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DAC tour

Robby is just finished with his audition of the ISO-DAc & I believe beammeup is next in line - if he can confirm hes ready?
 
I had the ISO-DAC in my system for a few days. Firstly, I did have a couple of operational issues around the power supply and the unit being grounded properly. John was incredibly helpful and resolving the issues I had.

The small issues aside I have to say this is one of the best DAC’s I have had in my system. Compared to my Schiit Gungnir Multibit (GUMBY) the bass is improved and the soundstage a little wider. Music has a solidity and power to it that the GUMBY cannot match – the Schiit DAC sounds slightly softer by comparison.

The presentation sounds a little cleaner with more space around instruments – as others have said backgrounds are much blacker.

The only area that the GUMBY betters the ISO-DAC – and this is probably down to personal taste – is that the midrange is slightly fuller.

Overall this is a superb DAC that can, to my ears, easily compete with DAC costing twice as much and maybe more.

I am very interested to hear how the next iteration sounds.

John, can you put me on the list please?
 
OK, I'm ready to tour supercapacitor power supplies (5V at the moment) & supercapacitor powered versions of the ISO-HUB, ISO-DAC & ISO-SPDIF next week.

I'll start a new thread on the new ISO-PS(supercap) & another on the supercap ISO audio devices
 
Well thank you John once again for letting me borrow your ISO-DAC for the second time!

Using a more revealing more expensive pair of loudspeakers I wanted to see if how the ISO-DAC performed.. and I can endorse this DAC thoroughly once again. There is no 'hardness' to the digital, and a sweetness in the treble akin to valves (and I wasn't using a valve amp in the system while listening to this DAC). Great air and presence plus impactful when the music demands; coupled with fantastic presence in the mid-range.

What did confuse me a little though, was that the more expensive speakers (rrp £8000 new) did not demonstrate the impact of the music like the lower priced Role Audio Enterprise (rrp £3000 new) did. I can only guess that the smaller carbon fibre cones of the Roles' were able to convey the quickness and slam in a more adept way than larger paper cone drivers.

A great match for any speaker nevertheless - but if you have a speaker capable of 'slam' the ISO-DAC does not hold back while keeping timing and rhythm in check.

I can't wait to listen to Johns DAC based on the supercap !!! Put me on that listening list when the time comes John please. And remember - I have the current ISO-DAC to compare it with firmly implanted in my memory cells.
 
Thank you for posting your impressions, Chris

Yes, odd that the £8,000 speakers did not reveal the DAC characteristics in the same way as the Role?

I will add you to the list of tour participants on the other thread
 
Because I know next to nothing about digital audio I had accepted the argument that upsampling a file ripped from cd would achieve nothing other than a larger file. Yesterday, out of curiosity and because the Topping D10 is 32/384 capable, I reset JRiver to output at 96. There was an immediate all-round improvement in perceived sq, which was baffling. My hearing is in decline and possibly open to question but the clincher was that the REL subs were too prominent and had to be backed off before they would disappear back into the mix. Today (at 384) it still sounds more detailed and sweeter. Since there can't be any more information in the file my tentative conclusion is that somehow the s/n ratio is improved by upsampling.
Whatever the reason, I clearly missed a trick when auditioning the Iso-DAC - had I re-set JRMC at the time it would have sounded even better. I'm posting this on the off chance that it hasn't occurred to any future reviewers currently using an older DAC.
 
dookie182 said:
May I be added to the supercap iso dac tour? I live in france
Click to expand...
Hi Dookie
The new 9& better) DAC tour is on another thread but it's difficult to include you in this for a number of reasons. The best way for you to do this is to buy the DAC & listen to it at home. You have 30 days home trial period - you can return it ( cheap to post <1Kg & about the size of a hand) to Ireland & I will refund full purchase price less my €20 shipping costs
 
Hello John,
Thanks for the reply.
I've been folliwing your work for a couple of years now and recently my interet was picked up again reading trans-fi website and the evolution of his system.
Yes I think that I might do the home trial period. I'll keep in touch as soon as I'm ready to pull the trigger.
All my best for you.
Regards.
Quentin
 
Thanks Quentin
If you PM me, outline your system & what you are comparing it to - I can evaluate if it will reveal the quality of the DAC & forgo my usual deduction of €20 shipping costs if you return it as I doubt you will.
 
John,
Thanks for the home demo of the ISODAC.
I used it in my main system, which includes a Tidal Preos-D preamp/DAC.
The ISODAC sounded absolutely remarkable given its cost. It didn't have the bass weight and texture of the Tidal DAC, but it sounded very smooth yet dynamic - and didn't suffer the muddling that can happen during complex pieces that can affect a lot of DACs. As soon as I get my office system set up again I will be putting my order in!
Thanks again for the trial.
Dave
 
Thanks Dave
Glad you liked it
Apologies to all for the delay in getting the supercapacitors DAC & PS on tour - had some parts issues, have been sick & need to fulfil orders first.
Should be going on tour shortly
 
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