This orig $350.00 USD of this DAC was low enough for it to be sold out quickly on Massdrop.
The forum discussion on Massdrop is huge (2-3k responses), and there is controversy on how "original" this design is.
Of relevance to the DIYA community is the comparison to the Soekris DAC. Charges of intellectual property theft have been slung in multiple directions.
I've seen Soekris here at DIYA for years, but the Airist is relative newcomer.
That said, discrete R2R topology has been around for decades.
So what is the source for the orig. Airist R2R DAC design?
REFS:
Drop: Passions lead here (formerly Massdrop)
RDAC Drama: Allegations of Airist Audio and Massdrop copying DIY work. Details in comments. : headphones
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Bloody Hell, MassDrop will soon present a president massdrop stamped on the face ! Well as the name is Drop todays, no things promised are safe enough, lol !
I wasn't interested in the controversy when reading forums, but user feedback and how it compares to others. Unfortunately Airist SQ is rated much lower than Soekris Denafrips and even the cheapest Audio GD R2R11 which is at the same price, available all the time and comes with a quality headphone amplifier.
As Airist do not deliver, I don't really care...
As Airist do not deliver, I don't really care...
I have Drop alert and indeed don't see it again. But few thoughts :
the dac part itself is not the whole result in what you hear if you have read the threads here about discrete r2r.
the fact this is discrete asks to be confident in the resistors sorting out
I'm not sure about discrete smd and agging while not knowing if any inputs yet : smd resistors agging, dust, humidity, board bonding, cold solder joint with time ? -why not after all when you're buying a car it's not forever-
Seems there are discrete R2R that pop ups here and there.
Drop being not MassDrop anymore, it's less good deals than before .
But just thoughs, I only imagine it sounds less good than a design enhanced by people here and the one I talk about was not sounding good in the first drop I heard. So... imho monney wasted. But yeah curious too 😉 🙂. More luck if you can find an old R2R chips : the PCM1704 being enough for high res it it's your targett and older generation of such chips and close if you listen to RED-BOOK, but I'm sure you're aware about that already -
the dac part itself is not the whole result in what you hear if you have read the threads here about discrete r2r.
the fact this is discrete asks to be confident in the resistors sorting out
I'm not sure about discrete smd and agging while not knowing if any inputs yet : smd resistors agging, dust, humidity, board bonding, cold solder joint with time ? -why not after all when you're buying a car it's not forever-
Seems there are discrete R2R that pop ups here and there.
Drop being not MassDrop anymore, it's less good deals than before .
But just thoughs, I only imagine it sounds less good than a design enhanced by people here and the one I talk about was not sounding good in the first drop I heard. So... imho monney wasted. But yeah curious too 😉 🙂. More luck if you can find an old R2R chips : the PCM1704 being enough for high res it it's your targett and older generation of such chips and close if you listen to RED-BOOK, but I'm sure you're aware about that already -
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How do you know they "don't deliver"? Have you actually listened to (or measured) a unit?
The Massdrop forum thread for the Airist is huge (2-3k post; comparable to some of the TDA1541 threads on DIYA)-- see my OP for REFs.
The base Soekris 1321 fully-assembled boxes are only a $100 more than the Airist. And who knows: the Soekris may very well be worth the extra $$. But most low-end Soekris are out-of-stock.
And ... BTW ... come on ... you can't compare the Airist to other NOS R2Rs that are way more $$ (Denafrips, Soekris 1541) and expect the same SQ.
My final comparison of Airist SQ was with Audio GD R2R11 which cost exactly the same ($350). A high quality built with a headphone amplifier and pre-amp, typical for A-GD. The same DAC modules are used in a 3-times more expensive R28, just operating in a single ended mode and it is NOS-only. The analog section gives a taste of a high-end sound with discrete low-feedback amplifier, no opamps. Using with Sennheiser HD 600, it sounds real. This is a bargain, I wonder you missed what I said.KHashmi316;6262279}[URL="https://soekris.modhouseaudio.com/soekris-audiophile-line" said:
I wouldn't buy Soekris for two reasons. Developer is disregarding listening tests in favour of measurements and his attitude of criticizing competitors turns me away. Although support on the forum is very valuable, maybe (assuming product is still available) I would change my mind over the time.
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Aliexpress R2R boards
Seen some discrete R2R boards on Ali.
All under $100. Dunno how good they are. But they do need separate USB adapter (e.g., Amanero usb interface) .
This Ali board is $216 USD...
Seen some discrete R2R boards on Ali.
All under $100. Dunno how good they are. But they do need separate USB adapter (e.g., Amanero usb interface) .
This Ali board is $216 USD...
I'd like to pick one up.Aliexpress R2R boards
Seen some discrete R2R boards on Ali.
All under $100. Dunno how good they are. But they do need separate USB adapter (e.g., Amanero usb interface) .
This Ali board is $216 USD...