DAKSA demand?

stvnharr · « **Reply #20 on:** 27 Apr 2005, 12:36 am »

The SPDIF output will most likely define suitable transports. The "cheapies" don't have it.

Hegemony · « **Reply #21 on:** 27 Apr 2005, 04:25 am »

Hi guys...
I rarely post to this forum although I do own a GK-1 and a 55N. I have been blown away by the sonics of this system.

If Daksa is a goer I will be buying one guaranteed (pending wifes ok!!

.....

Cheers hugh....you're a good man!

Russell.

Jens · « **Reply #22 on:** 8 May 2005, 10:20 am »

I'm definitely in! There is no doubt in my mind that the DAKSA will be one of the very best DACs around - irrespective of price.

And at the suggested price it will be a ludicrously cheap way of upgrading the sound from even fairly inexpensive DVD machines.

For many of us, that will mean no longer having to have both a CD player and a DVD player.

So, Hugh - if you in any way can see a reasonable economy in this project, please go on with it. As you can see from this post, a number of people are awaiting the DAKSA with great eagerness

Tinker · « **Reply #23 on:** 9 May 2005, 02:22 am »

Quote from: Jens

And at the suggested price it will be a ludicrously cheap way of upgrading the sound from even fairly inexpensive DVD machines.

For many of us, that will mean no longer having to have both a CD player and a DVD player.

Harking back to the topic of cheap CD players, most DVD players have an SPDIF out, including the super-cheapies. Be warned that this is also used for DTS out. In some cases the interface doesn't meet the SPDIF standard 100%. I personally have a $120 DVD with SPDIF out which seems to work OK with one or two provisos. A small problem with 90% (actually it's 6/7 I've seen or 85.7%) of these players is that the DVD player doesn't think it's a CD player until you put the disc in and it loads the audio programme. While this is happening the SPDIF port does NOT produce the require "idle tone" or "phantom signal" as it is sometimes called, and external DACs can click or hiss because the interface has no signal to lock on to.

Still the DVD is a potential cheap transport option. Certainly cheaper than many CD players with similar features.

Cheers,
T.

AKSA · « **Reply #24 on:** 9 May 2005, 12:38 pm »

Folks,

Many, many thanks for the broad-ranging, encouraging comments, I greatly appreciate it! Ben and I have despatched the pcb for prototype manufacture, and will in time build it up for auditioning.

I undertake to let you all know how this goes.

If it meets our expectations, we will release it, no question. There is sufficient interest - again, my thanks.

Cheers,

Hugh

Jens · « **Reply #25 on:** 11 May 2005, 10:12 pm »

Sounds good, Hugh!

My dream is the stage 3 option - in order to be as independent of the transport as at all possible.

It will be veeery interesting to hear how the initial listening tests go - I bet a few of us are already jumping up and down in anticipation

WerTicus · « **Reply #26 on:** 15 May 2005, 10:42 am »

how much $ aust for the basic level hugh? i will most likely go for it if it comes in under a k.

AKSA · « **Reply #27 on:** 15 May 2005, 11:15 am »

HI Werticus,

Thanks for your post; we are gunning for $US700, $US850 and $US950 for the three levels. The entry level would thus be just under $AUD900.

Not cheap, but SOTA and we believe a seminal piece of Red Book design.

Cheers,

Hugh

WerTicus · « **Reply #28 on:** 15 May 2005, 01:34 pm »

then thats the right price and ill be having me one

SamL · « **Reply #29 on:** 17 May 2005, 02:38 am »

Quote from: Tinker

Harking back to the topic of cheap CD players, most DVD players have an SPDIF out, including the super-cheapies. Be warned that this is also used for DTS out. In some cases the interface doesn't meet the SPDIF standard 100%. I personally have a $120 DVD with SPDIF out which seems to work OK with one or two provisos. A small problem with 90% (actually it's 6/7 I've seen or 85.7%) of these players is that the DVD player doesn't think it's a CD player until you put the disc in and it loads the audio programme. ...

Not sure how true or critical it is but some player is not bit perfect.
http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/digital/messages/105044.html
Well, is there such thing as bit perfect transport?

Sam

Tinker · « **Reply #30 on:** 17 May 2005, 08:08 am »

Quote from: SamL

Not sure how true or critical it is but some player is not bit perfect.
http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/digital/messages/105044.html
Well, is there such thing as bit perfect transport?

Sam

There is such thing as "bit perfect" but it is more often a problem with the disc than the player. There are several types of read errors possible on CD, in fact even a good disc has about one bad bit in 1000, BUT CD has a number of redundancy and protection features which means nearly all errors can be "corrected." Very few errors are "fatal" in that they degrade the audio.

The particular unit in the thread above, though, does seem to havehsome problems and may have been damaged at some point.

Anyway, potential for a very long thread to develop here. Short answer: yes, there are players that are better than others in this regard, but usually there is very little in it. Most problems are from bad discs, dust, scratches, misaligned transports and vibrations.

Cheers,
T.

aurelius · « **Reply #31 on:** 17 May 2005, 09:33 am »

Ben & Sam,

FWIW, I recall reading somewhere (on a DAC DIY site) that someone had tested their CD player for "bit correctness" and found it to be substantially out... after investigation it was discovered that the manufacturer had inserted a digital volume control somewhere between the transport and the SPDIF out such that at full volume all digital samples were multiplied by 0.97 (from memory) rather than 1.0; I'm sure this is an uncommon idiosynchrasy.

Regards,

Mark

Tinker · « **Reply #32 on:** 18 May 2005, 12:07 am »

Quote from: aurelius

Ben & Sam,

FWIW, I recall reading somewhere (on a DAC DIY site) that someone had tested their CD player for "bit correctness" and found it to be substantially out... after investigation it was discovered that the manufacturer had inserted a digital volume control somewhere between the transport and the SPDIF out such that at full volume all digital samples were multiplied by 0.97 (from memory) rather than 1.0; I'm sure this is an uncommon idiosynchrasy.

Hi Mark,
you are absolutely right, and actually this sort of thing is surprisingly common. Well, digital attenautors are common, even if mis-progamming them is not. Some CD players do have digital volume controls, and nearly every DVD I have ever seen has a digital attenuator in it. It is a very simple bit of processing which is built in to so many DSP and filtering chips that manufacturers just add a button for it on the remote. I have seen DSPs that are NOT bit perfect at unity gain, but the vast majority are designed to be transparent at unity.

I have a cheap DVD player with a digital volume control, but the DSP seems to be done at a very high frame rate at a point fairly close to the final output. When I play a CD on it the SPDIF emerges unmolested. The DSP function only affects the analogue audio coming out of the player. I suspect this is for compatibility with devices that rely on the SPDIF link like external DACs and DTS if you have an external decoder. Who knows what other manufacturers have done???

T.