klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 26, 2013 12:08:22 GMT -5
novisnick - I'm not that worried about heat. The XPA-5 doesn't get very hot at all...it's only for my center and surrounds. My FR/FL amps are nCores (you can see one hanging on the wall to the left of Frankencomputer. That said, I do typically leave more room between the amp and the Oppo, but to fit the DC-1 on top of the Oppo I needed to take out the little risers that give another ~1" between the amp and Oppo. I will likely be either selling or moving my ERC-2 now, and when I do, I'll be moving the DC-1 so I can put the spacers back in to give more airflow. Meanwhile - I am not really worried.
golden ear...no golden ears here! And, I would not say that the DC-1 vs. the ERC-2 is night and day difference, but it's a big enough difference for me to appreciate it and want to keep the DC-1. I've been on quite the kick of upgrading my 2-channel system for the past year, and this change is about the last one I plan to make to it (just a new sub to look into later this year!).
Rickie - I know what you mean about the different versions of Katy Lied...I have both CD's and the remaster is so much better. Glad to hear yours is "on the truck"! I had a similar worry with mine...it took a while yesterday AM for it to switch from "at facility" to "on the truck". I was worried it got delayed, but no such luck!
Mark
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klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 26, 2013 12:11:40 GMT -5
Too true! Cymbals and wind instruments (including the human voice) really highlight the qualities of the DC-1.
Mark
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Post by repeetavx on Jul 26, 2013 12:18:38 GMT -5
I'll just wait for the DC-2 hahahaha... creimes, While I'm sure that the DC-1 sounds soooooo much better than the DACs in our PT-7030s, I wonder if we shouldn't be waiting for the RDA-1. While I'm sure that the half size form factor is just what a lot of people want and need, I'm sure that a standard size component will have its place too.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2013 12:36:56 GMT -5
Tip. Listening to Diana Kral 42nd street. The drumming with brushes and cymbals is great. And that's "only" with my xda2. I think I am happy and will stand pat for now. But still deep down want to try the dc1 hahah
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Post by GreenKiwi on Jul 26, 2013 12:40:05 GMT -5
The Sabre chip actually requires rather careful design to live up to its full potential, and quite a few folks simply don't get it quite right. Isn't this the meat and potatoes. While you can't make a crappy chip great, you can easily take a great chip and make it crappy. The design of the power circuitry and analog stages that take the signal from the dac and get it to the next component are the keys as to whether or not you have an ok/good/great Dac. Sonic signature of the dac aside. This is the value add that companies designing dacs provide. And so far I've been very happy with every dac I've heard from emo.
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Post by Golden Ear on Jul 26, 2013 13:17:39 GMT -5
The chipset inside the DAC is just one part of the equation. Ops-amp, discrete design and symmetrical layout will make those chipset perform their best. Even same chipset if ops-amps is not good, it will make them sound like AM radio.
