[mresseguie]

Guys,

This is fantastic feedback! I've got company coming over in mere minutes, so I can only say thank you for now, but I will follow up as time permits.

Michael

P.S. Alan.....I'm pretty sure you're upriver from me, no? The mighty Willamette flows northward and you are south of me. 

[aldcoll]

You have me there.  Just w whole lot of fish getting it dirty after I am done with it.

Drop by for A listen.

[macrojack]

The Grace Design M 920 looks interesting to me. This company has been held in high esteem by the recording industry all over the world. Their M 920 is a combination preamp, DAC, and headphone amp all in one and is fully balanced and can be had with a very nice remote. It has both balanced and unbalanced analog inputs and a full complement of digital inputs as well. No phono. Street price w/o  remote is under $2K.
Use it as a DAC and compare it to your preamp. You might well come out of this having spent very little on a huge upgrade.

[jtwrace]

And the internet radio on the Sony is another big plus.

Yeah, I have that with my AURALiC ARIES along with built in AirPlay and Qubuz and WiMP.  Oh, NAS is in another room so the listening room is silent from hard drive noise and more electrical crap.  Full wireless streaming of DSD128 files. 


If the Sony works for you and you like it, then be it. 

[OzarkTom]

Yeah, I have that with my AURALiC ARIES along with built in AirPlay and Qubuz and WiMP.  Oh, NAS is in another room so the listening room is silent from hard drive noise and more electrical crap.  Full wireless streaming of DSD128 files. 


If the Sony works for you and you like it, then be it.

So what are you recommending in the $2500 category? I believe this is what this thread is all about. Does your set-up retail for $2500?

[jtwrace]

So what are you recommending in the $2500 category? I believe this is what this thread is all about. Does your set-up retail for $2500?

As mentioned earlier by another member a used Vega is ~$2500.

[OzarkTom]

As mentioned earlier by another member a used Vega is ~$2500.

So how much is the Aries and NAS?

[DaveC113]

I've had the Vega in my system, if you have a single ended system the Sony is the Vega's equal imo, but the Vega was designed as a balanced unit first and foremost, it's balanced outs are probably better than the Sony's. paul79 designed a balanced to single ended transformer for his Vega that he said blows away the Sony and I believe him, but now you're talking more than double the price of the Sony... Then when you account for a computer or Aries server you're really talking apples to oranges price wise. If someone wanted to trade my Sony for a Vega/Aries combo I'd jump on it in a heartbeat.    But I can't spend the cash on the Auralic gear right now, a few grand here or there is a big deal for me right now.

[jtwrace]

So how much is the Aries and NAS?

Two models of the ARIES.  $999 and $1599 (Dual Femto Clock & LPS)  A NAS ranges from $250 on up or use a HD locally with the ARIES next month if one wants to build their system over time. 

[titaniumheads]

I had a dac magic in my system and then bought a Vega. Using just the digital inputs of the Vega the sound difference was barely noticeable. The big difference was when I used the usb out of my audiophile vortexbox with SOTM card into the Vega usb input. That was the ticket. I bought the battery power for the SOTM card but really cant tell any difference. I have on order a linear power supply to see if that helps. Its an endless sickness. Rest of system is Pass labs XA100.5 amps, XP30 pre and Janszen ZA2.1 speakers.

[Russtafarian]

The Grace Design M 920 looks interesting to me.

  That's a great sounding DAC and the feature set allows it to be used as a preamp as well.

I use a Benchmark DAC2 HCG for my DAC and preamp.  Similar features and performance to the Grace m920.

Russ

[OzarkTom]

Two models of the ARIES.  $999 and $1599 (Dual Femto Clock & LPS)  A NAS ranges from $250 on up or use a HD locally with the ARIES next month if one wants to build their system over time.

So for everything new, that is about $5-5.5k. That makes the $1775 new Sony a best buy. I am with Dave, I would trade my Sony for that set-up.

But after owning all kinds of DACs here, I know the Sony is probably not the best, but i doubt if anything will blow it away.

[jtwrace]

The OP should just go ahead and purchase a new AVA Dac and be done.  It's stellar from what Frank has said. 

[jtwrace]

Another scenario would be to buy a Vega and go direct to the 400R and sell the AVA T8.  Then with that money purchase an ARIES.  Use the USB Drive option that will be coming next month.  Done. 

[mresseguie]

Hi, gang.

There have been so many responses that my head is spinning. I intend to address all suggestions, but I want to start with the Sony HAP-Z1ES music server in this post.

I've been interested in this unit since it was released (and I did check it out at Axpona this year). Dave and OzarkTom (or anyone with experience): How would this be an improvement over my buying a new DAC? Is there such an improvement in how music is delivered over my Mac Mini?

The 1 TB HD in the unit is plenty big for my current needs. I know about the new USB feature. I had assumed that a unit such as this (or a Sonore unit?) would improve my sound, but that a DAC would have a considerably greater impact.

I'm off to watch "KANO" with my wife. It's only a three hour-long movie. Coffee!

Michael

[sfox7076]

Or go with the new Lampizator Amber.  the Lampi sound is amazing.  http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=129350.msg1368957#new

[bmoura]

I think it's hard to top the bang-for-the buck of the Sony HAP-Z1ES music server, you don't need a computer or a USB cable which is another plus.

The HAP-Z1ES is an excellent choice for Stereo DSD and PCM playback.  As you say, it eliminates the need for a computer and USB cable.  You can select tracks by the selector wheel on the front of the HAP or a Android or Apple tablet. Very cool - I use one in my home office.  Thumbs up!

[I.Greyhound Fan]

That Lampi looks interesting.  I like the fact it uses tubes but I need to see reviews on it comparing it to similar priced DAC's.

[OzarkTom]

I have had a lot of the $4-5K dacs here in my system, including tube dacs. The Sony stands up to any of them, better than some. For me, the Sony is much easier to use, sounds wonderful, and can be constantly upgraded with firmware updates. The latest firmware upgrade has added a little more sparkle to my system, or the AC power in my town has improved.

[JLM]

IMO AVA is rather pedestrian stuff (sound quality wise), but synergy was mentioned and build quality/support is very good.  There are several great DAC options within your budget that can also replace the pre-amp while opening the door to XLR and various hi-res formats: 

Benchmark DAC2 HGC: $2000; PCM 24/192, DSD64; 2 coax, 2 optical, 2 RCA, USB inputs; 2 RCA, 2 headphone (1/4"), XLR outputs; professional/compact; remote; a long time std for sound quality

BMC Pure DAC: $1800; PCM 32/384, DSD64/128; coax, optical, USB, AES/EBU inputs; 2 headphone (1/4" & XLR), RCA, XLR outputs; remote; great organic sound even at low volume (no analog input)

Mytek 192: $1700; PCM 32/192, DSD64/128; coax, optical, 2 USB, firewire, RCA inputs; 1/4" headphone, RCA, XLR outputs; uses Apple app for remote; compact; great sound, especially with firewire

Oppo HA-1: $1200; PCM 32/384, DSD64/128/256; coax, optical, USB, AES/EBU, RCA, XLR inputs; 2 headphone (1/4" & XLR), RCA, XLR outputs; remote; compact; spectacular sound/soundstage

While none of these are a "current darling" of media or A/C members they are all very good, provide substantial future proofing, and would save you some coin in this fast moving audio segment.  I'd concentrate on the BMC if organic sound is important, but compactness isn't an issue and the Oppo for cost, flexibility, and compactness (possible desktop use). 


Forget the Sony, you just bought the mini (which makes for a very fine server and gives you many more options than a all-in-one whatever we call them these days).