Calyx Coffee - The Inside Story

On a roll, here are the innards of the Calyx Coffee. It appears from my causal observation that the headphone output is not driven by its own amp circuit, and is paralleled with the RCA outputs; which I presume is coupled by the Fine Gold caps directly to the ESS9023's output.

1. ESS9023P - DAC
2. Tenor TE7022L - USB Receiver
3. SC12.000 A1026 12 MHz clock
4. LD1117A - Adjustable regulator
5. Atmel ATMH038 - Some sort of Microprocessor to control the buttons
6. Nichicon Fine Gold 220uF/35V (x2)

iBasso D-Zero - The Inside Story

Finally (!) had the chance to open up the iBasso D-Zero and have a peek on the inside. Enjoy. Some of the major components;

1. WM8740SEDS - DAC Chipset.
2. AD8656 - Dual CMOS Amplifier
3. PCM2706 - USB Receiver
4. HEF4011BT - Input NAND Gate
5. NEC UD2-4 - Relay
6. Nichicon FW(M) 470uF 16V (x4) and 100uF 10V (x2) Capacitors
7. KDS 12.000 MHz Clock of some sort.

Great link - The complete DAC D/A converter list, showing various DAC and digital players and their chipsets.

Hi Res Music

I just purchased a few more albums from HD Tracks, so in total I now have seven HD albums;

1. REM - Out of Time 96/24
2. Nirvana - Nevermind 96/24
3. Janos Starker - Cello Suites 176/24
4. Janos Starker - Cello Concertos 176/24
5. Holst - Planets Chesky 96/24
6. Diana Krall - Quiet Nights 96/24
7. Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner 96/24

What I really wanted to try out are the higher resolution of 176 (which is 4 times 44.1 or CD format) files. At the moment, my DAC tops out at 96 kHz, so some software downsampling will be required, I will get them to play at 88.2 kHz. The next step is now to look for a DAC that can play these files, it seems, up to 176/192 kHz.

The short list so far;

1. Metrum Octave (can't do 192)
2. Violectric V800
3. Mytek DSD-DAC Preamp (can also do DSD)
4. Bel Cano DAC3.5VB
5. Weiss DAC202
6. Weiss DAC2
7. Musical Fidelity M1 DAC
8. Aqvox USB-DAC
9. Junilabs Jundac Two
10. Anedio D2

The option exists for a dedicated computer to DAC interface and a separate headphone amp.

Some DAC Thoughts

Looking at the 'Stereophile' reviews and measurements for some DACs, and it looks pretty interesting. John Atkinson notes that the Weiss DAC202 is the best DAC he has yet to measure. To use that as the 'benchmark', I then compared this superficially to three other DACs, Bel Canto e.One DAC35vb, Musical Fidelity M1-DAC and Musical Hall PH25.2.

An interesting aspect is how close the Bel Canto and M1 comes to the 202's performance. The 50Hz sine wave spectrum for the Bel Canto looks really nice, with a nice decaying set of harmonics, with each higher harmonic less than the previous. But seems to be some weird left and right channel mis-match. But the best looking one would be the Musical Hall, with only a slight peaking on the 5th harmonic. Perhaps this is due to the tube output stage?

Secondly, the graphs on the jitter also presented some interesting issues. The Music Hall has a lot higher noise floor at around -125dB, but shows a relatively tight base, especially with over-sampling, and no side bands. Whereas all the other DAC had side banding at 16 bit, but none with 24 bit. The Weiss floor hovers below -145dB, whilst the Bel Canto just below 135dB and the Music Fidelity at -145dB.

What this very cursory and laymen's review of these measured performance is that the $550 Music Hall and Music Fidelity $750, compares very well to the $3,500 Bel Canto and the $6,500 Weiss. And it also seems that when the lesser ones are paired with a good digital input (that has itself good performance in terms of jitter, noise, etc) the DAC can perform at very high levels.

PCM1704

After researching through some DAC, I have come to realise that my gut says the segmented R-2R 24 bit 96 kHz DAC PCM1704U-K could be the right direction for me. The following is a short list of DAC, either in kit or complete form, that uses the PCM1704 DAC Chip.

