Audio Note 1 x

heard it....nice dac. definately an upgrade.

myriad schrieb:

Hello Folks, Currently i have a Nad C542 cdp. I am getting a one month old Audio Note 1x. What you guys think about this dac? Will it be worthwhile upgrade? Thanks in advance.

very nice DAC from what I have heard and much more value for money than their Signature 1x. version.. but which amp are you going to driving it ?

do check the compatibility as per what I have heard at AA, they have their quirks with some amps (something to do with Impedance or gain matching)

I will be driving it through Cayin TA30

Nice DAC, I too heard it here in Bangalore at a customer's place.
Rgds

Prithvi

myriad schrieb:

Hello Folks, Currently i have a Nad C542 cdp. I am getting a one month old Audio Note 1x. What you guys think about this dac? Will it be worthwhile upgrade? Thanks in advance.

Myriad, you probably have this AN DAC by now so my reply might be late. Anyway, what I wanted to say is that by buying this AN DAC 1x you have entered into a totally different realm of DACs. Your NAD integrated CDP probably used an over or upsampling DAC internal to it & transparent to you. The AN DAC 1x is a non oversampling DAC, which uses a totally different mindset in its architectural implementation. It is one of the few longer standing companies using this architecture. The other that I know is Shigarki (Japan) & probably other Japanese audio outfits. These non oversampling DACs do not use any post DAC filtering; rather, use the inherent electrical characteristics of the output stage (in your case probably a 6922 tube) to "naturally" roll-off the frequency response at the high-end.
Thus, the sound from non oversampling DACs is very different from over/upsampling DACs. Most people think that the former are more natural sounding because there is no DSPing of the incoming music signal. The non oversampling DACs do not measure well on a testbench but we all know that measurements & what we hear is weakly related.
I personally do not think much of AN (UK) & atleast here in the USA their stuff is ludicrously priced! Hope that you got a decent price for your AN DAC 1x.
There are some wonderful sonic non oversampling DAC nuggets here: Scott Nixon non oversampling DACs www.scott-nixon.com & Lite Audio DAC-AH www.pacificvalve.us. Their prices are amazingly good & the performance for the money paid is jaw-dropping!
I have the Scott Nixon Saru DAC+ with an outboard 4Amp power supply so I'm saying this from personal experience. Check these other DACs out - for the price they'll give the AN(UK) a bloody good run for its money & might even put it to shame!

bombaywallah has brought up an interesting point :). the 47 Lab Shigaraki is a slightly different animal (takes minimalistic to another degree). I was at one ti;e really interested in this but found it overpriced.

Heard a lot about scot nixon on the AA forums but have not really heard it myself, but its access in India may not be easy.

coming back to AN, the have really talked a lot n the Zero sampling concept etc etc..but honestly i was not able to make it out as very different from any other DAC say an MSB link other than that it was less detailed but had a very nice (musical ? )presentation.

But at the higher models i feel AN slightly hypes it up ;)..although thier speaker look uglier but sound better as you move up the chain !

Hi Guys,

Any thoughts on the Theta GenVPro DAC ?

I have been offered one.

Any feedback much appreciated.

Thanks

Hi Amp_Nut,

I have heard the Gen V once and it was indeed a good dac it sounded clean but on the bright side of neutral to me infact I think a better buy would be to go for a Sonic Frontiers SFD-2 dac fantastic dac less money and better sound in the sense quite similar to the Gen V but much warmer and musical.

Regards,

Satyam.

Thanks for your feedback.

Can you put an approx price ( ofcourse it and when available ! ) for a pre-owned Sonic Frontiers SFD-2 ?

Ofcourse, if one is available... nothing like it !

Arj schrieb:

bombaywallah has brought up an interesting point :). the 47 Lab Shigaraki is a slightly different animal (takes minimalistic to another degree). I was at one ti;e really interested in this but found it overpriced.

not surprised, Arjun! Jap gear tends to go that way.

Arj schrieb:

Heard a lot about scot nixon on the AA forums but have not really heard it myself, but its access in India may not be easy.

true! one of the main reasons it took me so long to reply to this thread! however, Scott Nixon ships worldwide & his prices are cheap. I'm told that at Indian international airports goods worth Rs 5000 are allowed. If you see the physical size of the SN DACs (with the main DAC box being 3 inches X 3 inches), you could easily convince the customs fellow that it's worth Rs 5000 or less! ;-) [P.S. don't quote me if you get caught! :-) ]
yet another way to get it is to order & have it delievered to a friend/relative overseas & have them bring it back for you. At the above mentioned size, it should present minimal takleef.

Arj schrieb:

coming back to AN, the have really talked a lot n the Zero sampling concept etc etc..

yes, AN(UK), who IMHO stole Kondo-san's overseas business & name, has its roots in the Japanese equipment mindset. You know that the Jap manuf are usually minimalistic. AN(UK) is a more traditional seller in that it uses the usual western methodology of advertising. So, it's no wonder that they hyped the zero oversampling concept to hasten sales. Nothing wrong w/ that in & of itself.

Arj schrieb:

but honestly i was not able to make it out as very different from any other DAC say an MSB link other than that it was less detailed but had a very nice (musical ? )presentation.

you were staring at it, Arj & perhaps didn't recognize it!! :-)
You can even get the "detailed" bit by doing some power supply mods + modifying the tube bias components. Using some better quality internal hook-up wire will also add to the overall music listening pleasure.

