Calyx Femto in the house!

Albert

Albert

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Feb 21, 2014
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Mb, Canada
I drove into Winnipeg today to pick up my Calyx Femto DAC. I didn't want some gorilla drop kicking it into the truck during the Christmas rush.

After carrying the 40 lb box into the house (that's a lot for a DAC) I proceeded to remove the inner box from the outer one. The outside box was a little worse for wear but the inner one was like new. Upon opening the box I found the manual and a brand new metal remote that was still in it's bag, sealed with a sticker. It looks like it had never been used. I then removed the top insert to find the DAC in a cloth bag. Removing this I found the DAC to be in mint shape with not a spec of dust or fingerprint on it. The glass screen had the plastic film on it which was creased on the left side. Did the previous owner try to replace it in packing it? There is no way anyone would have used it like that as the film would look bad. If it came from the factory like this then I could have scored a brand new DAC for a used price!

Anyway, I replaced the Teac UD-503 DAC from the system and placed the Calyx on the top of the rack. It is powered up right now, waiting for the tube amps to warm up. I have posted some pics of the unpacking as I like to follow along when others get new toys. To save disc space I have posted them to my photobucket it you want to check it out. Well, I'm off to try out my new DAC. Merry Christmas!

http://s719.photobucket.com/user/albert314/media/Calyx Femto/calyx1.jpg.html?sort=3&o=8


 
Thanks Paul. So far after an initial listen of three cd's I find the new DAC to be smoother sounding and more detailed than the Teac (which probably hasn't fully broken in yet). I am hearing details that I never noticed before. Perhaps this is due to the DAC being very quiet, so that it does not mask the micro dynamics as much. There also seems to be more ambient sounds and reverb. The music just seems to envelop me, making the speakers all but disappear. The music is also very dynamic with improved bass (tighter and more detailed). The soundstage has widened to beyond the speakers.

This doesn't mean that the Teac is a bad DAC but it is not in the same league as the Femto. At 1/6 the price, I guess that is no surprise.

I was initially a little reluctant about spending so much on a DAC but now I am very happy that I did. Thanks Bill and Joe from McCulloch Audio in Winnipeg. They are two very good guys, I recommend them. It has been a long time since I bought anything from an audio store, it was a good experience.
 
Well, I downloaded a few hi res Flac files from http://www.2l.no/hires/index.html (thanks equinoxe3d from CAM) They are:

1) Bridge Over Troubled Water - Iver Kleive (church organ) - 24 bit 96 khz
very clear, full tone with a lot of reverb

2) Quiet Winter Night - Hoff Ensemble - 24 bit 192 khz
again very clear and layered, full sound. The soundstage is wide

3) Schubert String Quartet No.14 in D minor - Oslo String Quartet - 24 bit 192 khz
instruments well placed in large soundstage, violins have a nice realistic tone with a lot of detail. I could hear one of the violinists breathing at times. Almost too detailed as I would never hear this live but it certainly added to the illusion of being on stage with the musicians.

Very impressive! The only problem I had was having to scroll through every directory using the Oppo BDP-95 music interface. It would have been nice if there was a search function to save time but otherwise it worked great. Now I need to buy a larger external hd as these files sure are big.
 
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