Paradisea DAC

R Browne · « **Reply #460 on:** 26 May 2007, 09:54 pm »

I just replaced the stock output coupling caps in my Paradisea DAC with V-Cap OIMP 2.0 uF 250V caps and the change went way beyond that of upgrading the tubes. These caps reportedly take 400 hrs. to fully break in, but my initial impressions with just a few hours on them in the Paradisea are that of a more vivid, colorful and saturated sound with greater speed, dynamics and bass. Individual instruments are now easier to follow. A much more musically involving presentation than before. Time will tell as to what greater improvements will follow. As usual, YMMV, but for me a definite improvement over the stock caps. Info on the V-Cap OIMP can be found at:http://www.v-cap.com/oilcapacitors.html

rollo · « **Reply #461 on:** 27 May 2007, 11:41 pm »

Installed V-caps as well in my Promitheus Buffer. Have about 200Hrs so far. The sound has gone from very good to where is my hammer. I will wait until I have 500Hrs on them and report back.
IMO they should come broken in for the asking price or offer a break in service for a small fee. For me 400 to 500 Hrs is too long a time when you are using NOS tubes. So take out expensive tubes for break in process and save those NOS for later.
Steve Rochlin of Enjoy The Music burns his caps on with a Duotech cable break in device before installing. Brilliant!
rollo

shooter · « **Reply #462 on:** 28 May 2007, 01:17 am »

If you still have the OPA2604 in the original paradisea, you really should change that to the LM4562 as Legarem suggested, it makes a huge difference, the OPA2107 is too bright for my taste, if someone can use it, I have a brand new surface mount 2107 to give away, send me a stamped return envelop and I will send that to you, PM for my address, I only have one to give away first PM gets it.

R Browne · « **Reply #463 on:** 28 May 2007, 07:41 am »

Quote from: rollo on 27 May 2007, 11:41 pm

Installed V-caps as well in my Promitheus Buffer. Have about 200Hrs so far. The sound has gone from very good to where is my hammer. I will wait until I have 500Hrs on them and report back.

Are those the Teflon or OIMP V-Caps? Bummer about the break-in process.

Quote from: shooter on 28 May 2007, 01:17 am

If you still have the OPA2604 in the original paradisea, you really should change that to the LM4562 as Legarem suggested, it makes a huge difference, the OPA2107 is too bright for my taste.

Thanks for the heads up on the OPA2107 as I have one but haven't installed it. Bright is not where I want to go with the Paradisea.

shooter · « **Reply #464 on:** 28 May 2007, 02:58 pm »

I think one should experiment to find the best opamp in his system, the best thing to do is to install a dip socket in your Paradisea, I use a small circuit board from Radio Shack and cut it down to size, solder a 8 pin dip socket on it and use short thin wires to connect it to the circuit board, remove the 2604 and use double stick foam tape to insulate and secure the adaptor board to the circuit board, make all the connections and power supply bypass caps, I use soic to dip adaptor on some opamps, the bottom cover will not fit anymore so I cut a piece of clear plexiglass to size and cut a big hole where the opamp is, very convenient to try different opamps too, I also use Russian K40 PIO caps for output, the lm4562 sounds detail and full body in my set up.

Gordy · « **Reply #465 on:** 28 May 2007, 04:41 pm »

These Brown Dog adapters are a handy item for rolling opamps... http://www.cimarrontechnology.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=1

rollo · « **Reply #466 on:** 30 May 2007, 03:20 pm »

Quote from: R Browne on 28 May 2007, 07:41 am

Quote from: rollo on 27 May 2007, 11:41 pm
Installed V-caps as well in my Promitheus Buffer. Have about 200Hrs so far. The sound has gone from very good to where is my hammer. I will wait until I have 500Hrs on them and report back.

Are those the Teflon or OIMP V-Caps? Bummer about the break-in process.

Quote from: shooter on 28 May 2007, 01:17 am
If you still have the OPA2604 in the original paradisea, you really should change that to the LM4562 as Legarem suggested, it makes a huge difference, the OPA2107 is too bright for my taste.

