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GIESELER KONVERTER (DAC/Preamp) Official release.


Gieseler Audio

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IMG_1062.thumb.JPG.0e87e712c53826bceb57f2d7c20e8c99.JPGI'm just shipping out another Konverter to a SNA member ( woadl ) & I've actually had time to photograph it Inside & out so I thought it would be good for you guys to see the finished product.

The IR remote receiver is now exposed via hole through the front panel & works much better.

The PSU & digital boards have be updated to take the new LT3045 regulators & with better cable access points to the other boards

The forth photo is final testing with a Auralic Aries mini. 

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Edited by Gieseler Audio
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Wow that does look fantastic and such a neat build inside.

I have had the pleasure of listening to Clay's DAC last year and liked it very much having compared it to my Auralic Vega its performance on my system I thought was up with the quality of the Vaga.  So when Clay announced that he was building a DAC with a Preamp I just had to have one as I would also like to add remote volume to my system, it's been a long wait but I should have it late next week and I will be posting my impressions

thanks again Clay

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 2017-5-30 at 11:15 PM, woadl said:

Wow that does look fantastic and such a neat build inside.

I have had the pleasure of listening to Clay's DAC last year and liked it very much having compared it to my Auralic Vega its performance on my system I thought was up with the quality of the Vaga.  So when Clay announced that he was building a DAC with a Preamp I just had to have one as I would also like to add remote volume to my system, it's been a long wait but I should have it late next week and I will be posting my impressions

thanks again Clay

 

Any updates on your new arrival?

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Hello everyone, well after waiting for over a year now for Clay's Konverter DAC preamp I finally  came home and their was the box I had been waiting for sitting in the hallway.

As you do when something like this happens you grab yourself a brew, sit down and gently unpack your purchase.  I must say the first impressions of Clays DAC was of a piece of equipment that has been put together with a lot of thought with not a hint of being slapped together, I had seen pictures of the internals but I had to take of the lid and have a closer look, Clay I love your work !
 
To put the Konverter into my system required a bit of rewiring so I decided to pull the whole system apart and give everything a good dusting and rearrange some of the gear.  My system consists of a pair of ML2REF speakers, a pair of Quad EightyII mono blocks, Mark Levinson ML1 preamp, Auralic Aries streamer and a Auralic Vega DAC so the pre amp will go and the Vega DAC I sold a while ago, the Konverter will replace them.  Also I will be connecting to the Konverter a Audio GD cd transport, a Yamaha cd Recorder, a Technics sp10 turntable, and with the help of a tape selector switch box a Sony TC765 reel to reel and a Pioneer CT-F1250 cassette deck..... Few !
 
Well after about 3 hours of dusting, polishing and connecting I was now ready to sit down and listen to a bit of music.  The remote that comes with the Konverter has volume up and down, muting, channel up and down and a power button, Clay has configured the remote so with these few buttons you can change the inputs, the filter settings the display modes and toggle the Home Theatre bypass on and off. At first trying to navigate through the different modes I found a bit confusing but having live with it for a few days you quickly learn how it works...... So how does it sound ?
 
I believe that if you call yourself an Audiophile you have the ability to store audio memories of not only your own system but also other systems you have listened to over the years, so what I'm trying to say is that I know my own system sound very well
 
I started to stream a few of my favourite tracks and what was apparent straight away was the amount of bass weight that my system had gain it was like I had added a subwoofer to the system, the Konverter goes deep, very deep in bass.....wow
The more music I played the more excited I became, tracks I new well we're now being presented to me differently, the sound had a smoothness to it and the image was rock solid.  It seemed like every piece of music I played had new surprises, some of the instruments in the songs I knew well were louder than on my old system, the sound stage was much more wider and things like cymbals were smooth with no hint of being splashy, I was having a great time. I then played some HiRez music and the sound as you would expect was taken to a whole new level, another thing I noticed was that the background was very black, no background noise that you could notice
I can confidently say that the Konverter sounds much better than the Vega DAC particularly in the bass region, I will also say that my digital music now has a much more analog sound which is what I'm after 
 
So how did the analog inputs sound ? Just as good as my old system. I must admit I was a little worried about taking out my Mark Levinson pre amp as I really loved the vintage sound of it and I thought that if that sound changed that much I could always run the Konverter into the Mark Levinson pre to get back that sound back but there's no need to, the Konverter is a dam fine preamp as well.
Makes me wonder how much better the sound will be ones it has had a good burn in
 
Clay I must congratulate you on a product that looks good, built very well and sounds bloody brilliant, an outstanding achievement, the wait was worth it !
 
