Berkley Alpha Reference DAC (mini) Review

I want to hear the Lampi 7 during its DSD magic. Does anyone in Florida have one of these ?? I know Mike's interest is peak by this unit as well. That would be an awesome shootout, if we could find a Lampi to test.
 
Audioseduction said:
I've heard many DSD Dacs and I feel I'm not missing out what so ever. I truly am able to listen to the music and not the equipment as it sounds so right! That's all that matters in the real world. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Most Dsd dacs are converting to a form of pcm internally. Thorsten Loesch gives a good explanation in his audiostream interview.

In any case, do enjoy your dac. I am doing the same and do so in native format/native rate. No conversion zone and no additives, no preservatives. ;-)
 
So there is someone out there with a Reference server! Great! I'm curious about them and keep thinking I should try one, which here in Europe means buying one. My experience is that digital transport is ridiculously, and surprisingly, important. I like that there is no sound card and no USB, which skips two unnecessary steps on the signal's path (USB card in the server and USB card in the DAC) ; and a lot of the solutions in the Berkeley reference are similar to what we've been using in our DAC4 (the amp. op., the transformers, the upsampling...) with results we're happy with. So maybe, just maybe, a server like the Baetis could finally bring us a computer audio solution that matches our best CD-players.
 
Alpinist said:
My thoughts exactly. At $16K it needs to touch all the bases, especially inboard USB input and DSD.
Click to expand...

Um, it's called the Reference, not the All Purpose.

Have you read the interview Robert Harley did with Michael Ritter? It follows the review of the Reference DAC in the October TAS. Michael is well aware of the marketing benefit adding DSD capability would have bestowed but is absolutely convinced that having the DAC chip do double duty converting DSD to PCM would have a detrimental effect on the sound. He could have added DSD decoding for almost zero cost, far less than the price of the JRiver license they include with the DAC so you can convert your DSD to PCM. Berkely is pretty fussy about the DSD > PCM conversion and was going to write their own software for it, but found that JRiver was "doing it right".

Regarding the USB input, Michael had this to say: "There may be a time when it makes sense for us to introduce a lower-cost DAC with a USB input, but when you're shooting for the ultimate in performance, which is what we did with the Reference Series... you absolutely don't want to connect the DAC directly to the computer or router. They have large amounts of electrical noise that gets injected into the DAC's ground, or the noise is capacitively coupled through the input. A separate isolation/reclocking device [a USB to SPDIF converter] for computer-audio playback is essential if you're going for the state of the art".
 
wisnon said:
howard,

why not optical usb cable?

your thoughts please.
Click to expand...

You mean into the Reference? There's no place to put it. :)
1408744183764
 
lol

I meant as a design possibility the Bard guys could have chosen. No rfi crud passed as signal converted to optical and back at the other end. Dac usb must be self powered, as this cable can only do a handshake
 
wisnon said:
lol

I meant as a design possibility the Bard guys could have chosen. No rfi crud passed passed as signal converted to optical and back at the other end. Dac usb must be self powered, as this cable can only do a handshake
Click to expand...

Sorry, I knew what you meant. :)

It's a good question for Michael Ritter.
 
yes, but using the generic long Corning Optical cable,its available to all now via USB connection.
 
Norman - do you have any first hand experience with the Corning optical USB cable, or are you aware of any other user feedback on it? It certainly looks like an interesting idea and attractively priced, but I'm not sure how well it would work for the application of transmitting high-res signals to a DAC. TIA!
 
I ordered one to test out and so did a pal in nyc. I heard good things about it at headfi. $110 for 33ft means its worth a shot.

will let you know as more feedback rolls in.
 
I just noticed that the Corning optical USB cable that is available on Amazon has the same USB A connector on both ends, instead of having the USB B connector at one end which is commonly used for connection at the DAC. There is probably a suitable adapter available, but that may be less than an optimal solution.
 
Guys,

How would the PS Audio DS compare? Is it even a contender with the Berkeley, Lampi, and Lumin?
 
Ritmo said:
Guys,

How would the PS Audio DS compare? Is it even a contender with the Berkeley, Lampi, and Lumin?
Click to expand...

