@JanDH,
OPA861 is so far the best I/V for ESS DAC. It runs at zero feedback mode so it sound more open and more dynamic and more analog then other active I/V. But the +-5V power supply is very significant to the OPA861 I/V. I use dual LinearPi5V +UcConditioner 5V with good result. UcPure 3000F/5V would be an even better solution. And also, you have to use the balance XLR output to get the most out of it.
My setups are:
FifoPiQ7 with Pulsar 90/98MHz OCXOs, UcPure 3.3V for the clean side
ESS9038Q2M Dual mono with three 3.3V LifePO4/UcHybrid power supplies
OPA861 I/V with dual LinearPi 5V + UcConditioner 5V
I'm really happy with the sound quality. I listen to this system everyday as my reference setup.
Currently I'm working on comparing this reference system with my FifoPiQ7 and HdmiPi Pro upgraded Spring 3 R-2R DAC. I like both of them. They are very good and each are with some sound signatures that I like very much. I'll post more details very soon.
https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...fight-the-jitter.192465/page-405#post-7220567
DDDAC is a great DAC, I have one too. You should like it, that's not a question.
Which mosfet rectifier are you using? Is this PS circuit discussed anywhere? I've tried Infineon diodes on ultrabibs and found them to have a positive impact on the sound.
Hi Jan,
I have similar experience.
I have built about 6 DDDAC‘s, the last pcb’s from Doede are mainly based on my improvements. So I think I can say that my DDDAC is probably the best sounding DDDAC around.
I have also experimented with the ESS dac from Ian and though it sounds very good for the price it is no match for a tweaked to the max 4 deck DDDAC (note the investment on my DDDAC is higher than the ESS dac)
I used a series of opamps on the IV stage and the best sounding were Sparkos Labs and Burson as runner up.
The NOS approach and balanced/parallel execution of the DDDAC makes the main difference in my opinion, this can’t be copied to the ESS.
If you are looking for a better dac than the DDDAC than you need to go the route of multibit dacs.
Attachments
https://evotronix.eu/main/
They impact the sound on ultrabib, I also use them on ultrabib and reflector; the shunt topology will let you hear the rectifier even better.
PS circuit is straightforward: rectifier-capacitors (non polar connected antiparallel: only possible with Black Gates)-regulator-small capacitor.
That is possible. I have heard improvements on noise floor when connecting supercaps on the battery supply, so there is still something to gain there.
Do you prefer DDAC to the D3 setup you built? The Sabre chips are very sensitive to the power supplies in their AVCC lines. I have had good results using Sparkos regulators on the L/R AVCC lines feeding them ultrabibs on the Buffalo 9038 DAC.
The sound of transformer outputs is so different in my experience to an active i/v it's hard to compare different DACs if one has them and the other does not.
The sound of transformer outputs is so different in my experience to an active i/v it's hard to compare different DACs if one has them and the other does not.
Hello Supersurfer,
Thank you for your reply. And good to see you are here. It confirms that my findings are in line with practice. Sometimes you doubt your hearing and your build qualities.
Have you tried the FifiPiQ7 with the DDAC and does that give any improvements?
I started with the Ian products because he uses actual idea's, actual components and it fits and enhances an aviable standard product namely the RaspberryPi. He offers several quality levels and thinks about further developments.
In that regard he could think about an even higher level DAC that fits into the current productline. That would be awesome.
Pls stay involved, that raises the quality of products.
rgrds, Jan
Thanks guys. I'm an audiophile myself, so I keep open mind to all good things and always trying to make more improvements.
I was very busy last yeas. I think I should pay more time on my DDDAC other my new gears this year.
Just hope it's not too late to say Happy New Year to you all !
Ian
I was very busy last yeas. I think I should pay more time on my DDDAC other my new gears this year.
Just hope it's not too late to say Happy New Year to you all !
Ian
Yes, I know I'm little bit late...
Anyhow I just made the MCK connection to BII DAC. I have to make some more listening but I've noticed a deeper and more detailed soundstage with Synchronous Clocking.
This BII have a TP IVYIII I/V output stage that have OPA1632 and it sound a little bit metallic. I'm curios to try your I/V board with OPA861 but it have only balanced out.
Are you planning some new output stage, maybe with both balanced and SE out ?
I supplied Doede with a clock for this test, so yes I read this and I know his reference level.
I like Ians products, I own a lot of them and put them to good use as you can see in the pictures. But my experience in dacs is that multibit sounds more natural than delta-sigma. Hopefully Ian will try this route, with his knowledge he would be able to make a nice multibit dac I presume.
My reasoning is that the Q7 is similar to Q3 plus the reclocker, as I have both of these I do not feel the need to buy the Q7. But I may be wrong….