Thanks for the heads up on the OPA2107 as I have one but haven't installed it. Bright is not where I want to go with the Paradisea.

Yes they are the Teflon OIMP caps. Truly a breakthrough in cap design.

rollo

kbuzz3 · « **Reply #467 on:** 12 Jun 2007, 09:02 pm »

Sorry for the idiot question, but i cant seem to pull the tube out of the top panel. so can i assume you have to remove one of the panels to replace the tube?

If so how does one do this. Particularly since i dont see screws but bolts. Thanks from the mechanically challenged. AKA one who's crazy mom wouldnt let him take shop otherwise he might not go to college

crazyface · « **Reply #468 on:** 12 Jun 2007, 09:36 pm »

Oh, maybe you guys will know the answer to my question.

When you plug the Paradisea+ into the USB, what does the computer detect it as? 16-bit 44.1khz? Or something else?
I've been told that you can't play files of a higher quality than 16-bit 44.1khz through the USB connection, but you can play up to 24-bit 96khz through the SPDIF. Is that true?
If the Paradisea+ is 16-bit, then how is it able to play 24-bit 96khz at all? Does it lessen the quality of the source to do this? Is it dithered/downsampled? Does it create distortion or noise?

I ask these questions because I regularly listen to/work with DVD-quality audio, in addition, of course, to CD audio.

Thanks so much for your help!!!

1000a · « **Reply #469 on:** 14 Jun 2007, 06:03 am »

Quote from: yashu on 24 May 2007, 12:44 am

Consider what causes jitter in the first place, even with the extra conversion level, the signal path is so short (the physical length the signal is going to exist as s/pdif), that unless MHDT really messed their design up badly somehow, the benefits of being able to use USB for getting the signal to the DAC outweigh the possibility of jitter caused by this extra conversion, which would be very minimal compared to using s/pdif over exponentially larger distances (like from source to DAC).

The only reason NOT to use USB, would not be whether it goes to I2S or not directly, but for electrical isolation from the PC... even USB straight to I2S is going to have that problem, maybe more maybe less, but I don't know how sensitive I2S is to that vs the way MHDT does it...

I use a DIP to isolate my PC from my MHDT, I don't have a USB version to compare it to though.

anybody else have comments on using a Monarchy Classic DIP or 48/96, I was considering one to go between my SB3 and DAC

1000a · « **Reply #470 on:** 14 Jun 2007, 06:05 am »

Quote from: crazyface on 12 Jun 2007, 09:36 pm

Oh, maybe you guys will know the answer to my question.
When you plug the Paradisea+ into the USB, what does the computer detect it as? 16-bit 44.1khz? Or something else?
I've been told that you can't play files of a higher quality than 16-bit 44.1khz through the USB connection, but you can play up to 24-bit 96khz through the SPDIF. Is that true?
If the Paradisea+ is 16-bit, then how is it able to play 24-bit 96khz at all? Does it lessen the quality of the source to do this? Is it dithered/downsampled? Does it create distortion or noise?

I ask these questions because I regularly listen to/work with DVD-quality audio, in addition, of course, to CD audio.

Thanks so much for your help!!!

ditto these questions its really confusing to me also

anthony a. · « **Reply #471 on:** 14 Jun 2007, 09:53 pm »

anybody else have comments on using a Monarchy Classic DIP or 48/96, I was considering one to go between my SB3 and DAC

[/quote]

i am interested as well and is it still as good with a fully modded bolder sb3 or only stock unit?

1000a · « **Reply #472 on:** 14 Jun 2007, 09:57 pm »

ready to buy the 48/96 but not completely shure I don't want the classic. 30 day return is good but I can't audition both, without stealing a pocket book! now thats addiction

NewBuyer · « **Reply #473 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 01:23 am »

The GW Labs DSP is what I use (tried both this and the Monarchy, kept the DSP). Definitely an improvement with the MHDT Labs dacs when sending an upsampled 96kHz signal to the dac. Since the receiver chip can take up to 96kHz signals, this upsampled digital signal is somehow affecting the final sound from the dac - but I cannot explain why this is so (not enough technical background). You will also likely find (as I did), that interfacing the SB3 and the GW Labs units with a glass optical cable (instead of coax) improves the result still further - but again I don't know what is causing this difference (better isolation perhaps, who knows).

