DAC Suggestions Please!

Larry...sounds like you are getting closer to what you want with the Lampi and Luxman DACs. Let us know how it goes.
 
I just had the Luxman in my system for a couple of hours tonight. It sounded awesome. It is very analog sounding, very musical, with a slightly warmer edge. The sound stage is huge and it has a nice bloom to it. Midbass is just a tad heavy. I am pretty sure that I am going to buy it. I want to hear the Lampizator in my system first. I had a couple of my audiophile buddies over and they loved it.
 
Mechnutt said:
I just had the Luxman in my system for a couple of hours tonight. It sounded awesome. It is very analog sounding, very musical, with a slightly warmer edge. The sound stage is huge and it has a nice bloom to it. Midbass is just a tad heavy. I am pretty sure that I am going to buy it. I want to hear the Lampizator in my system first. I had a couple of my audiophile buddies over and they loved it.
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Awesome! Any pics?
 
Larry...just as an fyi, I believe Kev (bzr) has a Luxman DA-06 and he is quite the fan. You may want to PM him, if he does not see this thread, to get his impressions. He has had it for a year or so I believe.
 
I was waiting for Chord new DAC DAVE but it's priced ridiculously..so now, thinking of getting the Luxman.
"Mid bass is just a tad heavy" - I understand you meant it in a positive way, but wondering if it'd also mean slightly sluggish?
 
kzhtoo said:
I was waiting for Chord new DAC DAVE but it's priced ridiculously..so now, thinking of getting the Luxman.
"Mid bass is just a tad heavy" - I understand you meant it in a positive way, but wondering if it'd also mean slightly sluggish?
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The midbass is prominent not slow. I have Magnepan 1.6 speakers and they have a known midbass hump that the newer MG 1.7's don't have. It's like the midbass hump of the Wilson Alexia's that I have heard. The Luxman slightly accentuates it. I can live with it. There is no perfect DAC. I have had several in my system and each has had it's strong points and weaknesses. You also get use to a certain sound as I have with my Van Alstine DAC so change is sometimes difficult.

What I found with the Luxman is that it sounds the closest to Vinyl as I have heard digital. It does vocals, piano and horns fantastic and natural. The guy that brought it over plays piano and he stated that the Luxman makes a piano sound like a piano.

I use to be one of those guys that had to have the last word in detail and resolution with great transparency and air. I got bored with that type of sound and value dynamics, musicality, depth of midrange and smoothness with a hint of warmth. The Luxman maintains enough detail for my tastes but gives me everything that I value. Listening to it, I never found myself thinking that I would get listener fatigue or bored. You can certainly tell that it is not a sabre based DAC. It has that Burr Brown sound. Bear in mind that I only listened to it with redbook CD, not usb and hi-rez music which I expect to sound better depending upon the quality of the recording.

The three professional reviews that I have read are spot on about this DAC.

Comparing this DAC to the Hugo Chord, I found them both to share musicality and warmth but the Luxman is more dynamic, has more detail, resolution and a wider and deep sound stage.
 
Mechnutt said:
The midbass is prominent not slow. I have Magnepan 1.6 speakers and they have a known midbass hump that the newer MG 1.7's don't have. It's like the midbass hump of the Wilson Alexia's that I have heard. The Luxman slightly accentuates it. I can live with it. There is no perfect DAC. I have had several in my system and each has had it's strong points and weaknesses. You also get use to a certain sound as I have with my Van Alstine DAC so change is sometimes difficult.

What I found with the Luxman is that it sounds the closest to Vinyl as I have heard digital. It does vocals, piano and horns fantastic and natural. The guy that brought it over plays piano and he stated that the Luxman makes a piano sound like a piano.

I use to be one of those guys that had to have the last word in detail and resolution with great transparency and air. I got bored with that type of sound and value dynamics, musicality, depth of midrange and smoothness with a hint of warmth. The Luxman maintains enough detail for my tastes but gives me everything that I value. Listening to it, I never found myself thinking that I would get listener fatigue or bored. You can certainly tell that it is not a sabre based DAC. It has that Burr Brown sound. Bear in mind that I only listened to it with redbook CD, not usb and hi-rez music which I expect to sound better depending upon the quality of the recording.

The three professional reviews that I have read are spot on about this DAC.

Comparing this DAC to the Hugo Chord, I found them both to share musicality and warmth but the Luxman is more dynamic, has more detail, resolution and a wider and deep sound stage.
Click to expand...

"...use to be one of those guys that had to have the last word in detail and resolution with great transparency and air. I got bored with that type of sound and value dynamics, musicality, depth of midrange and smoothness with a hint of warmth." That's been my same journey too. Well said.
 
Congrats on your decision Larry, I'm sure that you'll love the Luxman DAC! Curious what happened to influence you to go with the Luxman vs. the Lampizator which you were also considering.
 
Bavarian05 said:
I didn't care for the overall sound of the Ayre and also wanted more than only USB input options. Just my experience. It has been well reviewed. They use a different USB method than most.
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Just goes to show how different we all are with regards to what sounds good. I think the Ayre QB-9 DSD DAC is one of the best.
 
Congratz on the Luxman!

I am still breaking in my new Teac.... but it sounds wonderful... very smooth and open, with the vinyl feel... I do believe it is very true, they get trickle down from their big brothers, the Esoterics. The Teac has USB, 2x Optical, and Coax inputs, both RCA and true Balanced XLR outputs.... Dual monaural throughout.
 
I'm curious if anyone has experience with or done a comparison of the Luxman DA-06 with the Exogal Comet Plus. Both of them have been described in reviews and forums as highly musical, like analog yet plenty of detail. Any thoughts?
 
I have not but I have found a new DAC that I am totally in love with. I have moved the Teac to secondary use as a headphone amp and may end up selling it eventually even.

The new DAC is the Wyred 4 Sound DAC-1 LE. Their newly upgraded model where they have added DSD (one of the best the ESS9018 chip) and more. A Femto clock is a $125 option and it is just amazing. As good as you get in this level. 6Moons compared it to DACs costing 8-10 times higher....
 
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