I hope to be hearing the DS later this month - so I will refrain from commenting on it until then, except to say that I doubt it will "blow away" the SB into a good dac, never mind a transporter. In 30 years I've only heard two "blow away" moments...(I guess I must get out more) 1) Linn Aktiv Bariks vs passive - that was jaw dropping at the time (1988) 2) Linn Troika vs Linn Basik (wow - a £500 cartridge blows away an £80 one!)
Since then it's all been rather small improvements to be honest. Picking up David's point, I tend to use a handfull of tracks to assess initial quality. This is followed by long listening to a wide variety of material, including some difficult digital renderings. For example, I often use: School from Crime of the Century by Supertramp. The cymbals when they arrive are a big help to me. One Night In Paris by 10CC - a wealth of detail to be retrieved Sledgehammer (Peter Gabriel, So remastered) - can be like nails on glass on some systems, especially when LOUD) Mezzanine (any track) by Massive Attack...good for bass control/response...this disc can set rooms into a resonant frenzy! In Between Dreams by Jack Johnson - astonishingly natural sounding vocals and guitar - if it doesn't sound like he is "in the room" then something is wrong. Bells of Berlin by Lone Star from Firing on All Six - this is a really dynamic rock track that will sound dreadful if the system lacks dynamic capabilities. It also has challenging synth tones and a really good drum track. -- Phil Leigh You want to see the signal path BEFORE it gets onto a CD/vinyl...it ain't what you'd call minimal...SB3+Stontronics PSU - Altmann JISCO/UPCI - TACT RCS 2.2X with Good Vibrations S/W - MF X-DAC V3/X-PSU/X-10 buffer (Audiocomm full mods)- Linn 5103 - Linn Aktiv 5.1 system (6x LK140's, ESPEK/TRIKAN/KATAN/SEIZMIK 10.5), Townsend Supertweeters, Kimber & Chord cables ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Phil Leigh's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=85 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=38815
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