• Lite DAC-38
• Lite DAC-60
• Lite DAC-83
• Tentlabs DIY-CD Player
• NewClassD Dexa DAC S.
• Monarchy Audio NM24.
• Junilabs Jundac Two.
• Lessloss DAC 2004 MKII.
• Yulong 1704 DAC
• Audio-GD Reference 7.1
• Audio-GD Reference 5
• Audio-GD DAC-19
• Wadia 922
• Wadia 521
• Aqua La Scala
• Armonia Hifi DAC 4
• 
  

This list will continue… More will follow.

O2 Amp and the EM4

I finally (!) got around to purchasing a 3.5mm to RCA cable so that I can now connect the Calyx Coffee to the O2 amp from JDS Labs. Also of note, was the trial installation of Amarra Mini. Last night and right now, I am listening to music stored on an external firewire drive connected to my Macbook Pro. The music is running through iTunes/Amarra and the out to the Calyx and then O2, finally to the EM4. Currently listening to Adele '19'. Last night, I did a quick A/B between 16/44 and 24/96 on REM's 'Losing My Religion', as well as some casual listening with my favourite tracks.

Back to Adele, the first track, I can only describe the guitars as one of the most realistic I have heard through my headphones before. The articulation and intonation of the guitar, along with the strumming and 'shimmer' sounds very real. Having limited experience with both orchestral performance and guitar/drum band gives me some basic insight into how things sound when played live.

From this, and with the current setup, I can say that the bass and guitars have a very clear definition and sound to it. Comparing this to the other tracks, I can say two things about guitars and the EM4s. Acoustic guitar sounds phenomenal; warm, crisp and articulate. Bass guitar sounds just like on stage through - compared to my own bass playing experience. Mind you, this O2 has NO burning it and hasn't had its battery charged since it was delivered. Again, due to my laziness, I have not yet got an AC adaptor...

Again, with the current setup, I am convinced that the headphones (and by this assumption, speakers) play the largest part in the tone and sound signature of the music. Having dabbled very briefly into 24/96, I can say that, the resolution has the next most important effect. I am not not 100% sure of how and to what extent the Transport, DAC and Amp affects the music. But I can say that through the iPhone and this current setup, there are differences. But surely not as much as changing headphones. If I had to break it down, I would say that for now it'd be 50% headphones, 25% source and 25% transport/DAC/Amp. Perhaps this will change over time, but it will need far more exploration.

Well, the next few tasks are to decide between Audirvana and Amarra; and then find the right DAC setup.

A few quick thoughts regarding the DAC setup, after long thought, I am really looking for a compact solution that is airline luggage suitable. That rules out 19" wide units, and really limits this to one or two boxes that are at least half rack width. Not knowing how much travel is installed for the future, I would like to have a relatively portable system. Perhaps an A and B system, where A is the more permanent one, and the B is the one that I can take on short trips. As much as possible, I would like to share components, as I am trying hard to simplify my setup. So thinking more and more, the Halide Bridge or DAC HD makes so much sense, it removes cables and power supplies. It just makes sense. But the question really is going to be, will they deliver an improvement and get me closer to the music and quicker to relaxation. The search continues.

DAC and EM4 Progress

Currently listening to Norah Jones'Come Away with Me on the iPhone and all I can say us that the sound is warm, effortless and intimate.What more can I say about it? The other night I was walking home and listening to Muse's Resistance and let's just say that the hairs in the back of my neck was tingling. Amazing.

My search now turns back to a suitable DAC. The long term goal us to have a computer based system with a DAC and headphone amplifier. Nothing special. The quest to search for the right DAC had led me to a few thoughts. Firstly computer technology changes faster then audio. In the sense that DAC technology moves relatively slowly. Bit USB or firewire changes much faster. And on that vein I have decided to separate the computer souse to the audio side so to speak. That is to get a USB or firewire to SPDIF or other interface without a DAC separate. This results in two points, one more box and the ability to greatly choose the best suited DAC available. One possibility is that I can then use the twisted pear audio buffalo, which is sitting waiting to be put together. Another alternative its to get a DAC that has digital output as well which allows me to choose which to use.