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Post by deltadube on Jul 26, 2013 14:19:43 GMT -5
I always select hold for pickup for fedex so I don't have to hang around When the package got delayed yesterday I called and asked if I could have it held for pickup. I was told that since it was Home Delivery that the local facility wasn't authorized to pull the package to hold. The driver would have to deliver it to some different pickup location, which was nearer my house but then she made it sound so confusing and time consuming that I figured don't invite any more screwups, just leave things as it is or else I'll be flying to Memphis to get my DC-1. I would say that next time I will just select hold for pickup to begin with but seeing as how my audio system is now complete and I am not going to be adding anything else ever and ever and ever, then it's a moot point. i guess the fedex guys really like the dc 1 sound! cheers
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Post by creimes on Jul 26, 2013 14:25:11 GMT -5
I'll just wait for the DC-2 hahahaha... creimes, While I'm sure that the DC-1 sounds soooooo much better than the DACs in our PT-7030s, I wonder if we shouldn't be waiting for the RDA-1. While I'm sure that the half size form factor is just what a lot of people want and need, I'm sure that a standard size component will have its place too. I as well am quite positive the DC-1 compared to using the DAC within the PT-7030 would be better, I am very pleased with the analog section of the 7030, doing an A/B using my ERC-1 connected XLR to PRE-1 CD input and RCA to analog input of the 7030, I level matched the volume of the PRE-1 and 7030 as best I could with my own ears and switched back and forth from CD to HT bypass on the PRE-1 and could not hear much of a difference if any, and of course I am not saying the PRE-1 is lousy it's just the 7030 seems that good IMO. I do prefer the DAC in the ERC-1 compared to the 7030, in my testing anyways and like I have siad in the past I don't get to crazy doing comparisons all that much, I just like listening to music for the most part Chad
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Post by Dark Ranger on Jul 26, 2013 19:23:33 GMT -5
I'm dropping in to Mark's thread to say how much I enjoyed reading his feedback on the DC-1. It appears that Emotiva really did "one-up" the XDA-2 based on total user feedback so far. I was hoping that if I spent some time away from the Lounge, my desire to upgrade to the DC-1 would lessen. It did, but then I come back here and read threads like this... Oops! My wallet is on fire again. Hopefully Rickie's will arrive shortly. I can see him tracking down every FedEx truck in the county in desperate search of his beloved DC-1.
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klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 26, 2013 19:33:35 GMT -5
Call 911!
Mark
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Post by paintedklown on Jul 26, 2013 19:51:00 GMT -5
Thank you for the continued input and opinions Mark. I agree with others that have stated your review has probably sold more of these units. You have an excellent (dream) setup and a great set of ears to go along with it. Like everyone else, I too have enjoyed your concise reviews and share in your enthusiasm. Now I want to buy one as well. Unfortunately, I am broke, so I will have to live vicariously through the lounge members kind enough to post review threads. Rickie, did yours come in today? I am looking forward to your thoughts/review as well.
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Post by deltadube on Jul 26, 2013 23:25:51 GMT -5
I used the remastered version (1999). I hope yours does arrive today. Are you going to use it taking the AES/EBU from your ERC-2? Mark Thanks. You know long time ago I read a story that Steely Dan had done a superb, incredible job on the masters for Katy Lied and then some studio engineer did something to screw up the tapes and they were livid about it. As I recall, the LP sounded like the highs had been muted or rolled off. The original CD reflects this sound but the remaster seems to have restored the highs and overall has a more forward, lively sound to it. Supposedly my DC-1 is now on the truck for delivery. I called FedEx because it was showing at the facility but not on the truck. The rep called the local station and said she was told by them it would be delivered today. Then a few minutes later I saw the online status changed to on the vehicle for delivery. Unfortunately they said Home Delivery can be delivered as late as 8:00 PM. I am planning on using mainly my Sonos box to do my evaluation, comparing the Schiit Bifrost versus DC-1, both connected to the XSP-1 via RCA cables. I may also play some stuff through the ERC-2, comparing its DAC to the other two DAC's. Hi Monkumonku.. did you get the dc 1? dont tell me its that good its lost in the fedex truck for the weekend.. cheers
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Post by monkumonku on Jul 27, 2013 9:06:48 GMT -5
Thanks. You know long time ago I read a story that Steely Dan had done a superb, incredible job on the masters for Katy Lied and then some studio engineer did something to screw up the tapes and they were livid about it. As I recall, the LP sounded like the highs had been muted or rolled off. The original CD reflects this sound but the remaster seems to have restored the highs and overall has a more forward, lively sound to it. Supposedly my DC-1 is now on the truck for delivery. I called FedEx because it was showing at the facility but not on the truck. The rep called the local station and said she was told by them it would be delivered today. Then a few minutes later I saw the online status changed to on the vehicle for delivery. Unfortunately they said Home Delivery can be delivered as late as 8:00 PM. I am planning on using mainly my Sonos box to do my evaluation, comparing the Schiit Bifrost versus DC-1, both connected to the XSP-1 via RCA cables. I may also play some stuff through the ERC-2, comparing its DAC to the other two DAC's. Hi Monkumonku.. did you get the dc 1? dont tell me its that good its lost in the fedex truck for the weekend.. cheers Got the DC-1, got in some listening time, and want to do some more listening today (including the headphone jacks) before posting anything. So far I am very happy with it and it is obviously high quality. Really solid build and easy to use. More to come this weekend!
