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Mine is up and running and I am quite pleased. Bill - Thanks so much for letting me stop by and pick up the unit after hours. The first tracks I played were from Diana Krall (various CDs), and I immediately noticed improvements from my prev DAC, In comparison, the EE is open and airy, and subtle passages show greater detail.The unit looks fantastic and appears to be very well built. Also, the small size is great as it fits perfectly on the shelf next to the SB3. The controls are very tight and have a quality feel when operated. The LED lights are visible in a well lighted room, and yet not too bright when the room is dark (a complaint I have had with many prior audio components, including the EE CDP). One complaint is the on/off button - you need to push it in firmly or it turns off again when you retract our finger. It also plays both music and movie DVDs (prev DAC did not), which is great news for me as I recently purchased the new Oppo BDP-83 and did not opt for the SE version. Since I am only using two channels for my HT, the EE DAC eliminates the need to upgrade to the SE, nearly paying for itself on day one. ..................Quote from: lonewolfny42 on 18 Feb 2010, 06:26 amJohn151....Which DAC would that be ? Thanks.... LiTe DAC 62 from Pacific Valve. I have been very pleased with the DAC 62 as it made my SB3 sound soooo much better. Thus, I want to be very careful not to come across as being negative towards 62 - it is a great sounding DAC. In comparison to the EE, I would say the 62 is warmer, where the EE is more neutral. As an example, my system has historically had trouble with Amy Winehouse (insert jokes here). The bass on all of the tracks from Back To Black suffered from excessive bass, and it was really not enjoyable. Over the years, I have been able to reduce the bass, but it was still at a level that I would not listen to Amy. With the EE, the bass is clearly reduced and tighter. The bass is still very strong on Rehab, but no longer drowns out the vocals. I have noticed other tracks where the bass is also reduced, which the Jury is still deliberating on. Another track that my system has struggled with is Norah Jones. Not sure how to describe it, but her voice would spike at times, which was not very pleasant. Over the years, my system has been table to tame this, but not enough. The EE appears to have solved the issue with her voice spiking. My very first impression, listening to Diana Krall, was that her voice sounded more delicate and "airy" (is that a word?), much like the sound that I heard when I had the EE CDP and Maggies (a sound I have been trying to get back to for years). Anyway, the unit is still breaking in, but my initial impressions are very positive. The ISOTEK CD has been playing all night, so I look forward to some more listening today. However, I leave town for Vail later today, so any further reviews will have to wait until next week.
John151....Which DAC would that be ? Thanks....
Bill or Alex, Any idea of the break-in time for the DAC?
FYI guys, these things seem pretty responsive to tube changes. I got out of work early for the first time in forever (only an hour after my scheduled day) so I decided to throw in a 12au7 I had in my box. The first one I grabbed was a NOS Ratheon 5814A. Really interesting how it changes the presentation. Very lush, kinda dark, maybe less resolving. When Bill recommended this tube to me originally (for preamp) he described it as having a smokey night club type of sound and I think that is spot on. Bill, what is the stock tube branded minimax? Are they Shunuangs? I know Alex prefers them in his circuit.
Very interesting, Bill. Do you know if something like this might work for those of us without an aes/ebu transport?http://www.lynxstudio.com/product_detail.asp?i=48$7 bucks may be worth it to experiment.
Bill, Since you are using a computer, I'd like to know how you think the direct USB input sounds compared to the aes/ebu or any of the other inputs.
The USB on the bottom had a little bloat to it, not as defined on the bottom end as compared to the toslink but I prefer the USB in the upper frequencies as I heard a little grain using the optical out of my Macbook Pro. The USB into the Trends USB audio adaptor that I had on hand and then from the Trends using its AES/EBU output into the MiniMax DAC's AES/EBU input right now is just lovely. Taut bottom with tinkling highs and the midrange is perfect.It really is a beautiful blend.
