ajxd Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 Recently bought a Musical Fidelity V-Dac II. Super pumpd because I've never owned a nice dac. I bought a super crappy one 2 years ago. Decided to invest into a nice entry level one. My BFF informed me of the new dac he just ordered.... Ugh. Want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drds89 Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 schweet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearchuck Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 A decent DAC has been on my wish list for the past year, but I keep spending my money on other shit. I was looking at that Musical Fidelity V-Dac II not too long ago and it's definitely on my radar. Also considering the Grant Fidelity TubeDAC-11, which gets good reviews and offers a lot of versatility in one unit. It's made in China, which is kind of a turnoff, but apparently Grant Fidelity has an exclusive deal and all the units go through strict quality control. Anyway, there's pretty much no one that beats McIntosh in the looks department. Thankfully they've got the performance to back it up. Dare I ask how much your friend dropped on that? It was just released, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedeni Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 That is one sweet McIntosh. I would say that it probably cost around $3000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted November 30, 2012 Author Share Posted November 30, 2012 I was torn between the V-Dac II and the Cambridge Audio Dac Magic. Both are similar in price, both get excellent reviews... I threw out a TON of offers on Audiogon for each unit, and snagged a new in box V-Dac II for $225 shipped. BOOM! I think the Mc Dac is $2k... not sure though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jared Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 I recently got a Cambridge Audio Azur 851a and am wondering if pairing it with the 851c DAC is in the future. Then again - both are insane upgrades so I have no idea if I should or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannibal Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 I have the V-DAC. I like it. I've thought about upgrading the power supply but have yet to pull the trigger. Hmmm... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ticotico Posted November 30, 2012 Share Posted November 30, 2012 my peachtree has been treating me well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I'm getting this bad boy as soon as my local dealer gets it in, managed to get a sweet discount on it: I'm not really sure what to expect, but I'm pretty certain it'll be a substantial upgrade from my previous DAC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymbalism15 Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 I know that the DAC works as an external soundcard for digital files but how much of a difference does it make? At what point do upgrades stop helping? Isn't it just bits being transferred? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slinch Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 A DAC converts the digital signal to an analog one. The quality of this conversion is the primary determinator of the final sound quality. It makes a s much of a difference as a better cart or a better preamp or a better speaker. But this is a good question, and should be brought up more often in all areas of audio equipment: at what point do upgrades stop helping? It's all in the ballance. The end result is only as good as the weakest link. Finding out what the weakest link is gets harder the higher you go price-wise. But it's definitely not the best idea for example to look for a new cartridge in the $200 price range, when running the signal through a $250 receiver from best buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymbalism15 Posted December 2, 2012 Share Posted December 2, 2012 A DAC converts the digital signal to an analog one. The quality of this conversion is the primary determinator of the final sound quality. It makes a s much of a difference as a better cart or a better preamp or a better speaker. But this is a good question, and should be brought up more often in all areas of audio equipment: at what point do upgrades stop helping? It's all in the ballance. The end result is only as good as the weakest link. Finding out what the weakest link is gets harder the higher you go price-wise. But it's definitely not the best idea for example to look for a new cartridge in the $200 price range, when running the signal through a $250 receiver from best buy. Thanks, I'm still trying to fill in the gaps in my knowledge. Why is the analog signal better than digital if both are from the same source? Also, can a DAC be used/help if you're streaming using Apple TV or another server? I've heard that the transmitted information can be bit-perfect and if so is there any problem streaming? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted December 7, 2012 Author Share Posted December 7, 2012 Just a heads up. Received my V-Dac II... and it didn't work. Wouldn't recognize a digital signal. Kept just making a clicking sound. Returned it, ordered a Cambridge Audio Dac Magic, found one new. Very excited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillhole Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Oh man I wish I could afford McIntosh gear. Once I sat in the Mcintosh showroom at a high end store and well I've never been the same since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymbalism15 Posted December 7, 2012 Share Posted December 7, 2012 Oh man I wish I could afford McIntosh gear. Once I sat in the Mcintosh showroom at a high end store and well I've never been the same since. I can never find places that do that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kannibal Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 I've heard that $10000 Mc TT. It had a cheap grado cart on it because the original cart had been damaged. Needless to say it didn't impress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfranciosa Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 I've got a vintage McIntosh MX 112 preamp/tuner that I scored for $200 because it has a bad FM output. I bought it for the phono preamp (never listen to the radio anyway) and it was worth every penny (which I thought was a steal anyway). I started to look at McIntosh power amps and my hair turned white at the prices. Went Dynaco instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillhole Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 I can never find places that do that Sadly that place closed down this summer. They were mainly a high end piano shop that also specialized in high end home audio and repairs. They had Marantz, Denon, McIntosh rooms with dozens of high end speaker combinations at their disposal. I stopped in to get some speaker wire and I got to sit in their rooms or a while and BS with the salesmen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.