Home Source Components

The line out of the motherboard in the desktop is as noisy as anything I have ever heard. It does have an optical out though... Last night I pulled out the bottlehead crack and hd650s and they sounded mighty fine. I loved them with the emotive xda1 and the xda2 is only $219 right now but I don't have the room for it. I haven't kept up with the dac market for the past few years. The PS Audio DL 3 works well with the speakers so I am not inclined to do anything with it but it is already being fed by an Apple TV and only has one optical input. Any suggestions for a dac that has an optical input in a similar budget (if need be I'll try to make room for the xda2 but I'd ra…

I'd like to get a dac to pair with my recently acquired O2/KGSS rig. I'm currently using my APL modded Philips SACD1000 but there's a pretty big portion of music that I only have on hard drives. I'd like to keep this as inexpensive as possible but if I can't find anything to my liking I'm willing to wait it out awhile. I'll mostly likely be using the DAC with a Squeezebox as the transport.

I have been sucked in the spiral of Stax and I feel I might end with an Omega II+SRM-717 before or later. I'm wondering what DAC would be up to the job. I am considering the OMZ 4.1 since it seems to have a soft tonality that I might like, and I am waiting with interest for the AMB Gamma 1, which still is "just" a small DAC (probably Pico competitor). Would these make justice to the Omega's, or should I go up to a Cambridge 840c and such? Thanks for any hints you can throw.

If you've got a recommend on a DAC that'll take a USB 24/192 feed, I'd love to hear your thoughts. I like the sound of Sabre, but Wolfson chips would be OK too. I'm willing to spend up to $2K. Should have the new amp sometime next week, but won't have a DAC to feed it. T.

So I was leant a Dac-Ah for no other reason than to get my opinion. There seems to be some sort of distortion on it (I'm listening to Camille's Le Fil, and it seems to show up on her voice and the bass, and any other prominent sounds like that) -- is this something that will go away with burn-in, or is there something wrong and needs to be fixed. I forget which exact version it is, but could find out if it's important...or is this something that needs to be diagnosed on a case-by-case basis?

So pretty soon I'll have an ECD-1 in the house, which means I'll be able to compare it to the North Star m192 mk2. I've heard such great things about the ECD-1 that I just impulsively pulled the trigger when I saw it on the 'gon. But I also have grown very fond of the North Star. It will be fun to compare. I'll save this space for my impressions...

I'll put up unresized images either when I can access my FTP or when Head-Case makes the switch to the new forum software.

My brother left his Apogee Centaur speakers with me to sell when he left for South America. I've had an ad on US Audio Mart for quite awhile, and while it has attracted some responses (including 1 local, but couldn't meet up the same night he was looking at some Maggies), has not resulted in getting rid of these for my brother. I just got an offer for a trade for a Monarchy m22A, plus some Tek Line power cord. Anyone have an opinion on this DAC? It certainly would seem easier to sell for something without requiring me to pack or crate the speakers (dude would come and pick them up). Thanks for any input! p.s. And I know this is more like a bar... I am drinking…

So what do you guys (and gals) think? A Sony TTS-8000 turntable and Fidelity Research FR-54 arm for $1800 total including shipping. Yay or Nay?

I was thinking of picking up this computer to use as a transport for the Pico Dac: The Dell Online Store: Build Your System It comes with XP Home, 1 gb ram and 8 gb ss hard drive. It's $299 and has a 8.9" screen. I would be running itunes only with an external drive connected to it containing the music files. It seems perfect as it has a small screen if any issues come up requiring reboots, etc. I would use the remote on my iphone. I had the mac mini, which was great but also had to have a separate monitor attached. This will save room and should do exactly what I need.

Does anyone have experience with effectively demagnetizing vinyl and how? I have Nitty Gritty record cleaning machine and this helps some. I use a carbon brush on each side of play. I also have a Zerostat (slow squeeze in near the record and then discharge away fro the rrecord) but I hear little effect with this. I know there are a several of machines, one in the $300-400 price range, which I'd consider if it was truly effective. I am looking to cut down on the crackling and/or static type of noise. Am I correct in attributing this noise to static charge?

Has anyone had any experience with these? https://www.vinshineaudio.com/denafrips

Hey guys, I'm in the process of getting a CD-transport at the moment, with an eye for modding later on down the road. For those of you who have heard the modded Denon units, is there a big difference between a modded 2910 and a 3910? If there's a somewhat substantial difference, I'm willing to pocket the difference and go with the 3910. Oh btw, I'm going to have them modded by SACDmods if that makes a difference.

