Yeah, you should get an Emotiva Bas-X and a big battery pack on a dolly that you wheel on. You wouldn’t believe how those Koss SCALE!
I’ve not used that Vio device, but interested. Certainly has the size/simplicity victory. I love the XD-05 - I do have to downvote its bluetooth functionality in the add-on unit — as mine seems to have just died for no-reason, it’s functionally a little wonky. The base dac/amp is rock solid though and feels lovely. USB-C only device is plus.
I have one, with a noisy volume pot that needs fixing.
I had them on a Lehmann Linear Pro and Violectric V550. Man those shop clerks gave me funny looks!
Okay. So from that word on the Xduoo, I would put it in third place with the ifi and Vio sharing an undecided spot in front of it.
Does it need to be self powered, or could it be a dongle DAC/amp? I really like my L&P W2, but stuff like the PAW S2, Questyle M12 and M15, Cayin RU6 all look pretty interesting as well.
Self-powered is a plus, can be bus powered.
I will say, the PortaPro on the W2 is a very nice pairing, imo. Never heard the HD-25. None of those I mentioned have BT, though…just USB C
Cable is preferred.
L&P is not a brand I have seen in store or online from German retailers, so that may be difficult to test or buy.
Yeah, have to be honest. If I were strictly going to do cabled, I’d go for XD-05 - but this bluetooth piece is not the greatest - and left a bad taste in my mouth.Was working nicely enough — when it worked. XP-2 Pro looks like their more bluetooth-oriented portable.
The other units don’t even have BT options though, so not sure how to prioritize the reco.
Hello,
Has anyone tried the Gustard R26 by any chance?
Here is a small report about it.
Was wondering if it rejects Mons review from the Denafrips or plays again over the Denafrips he had tested?
The integration of the streaming function is said to be a bit poor. Tidal is said to not work properly.
I see it more in the direction of Holo Cyan in terms of sound, if it were still available. Maybe even a little better.
I saw a review on it by this Ukranian youtuber and not gonna lie it seems very interesting. His description of it kind of matched my Wadia 25 but with a super wide soundstage. No dac review i’ve seen has ever been so similiar to describing something with the Wadia 25 sound except this one, pure emphasis on bass, punchy ass dac and i believe it also had decent but not particularly airy treble etc. It would be awesome if someone who’s heard both would chime in but I doubt there are many people in the world who have heard the 25 and less zero chance those people have/will hear the Gustard R26. Also I haven’t heard of Gustard.
You probably mean here, don’t you?
His ratings are not bad, he does more than the others you know.
Where I have a bit of an objection is that it is compared to the Morpheus, Rockna Wavelight, Msb.
Because they are on a completely different level in terms of price.
I rather see this Gustard scratching the Holo Spring 3.
And could probably be superior to the Holo Cyan.
Otherwise, at this price, it tends to be rather without equal.
Spontaneously, I can think of the Ank Kit from Audio Note, the 2.1 version, which is roughly in this price range. Otherwise, I haven’t seen an R2R Dac for less than 3k.
Holo Cyan can still be found occasionally on Aliexpress.
Denafrips has a few. The Pontus and Venus are in that range and are good for the money.
Hello!
I wasn’t sure which thread would be the best to post in so if there’s a better place, please let me know.
I currently have an Abbas DAC 2.3 signature and was looking to upgrade or try something different. I enjoy the realness and emotional connection that it gives me so I was thinking maybe another tube dac would be good. Has anyone tried the Aesthetix Pandora?
Current chain - Audiobyte Hydra Z → Abbas DAC → Bel Canto Pre3 → AVA DVA M225 → SB Acoustic ARA w/ BE Tweeter and Textreme woofers.
Thanks!
Welcome!
What general price range are you looking in? You have a lot of potential options, I haven’t heard the speakers or power amp you’re running though so I don’t know what synergy demands the system would have (also not heard any abbas dacs either, curious to check those out eventually)
I’m probably looking to spend up to $5k. I’d say my amp and speakers are fairly neutral with just a slight warm lean for the amp. The speakers can be unforgiving with a bad source in the treble region but generally pretty good. I enjoy a more vocal forward presentation for my music. Abbas does a good job taming treble and adding a bit of euphoria. Soundstage isn’t the widest but a good amp that adds some stage pairs well with it.
I’m afraid if I get a dac that’s too clinical, it’ll kill some of the enjoyment of the system.
Thanks!
Makes sense
In this case, while it’s a bit above your 5k mark, if you wanted something with tubes a lampizator Baltic 3 makes good sense to me. I do think it will be more neutral and less sweet than the abbas, but I’d not call it clinical or aggressive, and it is vocal forward as well. It can be changed depending on the tube swaps. If you did want something sweeter and more relaxed from lampi you could try and find a used golden Atlantic or Atlantic trp imo (which honestly might be a better value depending on how much they go for).
I also feel compelled to mention a totaldac d1 core because it’s warmer more relaxed lean would likely fit really well into your setup, it’s very organic while being pretty dang technical to, strikes a really good balance there, and spatially has a larger and more grand presentation imo
Another option I’d definitely want to mention is a mojo mystique dac, if you could find a mystique evo b4b I think it’s a great option for a very warm, fun, and organic pick.
If you wanted something a bit more neutral relaxed on the softer and more nuanced side of things, am aqua la voce s3 might mesh pretty well into your setup imo although I don’t think it will add as much flavor into the setup as the first 3 imo.
A few other options to potentially consider might be a merason dac-1 (good balance between sweetness and technicalities), msb analog dac (warmer and richer focus overall), or a meitner ma-1 v2 (warmer neutral, smoother, more micro focused)
If you’re interested in any of these I can go into more depth for a comparison, I don’t really think you could go wrong with most options at this range honestly
You’ve already got a good digital source covered with the audiobyte so you probably don’t have to worry about that here
I can’t really offer comparisons to the abbas, and I don’t really know the performance level of the abbas either so I’d assume these would be an upgrade from the technical level of the abbas, but I really don’t know.
While I can’t throw exact comparisons with other dacs around there like M0N, I’ll throw in a suggestion for the linnenberg satie. I’ve been playing around the filters (which are actually pretty dang nice), and filter 3 pushes the satie into being more natural and vocal forward in the presentation, albeit sacrificing a little bit of extension on both ends. I don’t find it clinical and I think it’s on the neutral relaxed side of things with a slight warmth and roundness to the bass (when using filter 3). Using the default filter maximizes stage, resolution, and extension while still keeping that neutral relaxed profile.
Reason I threw out this suggestion in the first place is because this ad is still available and holds insane value imo. But linnenberg isn’t so popular here so yeah: Linnenberg SATIE For Sale - US Audio Mart
XLR through and through and I would not use the usb input fwiw.
What about the Acuhorn R2R XT for sale? Not sure how this would compare to Baltic 3?
Were you aiming that question at me?
If so, I’ve never heard em
So dongle DAC/AMPs with good support for iPhones? Any recommendations?
I saw the Questyle M15 but it apperntly requires an adapter between the phone and dongle (camera adapter?) so that’s a no go.
What else? Budget is around a few hundreds.
Reason for a dongle and not DAP is im %100 streaming with no local files and would rather use my iPhone over another full blown android device (unless I’m missing something or the sound difference is huge).
Thanks!
I believe all the new IPhones will require the adapter since there is no more 3.5mm out. No?