Thank you. 
 
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On 13.6.2017 at 0:05 PM, woadl said:

 

I started to stream a few of my favourite tracks and what was apparent straight away was the amount of bass weight that my system had gain it was like I had added a subwoofer to the system, the Konverter goes deep, very deep in bass.....wow

 

Nice,

am I right you address this to the DAC part of the Konverter and not to the preamp part?

 

Matt

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Hi Matt, yesterday I had a long listening session listening to some of my favourite vinyl and what I have found listening to the analog inputs is that the image and the depth is certainly better than the Mark Levinson but yes the real bass extension comes from the DAC

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I have finally (today) completed all the Konverter orders so I'm now working on the the new DAC. Most of the design work is done so it should not be too far away. When it is getting close I will start a new topic/thread about it - stay tuned!

 

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Yes. The standard version will have just USB in & then as a option you can have S/PDIF inputs added as well. They will be coax,  optical & I might look at AES/EBU XLR as well.

The single input version will have a slight performance gain as there is no switching of the I2S lines.

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 06/07/2017 at 3:20 PM, Gieseler Audio said:

Hi Adam,

just taken an order for number five yesterday.

We have improved the firmware a bit too so when I get time I will send out the upgraded control chips to all previous owners.

 

Order number five would be me.  It will be teamed with a pair of ML2 Reference speakers and Arion HS500 monoblocks once Clay has worked his build magic. I'll be happy to report back once the system has been set up and I've had a good listen but that won't be for at least a few weeks.

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  • 3 weeks later...


  • 3 weeks later...

Mine arrived a couple of weeks ago now and I've been very happy with it so far.  Still waiting to put a few other pieces in place before I do more of a review but I'd highly recommend both the Konverter as a DAC/preamp and Clay himself as someone who's great to deal with.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Hello Clay @Gieseler Audio,

 

I wonder if you could give us a run-down on the volume control in this Konverter, compared with that in the new Gross DAC, please?

 

Also, would it be possible to use 2 outputs (eg XLR and RCA) for bi-amping (looks like switchable only at the moment), or would this involve too much change?

 

Thanks,

Brian.

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Hi Brian.

 

The Konerter uses a analogue based volume control but with digital control & is located after the DAC chip in the preamp section. This is implemented using a Muses72320 - it is like a switched antenuator but uses CMOS devices instead of a switch. Bottom line - it is like a high quality stepped antenuator but with the convenience of precision/remote control.

 

The Groß DAC uses the digital level antenuator that is built into the AK4497EQ DAC chip so it is a pure digital level control.

With digital attenuation you are throwing away bits as the level lowers so you lose a bit of resolution at lower volume levels.

Fortunately due to the AK4497EQ 32 bit architecture this has a minimal effect on the sound unless you are listening at extremely low levels.

 

Dual outputs 

Konverter - no problem - The dual RCA outputs will work simultaneously or if you select XLR the second (2) RCA output can be used at the same time.

 

Groß DAC - strictly RCA or XLR - simultaneous operation is not possible.  

Edited by Gieseler Audio
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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Guys,

small update. We have put a massive amount of time into the Groß DAC firmware & as a result some of the new features will be able to be incorporated into the Konverter. Things like “heavy load mode” , DSD filter roll off & sound quality select mode.

Some off these features will be switchable in the menu & others are behind the screen stuff. Bottom line is they all add small improvements to the sound quality so I definately what to incorporate them into the Konverter. As soon as the work load backs off a bit I will get on to it. The firmware upgrade is dead simple. Just a matter of replacing a plug in chip.

Stay tuned.

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  • 3 months later...

@Gieseler Audio

 

I think this question has been asked before, but I couldn’t see an answer, is it possible to have both outputs active at the same time ? Ie for the purpose of driving active speakers or power amp and sub etc. ?

 

Additional question is on the feasibility of headphone socket ?

 

regards,

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