The Denon 3910 has been to APL, Hotrod and now ??. What will the resultant sound be like? Hotrod did the dual dack (per channel) mod as well as the power supply mod. APL did the Multi clock mod and poor audio output mod. And ??? is doing the Audio Output mods as well as possibly re-doing the power supply mods. What will it sound like? Who knows. : : :

Smoking deal http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?homevdeo&1192926190

The Denon DA-500 I started a thread back when I bought my first Denon DA-500. Since then, Deepak has picked one up, and I've picked up a second one, and others have been looking for one. So it's generating a little more interest. Now talk has turned towards possible improvements. The basics: PCM-1702 based buffered op-amp output stage? 3 optical inputs 2 coaxial inputs 1 optical output 1 coaxial output 1 analong output This isn't meant to be strictly a modding thread. But I thought it would be good to grab the posts regarding the DA-500 from some other threads and get them all together. From my previous threads: A good modding threa…

Have you ever tried one? Looks like siriouse 20kg shit to me, isnt?

A couple of highly respected members here have reccomended the DEQ2496 as a DAC. I am very interested and would like to hear some other opinions on this cool piece of equipment. I also do some home recording and can see where some of its feautures would help me there. My main concern is how it would sound as a DAC. I understand that being pro-audio gear vs. audiophile gear that it will probably be a little more cold and anylitical. But paired with my Bijou amp which is very warm and lush, though it might make a good combo. Anybody have some comments or reccomondations. I am looking for a desktop DAC. It does not need to be portable in any way. I would like …

Hello, need some suggestions for a DAC to use with PC. I realize there are a wide plethora of options listed in the forum, but would like some help narrowing the list down to budget. Currently using the Pico DAC/amp for everything, but was wondering if there is a better option, specifically for desktop use with USB. I've been contemplating upgrading to powered speakers, and STAX, so it's probably time for a source upgrade as well. What options do I got?

This may be a stupid question (and feel free to say so if it is), but does the Headroom Micro DAC have the diamond buffer in it? Does it make sense for it to? From a brief perusal of a thread or two on Head-Fi, it seems not, but I just wanted to make sure.

I can't find it on the HR page, and Google searches aren't turning up much that is useful. It's still pictured in a few of the HR-BUD photos and a PDF of the manual is still online, but that's about it. I did some preliminary searches on head-fi, but I can barely navigate that site these days. If it's in fact gone, it seems like an odd move to me. The "build your own Max" option of buying a HR-BUD, HR-UDAC and DPS is no longer possible. Not to mention the lack of a top of the line source for the HR power amps + Harbeths. Where's Tyll when you need him?* *Yes, I realize he's no longer directly affiliated with the company.

Just posting an observation I've made with digital transports. I'm sure jitter plays some part in why some sound different from others. But something else I've noticed lately is that the output signal level from a digital transport also seems to make a difference with regards to sound quality. I noticed this recently since I have a few DACs right now in the house, all with varying analog output levels. Ranging from 2- 3.5 vrms through the RCA (single ended) output. Sometimes the output on the high output DACs is just a bit too much with my amps (lacking headroom on the headphone amp's volume pot is annoying), which is what started me to mess around with the volume level o…

Has anyone here ever done his own needle drops? And so, how are the results?

My Zhaolu won't receive a coax or optical signal....I can hear a current rush through the headphones when I power it up, but then it goes to mute.. and then nothing.... Headphone amp module doesn't work either. I use it for late night TV with an M^3, but it stopped working yesterday. It just goes to mute after I turn it on. Here are some pics, maybe some of the DIYers can spot what's wrong with it. All the leds inside light up and the muting led flashes. Nothing looks burnt or leaking, what do you guys think? Thanks for taking a look. USG

I am constantly thinking about getting a turntable (not like a high-end one, just something basic that can do the job), but one thing that is holding me back is my worry that headphones, due to their close placement to the ears, might exacerbate vinyl surface noises to the point of distraction. Is this worry warranted? I will probably get a basic vacuum cleaning machine if I do end up with a table. And of course a lot depends on the table itself, cartridge, phono stage, and set-up, but in general, has anyone found that using headphones to listen to vinyl has picked up surface noises to the point of distraction? And if so, how have you dealt with it?