Oscillate · « **Reply #474 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 02:02 am »

"The GW Labs DSP is what I use (tried both this and the Monarchy, kept the DSP)"

I purchased the Monarchy DIP 48/96 Upsampler to go with the Paradisea+.
After trying the Paradisea+ with and without the upsampler, I found that the music sounded much better WITH the upsampler.
Please tell me why you prefer the GW Labs DSP over the Monarchy DIP 48/96 Upsampler?

NewBuyer · « **Reply #475 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 02:18 am »

Quote from: Oscillate on 15 Jun 2007, 02:02 am

"The GW Labs DSP is what I use (tried both this and the Monarchy, kept the DSP)"

I purchased the Monarchy DIP 48/96 Upsampler to go with the Paradisea+.
After trying the Paradisea+ with and without the upsampler, I found that the music sounded much better WITH the upsampler.
Please tell me why you prefer the GW Labs DSP over the Monarchy DIP 48/96 Upsampler?

I found the soundstage was much, much better with the DSP. Similarly, the entire sound spectrum was improved (extremely nice treble especially noticeable with female vocals and cymbals/chimes) and more clear, and the resulting overall sound efffect was to sound more clear and "live". Bass had more texture too.

So while the Monarchy did bring a (mild) improvement to things, the DSP was significantly better. I really don't know how to explain it, although one difference is that the GW Labs DSP does have separate pulse-transformers at both its coax input and coax output, whereas the Monarchy has a pulse transformer only at its coax output. So perhaps the DSP has better isolation going for it, when using this interface (?)

I don't know why the MHDT dacs sound better in my system when sending a 96kHz signal to them - especially since this is just converted by the MHDT's digital receiver chip back to 44.1kHz, before sending it internally to the actual dac chip itself. Oscillate why do you think we are hearing this difference from the upsampling - what could account for it?

crazyface · « **Reply #476 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 02:27 am »

Hello Newbuyer, hello Oscillate, I have a question for you both -

You are both upsampling your music before sending it to your Paradisea. In your opinion then do you feel the upsampling is better than non-oversampling? Would you have been better served to get an upsampling DAC, if you're just now upsampling it anyway? I ask because I am presently trying to decide whether to get the Paradisea+, but am deterred because of its lack of support for 24/192, when it seems that this will be necessary if I wish to listen to the next generation of audio (DVD-A, SACD, Blu-Ray, HD DVD, etc.)
Also, do you know whether the Paradisea+ can accept HDCD signal? Thank you!

Turnandcough · « **Reply #477 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 02:45 am »

Quote from: crazyface on 15 Jun 2007, 02:27 am

Hello Newbuyer, hello Oscillate, I have a question for you both -

You are both upsampling your music before sending it to your Paradisea. In your opinion then do you feel the upsampling is better than non-oversampling? Would you have been better served to get an upsampling DAC, if you're just now upsampling it anyway? I ask because I am presently trying to decide whether to get the Paradisea+, but am deterred because of its lack of support for 24/192, when it seems that this will be necessary if I wish to listen to the next generation of audio (DVD-A, SACD, Blu-Ray, HD DVD, etc.)
Also, do you know whether the Paradisea+ can accept HDCD signal? Thank you!

This article from Vic Trola may help explain.
http://victrolax.blogspot.com/2006/06/whats-with-oversampling-upsampling-and.html

crazyface · « **Reply #478 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 02:49 am »

I have read that.

It didn't really help me any - maybe because I don't understand it? Can you explain?
Thanks!

Turnandcough · « **Reply #479 on:** 15 Jun 2007, 03:07 am »

Quote from: crazyface on 15 Jun 2007, 02:49 am

I have read that. It didn't really help me any - maybe because I don't understand it? Can you explain?
Thanks!

I understand the end result. To try and explain it, in any detail, at this hour, without sounding like a babbling idiot would be very difficult. Hopefully a more qualified member can intervene.