Hm... maybe I will get this then and consolidate some gear into one box. Let us know how it sounds after you get it!

well, my Nova arrives wednesday. I don't have any dynamic cans in house, but it will be employed running a transformer and a set of Lambdas.

I'm hoping that 80 watts doesn't prove too much. I really should have waited a few months and picked up the Decco 2, but I didn't know about it, and I was impatient to boot.

Just don't turn it up all the way, silly.

At least the volume doesn't go to 11 like the Apogee.

Just don't turn it up all the way, silly.

My 150 wpc Moscode was decidedly overpowered for Staxen, as you heard. It sounded okay with the Lambda, but didn't drive the O2 properly. I doubt there will be much difference between the Moscode and the Nova, in that regard. We shall see, though.

I didn't buy it for the amp. I bought it for the DAC and the pre. And the cuteness, of course.

Hmm, I cant seem to find what type of dac the old Decco used. Does anyone know?

I'm not sure of the chip. It was a Scott Nixon design.

The only additional info I could find is that it's non-upsampling. (From stereomojo)

John Marks really liked the Nova in the latest issue of Stereophile. Said it drove his Aerial 5Bs well (and they are just 85dB and 4 Ohms nominal) and the DAC section was excellent. One interesting tidbit, he tried very hard to spot the difference between S/PDIF input from a nice Luxman transport and USB input from his PC and could not do so.

If you have a music network up, and $1200 is your limit, the Peachtree Nova USB is totally wowzers. In my book, the Nova is the Dynaco Stereo 70 for the 21st century.

I like it as much as John Marks did -- probably more.

The DAC section of this bad boy sounds wonderful. Running my Stax transformer from the speaker outs and my RS-1 straight from the headphone outs. I really prefer it to my old ECD-1 in every way (so sorry, Monkey). It's an ESS chip (the lowest one), and it is just liquid smooth. Fantastic extension in the treble, without making either my Lambdas or the RS-1 harsh in the least. Everything is pure sparkle. One hiccup, though -- my audio preferences in Leopard don't show 24/96 as an option. The highest I can get is 16/48. Not bad, but not ideal considering it's specced as 24/96, and I have some recordings to make use of that. I've left a message with Jim Spainhour about it.

The DAC is tied to a seemingly nice class A preamp, which is the same circuitry as the headamp. It's a nice headamp. I compared it to a bunch of junk, and it made it sound like junk. Not much more to say there. I'll run it up against some stars at this weekend's meet.

Switching the lone 6922 on and off yields some difference, but not enough to make it much more than a gimmick. The low midbass seems to firm up somewhat with it on, so I leave it on, but I don't know if I could reliably identify the same passage with the tube on and again with it off. I got a gold pin Amperex 6922 to roll in and see if that makes any difference. It's my only remaining tube to roll, so I had to try at least one.

My only other speaker amp to compare this to at the moment is the trends TA 10.1, and the Nova beats it soundly. In comparison, the Trends feels strained. Highs are etchy, and it's far less dynamic. It's also only 10 watts into 8 ohms, but how much does a Stax trafo really need?

I've only had it a few days, so we're still getting to know each other. I'll keep you all updated.

I like it as much as John Marks did -- probably more.

The DAC section of this bad boy sounds wonderful. Running my Stax transformer from the speaker outs and my RS-1 straight from the headphone outs. I really prefer it to my old ECD-1 in every way (so sorry, Monkey). It's an ESS chip (the lowest one), and it is just liquid smooth. Fantastic extension in the treble, without making either my Lambdas or the RS-1 harsh in the least. Everything is pure sparkle. One hiccup, though -- my audio preferences in Leopard don't show 24/96 as an option. The highest I can get is 16/48. Not bad, but not ideal considering it's specced as 24/96, and I have some recordings to make use of that. I've left a message with Jim Spainhour about it.

The DAC is tied to a seemingly nice class A preamp, which is the same circuitry as the headamp. It's a nice headamp. I compared it to a bunch of junk, and it made it sound like junk. Not much more to say there. I'll run it up against some stars at this weekend's meet.

Switching the lone 6922 on and off yields some difference, but not enough to make it much more than a gimmick. The low midbass seems to firm up somewhat with it on, so I leave it on, but I don't know if I could reliably identify the same passage with the tube on and again with it off. I got a gold pin Amperex 6922 to roll in and see if that makes any difference. It's my only remaining tube to roll, so I had to try at least one.

My only other speaker amp to compare this to at the moment is the trends TA 10.1, and the Nova beats it soundly. In comparison, the Trends feels strained. Highs are etchy, and it's far less dynamic. It's also only 10 watts into 8 ohms, but how much does a Stax trafo really need?

I've only had it a few days, so we're still getting to know each other. I'll keep you all updated.

Check with Blutarsky about the extra 6922 tubes that he wants to sell, including some nice Siemens.

So far I feel a little meh about the ESS stuff, but I'd like to hear the Peachtree.

So far I feel a little meh about the ESS stuff, but I'd like to hear the Peachtree.

Does that mean you do not care for the UDAC?

So far I feel a little meh about the ESS stuff, but I'd like to hear the Peachtree.

yay, the dissenting opinion begins! You can mark me down as a "meh" as well.

yay, the dissenting opinion begins! You can mark me down as a "meh" as well.

What specific implementations?

Some new info from John W.:

Da-capo issue (John W?) - Page 52 - diyAudio

Interesting discourse on I-out vs. V-out, at least with whatever DAC chip(s) he is using in a previous post:

Da-capo issue (John W?) - Page 51 - diyAudio

Since this is the default Peachtree thread.

Signal Path International - Era Speakers & Peachtree Audio - iDecco

Pretty neat. A Decco with an integrated iPod dock that takes the digital output (a la Wadia iTransport) straight into its own DAC.

That's pretty sweet.

Saw this at CA

http://www.avantgarde-acoustic.de/download/files/1210261650482320926f9e1.pdf

Avantgarde Model 2 DA

Saw this at CA

http://www.avantgarde-acoustic.de/download/files/1210261650482320926f9e1.pdf

Avantgarde Model 2 DA

Mmmm. Silizium crystals. Aaaarrggh.

Saw this at CA

http://www.avantgarde-acoustic.de/download/files/1210261650482320926f9e1.pdf

Avantgarde Model 2 DA

I like crystal

Anyone know anything about this Hegel DAC? I like that Norwegian sound.

Anyone know anything about this Hegel DAC? I like that Norwegian sound.

You like that master-slave dialectic.

You like that master-slave dialectic.

How many entendres is that, do ya think?

I am strongly considering a Peachtree Nova, and soon. I currently have no DAC and just recently have ripped my entire music collection to the computer. It seems like the logical next step. Having another headphone amp to play around with, and future speaker abilities, leans me towards the Peachtree offerings. I understand that the Decco2 is about $200 less than the Nova but gives up half the power (all the other elements are essentially the same). In the room where my audio rig sits, I would probably require bigger speakers so might as well not limit myself on wattage. The iDecco is a nice party piece, but it's a home rig so I don't really see the need for the iPod capabilities.

What really makes me love this unit though is simply that it can be the brain of my audio operations. With multiple inputs and outputs it can play nice with anything else I've got on hand. The only question is, can this be the DAC that settles it for me? Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not interested in flipping audio gear.

Matt, I think you need to give it a listen. We really don't have that many listening impressions of the ESS stuff. Did you listen to the HR UltraDAC at all?