Thread: Meitner MA-3 DAC

unit is not damaged, the VC is made cheap. thats not a problem since everybody will use the remote control.
ma3 driving the audionet heisenberg direct with rca has hum. thats a fact of that very own constellation. other set ups may work well and again, i got recommended to use xlr and to try grounding.
by nature, one likes dac direct and one not.
dont get me wrong, i do like the ma3 and would buy it again as it is.

coool, thx for the clip!!
yours seem to be a bit tighter, difficult to see. mine is not really wobbling around, but i would say it shifts a millimiter. certainly doesnt feel like the knobs of the ultra high end machines.
the clicks do not make a nice sound imho and if you turn the knob fast, it starts to scream.
even yours, i could hear that in the video (listening with my ma3, lol).

Mike,

Have you sold many of these? How does it stack up to your other offerings?

Originally Posted by Mike

It’s currently flying under the radar. We use it almost exclusively in the front room, so it’s getting lots of exposure.

how would this ma3 stack up to Luxman D08-U?
Thank you

What exactly are you trying to compare? One is a SACD player that allows you to connect an external digital source... so your adding a third variable. The other is a digital streamer and Dac that wont play CD’s.

Originally Posted by dznutz

What exactly are you trying to compare? One is a SACD player that allows you to connect an external digital source... so your adding a third variable. The other is a digital streamer and Dac that wont play CD’s.

Sorry - let me be more explicit:
DAC to DAC when used in USB mode- assume the D08u has an excellent streamer such as a Lumin U1;
I am completely aware of the D08u's feature set; I do realize it is an SACD player; I understand that Mike has extensive experience with the D08u , as a Luxman dealer and knows the sonic performance characteristics of the D08u either in CD/SACD/ USB/Optical or other digital input modes; as well as filter setting options; Being an audio forum I was hoping Mike could weigh in on the subjective audio comparison between the D08u and the latest Meitner MA3; Both of these are digital to analog conversion devices and both of these can be engaged in USB mode; It is possible to compare the sonic qualities of such devices and coming from an expert such as Mike , his opinion carries significant weight.
Thank you;

Originally Posted by Mike

Thank you. I consider the D-08u very very “vinyl like”/analog, even more so than the new D-10x, which is excellent in its own right and offers some advantages over the D-08u. However, the D-08u via USB didn’t shine as much as the D-08u with CD/SACD. Perhaps when the D-08u was first designed, some of the knowledge we have today with respect to USB wasn’t developed or as well know . Just look at the Taiko USB card setting a new benchmark today. But it was still an excellent analog like performer even from its USB port.

The MA3 is very good, smooth for a Meitner/EMM product, which tend to be more detailed and transparent and neutral. The MA3 is smooth, yet detailed. Will it fool you into thinking youÂ’re listening to vinyl like the D-08u playing a CD/SACD? No. It is never the less enjoyable and never has bite. ItÂ’s also very capable as a Roon streamer, volume control, etc. as well.

The reality is that these two devices donÂ’t compete in the same space, price wise nor function wise. One is relatively new and one is now discontinued to boot.

Which one would I buy? Neither. I would still pick the MSB Discrete at the $10k price point. NOTHING IÂ’ve heard comes close. It even out analogs the D-08u (and thatÂ’s no small task).


