Naim Prototype DAC at Bristol

More than likely missing unless all speakers/electronics on the planet block the same portions of the signal (highly unlikely.) If so, they would all sound the same assuming no other unique colorations.
 
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I think you are basing your assumptions on coloured equipment. Things don't all sound the same because not all manufacturers have solved the problems, and there are compromises in cheaper gear. The really good equipment does sound quite similar, however. It converges, like climbing a pyramid.
 
Totally disagree bub. I consider Naim "really good equipment" and I've never heard anything similar in sound. TBH, I've never heard any equipment sound like any other except for the really bad stuff.
 
FrankDeckard said:
Digital started off pretty level compared to vinyl and has become much more so. Spending much over a grand is madness.
Hence the original question asked in my post. I have no idea why it went so off-topic.

I really don't care how good the new Linn or Naim CD555 is because I have no interest in either of them. Spending that much money now on them makes no sense in my scenario as I have ripped my entire collection to HDs and have decided that playback via laptop of desktop is the future for me.

For the record, I've have tried a number of Naim CD players and liked the sound. I have noticed that the perspective has changed over the years and that the so-called "Naim" edge on top has been slightly rolled back and that the bass is certainly fuller.

If the DAC will make my ripped files sound like the top of Naim range, then it is something that I am interested in investigating. If I have to add a PS that costs more than the DAC to achieve that, then I'll continue looking.

I do wonder what Julian would think of the sound now.
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Hi Frank

Did you change the Living Voice speakers for Harbeths then?

(noticing from signature)


Cheers
Chris
 
blackdog said:
I get out enough thank you;-) New and Improved rarely is IMO.
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I saw a quote on here (or pink fish) that I felt appropriate - and really summed up older hifi.

I've forgotten the specifc wording, but essentially the person was arguing that people such as Peter Walker and the other hi-fi greats with great care and knowledge got the best they could out of what they had.

There is no doubt in my mind that modern transducers measure more accurately and are more faithful to the original signal than there equal counterparts from the past.

Simply 'everything' has improved - everything!! - from magnets in a loudspeaker to the glue used in manufacture. Even a simple paper cone can be manufactured to higher tolerances and purity than ever before.

It is more a question of whether the chef is capable of making the cake with the same skill as his/her predecessor.


LS3 5/a, Tannoy 15" dual concentric speakers and Quad Electrostatics of the past are all landmark products testiment to the design ability of their creators.
 
Clearly the case Bottleneck. I don't believe flattening FR curves the last tenth of a dB or reducing THD and IM by another .001% is going to close the gap between electronic sound and reality. Something else is causing the gap.
 
FrankDeckard!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i do not know it much but i read it on the newspaper.
do yon know it?
The Minerva DAC comes with software and device drivers for Mac OS X and Windows based PCs. I conducted this full review using my MacBook Pro running OS X Leopard 10.5.3 connected via FireWire. The software installation is very simple. It is one of those next-next-finish installs that completes in under a minute. Once the installation is complete and the Minerva is connected, the Weiss FireWire IO app can be used to fine tune the performance of the DAC with the music server. This fine tuning is very simple because there is only a couple options to chose from. I'm pretty sure most Computer Audiophile readers can handle selecting the sampling rate at which their music will be played. In the case of the Reference Recordings HRx albums this is 176.4 kHz. The only other selection to make when connected via FireWire is the Isochronous Buffering machine type. The choices are Slow, Normal, and DAW for Digital Audio Workstation.
 
My 102 is a most certainly a bottleneck but my briks aren't as they've been in storage for approximately three years now. However, the SBLs which took their place are performing even more dreadfully in your estimation I'm sure;-)
 
Lulz here dave!

Seriously, get some active 50s, and you will see what can be achieved. There doesn't have to be a trade-off between round & flat earths. I'm loath to recommend specific recordings, but try Richard Thompson's Old Kit Bag* for superbly-recorded acoustic music.

[If your room is big, get 100s, or bigger.]

* never heard the CD, but the vinyl is awesome.
 

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