BDA-3 DAC

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James Tanner

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1200 on: 20 Sep 2019, 12:08 pm »


MEMO: To All Bryston Customers
SUBJECT: BDA-3 DAC Gets A+ Rating - Stereophile’s Recommended Components

September 2019

Bryston BDA-3 DAC …  A+ Rating

The first Bryston DAC to offer DSD compatibility, the BDA-3 supports the SACD format via its four HDMI inputs, and DSD128 to DSD256 via USB. (PCM performance, including user-selectable upsampling in multiples of 44.1 and 48kHz, extends to 384kHz; DoP is also supported.)

Twin AKM DAC chips are used, as are completely separate paths for PCM and DSD data.

Using an Oppo BDP-103 universal BD player to listen to SACDs through the Bryston BDA-3, LG remarked that "spatial performance was sensational, with wider, deeper soundstages than heard from my SACD player on its own," and praised the Bryston's overall performance for delivering "superbly effortless, delicate, subtly revealing, tube-like analog output from a variety of digital file formats and sample rates."


Writing from his test bench, JA singled out for praise the BDA-3's extremely low levels of noise and distortion and "superb" resolution—close to 21 bits, and concluded that it …

"offers measured performance that is as good as digital can get."


CanadianMaestro

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1201 on: 20 Sep 2019, 02:31 pm »
Glad I've got one!

Audiophile

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1202 on: 20 Sep 2019, 05:55 pm »
Glad I've got one as well!  :D

Grant Hill

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1203 on: 20 Sep 2019, 07:05 pm »
Party of 3  :D

CanadianMaestro

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1204 on: 20 Sep 2019, 08:50 pm »
As Bruce Springsteen once sang,...

Keep it goin' boys!!

Andreashifi

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1205 on: 21 Sep 2019, 03:19 pm »
Party of 4  :D

Iuliucra

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1206 on: 21 Sep 2019, 06:49 pm »
How about an upgrade program to the BDA -3.14 for BDA 3 owners?

James Tanner

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1207 on: 21 Sep 2019, 07:34 pm »
How about an upgrade program to the BDA -3.14 for BDA 3 owners?

Hi

i am sorry that is not possible as the Chassis, Circuit Boards and Rear Panel are all different on the 3.14.

james

The Rang

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1208 on: 22 Sep 2019, 02:57 am »
Party of 5 , almost a year now :D

What’s a 3.14?

James Tanner

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1209 on: 22 Sep 2019, 10:27 am »

schmidtmike76

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1210 on: 23 Sep 2019, 12:06 pm »
I have never plugged my DAC with a Ethernet cable.  Are there updates that I need if everything functions great or sound quality updates?  Thanks

James Tanner

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1211 on: 23 Sep 2019, 11:57 pm »
Hi Folks,

Thought you may find this post by Doug at SoundStage Magazine interesting.


Doug SoundStage Schneider

Potential high-end audio trend -- with FLAC-based PCM streaming now from Qobuz and Amazon Music HD, I believe there's a new marketing opportunity available for companies that DID NOT adopt MQA into their digital-to-analog converter designs.

For example, in many MQA-compatible DACs, the digital filter is the same for MQA material AND straight PCM material -- but it may not be the best filter for PCM (i.e., what's coming out of Qobuz and Amazon Music HD). Some companies did not take this approach and DO NOT use the MQA filter for everything. But a number of other companies do use it for everything -- and if people start dropping Tidal w/MQA for Qobuz and/or Amazon Music HD with straight FLAC-based PCM, we might see an upsurge in the desire for non-MQA DACs because they perform better.

Pundamilia

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1212 on: 24 Sep 2019, 03:33 pm »
+1 👍

Very astute of Doug to pick up on that. When you optimize for MQA, you may be sub-optimizing for everything else.Not good for those not interested in MQA.

Stu Pitt

Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1213 on: 24 Sep 2019, 07:42 pm »
+1 👍

Very astute of Doug to pick up on that. When you optimize for MQA, you may be sub-optimizing for everything else.Not good for those not interested in MQA.
Not all that great for people interested in MQA either. Even if one chooses the MQA version of an album every time it’s available, that doesn’t mean EVERY album they’ll listen to is available in MQA. There’s far more non-MQA stuff than there is MQA stuff.

NHSkier

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1214 on: 25 Sep 2019, 12:22 pm »
Excellent catch, Doug! Makes me feel better about my non MQA Dac.

Christo22

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1215 on: 17 Jan 2020, 08:45 pm »
My system is all separated components.
What is the main advantage to choose the BDA3 from now on?
Are you not diminishing the market value of the BDA3 with the 3.14?

James Tanner

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1216 on: 17 Jan 2020, 10:55 pm »
My system is all separated components.
What is the main advantage to choose the BDA3 from now on?
Are you not diminishing the market value of the BDA3 with the 3.14?

Hi Christo

If you are just interested in the DAC section of the 3.14 then it is identical to the BDA-3.  If you want the best performing Digital Player though then it is the BDP-3 Player in combination with the BDA-3 DAC.

james

mfau

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1217 on: 9 Mar 2020, 02:18 am »
Upgraded my BDA-1 to BDA-3 this week.  Very happy with this upgrade! 
My brother in law is also happy as he purchased my BDA-1!
Two happy campers listening to more music.
My Bryston gears served me well for the last 10 years and looking forward to many more.

WillyP

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1218 on: 9 Mar 2020, 10:19 am »
Hi Christo

If you are just interested in the DAC section of the 3.14 then it is identical to the BDA-3.  If you want the best performing Digital Player though then it is the BDP-3 Player in combination with the BDA-3 DAC.

james

Has anyone compared the BDA-3.14 with the combination of the BDP-3 and the BDA-3 DAC? Has the BDA-314 the same issues with HDMI as the BDA-3 had, or are they resolved in the meantime? If only the BDA-314 was there before I bought my streamer!

WillyP

TJ-Sully

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Re: BDA-3 DAC
« Reply #1219 on: 9 Mar 2020, 11:32 pm »
Hi Christo

If you are just interested in the DAC section of the 3.14 then it is identical to the BDA-3.  If you want the best performing Digital Player though then it is the BDP-3 Player in combination with the BDA-3 DAC.

james

hi James,

this may have been asked already...but....any thoughts on adding class D amplification to the 3.14...
a little all in one digital machine!  would be pretty slick..

thanks!
TJ