Arj schrieb:

But at the higher models i feel AN slightly hypes it up ;)..although thier speaker look uglier but sound better as you move up the chain !

touche!
the speakers are actually, guess whose???? ..............
They are Peter Snell's designs! Back when Snell Acoustics, after Peter Snell himself passed away & there was turmoil in the company, Snell Acoustics degraded dramatically. there was a strong feeling that Peter Snell's simplistic but very effective designs would cease seeing the light of day. So, Peter Qvortrup of AN(UK) made some arrangements to manuf those speaker styles under the AN(UK) name. I don't know the details of that deal.

go to this site: http://www.snellacou..._list&status=archive

you can clearly see "Type E", which is the AN-E speaker today. You can also see "Type K", which is the AN-K speaker today. Note the manuf dates of the Snell Type E & K speakers! Should be well before the AN(UK) time!

bombaywalla schrieb:

touche! the speakers are actually, guess whose???? .............. They are Peter Snell's designs! Back when Snell Acoustics, after Peter Snell himself passed away & there was turmoil in the company, Snell Acoustics degraded dramatically. there was a strong feeling that Peter Snell's simplistic but very effective designs would cease seeing the light of day. So, Peter Qvortrup of AN(UK) made some arrangements to manuf those speaker styles under the AN(UK) name. I don't know the details of that deal. go to this site: http://www.snellacou..._list&status=archive you can clearly see "Type E", which is the AN-E speaker today. You can also see "Type K", which is the AN-K speaker today. Note the manuf dates of the Snell Type E & K speakers! Should be well before the AN(UK) time!

Yes sir ! thank you for reminding me of this.. i used to know it but had gathered mental cobwebs over it.
If memory serves me right Snells design was fully copied by AN.. another 2 companies who did that were Art Audio with the "Emotion" range and Konus audio. and maybe more..

just found some pics


http://www.loudspeaker-art.com/emotion.html

Not so sure of the Konus tho now.. but does appear Influenced by Snell



http://www.konus-audio.com/

Arj,
thanks for the pretty pix!

Oh, that's the Art Audio you are referring to! When I read your post & "Art Audio", my mind went to the Tom Willis/Joe Fratus Art Audio that makes tube preamps & power amps. I was wondering when had they jumped into the speaker manuf biz!

yes, when I saw their ad in Stereophile, my mind immediately said "copy cat!" - it's definitely a copy of Peter Snell's "Type E" design & the integrated legs are the only "original" aspect in this new design. I say, nothing succeeds like success! Snell was superb in recognizing that the speaker could be very simple yet effective. I've personally been attracted to designers of this sort of calibre.

The konus-audio design seems to be also influenced by Snell but it's a single-driver design. I think that it is a pure/unadulterated copy of Carolina Audio's JTM speaker! see http://www.carolinaaudio.com/
I have listened to the JTM mark 1 speaker (he's onto the JTM/2) & it's a superb sounding speaker using that Jordan driver. Unbelievable sound for certain genres of music.

BTW, Myriad, sorry for this digression!

Apologies myriad,

But Bombaywalla, these are one of the most bequtiful and simplistic speakers i have come across !. have you heard them ? Also do you have an idea of..ahem.. the specs ?

Arj schrieb:

Apologies myriad,

indeed! apologies again for the temporary hijack! :-)

Arj schrieb:

But Bombaywalla, these are one of the most bequtiful and simplistic speakers i have come across !. have you heard them ?

indeed, Arj! these are very simplistic looking speakers & their clean lines have a certain beauty to them. I agree!

Like I wrote in my prev post, yes I have heard the Carolina Audio JTM speaker. Very good sound. Excels when listening to male & female vocals, Jazz trios, quartets, quintets. Not as good/dynamic for rock or blues or orchestral works.

Arj schrieb:

Also do you have an idea of..ahem.. the specs ? :Y

here are the Carolina JTM specs:-
Type: Jordan JX92s full range single driver in 1/4 wave length transmission line tapered and folded 3 times, vented at side. No crossover. Custom made usually only 1 pair crafted per week. Completely Hand Built Cabinets.
Weight: 30lbs each
Price: $3000.00 per pair plus shipping
Dimensions: 35.5" H x 11.75" W x 4.5" D

It seems that the Konus Audio Essence would have similar specs. It certainly appears to use the same Jordan driver.

Sorry Folks,
The guy who was willing to sell his Audio Note Dac has now decided against.
I have to be conetent with Nad till something good and affordable comes through.

I had heard a lot about Lite audio DAC. a made in china prodult, but done quite well. also very amenable to modding

http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/digital/messages/113220.html
at just 200 USd or less, may be worth it even if you pay full customs duty.

not sure where it is sold but maybe you can try googling it out..

Arj schrieb:

I had heard a lot about Lite audio DAC. a made in china prodult, but done quite well. also very amenable to modding http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/digital/messages/113220.html at just 200 USd or less, may be worth it even if you pay full customs duty. not sure where it is sold but maybe you can try googling it out..

Arj, that's the SAME DAC I wrote about in my earlier post - the DAC-AH is made by Lite Audio! The official name is "Lite Audio DAC-AH".
The website is also given in that post of mine.