[newzooreview]

I bought the Eversolo DMP-A10 as an upgrade for my DMP-A8.

In the process of trying to tame the aggressive sound of the Ascend Acoustics ELX Ribbon tower loudspeakers that I purchased in January, I significantly improved the signal path into the A8.

I added an Effe-01 optical Ethernet decoupling box connected to a NuPrime Omnia SW-8 network switch powered by an iFi Power Elite connected to a Dave Elledge ComboBuss. The SW-8 then goes to a Network Acoustics muon pro Streaming System. So, I added about $3000 of devices to the Ethernet chain going to the A8.

None of this tamed the forward, metallic sheen of the Ascend Acoustics ELX towers, but it did significantly improve the sound coming from the A8. I have previously used a Holo May KTE DAC, and I knew that the A8, while sounding enjoyable and excellent for the price, was not providing all of the detail that the Holo May did. I was curious what the A10 might do, especially with a refined (or at least pricey) Ethernet input. With the Ascend Acoustics ELX loudspeakers returned for a refund, I put the Spatial Audio M3 Sapphires back into the system.

The A10, in brief, provides both the trees and the forest. After >300 hours of break-in/settling in, I am hearing more detail than with the Holo May KTE while the presentation is more coherent and instruments across the spectrum have a more natural heft or substance to them. Bass is also deeper and more articulate. This is not truly a direct comparison because the May was connected directly via USB to my Roon ROCK NUC (at the suggestion of Kitsune HiFi.

The A10 is unequivocally better than the A8, comparing them in the identical system. The A10 is able to provide more detail than I’ve heard in my system without losing track of the presentation as a whole. If I want to focus on a voice or an instrument back in the mix, I can hear the subtleties with a natural timbre, but my attention is not drawn to focus the microdetails. My attention easily remains on listening to the performance as a whole. It’s very relaxing. The urge to analyze is reduced by knowing that if I want to listen analytically the details and subtleties are there. Having that confidence makes it easier to enjoy the music.

The added weight to voices and instruments sounds natural and correct. In comparison, the May presented things as a bit lighter and diaphanous. This is not just an upper bass emphasis. There is no emphasis that I can detect, nor would it be reasonable to find that in a DAC. Some of the online reviews stated that the A10 is bass forward or bass heavy. I do not find that to be accurate. Like other times I’ve improved the digital source in my system, the A10 is just losing less bass information.

I assume the improvements to detail, heft, bass accuracy, and coherence are due to the improvements to isolation, power supply, and jitter. Compared the A8, the A10 has two linear power supplies, much more filtering on the power internally, better isolation of the digital from analog sections, better clocks, and a more expensive DAC chip, according to the product literature.

I listen to a wide range of music from rock to folk to jazz to classical, and the A10 is excellent for everything so far. One of the tracks I’ve had trouble getting right with my system is the Overture to the Marriage of Figaro, a 1985 recording on a Philips Mozart collection. The massed strings at the beginning can sound both congested and harsh if there are even minor issues with jitter or noise in the upper midrange. It is now sounding the best it has ever sounded, with no harshness and a well-resolved mass of strings with natural timbre placed a few feet behind the speakers. I can hear individual instruments, but the orchestral effect of the whole string section playing together is correctly conveyed.

I use it only as a Roon endpoint with the Ethernet input and balanced XLR output to the amp via the A10’s built-in active preamp. It has a lot of features that I don’t use, so I have no idea how well the room correction, bass management, or Eversolo app work, for example. For my use, however, the A10 has been excellent and is providing the best sound I've had so far in my system.

[mr_bill]

Great review on the A10 and I liked your comparisons.
With the May, you had your Roon Nuc directly usb to the Dac.
Are you not doing the same Roon USB to A10 now?

[newzooreview]

Thanks.

The May DAC does not have a built-in streamer. No Ethernet input. So I used USB directly from the Roon NUC on the advice of Kitsune HiFi.

The A10 (and A8) have Ethernet input, so there is no direct connection to the Roon NUC. The NUC is connected to the main network switch by Ethernet.

That's why comparisons to the May DAC are not ideal. The May DAC also went to the amp via a Holo Serene KTE preamp, and with the A10 I'm using the built-in active preamp.

My comparison to the A8 is apples to apples: everything remained the same in the sytem when moving from the A8 to the A10.

[AllanS]

Had you decided to go the route of A8 to combine DAC/streaming functions or were there other reasons?  Do you think any of the differences you’re hearing between the A8 and 10 are attributable to the DAC chips? Or are the many other improvements to the A10 going to mask the chip differences?

I settled on the A8 because I was wanting to combine either DAC/streamer or DAC/pre.  In my case the Eversolo app, AKM chip, and other features were selling points eg I/O and eliminating miniDSP SHD. It just goes to show that the Eversolo offerings can be (most) all things to many people for relatively modest prices.

[genjamon]

Have you ever tried WiFi input instead of Ethernet on either the A8 or A10? The reason I ask is that I was surprised going WiFi on my A6 ME with Pardo PS eliminated a hardness/harshness I had with Ethernet input. And I was using Vinnie Rossi and Uptone PS’s on my main router and audiophile switch feeding the A6. Maybe not quite at your level with Ethernet filtration, but still quite a solid effort to clean up the Ethernet.