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Thank you Mike, for your time and thoughtful response; It's super interesting that in the rarified air of $ dacs (and the like) that each manufacturer's solution has unique attributes- one is a tad more crystalline, one may be imbued with a bit more analog warmth, and another with tube-like lucidity, on and on; Supporting equipment: preamps, cables, amps, speakers, acoustics can be assembled to fully exploit (or diminish) the native characteristics of the source.
Our individual goal for what moves us (musically) drives the cycles of upgrades and tweaks getting things "just so"; Like many of you I've been at this for a long, long time, and while sometimes a frustrating discovery, I would not change a thing; Sorry for the sideways musings;
About 2 years ago I had the Meitner MA1 V1 (I performed the upgrade to the V2 myself); I was amazed with the DAC on DSD; It was so clear, open, and dynamic; It was very capable on other formats as well; All that said I feel like the DAC was bit forward and lean for my goals, and eventually moved on; I tried a bunch of DACs since then, including an MSB Discrete (with dual supplies), Chord TT2/Mscaler, PS Audio DSD (bridge II was a disaster- the dac itself is wonderful), Exogal Comet, Bricasti M3, and finally Luxman D08u;
For servers, Innuos Zenith MkIII, Aurender N10 class of "stuff"; While I do love the Roon user interface, I have been extremely frustrated by the frequent software updates, various Roon hiccups, and changing audio quality- I've experienced frustrating losses in fidelity- sound begins to dull and become flat;
Hardware re-starts, network upgrades, cables, audiophile switches, on and on have helped but the problems still surface with network/streaming and Roon; I have consistently found best audio performance with native apps, such as Lumin's, Aurender, or in the case of the Bricasti M3, the extremely simple MConnect; Roon of course tramples them all in terms of user experience and music discovery; Much of this frustration (various network gremlins, Roon sonic degradation), led to the eventual purchase of the D08u; I have a boat load of SACD's and CD's for absolute best playback performance (within the confines of my system), and the Lumin U1 mini seems to do a very fine job of keeping the Roon/ streaming Qobuz side smooth and a pleasant experience.
All this is well and good but, as you have said, with the advances in USB and such, i'm curious if the MA3 would be higher performance and overall smooth user experience with Roon (I could always grab a transport for cd playback); Supporting audio gear: Harbeth SHL5+XD, Luxman 509X;
Thanks for your time;

Am I the only one who’s bought one of these???

Originally Posted by dznutz

Am I the only one who’s bought one of these???

Nope!
I got one and so far it’s sounding excellent!
Luxman 590 AX II, Harbeth Super HL5+ XD, Lumin U1;

I guess Meitner simply isnt buying enough positive reviews. Mine is looking and sounding pretty damn good.

Mike, unless, after having played with it for a while, you do not believe it to be a quality product?

Originally Posted by Kuoppis

I find that surprising too. Great feature set, superb sound, stellar reputation. And the MA-1 was a big seller.

Maybe the design doesn’t do it for people paying 10K for a DAC.

Not sure either; My guess is the product was launched during a pandemic and maybe that had something to do with it...who knows;

The Meitner MA-3 reminds me what I loved / missed about the MA-1; super dynamic, clear, deep soundstage, but overall a very natural tone; I recently got into analog with a decent first table, a Mofi UltraDeck, and have compared a few LPs to local digital copies of same albums; I can hear that analog goodness and nature coming from the MA-3 (overall I prefer the DAC).

The Roon endpoint / streamer works 100% perfectly- never one issue with network gremlins;

I absolutely love the Lumin U1, however, and can extract an even better sound from the MA-3 by using either AES or USB from the Lumin U1 vs the ethernet renderer inside the MA-3;

I am in the camp that a dedicated streamer is best; Don't get me wrong, the native MA-3 performance is excellent and is representative of a top tier DAC, but there is something extra special with the Lumin as the digital bridge; It's just like an extra dollop of something I can't quite put my finger on, but that I can't live without.

Meitner is serious hardware and the company is stellar to deal with; Happy in Pittsburgh

Originally Posted by thyname

It sounds like you are in a good place Deepak! I am surprised to hear you moved away from your Bricasti DAC, but then again, I am not surprised

Hi SkeerDee! So you're surprised and not surprised with my personal audio fun? Sounds like you have some issues to work out
Either way, happy to meet your expectations and such.

Originally Posted by dpac996

The Meitner MA-3 reminds me what I loved / missed about the MA-1; super dynamic, clear, deep soundstage, but overall a very natural tone;

I am in the camp that a dedicated streamer is best; Don't get me wrong, the native MA-3 performance is excellent and is representative of a top tier DAC, but there is something extra special with the Lumin as the digital bridge; It's just like an extra dollop of something I can't quite put my finger on, but that I can't live without.

great report.
same here, using mine as a dac only with external bridge.

the footers of the ma-3 are a bad joke.
i replaced them with 4 wilson pedestal and it plays levels above now. more authorative, more flash, better bass and 3d.

