences with a DAC that doesn't have that distortion (pointless to listen to it with a DAC having an IMD hump.
70dB distance between signal and distortion is bordering on audibility thresholds for tones.

 

[miero]

What is the noise level during silence playing?

It could be lower than 4.2uVrms ~ -107.45dBV (4.1V - 119.7dB)

Are numbers on a dashboard A-weighted?

 

[TC!!]

Not sure why companies fall at the last hurdle after doing so much right to produce a great looking product.
Their product page does very little to explain the features available with WiFi and Bluetooth.
I've downloaded their user manual, it's a 28MB pdf which my computer struggles to open and instead of normal pagination it's a very wide document which makes it difficult to read.

What I can see is the WiFi is used for OTA (Over The Air) firmware upgrades, on startup it connects to the companies servers and automatically performs an upgrade when new SW is available. It looks like you need to download an app to your phone called ESP-Touch to configure the WiFi settings of the device to connect to your network.

The Bluetooth is just an input source, some devices allow you to connect Bluetooth headphones as an output but not this device.

You can connect USB-C and USB-B at the same time. The manual is a little confusing here as it clearly says you can switch between the 2 inputs but also says "When both USB-C and USB-B are plugged in, USB-B is the default."

Looks absolutely stunning but maybe a newer chip like the ES9038PRO is needed to get away from the dreaded hump. (Still not sure if anyone can hear the hump.)

 

[JohnYang1997]

Not sure why companies fall at the last hurdle after doing so much right to produce a great looking product.
Their product page does very little to explain the features available with WiFi and Bluetooth.
I've downloaded their user manual, it's a 28MB pdf which my computer struggles to open and instead of normal pagination it's a very wide document which makes it difficult to read.

What I can see is the WiFi is used for OTA (Over The Air) firmware upgrades, on startup it connects to the companies servers and automatically performs an upgrade when new SW is available. It looks like you need to download an app to your phone called ESP-Touch to configure the WiFi settings of the device to connect to your network.

The Bluetooth is just an input source, some devices allow you to connect Bluetooth headphones as an output but not this device.

Looks absolutely stunning but maybe a newer chip like the ES9038PRO is needed to get away from the dreaded hump. (Still not sure if anyone can hear the hump.)

D50s and e1da 9038d don't have a severe hump.

 

[tw99]

What I can see is the WiFi is used for OTA (Over The Air) firmware upgrades, on startup it connects to the companies servers and automatically performs an upgrade when new SW is available. It looks like you need to download an app to your phone called ESP-Touch to configure the WiFi settings of the device to connect to your network.

Not so keen on automatic phoning home. In a couple of years time, a hacker takes over the by-then-orphaned domain and your DAC gets turned into an attack vector for your network...

 

[TC!!]

Not so keen on automatic phoning home. In a couple of years time, a hacker takes over the by-then-orphaned domain and your DAC gets turned into an attack vector for your network...

My worry is automatically downloading an upgrade which you then find out causes problems but the solution is simple, don't configure the WiFi

 

[WolfX-700]

What is the noise level during silence playing?

It could be lower than 4.2uVrms ~ -107.45dBV (4.1V - 119.7dB)

Are numbers on a dashboard A-weighted?

If I remember correctly, ESS has the function to turn off the output when there is no signal ...

For better verification, I decided to input a 1KHZ signal of -144dbFS to see:

 

[bennetng]

Here is my 2005 soundcard:

Compared with Mr. Wolf's measurement:

 

[Deleted member 65]

@amirm , @Thomas savage & @WolfX-700 ,

why don’t you touch base with each other, sync your planned devices up for review. As much as I appreciate your reviews seems a bit waste of resources measuring same device twice.

 

[WolfX-700]

Here is my 2005 soundcard:
View attachment 41932

Compared with Mr. Wolf's measurement:
View attachment 41934

My signal is -35dbFS

 

[bennetng]

My signal is -35dbFS

My signals are at -3 and -33dBFS.

 

[WolfX-700]

@amirm , @Thomas savage & @WolfX-700 ,

why don’t you touch base with each other, sync your planned devices up for review. As much as I appreciate your reviews seems a bit waste of resources measuring same device twice.

I think an independent review by an independent source is a better verification of the same manufacturer and unit.

If a manufacturer has serious problems in quality control, etc., it is easy to find such multiple independent measurements.

IMO This will help improve ASR's overall reputation.

 

[WolfX-700]

My signals are at -3 and -33dBFS.

 

[TC!!]

@amirm , @Thomas savage & @WolfX-700 ,

why don’t you touch base with each other, sync your planned devices up for review. As much as I appreciate your reviews seems a bit waste of resources measuring same device twice.

I agree. This seems to be adding more work for @amirm as he's getting drawn into a comparison after he's finished the normal amount of work he would need to do for a review. It's obviously better for us but it seems like Amir's time is already stretched with the number of reviews he does.

 

[bennetng]

View attachment 41936

Yes. That's why I attached my measurements since the ESS hump only deteriorates IMD measurements at mid levels. At high levels the ESS wins of course. BTW that 2005 soundcard uses CS4382.