Advice on DAC

[prajith25]

Hi Experts,

I am back once again to bug you

Current Setup:
CA 650A amp + Philips DVD player with USB + MS Aviano1 speakers + Q acoustics 2000 Speaker Stand + Normal Audio Cables and interconnects.
Room Size: 9*15.

I initially had an idea of buying a CD player. But then I have more of mp3 collection than the CDs so now I am thinking if I need a DAC instead of a dedicated CD player. I am planning to connect the DVD player to the DAC and then to my CA650A amp.

So I have few questions to the experts:
1. Does DAC improve the mp3 SQ significantly?
2. Is it fine to connect the DAC to normal DVD player? Does is have any effect?
3. What type of DAC should I look for? (I find some USB DACs, not sure if I can connect those to my setup. I think they are for PCs)
4. Need to know your recommendations of some good DAC.
5. Where in Bangalore can I purchase DAC? Do they have DACs that can be auditioned?

Budget: 10-15K for used DAC

 

[Brajendu]

1. DAC will not improve the mp3 SQ significantly. Mp3 doesn't have enough data to reproduce the original quality which we hear in Loss-less files (FLAC, WAV, M4A etc). But you may get some coloration to the sound by diferrent DACs.

2. You can connect through the Coaxial, Optical ports without any problem.
3. for your setup a regular stand alone DAC will suit better.
4. CA DAC Magic can be considered. Not sure of the price, may be 25k at most.
5. You should get in Blore, please ask any HiFi dealer.

Hope this info will help you.

 

[prajith25]

1. DAC will not improve the mp3 SQ significantly. Mp3 doesn't have enough data to reproduce the original quality which we hear in Loss-less files (FLAC, WAV, M4A etc). But you may get some coloration to the sound by diferrent DACs.

Hi Brajendu, Thanks for the reply. So are you telling that there is not going to be much change in adding a DAC to my setup? Do you think getting a dedicated CDP with USB is the better option?

 

[Maxprocrj]

Re Read!!

He is asking you to go for loss less files like FLAC,WAV etc

 

[koushik]

A good DAC will always enhance the performance to a certain degree. Be it mp3, be it redbook cd or be it any hi rez audio.

Prajith, you can look for Maverick Tube DAC 2 with all the enhancement that they are offering. This will shipped at your place in close to 19k.

 

[Maxprocrj]

A good DAC will always enhance the performance to a certain degree. Be it mp3, be it redbook cd or be it any hi rez audio.

Prajith, you can look for Maverick Tube DAC 2 with all the enhancement that they are offering. This will shipped at your place in close to 19k.

Audioengine D1 is better and less expensive then MT DAC 2 IMHO or spend some extra get MF VDAC 2 I have it, its so good..............bliss:clapping::clapping:

 

[koushik]

I never heard Maverick, I was just giving him options, but the tube in it kinda lure me and I get the feelings that it will sound good.

 

[Maxprocrj]

I never heard Maverick, I was just giving him options, but the tube in it kinda lure me and I get the feelings that it will sound good.

Its only for pre amp out ,I purchesed it first then returned it

 

[koushik]

I had impression that it has two pre out, one of SS and another one of tube. Isn't it?

 

[prajith25]

Re Read!!

He is asking you to go for loss less files like FLAC,WAV etc

I understood that. But my question was related to mp3 and so I wanted to know the best options to play that. I do have FLAC, WAV... but I cant play them on my DVD.

The main purpose of this post is to know the best options to play mp3 through my DVD player with better sound quality.

 

[prajith25]

Audioengine D1 is better and less expensive then MT DAC 2 IMHO or spend some extra get MF VDAC 2 I have it, its so good..............bliss:clapping::clapping:

Please suggest a dealer in Bangalore where I can audition Audioengine D1 or MT DAC 2.

However, I need to make sure that a DAC is the way to go for playing mp3 files.
Is there any other better way to play 320kbps mp3 files? (Playing through PC is not preferred.)

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Does DAC improve the mp3 SQ significantly?

Imagine the question, "does an amplifier improve music playback?"

Plainly, if it is a good amplifier, if it is a better amplifier than you already have --- the answer must be yes.

Your music files are digital, so, however you play them, a DAC must be there somewhere in the chain: digital must be converted to analogue. Whether it is part of your CD player, DVD, player, PC, or even your phone, there will be a DAC. Would a better DAC make the music better? Yes, it probably would.

You did not mention (or I missed it) that your MP3 files are 320 kb/sec. Actually, if they were old, low-bit-rate MP3s, then the statement I just made could be completely wrong! Better equipment could highlight the faults and problems in low-bit-rate files.

It seems that MP3s, of whatever bitrate, do vary in quality according to the software used to compress them. This is some information I picked up along the way, rather than experience, as I prefer not to use it at all, except for cramming stuff onto a portable player for occasional journeys. However, if you are happy with the files you have, my bet is that better equipment will make you happier.

 

[iaudio]

Imagine the question, "does an amplifier improve music playback?"

Plainly, if it is a good amplifier, if it is a better amplifier than you already have --- the answer must be yes.

