cliveb;240019 Wrote: > Belief can send you down all sorts of blind alleys. What actual evidence > do you have that the SB3's DAC is the limiting factor? The DAC in the > SB3 is actually pretty damn good. > > An obvious point to make is that your speakers will be contributing > about 95% of the overall system character. Apart from that, unless your > system is really high-end, chances are that the preamp is the electronic > component most responsible for any shortcomings.
I disagree with the statement that the speaekers will contribute about 95% of the system character. During my last upgrade I kept my speakers (Quad 12L) but replaced the source and amplification (Linn > Creek) - the change in sound was staggering. Speaking for myself at least, the speakers did not contribute anywhere near 95% of the sonic character of my system. I have stated in a previous post that I don't think much of the SB3's analog output - I don't know if it's the DAC that's the limiting factor, or the supporting components. The bottom line is that it's bettered quite easily by a mid-range cd player. Of course one must take into account that the SB3 does cost a great deal less than a mid-range cd player, so it's unfair to expect that kind of performance. cgull, I would definitely recommend that you try an external DAC. I know exactly what you mean when you say the SB3 sounds dull and flat. Unfortunately I am not familiar with the DACs that you have listed. I'm using a cheap moodlabs Concept DAC at the moment, and I'm not really satisfied with the performance gains. Yes it does sound better than the SB3's analog out, but not by a great margin. I'm going to be auditioning a Benchmark DAC1 in a few months - it is quite expensive but I'm hoping the gains will be worthwhile. -- russelk SB3 --> Moodlab Concept DAC --> Creek Evo amp --> Quad 12L speakers ------------------------------------------------------------------------ russelk's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=12795 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=39892 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