How is MA-3 compared to DA2 V2 or DV2 V2?
I am A long-term emm labs fan.

Originally Posted by Ritmo

Very positive review…

Meitner Audio MA3 DAC-Preamplifier

Good enough for me to read more.
Now have a unit on the way....

- Robert

I sell MA3 in a very large country)) it took quite a while to actually start getting orders. I guess pandemic and not so extensive marketing are the reasons for a slow start. It took me quite a few home demos before people started looking at it. Then I have done some comparisons against for example Bartok. Now people are starting to buy the DAC, which I consider is one of the greatest values on the market. I personally preferred it to many other DACs in its price range and even more expensive, like the example above.
You can look up Meitner MA3 vs Bartok on youtube comparisons made by a Korean dealer and you can listen. In my comparison in live, i can confirm the youtube sounds more or less like what I have heard.

One client compared to ma1 v2 and ordered immediately, the difference there is not subtle at all. The main difference is the dynamics and attack that was sort of not great on the earlier models.
Compared to the combo DV2+NS1, which I have for myself, well, as expected it was never meant to sound like this combo at more than triple price. However, all the properties of Edd Meitner's sound are there. It is a NATURALLY sounding DAC, very dynamic, good bass handling (both volume and clarity). Real musicians playing classic instruments will appreciate the DAC.

In my approach, I try to compare to the live sound, I do not really care analog, digital and so on, for me there is only one reference, )))

Originally Posted by rwpollock

Good enough for me to read more.
Now have a unit on the way....

All is good -- including the music.
Biggest plus: Best DSD I've had in my system(s)
Biggest negative: Volume control on remote is not comfortable

Originally Posted by rwpollock

Biggest plus: Best DSD I've had in my system(s)

What other DACs have you used?

Originally Posted by dznutz

What other DACs have you used?

Now there's a trip down memory lane...

Weiss DAC2, Luxman DA06, MSB IV, BorderPatrol SE, COS D1, HoloAudio (Spring and May) Aqua Formula xHD

- Robert

Originally Posted by rwpollock

Biggest plus: Best DSD I've had in my system(s)

Not surprising... Meitner DACs are optimized for DSD decoding similar to Playback Designs. How do you find its performance on PCM relative to other DACs you've had? TIA

Currently using simaudio moon 390 for all in one roon digital solution. Looking to upgrade. Bartok is out of my reach. Is the MA3 definite upgrade in terms of sound quality? Inside of the unit looks pretty flimsy which erks me little.

Hi all,

I just upgraded from a PS Audio DirectStream to the MA3 and I couldn’t be happier. This DAC is so natural sounding, the music just flows.

For the other MA3 owners there has been a firmware upgrade so the latest version as of December 9, 2022 is

1.20-132:006

1.20 primarily adds a “bypass” function allowing the volume control to be fixed for use with an analog preamp.

Now back to listening. 😃

8C0F4862-38D1-4A03-A44A-9CD127CBFEB4.jpeg

very cool, glad you like it.

how do you install the firmware upgrade?

Originally Posted by u-sound

how do you install the firmware upgrade?

Well this is where they are a bit behind. You need a Windows PC/laptop and a USB to serial cable. There is an upgrade program that you have to get either from your dealer or Meitner support directly. The upgrade program will be packaged with the upgraded firmware.

You put the MA3 in to firmware upgrade mode by rebooting and then pressing the bottom light while it is flashing. Then run the program on the laptop, it will detect the MA3 and then start the upgrade. Full instructions come with the upgrade package.

I use a preamp so I upgraded for the volume bypass feature. There were no audio quality changes that I could notice. Support said they will be changing over to USB sticks in the future.

41898EDB-44CD-4EE4-BB23-BAC8D909B124.jpeg

Recent MA3 review from December 2022. Audioshark won’t let me post links yet so here is the URL

//https://twitteringmachines.com/review-meitner-audio-ma3-integrated-d-a-converter//

Review: Meitner Audio MA3 Integrated D/A Converter - Twittering Machines

yes, good short review, says all about. it is a nice smooth sounding dac