I'm starting to plan for a diy Dac,
Whate are the best current production, best sounding devices available?
I just want to build a SPDIF in for the moment....maybe USB and I2S later as the only sources I have now ar SPDIF, and no plans yet to upgrad my front end or go music server.... I'm "old school" Redbook for the foreseable future.
I was thinking about the AD1865, BUT that chip is a bit old in the tooth as well as the TDA 1541, 41a & 43. THey me good sounding, but I want to know what is the latest "high end" NOS chip?
Thanks
Jeff Davison
Whate are the best current production, best sounding devices available?
I just want to build a SPDIF in for the moment....maybe USB and I2S later as the only sources I have now ar SPDIF, and no plans yet to upgrad my front end or go music server.... I'm "old school" Redbook for the foreseable future.
I was thinking about the AD1865, BUT that chip is a bit old in the tooth as well as the TDA 1541, 41a & 43. THey me good sounding, but I want to know what is the latest "high end" NOS chip?
Thanks
Jeff Davison
Why does it have to be NOS??? You say you are looking for the best sound, and that does not by itself mean NOS. I would say, that NOS is really over rated.
Yeah, if you believe that tape-recorders are top of the line, NOS may be as well.
If you are looking for real high end performance, take a look at some of the newer devices, like PCM1794A or CS4398. I know that these are much more complicated to set up. And that may be the key point in the over estimation of NOS. Many people like NOS, because it's the only way they can do a DIY, because else it's to complicated. But that will not make it High End.
Be aware, that the performance of the newer DAC chips will depend VERY much on the analog stage, PSU and PCB layout.
NOS chips typically do not, since the sound of them is already so blurry, that nothing will be able to kick through.
Yeah, if you believe that tape-recorders are top of the line, NOS may be as well.
If you are looking for real high end performance, take a look at some of the newer devices, like PCM1794A or CS4398. I know that these are much more complicated to set up. And that may be the key point in the over estimation of NOS. Many people like NOS, because it's the only way they can do a DIY, because else it's to complicated. But that will not make it High End.
Be aware, that the performance of the newer DAC chips will depend VERY much on the analog stage, PSU and PCB layout.
NOS chips typically do not, since the sound of them is already so blurry, that nothing will be able to kick through.
I´d say that the hype about NOS is a pusle to me to.
But it is in some way understandable, that "new sound" DACs is disliked.
Many newer DAC designs sounds brighter than the older ones and this might in some cases result in pale and lifeless sound. One could say that the old ones and the newones are both performing wrongly, but in different ways.
But I don´t think these properties necessarily comes with the NOS an OS principples.
Newer designs can also sound human and much more expansive than most newer opamp based designs, and endeed they can reveal amounts of low level information that older DACs never can reach.
Actually most of the technical devellopment in DAC chips throug the past 20 - 25 years has been about low level information.
Unfortunately analog design has been totally ignored through the same period of time, and the standard op-amp solutions are still both industri standard and believe it or not - even also the state of art. Both now and then variuos incarnations of the old NE5534/5532 have been almost mandatory components in analog signalprocessing in I/V conversion, filtering and buffering.
It makes some sense though!
But it is in some way understandable, that "new sound" DACs is disliked.
Many newer DAC designs sounds brighter than the older ones and this might in some cases result in pale and lifeless sound. One could say that the old ones and the newones are both performing wrongly, but in different ways.
But I don´t think these properties necessarily comes with the NOS an OS principples.
Newer designs can also sound human and much more expansive than most newer opamp based designs, and endeed they can reveal amounts of low level information that older DACs never can reach.
Actually most of the technical devellopment in DAC chips throug the past 20 - 25 years has been about low level information.
Unfortunately analog design has been totally ignored through the same period of time, and the standard op-amp solutions are still both industri standard and believe it or not - even also the state of art. Both now and then variuos incarnations of the old NE5534/5532 have been almost mandatory components in analog signalprocessing in I/V conversion, filtering and buffering.
It makes some sense though!
My design maybe of interest to you,
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=122078&highlight=
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=122078&highlight=
No matter the choice of modern DAC chip set, I would recommend looking into the chip's software interface. The Arduino controller provides an excellent platform for such a task.
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