Hi, if you have the S2 from Taiwan you really not need to look any further. It is one of the best versions (if not the very best).
"Richer sounding" may be more distortion, an S2 measures the best of all and has the least distortion. The "many" you mention may not have heard nor measured both versions as an S2 is pretty expensive....
I used to throw used S1 chips from the eighties in the bin and replaced them for N2 1998 Taiwan chips as those sound better and differ very little to none at all in distortion numbers. In fact N2 1998 Taiwan version chip measure way better than the datasheets say.
"Richer sounding" may be more distortion, an S2 measures the best of all and has the least distortion. The "many" you mention may not have heard nor measured both versions as an S2 is pretty expensive....
I used to throw used S1 chips from the eighties in the bin and replaced them for N2 1998 Taiwan chips as those sound better and differ very little to none at all in distortion numbers. In fact N2 1998 Taiwan version chip measure way better than the datasheets say.
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Thanks for that Jean-Paul,
I very much appreciate you sharing your expertise and for your kind advice. For me it is a bit of a novelty - an experiment to try various phases of production. An early double crown would be a really interesting thing for me to try out.
If anyone knows of one....
Cheers,
TD
I very much appreciate you sharing your expertise and for your kind advice. For me it is a bit of a novelty - an experiment to try various phases of production. An early double crown would be a really interesting thing for me to try out.
If anyone knows of one....
Cheers,
TD
Yeah, I've heard it too, Holland S1 chips (double crowns) sound better than Taiwan S2 chips. I don't know if it falls into the 'Audio rumours' category.
Strange thing is that I've never seen a non-Taiwan S2 installed on Marantz CD7 (weren't they produced - S2s - for this CD after all?)
I suppose you are looking for smth like this
Strange thing is that I've never seen a non-Taiwan S2 installed on Marantz CD7 (weren't they produced - S2s - for this CD after all?)
I suppose you are looking for smth like this
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
TDA1541A/S2 doublecrown16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8fs -95(0.002) -47(0.4) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A/S1 singlecrown16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8fs -95(0.001) -47(0.4) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A high-performance16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8fs -95(0.0018) -42(0.79) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A/R1 high-performance16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8f-95(0.001) -43(0.79) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A/S1 singlecrown16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8fs -95(0.001) -47(0.4) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A high-performance16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8fs -95(0.0018) -42(0.79) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
TDA1541A/R1 high-performance16-bit DAC 1 I2S, upto8f-95(0.001) -43(0.79) 112 (4.0) 5±10% 700 DIL28
There can't be much opinions or thoughts about a device that:
- was selected for the best specifications within its family
- thus measures the best of its class/family
- is produced with the tightest specs on a specially resurrected production line that is only resurrected for a few runs of chips for only one very expensive device.
- is known to be the best by those that heard it
I am sure some people will only judge Taiwan S2:
- while they never heard one
- with the thought in their mind that they can't afford one
- don't want to pay the ridiculous prices for them and judge them negatively because of that
- have a certain interest in selling their older chips for again too high prices
- and tell these opinions for various reasons at websites for their own good
Please be aware that there is not a better measuring and sounding S2 than S2 from 1997 Taiwan within all the chips limitations. Not wanting to brag but I have had a lot of brand new NOS/NIB TDA1541A chips of all types and datecodes and 1997 Taiwan S2 and Taiwan 1998 N2 are very alike and apart from the chips from the eighties that have had their hours of duty behind them. Wanting to go the opposite direction is your choice but there is a slight scent of snobbism and stubbornness that go with it. Nothing wrong with that but time has its grip on TDA chips.
So your DAC has the limit that it already has the best of old silicon so other things can make it really better:
- better power supplies and decoupling
- a much better receiver that has lower jitter specs (this is an important one that is underestimated)
- using BG caps that have S2 status already in audiophile circles
- implement a well designed output stage
- add a low jitter clock to the source feeding the DAC
Please realize that used chips sound different than fresher ones. The comparison would be just if you could compare both chips if they're both NIB/NOS.
That will be a hard one.
The hype was nice and the TDA1541A chips sound good but time has moved on and newer techniques have been developed of which some surpass TDA1541A (and they should!). Now the last drops of profit will be made on flaky used chips that are sold for too much and can not be trusted if they're original or not because the hype caused some people to produce fake chips or rebrand them.
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