Your music files are digital, so, however you play them, a DAC must be there somewhere in the chain: digital must be converted to analogue. Whether it is part of your CD player, DVD, player, PC, or even your phone, there will be a DAC. Would a better DAC make the music better? Yes, it probably would.

You did not mention (or I missed it) that your MP3 files are 320 kb/sec. Actually, if they were old, low-bit-rate MP3s, then the statement I just made could be completely wrong! Better equipment could highlight the faults and problems in low-bit-rate files.

It seems that MP3s, of whatever bitrate, do vary in quality according to the software used to compress them. This is some information I picked up along the way, rather than experience, as I prefer not to use it at all, except for cramming stuff onto a portable player for occasional journeys. However, if you are happy with the files you have, my bet is that better equipment will make you happier.

You can say that again! Some of the 128kbps mp3s I have ripped from my cds sound better than 320kbps versions of the same song found on the internet.

 

[koushik]

Your music files are digital, so, however you play them, a DAC must be there somewhere in the chain: digital must be converted to analogue. Whether it is part of your CD player, DVD, player, PC, or even your phone, there will be a DAC. Would a better DAC make the music better? Yes, it probably would.

Very well described.

... as I prefer not to use it at all, except for cramming stuff onto a portable player for occasional journeys. However, if you are happy with the files you have, my bet is that better equipment will make you happier.

Absolutely, can't agree more. Buying equipment of price tens of thousands yet using free pirated MP3s doesn't make sense.

 

[koushik]

You can say that again! Some of the 128kbps mp3s I have ripped from my cds sound better than 320kbps versions of the same song found on the internet.

I doubt everybody on the file sharing forums. This internet's free stuffs (or even paid, maybe) can be anything. They claim to be ripped from ACDs but I really doubt. My home-brewed MP3 of 320 kbps sounds quite good when I use them for my portable devices, but same thing I can't say about all the 320kbps that I downloaded. Some are good but most of them are not.

This is true for the stuff that are few years old and the CDs are hard to find. New releases doesn't suffer from this much.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

There is some discussion of MP3s and the different codecs in the article linked to in the recent 24/192-controversy thread. The author is an authority on compressed music. It seems that many of the bad codecs in use long ago are still in use, becasue they are cheap to licence/easily available. EDIT: link to the article

Wolfgang's Vault is a site from which I sometimes occasionally download paid-for music. I have a vague memory that they used to use FLAC and now use 320kbs MP3. In theory, at least, I'm sorry for that, although the end result may be as good.

But... it's an imperfect world, and, if all I can get, for instance, of a childhood favourite, is somebody's rip of a 78rpm, ripped to goodness-knows what, and uploaded at low bit-rate to Youtube is all I can get, then, within listenable-to-at-all limits, that is what I have to listen to. If one already has a library of MP3s, even if self-ripped, it is not so easy to start again from scratch: all we can do is try to better in the future, and especially so as we get better hardware to play it on.

 

[prajith25]

It seems that MP3s, of whatever bitrate, do vary in quality according to the software used to compress them.

Thad, I agree with you. Even I used to wonder why a 192kbps file sounds better than a 320kbps file. Now I have the answer to that. Thanks for all the inputs.

Back to my primary question

Let me give you an idea of what I am looking for. I have a Klipsh S4 earphone and I listen to mp3 and FLAC files from my mobile phone. I do agree that the sound quality has major difference for mp3 and FLAC. I also find difference playing the same file in a mobile phone and a laptop. Surprisingly, I find the mobile sounding better. No matter what source I listen to, I just love listening to music in that.

I understand that adding better devices (DAC, source player, earphones, etc..) will make it sound even better than what I am listening now. But the good thing is that, I am 100% satisfied with the earphone.

Based on the above experience, I started to move to the next level of having a stereo setup that can produce the same sound quality for my home audio.

My question is simple, if the same mp3 file can sound so good in my earphone why am I not able to get the same satisfaction using devices that is 10 times its cost?

One answer I could think of is the reflected sound. Its not there in earphones. What else am I missing? Please help me.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Actually, I'm a newcomer to headphones, having thought that I disliked them for 40 years, and only recently discovered that what I dislike (personally) is closed-back headphones. All I can say is that, apart from clearly having a stereo soundstage outside, and in front of you, general received wisdom is that investment in headphones, buck for buck, gives better results than investment in speakers --- and then there is the room effects on top of that. Even mega-buck headphones are only equal in price to upper-mid-price speakers, and with speakers, you can just go on adding zeros.

 

[prajith25]

So is there a best possible way to play mp3 in our home audio system?

 

[jagdish_p]

So is there a best possible way to play mp3 in our home audio system?

Theoretically a decent external DAC will definitely improve the SQ compared to the Philips DVD players inbuilt DAC. I guess that your DVD player has a digital out to feed the DAC.

However there are many ifs and buts and hence the reluctance to give a straight answer.
Depends on the quality of your Mp3 s - I guess Flacs will definetly sound better
Depends on your personal preferences ,even DAC s add coloration and whether you like it or not will depend on your pref