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klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 27, 2013 9:37:12 GMT -5
Super! Looking forward to your impressions. While you awaited your delivery, I modified my setup a bit. I found a decent deal on a factory re-certified Dell 660s to replace Frankencomputer, which was struggling with speed and other issues. So, I bought it and got it all set up by this AM. New pix are below... In this one, note that I moved the DC-1 to the top right to gain back the space I had (with little risers) between the XPA-5 and Oppo 105. Also, I put the wireless keyboard/mouse in the photo...that's how I control the PC. The little Dell is to the right now. It's nice and small, has an i3 chip in it, has HDMI output (which I inputted into the UMC-1 for video use only), and is dead silent...just what I was looking for! This shows what it looks like when I have the Dell running JRiver...nice and easy to select tunes! And, if I want - I can even surf the net while listening...such as going to the Lounge! I still have some tweaking to do...not sure if I got the DC-1 driver installed right yet. It's playing but JRiver doesn't recognize it as a DC-1...just a USB High Speed audio output. On Frankencomputer, I am pretty sure it saw the DC-1 as "DC-1"...need to go check. This wouldn't be an issue, but with Frankencomputer, I could select WASAPI from JRiver, and with the new setup - I can select it, but JRiver gives me an error playing files saying the output device can't handle it. So, more work to do... Mark
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Post by GreenKiwi on Jul 27, 2013 11:05:30 GMT -5
Nice. Btw do you use the jrmc theater mode? And does jremote work with video files?
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klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 27, 2013 12:15:05 GMT -5
Thanks - I have not been using theater mode...tried it once and didn't like it. I've not tried jremote yet. Is that an app to control JRiver off smart phones/tablets?
Also - I figured out the playback error. JRiver 18 has an option to playback in WASAPI and a toggle in another location to turn off "Event style". I turned that off and now WASAPI works fine again!
Mark
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Post by deltadube on Jul 27, 2013 12:21:46 GMT -5
Hi Mark .. in your pictures what are the two brown squares with the red light? cheers
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klinemj
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Post by klinemj on Jul 27, 2013 12:25:08 GMT -5
Those are the amps for my Front Left & Front Right. I custom-built the cases myself out of aluminum as the main case with poplar wood faces with smoked glass right where the nCore amp modules are. The red lights are LED's on the amp modules. They show a different pattern if the amp has a fault, but my main use of the lights is as the power-on indicators! When I went to build these, I didn't find any cases I liked, so I got creative. (Same deal on the rack...I built that also.)
Mark
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Post by deltadube on Jul 27, 2013 15:50:23 GMT -5
Those are the amps for my Front Left & Front Right. I custom-built the cases myself out of aluminum as the main case with poplar wood faces with smoked glass right where the nCore amp modules are. The red lights are LED's on the amp modules. They show a different pattern if the amp has a fault, but my main use of the lights is as the power-on indicators! When I went to build these, I didn't find any cases I liked, so I got creative. (Same deal on the rack...I built that also.) Mark good job.. never would have guess those where amps on the wall.. cheers..
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Post by yves on Jul 27, 2013 23:01:55 GMT -5
The Sabre chip actually requires rather careful design to live up to its full potential, and quite a few folks simply don't get it quite right. I agree, and I find that it (the Sabre ES9018 chip) creates problems like an artificial, fatiguingly cold and sterile presentation, harsh top end, fuzzy soundstage and unsmooth mids if it lacks this rather careful design. (As a result, I couldn't live with any Sabre DAC that I know of, other than my Eastern Electric MiniMax DAC Plus via USB in solid state mode, with no tube installed and using its stock opamps).
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