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Posted By: asher770 External dacs - 10/10/13 07:00 PM
Will the addition of an external dac such as V-Dac,DacMagic etc really add a discernible improvement to the output of my Axiom M80 speakers? My playback equipment presently consists of a Harman Kardon stereo receiver and a Sony scd-s2000es cd player.
Posted By: Gr8_White_North Re: External dacs - 10/10/13 07:20 PM
I would suggest you watch THIS . Its not really that long and quite enlightening. I have an Oppo BDP93 and a sony bluray player and I cant hear any difference. Make an informed decision after watching the video.

Richard
Posted By: aaaaaaaaaaaaa Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 01:00 AM
That vid is just as useless as all those that claim the opposite. Opinions without statistical backup.........

Dacs are a crapshoot. Unless you are obsessed with the idea, you are better off opting for a newer oppo offering instead of a standalone dac. Then at least you can say you you've made upgrades that can be rationalized from every angle. Btw, they are considered reference in vid and sound processing.

Dacs do make a difference. But, in my personal experience with varied gear, compared to where you put your speakers, they are about 0.001% of the equation. Ha! Speaker wire is another one that is hotly debated. Again, such a small piece of the pie, although legitimate. I'd rather put money into more media!

Juicy, juicy media! Mwahahahaha! smile
Posted By: aaaaaaaaaaaaa Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 01:02 AM
Oh, Richard, I meant no offence. It is a good vid. Just a little too holier than though for me. Know what i mean?
Posted By: JohnK Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 01:35 AM
Arthur, DACs have been at a state of technological maturity for quite some time now. Measurable differences certainly still exist, but typical ones, such as those internal to your equipment, provide levels of frequency response, noise and distortion which are audibly transparent. No audible benefits result from adding an external DAC.

One caution in viewing comparisons sometimes seen elsewhere is that if the associated electronics in the new DAC result in a slightly louder level with no change in the settings, this may be misinterpreted as better digital/analog conversion rather than simply the louder sounds better factor which often misleads when not compensated for.
Posted By: dakkon Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 05:29 PM
I had a Oppo BD83se and sent it to a buddy who was deploying so he could see if he liked it better than his Oppo bd103. He said that he couldn't tell a difference between the two units. The 83se is suppose to be one of the best sounding analog units.

I would agree with hellcommute, get a new Oppo and be done.

Personally, I am thinking about the 103de...
Posted By: tomtuttle Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 09:15 PM
Can you use the Oppo as a client to stream files from a network drive?
Posted By: casey01 Re: External dacs - 10/11/13 10:54 PM
Originally Posted By: tomtuttle
Can you use the Oppo as a client to stream files from a network drive?


You may just want to confirm the specs on the Oppo website(I own a BDP 105), however, both models(103,105) contain USB & HDMI "inputs" which I believe will do what you wish to do.
Posted By: ArthurC Re: External dacs - 10/16/13 11:35 AM
Originally Posted By: tomtuttle
Can you use the Oppo as a client to stream files from a network drive?


I use my BDP-103 to watch movies off my network NAS. Can play music from there too but I have another solution for that.
Posted By: tomtuttle Re: External dacs - 10/16/13 05:19 PM
What's your other solution, and why don't you use the Oppo?
Posted By: ArthurC Re: External dacs - 10/21/13 11:27 AM
I have several Logitech Squeezeboxes I use for audio. While Oppo may work for a single location, the sync'ing around the home is what I'm looking for for straight-audio.
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