In the initial search for a computer to digital audio interface, leads to a few very standard offerings. M2Tech, SoTM, Lindemann, Halide, Wyred4sound, Audiophileo, Musical Fidelity, Berkeley Audio, and others. However the choice of this CDI is somewhat dependent on the choice of the DAC itself due to the interface type it can accept. For example the halide and Evo had only a single output, coax it RCA. Whereas the V-DAC has more. But at this point the most relevant question is whether or not I ever want to use DSD format. But that is almost another topic unto itself. So for the moment I will continue to enjoy the music whilst the search continues.

Software Players and some further thoughts

I finally had a chance to try out some Mac software to improve the playback experience. In my quick test and review, I had the chance to use Pure Music, Audirvana and Decibel. The setup was my EM4 connected to the Calyx Coffee which was USB connected to MBP. All files were 16/44.1 Apple Lossless, ripped from CD via MAX, and a two tracks from HD Tracks in 24/96 FLAC files.

Very quick impressions of each so far, using the same 6 or so tracks. Decibel has a very laid back, flat sound. To my ears, using this combination was a tad boring, I also had some initial problems getting sound out of it, and after changing a few options, got it to work. Pure Music was a lot better in this regards. But overall, I found this setup to work really well with Audirvana. It was powerful, dynamic and engaging. I kept wanting to switch back to this player after listening to the others. This must be a good sign. This was a very quick review of all three software; and I really wanted to like Pure Music. But it didn't seem like a huge step up from iTunes itself; and I found the interface not to my liking. Although it is very powerful; the set of features that I would use will be limited.

Amarra is something to test next, as I just downloaded the 15 day Mini demo. Not sure when I will get another chance to have some dedicated listening, but I hope it will be in the next week, before all the other demo licenses wear off.

I also had the chance to do a direct comparison between 16/44.1 and 24/96 using one track, REM's Losing My Religion. The first basic impression was that the 96 had more detail and definition to the sounds and instruments. More dynamics and separation, which must be a good thing, cause I found the 44.1 very flat after listening to the higher res version. At lower levels, the differences were as pronounced, but as you cranked up the volume, the differences became more audible. I ask myself whether this would affect the overall enjoyment? Probably not. But then when you are not just listening for enjoyment and relaxation; and more about review, examination and appreciation; I think the differences would be worthwhile. I also found that the sound stage was a little larger with the 96 version. The 44.1 was well inside my head between the ears, and the 96 was more wider, and more around the ears, rather than between.

Anyway, more to come late, and I hope to put some photos of the current setup...

After 100 hours...

It has been around 100 hours now, with several overnight burning in sessions on the EM4. The result? I can use the words; effortless sound, authority, control and articulate to describe the sound of these IEM. Listening to my very well worn mix of 10 or so songs that I have used in the last year or so to compare all my headphone listening, has demonstrated a sound more akin to the HD650, then any other IEM I have used (which is only two pairs). In terms of the imaging, it definitely is not 'in ear', but much more, around the ear. As such, very natural, and not like someone injecting sound into your ears.

To use the well worn phrase, "I have heard stuff that I have never heard before", would be true in this case. not just new sounds, but the same sounds sounding different, or more truthful to the recording. At this stage, there isn't a lot that I can find fault with them. I don't find these to be warm or dry. But it just feels like the right mix - the right sound.

What I can say is that during the burn in, over the last two weeks, the sound did change up and down by a fair bit, and it seems in increments of between 15 to 20 hours at a time. But right now, with over 100 hours, they have not sounded better! I am sure that it will continue to change until they settle down, at which point, I cannot say, but as long as they keep improving!

The biggest question for me was, were they worth the money? And a lot of money it was... The single most expensive audio item I have bought to date! Even my second hand Lowther DX3 were cheaper! Well, given my current circumstance, they are the closest that I will get to audio nirvana. When I am on the bus, or walking, I do feel like I am in my own private studio, listening to amazing music. This is so relaxing, and helps me deal with the hustle and bustle of everyday life. In this way, they are absolutely worth it. Without having to dwell on this too much, I spent the cash, got a result that I am happy with, and is on par, if not better than my previous reference headphones, can't complain!