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Shootout #2

Previous caveats apply:

Gustard A22 vs Sonnet Morpheus

So, the Sonnet comfortably saw off the Giesler Kompakt in tonality, imaging and depth, albeit close though. The A22 is a dual mono AKM4499 DAC and powerful preamp. So Kompakt ++ maybe? In short, yes. This is close, very close. Listening through LCD-X (neutral and fast response) via Mogwai (again a very neutral and quiet tube amp) and channel matched. I tried all the genres mentioned above and it was hard to distinguish between these two DACs. Similar, to Kompakt, the Sonnet just edged out the A22 on tonality, depth and imaging but so close. I felt the A22 might have a touch more detail than the Kompakt, so very close to Sonnet. Has the Sonnet a bit more "air"? Maybe. Has the A22 got faster transients? Maybe. I just can't tell. I had no genres favourites in either DAC. In a speaker system, it may be easier to hear SQ differences. The A22 is MQA compatible and arguably has more functionality than the Sonnet. My version of Sonnet has the USB and there is an I2S module available but takes the place of USB. Some say the I2S input is best. I do use the I2S on the A22 from Matrix SPDIF 2 and I feel that is better than the USB or coax. 

Sonnet vs Hugo 2

A quick head to head here. H2 being fed by optical. Rob Watts is said to prefer optical inputs on Chord gear but not sure that it works as well here. I do like the H2 but the Sonnet is "better" at tonality, soundstage and depth for this challenge. I was really surprised!

 

In summary, prior to Sonnet, I had settled on A22 and Kompakt as two very capable DACs. I preferred the A22 over the Element X for example. My feeling is that Sonnet yields more overall depth and imaging than the A22. Detail retrieval is matched pretty much. With A22 being a powerful preamp and MQA, it is much better value than the Sonnet. I may keep both here!

 

Next shootout will be......Stax 006Ts vs 353 and LR700 vs 007......

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9 minutes ago, Bengineer said:

Is that the same @Geoff@HeyNow Hi-Fi that is soon to announce the winner (me) of the Bluesound Node 2i?

 

HPA4 such a big bit of kit.

 

There's only one Geoff of HeyNow and I spoke to him this morning and the HPA4 is not big but sexier than ...... who's the sexiest female?

 

You can have the Bluesound Node 2i but I'll get the Benchmark. Or Neil can buy the HPA4 first and let me hear it for 2 months. Thanks Neil. Appreciate. Remember you have first dips on Oblivion. ?

Edited by Odyssey
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Ah Coldpayer is looking for a mint HD800 and mine is the mintiest of them all together with an extra Forza Noir HPC Mk2 balanced cable.... still debating whether to sell that ! 

 

What dac has Coldplayer got? Or perhaps he can just buy my CMA 12 outright and I will get an Denafrips Aries II from Alvin. After all, it's a backup dac to Yggdrasil.

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2 hours ago, Odyssey said:

Ah Coldpayer is looking for a mint HD800 and mine is the mintiest of them all together with an extra Forza Noir HPC Mk2 balanced cable.... still debating whether to sell that ! 

 

What dac has Coldplayer got? Or perhaps he can just buy my CMA 12 outright and I will get an Denafrips Aries II from Alvin. After all, it's a backup dac to Yggdrasil.

 

Ahh unfortunately i got impatient and picked up a pair of HD800S's instead of 800's  and blew out my budget so no big dac/amp upgrade for a while.

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Shootout #3

Previous caveats apply:

Stax LR-700 MK2 vs HD800s

I know! Not the shootout advertised. I have to let the Stax 007MK2 burin for a bit. So, I had a go with these two. HD800s on Mogwai via RCA from Sonnet. LR700 on SRM-353X via XLR from Sonnet. Tracks were very piano based jazz like Brad Mehldau, Joey Alexander and Ludovico.

HD800s - you all know this HP. Mogwai drives it superbly. Loads of space, wide soundstage (of most headphones), great imaging and instrument separation. I don't EQ even with Roon DSP, as I always feel it moves the overall tonality around. 

LR700 - Typical stat speed, sharp and precise transients, lovely timbre and bass tightness. For piano, a great tone and vibrancy. 

 

HD800s vs LR700 - They both respond really well to this genre. HD800s with it's soundstage is like sitting in front of an orchestra, you can see and hear every instrument spread out before you. LR700 is more intimate, like a jazz club. HD800s is very side to side in presentation, LR700 more front to back, wide vs narrow. That can lead to HD800s being a little diffuse, less accurate with the LR700 almost putting you in the piano! HD800s can be a little splashy in complex passages, LR700 more mid focussed with a denser image. HD800s smoother, LR700 sharper and possibly more fatiguing. For me the intimacy and tonal density of the LR700 make it the winner for this specific genre. Bring in vocals though and HD800s wins. LR700 is a bit recessed compared to HD800s even though being mid focussed. 

 

Bring in 006Ts for LR-700 = wow daddy! Just ups the ante on bass response and widens the soundstage. Everything is bigger and denser. More treble extension too - almost a bit hot. Will go back to jazz vocals to see if that improves vs HD800s. On reflection, I won't compare LR700 with 007. It's not a fair comparison, they're too different. Will go 007 vs Verite Open and maybe Utopias!

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I did just recognise you on HeadFi last night showing off your gear. Amazing setup Odyssey. :)

 

I've just been starting to look into what benefits I might see from adding a streamer to my setup, both 2go for my Hugo 2 in the office/home portable, and something else for my desktop setup. I was all but convinced that it would improve my source instead of just connecting my RME/V281 or Hugo 2 to my MacBook Pro, but reading Neil's research above makes me doubt making that further investment!

 

I moved really quickly a year ago into 'Head Fi', learning a lot from Neil, peppy and Bengineer, but I more or less settled on my current setup for 6+ months now. That said, I am wondering what the next steps are for me in improving things so I am keen to read more about DAC/AMP upgrades or sidegrades. I'm more or less set on the headphones I have until such time as I go down the 1266 TC/Susvara path.

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Thanks elisix. That's my working from home gear madness but it is fun. Now I'm ready to consolidate and move on. Well I've been telling myself for the last 4 years and the setup is constantly revolving. It's part of my audio journey and will probably only stop when I give up this hobby but that will not happen. ?

 

I did think that this photo shows me at my happiest with my gear. ?

 

IMG-3381.JPG

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