MikeH
Well-Known Member
burnin it in with some Hall & Oates! nice one!
Incoming! The New Equipment Thread
- Thread starter Slimwhit33
- Start date
SnowmaNick
Well-Known Member
Is that the U1x??
Slimwhit33
Well-Known Member
No, this is a used T1 that I picked up from my pals at TMR.
Love this setup. So clean.
MikeH
Well-Known Member
Which shelving is that again? I know I’ve seen it lately.
SnowmaNick
Well-Known Member
I’m curious if you notice a difference from the Node/Luxman combo. Lumin is supposed to sound great, but you had a great DAC in the Lux.
It looks great and should be a fun time getting to know it.
Slimwhit33
Well-Known Member
Shelving is VTI. I like it enough, I have to point out what to me is a design flaw, in that there are only two back support legs and because my amp is deep, they end up right where the RCA’s are. I would prefer if the back legs were in the same place as the front and didn’t cause cord problems. It is very well built and sturdy.
MikeH
Well-Known Member
Ah yea strange design choice…it looks nice though!
Slimwhit33
Well-Known Member
I’m curious too honestly.
Slimwhit33
Well-Known Member
Well, got my answers and the Lumin is also headed back. I actually had a great time over the last few days A/B testing the Lumin against the Node/Luxman combo. Had both hooked up to the preamp so was as simple as switching the input on the PL and the output on ROON.
What it came down to in the end was that the Lumin sounded slightly thinner.. there was just a bit less presence there. Now maybe the Luxman DAC has a hint of warmth and I’m used to that, but either way I prefer the Luxman and I just can’t justify doling out the extra dough for no sound improvement.
These last couple months have made me realize that the equipment hunt just may be over. I’ve reached the point of diminishing returns and I’m oddly happy about the realization.
At this point I’m going to hold off on any other changes (maybe a new cartridge) until my Decware is ready next year. I need some time to figure that out anyways… not sure I’m going to want to replace the Luxman.
Time to enjoy the new stuff others get for a while!
I was really interested to hear how this went because I've done the same thing on a smaller scale with my Andromeda IEMS and mobile DACs for my phone. I found that once I hit about $500-600 for the portable DAC I stopped hearing any discernable jump in quality for hi res streams. And for the IEMs nothing priced above the Campfire Andromedas made enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. I currently run my high res stream at home through the Node, I haven't even tried to bypass it and use the Arcam DAC. I'm not sure it would be any better but honestly the Node sounds good enough for streaming that I just haven't felt the need to try. When I eventually upgrade my amp I'll probably give it a shot just to see, but I feel like in terms of streaming I'm at that diminishing returns point on both systems...
Jbraswell
Well-Known Member
I noticed a significant degrade in sound going from the Denon A110 DAC to the Node DAC. It's not making me rush out to grab another component, but if something better pops up for a deal, I'll be interested to try something else.
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that amps whole thing kinda based around the DAC module? Like it runs 4 different burr brown chips for its DAC I think right? I'm not super surprised it beats out the node. My Arcam is about 10 years old at this point, I suspect it wouldn't surpass the much newer Node, but who knows...
I also think the thing that is often overlooked with separate DACs, or DACs built into Cd players or streamers, is the analogue output. A lot of the cheaper DACs that measure well will be using opamps and/or high levels of negative feedback which will mean that while measuring well they might sound a bit metallic and be fatiguing. My guess is that the R2R and some of the software DACs might not measure as well but distort in even order harmonics and so sound more pleasant and less fatiguing.
Jbraswell
Well-Known Member
Yeah much higher quality. 4 burr brown chips.
Not sure it's built around it. The engineer interview was very enthusiastic about vinyl and using it with a turntable system, which it did well also.
You might experiment with the Arcam to see what it's about.
I always wondered what people thought about the Node X and what that DAC change was about.
SnowmaNick
Well-Known Member
Yeah, digital can be a crap shoot. I’m surprised the Lumin didn’t fair as well as the Luxman, but not that surprised. When I was using an Auralic Aries Mini and Parasound Hint, their DAC’s were about equal (maybe a difference, but if so it was very minor). Then because I like to try different gear, I bought a Mytek Liberty, and the difference was very apparent, in favor of the Mytek. I‘ve played around trying my Eversolo as a streaming DAC, vs going to my Denafrips Aries & Pontus II, and the Eversolo was thinner sounding/ a touch lean and bright in comparison through the mids down to mid bass, but then a harder hitting very low bass. I preferred the Denafrips combo but could see how someone may prefer the ESS DAC in the Eversolo.
I knew the Lux sound but have heard so much about Lumin I thought they would be about the same.
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I appreciate your perspective on the gear hunt. I’m really satisfied with my setup at the moment and am awaiting my Decware amp (hopefully the end of this year). The only change/addition I’m considering now are high sensitivity speakers. Klipsch, Zu, Omega are top contenders at the moment.
Geshelli J2S socketed w/ Sparkos Op amps is whispering in your ear.
I’m R2R curious.
- What are the differences between the Ares and Pontus?
- Is the Pontus worth the $$$?
- Should one walk the path Ares -> Pontus to appreciate the differences or just go for the Terminator and call it a day?
SnowmaNick
Well-Known Member
I haven’t heard the Ares, so my knowledge of any differences is purely spec based stuff from their website.
I heard the Venus (original) and thought it was nice, but … its sound was more analytical and tighter. Not my bag. The Pontus II 12th-1 I have is more like a suspended turntable sound. Not quite as crisp but with a great drive and easy to sink into and enjoy the tunes.
From all accounts that I’ve read, the Terminator/II/Plus are outstanding but more alike to the Venus. Which, from the audition I had, wasn’t what I personally was looking for.
My next DAC* may be something along the lines of Lab12 Dac1 Reference, Aqua La Scala II Opthilogic or, if I win the lottery or one of my kids decides to skip college but still moves out, an MSB. The Lab12 is the least expensive, there’s an open box one at TMR currently for not much more than I paid for the Pontus II/Iris combo I have. I’m tempted to buy it and try it. Aqua La Scala’s pop up used for around $4k somewhat regularly. MSB Discrete’s go for $9k+ used, depending on modules and power supplies. That’s more than I’d like to stomach for a DAC, though they have amazing service, resale, and an awesome upgrade plan at MSB.
Denafrips are made like Boulder Amps, solid construction throughout. I doubt you’d be disappointed with any, but there’s no return policy so try your best to get an in person demo before you buy.
*I may also just get an all-in-one. I wanted to hear about @Slimwhit33 ‘s experience with the Lumin due to this. I may try a HiFi Rose RS150b and see how it compares to what I have. I’d like to save space on the new audio rack I’m ordering.
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