Although I'm in the early stages of setup for the Berkeley, the PS Audio is on equal footing as far as DSD goes. When PS Audio did their update on the Direct Stream, the DSD playback got maybe another 10% better.......but the redbook playback went backwards maybe 15% IMHO. They softened up the top end a bit too much for my liking. If they could have kept redbook the same and only modified DSD playback, I think the Direct Stream would be nearly equal to the Berkeley. But that is considering my small amount of time to dial in the Berkeley. I usually try 50 or more combinations of IC's, digital cables, and power cords before settling on what sounds best to me. The Berkeley has @ 600 hours now, so it should be starting to find its voice.
I did leave the unit on for 18 hours straight yesterday, as some stated it would sound better fully warmed up. It sounded mostly the same to my ears, but I will keep it on for several days to fully test this suggestion.
As far as the Lumin/PS Audio comparison, I liked the PS Audio better because of much better bass performance. But I have to qualify this preference, as this comparison was done in Mike's upstairs listening room. And it has known bass issues that can create havoc. This comparison was done "pre-Strad". So the results might be totally different, now that he has the Sonus Fabers up there. Maybe the PS Audio was leaner in the bass, and helped out a room with bass issues ?? Although, the Direct Stream is providing outstanding bass in my new 28' X 24' room. So I doubt it is lean in the bass region. The Lumin did a bit better job fleshing out detail in the 2k to 5k frequency range. And with the new software update for the Direct Stream, this would be even worse because of the softening in the upper frequency region.
This is the best comparisons I can offer so far. Like I said, it is very early in the review process for me. I try to spend at least a couple of months with a new piece of gear, and try every combination I have at hand. I usually flesh out major improvements with every piece of gear, once I stumble upon the right combination. I definitely avoid snap decisions, as synergy is the key IMHO.
Early score......8k-10k good. Still searching for 16k of value. But I believe it's there. Now, back to audio wack-a-mole !!!
 
JDLaudio said:
Although I'm in the early stages of setup for the Berkeley, the PS Audio is on equal footing as far as DSD goes. When PS Audio did their update on the Direct Stream, the DSD playback got maybe another 10% better.......but the redbook playback went backwards maybe 15% IMHO. They softened up the top end a bit too much for my liking. If they could have kept redbook the same and only modified DSD playback, I think the Direct Stream would be nearly equal to the Berkeley. But that is considering my small amount of time to dial in the Berkeley. I usually try 50 or more combinations of IC's, digital cables, and power cords before settling on what sounds best to me. The Berkeley has @ 600 hours now, so it should be starting to find its voice.
I did leave the unit on for 18 hours straight yesterday, as some stated it would sound better fully warmed up. It sounded mostly the same to my ears, but I will keep it on for several days to fully test this suggestion.
As far as the Lumin/PS Audio comparison, I liked the PS Audio better because of much better bass performance. But I have to qualify this preference, as this comparison was done in Mike's upstairs listening room. And it has known bass issues that can create havoc. This comparison was done "pre-Strad". So the results might be totally different, now that he has the Sonus Fabers up there. Maybe the PS Audio was leaner in the bass, and helped out a room with bass issues ?? Although, the Direct Stream is providing outstanding bass in my new 28' X 24' room. So I doubt it is lean in the bass region. The Lumin did a bit better job fleshing out detail in the 2k to 5k frequency range. And with the new software update for the Direct Stream, this would be even worse because of the softening in the upper frequency region.
This is the best comparisons I can offer so far. Like I said, it is very early in the review process for me. I try to spend at least a couple of months with a new piece of gear, and try every combination I have at hand. I usually flesh out major improvements with every piece of gear, once I stumble upon the right combination. I definitely avoid snap decisions, as synergy is the key IMHO.
Early score......8k-10k good. Still searching for 16k of value. But I believe it's there. Now, back to audio wack-a-mole !!!
Click to expand...

Why not just leave the Berkeley on 24/7 like it was meant to be? That's why there's no on/off switch on it. It only cost 2 cents a day. From Howard "Sandman" who owns the Berkeley says it sounds better left on. I also leave my Bel Canto on 24/7 for better QS playback. That's what Bel Canto recommends to do.
 
To me, there was no comparison. The Lumin A1 was better than the DStream. The S1 will be even better. The Berkley on redbook was better yet again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top