Soekris "dac1541": DAC/Amp - Stream of Consciousness Impressions

Apologies for a probably noobish question but wasnt able to find a definite answer:

Is the 'NOS filter' for 1541/1421 truly making the DAC not to oversample at all? Or is rather some sort of compromise between NOS and OS?

The idea of having a DAC with customizable set of OS filters along with NOS mode would be pretty fantastic and may actually force me to ditch Schiit MB (for now).

 

How long is this offer expected to hold?

 

Is there anywhere a detailed tutorial on how to connect to the DAC1541 board (for instance, which wires go where) and how to upload the filter/firmware from a Mac?

 

I'm in principle aginst NOS DACs, without the antialiazing filters they will output significant high frequency noise, you can't hear it but it will be present and have the potential to ruin equipment, especially tweeter units....

Instead I have a very soft filter, soft enough to be like NOS, but also strong enough to remove the high frequency noise to not ruin anything....

 

When I'm back from a short Easter vacation I will do a guide on how to update filters / firmware.

 

No specific time, maybe two weeks ?

 

I fully understand your perspective. That being said, I am... you know... an audiophile. Probably a somewhat crazy one since I would love to have a choice between NOS and OS modes in one device. A great way to gain more experience and learn more about my sonic preferences.

Ive sent you an email inquiry already - hope my confession above does not disqualify me from the SBAF offer!

 

The best answer I was able to find on DYIAUDIO...

... which should imply Soekris DACs with the NOS filter enabled indeed operate in fully NOS mode for regular sampling rates. (44.1-192K)

 

@soekris I applied the update today. Easy process, and it sounds great so far.

 

Hmm, that must be an error somewhere, what product did you update ?
And are the two channels swapped or are the signals inverted ?

 

EDIT: Bad cable was to blame, my fault for swapping in the cable at the same time

 

Could you please email me directly at [email protected], I would like to get this investigated as I can't find that problem here....

 

No problems on this end, and also my friend's dac1541.

 

The page http://soekris.dk/ordering.html mentions both volume orders and looking more distributors.

@CEE TEE Maybe Massdrop could help out...? I'd snag a dac1321 just to try it.

 

@soekris Just updated my dac1421. Many thanks to the support provided by Soekris Engineering when I called during the Easter break, they pointed me to the correct usb-serial cable, whereas I previously thought you could update the firmware directly over usb.

All it takes is one of this:



Find the serial pins (J8)



Connect

red 5v -> Leave unconnected
black lead -> GND
green lead -> RXD
white lead -> TXD

And the rest is the same as instructions provided on @randytsuch blog

http://randytsuch-audio.blogspot.com/2015/11/soekris-r2r-dam-dac.html

Find com port, set speed then send firmware. Straight forward although I wouldn't call this user friendly as you do have to open the case.

Pre-update I preferred having filter LED on orange as red was a little harsh but post update red is much better and is what I am using for now.

 

Sweet, I have that same serial adapter. Thanks for the pointers .

OK, update done here too. Easy-peasy. I'll do some listening for a few days before commenting any on the sound, but I can immediately see the need for test packs allowing you to test new and old filters side by side.

Test tracks are not making me cringe.

 

This seems to be the best place to put this:



Spent some time with the Soekris 1321
Using toslink>1321>Aficionado>Utopia

It's sounds really good for $600. It's kind of a paradox as it's both laid back, yet dry sounding.

VERY clear sounding but missing dynamics and slam compared to Schiit DACs. It's very easy to listen to, did I mention that? Sound stage has decent layering, accurate, but can be forward yet not fatiguing like Schiit stuff can be.

Paradox...

People say that it pairs very well with tubes. It feels kind of rolled on either end, sort of like how tubes can emphasis the mids a little more with magic tubey goodness. If you want a very clear sounding DAC that just works this might be it.

Also, it's a great simple solution for a DAC/Preamp.
I normally have major noise issues with anything that connects ground so I use toslink for my DACs when listening to speakers. However, right now USB to 1321>Vidar>Phil AAMs was absolutely silent using the built in digital volume control. This is an amazing feature as it opens up the possibilities of a very compact desktop speaker setup, especially with powered speakers.

I didn't spend much time analyzing the filters but I gravitated toward the default green filter as it was slightly more laid back than the red filter which seemed more accurate but was more fatiguing.

Soekris might be a touch polite. Using Utopia, the Be coloration is always there but can be mitigated or exacerbated by certain chains. 1321 made this coloration almost disappear. I thought ADI-2 DAC was fatiguing when I switched back to it from 1321 but once I EQed Utopia everything felt correct.

Some might call this a fault but I see it as an inoffensive coloration. I think 1321 would shine with forward speakers and headphones, and again, why it pairs so well with tubes. This is certainly an addicting sound.

Personally I would take the ADI-2 DAC with all of it's features over the simple but very compact and extremely competent performing Soekris 1321. @soekris I very much enjoyed my time with the Soekris.

 

Hmm, I might be in the minority but I was blown away by the dac1321. Just sounded absolutely clean while still seeming to have more depth and realism than your typical DS dac. This was compared to my gen 5 Bifrost Multibit, which for the lack of a better term, just felt more “mosfet-y”.

Because of that, I reached out to Soekris about picking up a Dac1421 as my “end game” solution, since I am not really interested in going fully balanced.

 

Don't get me wrong, I would take the 1321 over anything under Gungnir Multibit/ADI-2 DAC.