[rebbi]

Hey, Folks,
I know that Canada Rob is a great fan of the Resonessence Concero HD DAC. I was wondering, Rob, what you've compared it to. Also wondering of any of the other Omega Circle folks have owned or used it and what your impressions are.
Thanks!   

[Canada Rob]

My reference DAC for 16/44 for 7 years has been my Peter Daniel NOS DAC.  The Concero HD equals it on 16/44, and betters it on 24/96 and 24/192.
The Concero HD can be run on battery, wall, or USB power.  It also has coax input and two filters that can be run with a stock apple remote.  My favorite DAC to date.

[rebbi]

My reference DAC for 16/44 for 7 years has been my Peter Daniel NOS DAC.  The Concero HD equals it on 16/44, and betters it on 24/96 and 24/192.
The Concero HD can be run on battery, wall, or USB power.  It also has coax input and two filters that can be run with a stock apple remote.  My favorite DAC to date.

Rob, thanks for this!

I have two digital sources; my CD player which I just use as a transport and that has optical out, and my Mac laptop that has USB, although with my current DAC I've been running the USB to an SPDIF converter in order to get 192 compatibility. So how would I configure the Concero HD in that scenario? Sorry to be dense but I've scoured the Resonessence page and can't quite figure it out. (Didn't know that it'd take wall power from the product page...)

[Canada Rob]

These questions are likely answered on this thread http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=129890.0

This review explains the different options of the Concero/Concero HD: http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/resonessence2/1.html

[rebbi]

Sure.

I did correspond with Resonessence tech support and unfortunately the Concero HD seems designed as a USB only DAC, with no other digital inputs, so my CD player's optical and coaxial digital outputs have nowhere to go. The Veritas is coning out soon, which does have the right input options, but it'll sell for close to $3000, which is way over my budget. I guess I'll have to look elsewhere. And I agree that Resonessence's web site needs some work!

[mresseguie]

Rebbi,

I wonder if your PM box is full. I sent you a PM on 21 March concerning DACs, but I'm guessing you have not seen it.

Best regards,

Michael

[jaywills]

I have one of these and enjoy it very much.  IIRC, it can function as a S/PDIF DAC, not just as a USB DAC (see link below, p.3).  In that mode, the USB in is for power only. 

I used it to take the digital signal out of my TacT 2.2x via S/PDIF to use the Concero's DAC feeding my UcD amp's single-ended inputs and it worked well.  I preferred its sound over the DAC in my TacT.  of course, YMMV.  Good luck.

http://www.resonessencelabs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/CHD-User-Guide-Rev-2.2.pdf

[Dave Jameson]

Hi Rebbi,

I've used the Concero HD and it was in fact the first DAC that allowed me to hear proper bass resolution (my opinion of course) with my Omega speakers. There are still better DACs but the Concero HD makes for a brilliant starting point (and better than most DACs anywhere near its price).

While you can use it as an SPDIF DAC and USB>SPDIF converter, its worth noting that the Sabre chipset's jitter rejections is quite low and as SPDIF introduces more jitter than Asynchronous USB transfer then, well as jaywills said it, "YMMV". I've seen actual signal dropouts due to extreme jitter from the source.

Oh, and a Concero HD needs to powered up continuously to sound good. It can be pretty rough when cold and often takes over a day to warm up!

Cheers,
DJ

[rebbi]

Rebbi,

I wonder if your PM box is full. I sent you a PM on 21 March concerning DACs, but I'm guessing you have not seen it.

Best regards,

Michael

Michael,
Just PM'ed you back! Did you get my reply?
Thanks!

[rebbi]

I have one of these and enjoy it very much.  IIRC, it can function as a S/PDIF DAC, not just as a USB DAC (see link below, p.3).  In that mode, the USB in is for power only. 

I used it to take the digital signal out of my TacT 2.2x via S/PDIF to use the Concero's DAC feeding my UcD amp's single-ended inputs and it worked well.  I preferred its sound over the DAC in my TacT.  of course, YMMV.  Good luck.

http://www.resonessencelabs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/CHD-User-Guide-Rev-2.2.pdf

Jay, thanks for this! I just find the implementation confusing. So how would I get optical or coax output out of my CD player into the Concero? And if this is too OT for the Omega forum, you can answer me offline. Thanks.

[mresseguie]

Hello, rebbi.

Indeed I did. I've been on the road the last couple days and balancing other time demands. My wife and I are now visiting Taiwan's relatively remote Taitung County. It almost feels like SE Asia rather than Taiwan except the locals all speak Mandarin (which is a huge plus).

Enjoy your DAC search.

Michael