@ Supersurfer
Yes, FifoPi Q7 equivalents to Q3 plus ReClockPi. But Q7 also has a lot of new features that Q3 doesn't have. For example, the continuous clock mode (For both PCM and DSD), the programmable delay time, the ability working with MonitorPi, the ability to enable the later on UcPure MKIII's sync charging mode which will greatly boost the performance of the pure ultracapacitor power supply... and many more. Those are the reasons I upgrade FifoPi Q3 to FifoPiQ7.
Good weekend.
Ian
Yes, FifoPi Q7 equivalents to Q3 plus ReClockPi. But Q7 also has a lot of new features that Q3 doesn't have. For example, the continuous clock mode (For both PCM and DSD), the programmable delay time, the ability working with MonitorPi, the ability to enable the later on UcPure MKIII's sync charging mode which will greatly boost the performance of the pure ultracapacitor power supply... and many more. Those are the reasons I upgrade FifoPi Q3 to FifoPiQ7.
Good weekend.
Ian
That sounds interesting! Do you think these extra features can bring sound improvement in my setup where I convert the I2S signal to simultaneous to feed the TDA1541A dacs? Does the programmable delay time have influence on the jitter level?
Happy new year @iancanada
How would you compare your new OPA861 line stage to a transformer output stage from either Ivan (Bisesik) or yours running the lundahls?
Regarding powering the OPA861 line stage, what would you recommend?
I’m using your LifeP04 in my system and could that somehow be used to provide the +/- 5v ? I looks like the 5v UcConditioner only accepts max. 5.3v, so two batteries wouldn’t work?
Could the dual LinearPi be feed with lifeP04 6.6v DC at the AC input, or would that not yield any SQ benefit? (This could eliminate any AC in the chassis)
Or could your LT3045 LDO be used? If so what about the negative rail?
Regards Mikkel
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I'm planning to build a simple stack of purepi | rpi | shieldpro | q7 | hdmpipro to feed my Denafrips Venus II over hdmi and see if it gets any better.
Since from a technical point of view all I can achieve with this is introducing higher quality clocks into the chain overriding Venus's clocks, I'm facing some obvious clock-questions
- What better clocks could I use than the usual 30-40 EUR Crystek and Accusilicon ones? (I found Pulsar Clock but it's not available anymore and the ~300 EUR price is also a bit bigger of a jump than I'm instantly open to)
- 90/98Mhz is supposed to be better than 45/49MHz? I'm finding contradicting feedbacks online.
- I'm wondering...when using USB, Venus (and probably all dacs) have a buffer and get their feed from there, timing their clocks. We have even tested this, Venus was immune to low quality sources, after buffering and re-clocking, all sources sounded the same. What happens with the buffer when using I2S? Are we sure the dac buffers are still in use and only the clocks are getting out of the chain? If the buffering mechanism somehow gets touched, I might hurt the process instead of improving even with better clocks.
Since from a technical point of view all I can achieve with this is introducing higher quality clocks into the chain overriding Venus's clocks, I'm facing some obvious clock-questions
- What better clocks could I use than the usual 30-40 EUR Crystek and Accusilicon ones? (I found Pulsar Clock but it's not available anymore and the ~300 EUR price is also a bit bigger of a jump than I'm instantly open to)
- 90/98Mhz is supposed to be better than 45/49MHz? I'm finding contradicting feedbacks online.
- I'm wondering...when using USB, Venus (and probably all dacs) have a buffer and get their feed from there, timing their clocks. We have even tested this, Venus was immune to low quality sources, after buffering and re-clocking, all sources sounded the same. What happens with the buffer when using I2S? Are we sure the dac buffers are still in use and only the clocks are getting out of the chain? If the buffering mechanism somehow gets touched, I might hurt the process instead of improving even with better clocks.
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Well, current trend is all into Holo and Denfarips, with May/Terminator being the flagships and Spring/Venus being the great but affordable ones. Other than these I have very very good experience with VMV D2 which is an AKM dac tho, not r2r. (In the meantime I think anyone listening to these dacs needs to have some serious speakers and amplifier to make sense.)
@iancanada
Would you say Fifopi Q7 is a better all-in-one board compared to separated McFIFO & McDualXO boards ? I saw you say Q7 has much more advanced technology ,it’s really attractive
How do you like pure dsd compared to spring 3?
What’s your favorite DIY DAC after Q7 so far?
Would you say Fifopi Q7 is a better all-in-one board compared to separated McFIFO & McDualXO boards ? I saw you say Q7 has much more advanced technology ,it’s really attractive
How do you like pure dsd compared to spring 3?
What’s your favorite DIY DAC after Q7 so far?