Gustard DAC-X26 impressions and discussions

By the way, in my comparison with x-sabre pro, x26 sounded louder by 1.2 db if others being equal (bw+ether2) -- measured by EARS (i.e., not human ears). Thus, calculating from x-sabre pro's spec, output levels of x26 would be likely 2.5-2.6vrms (unbalanced rca out) and 5.1-5.2vrms (balanced xlr out). It's a shame that gustard and his team are too lazy not to specify important tech information.

Also, like @Greg121986 said, this dac runs very hot -- possibly because the dac consumes constant current (0.36A in my measurement) even in an idle state. It's acting like a class-A amp. Not sure whether this is associated with perceived sonic characters.

 

Yes, other forums also noticed this at least a couple dB too loud over 2V/4V standard. I think some brands do this on purpose because they know it will sound marginally 'better' to some.

 

It's been almost two months. Happy to report my dac isn't dead at all! lol.
(Feel obliged to report healthiness for every chi-fi product after hearing about dx3 failure stories..)

So far my (minor) complaints largely fall into the following two:

1. It runs very hot. It's only slightly colder than JLH1969 class-a amp.. I am guessing it must have something with output stage. It's neither annoying nor inconvenient though. Due to this, I typically turn it off when going to bed.. It does benefit a short warm up (around 30 secs up to 1 min), but again nothing closer to multibits/r2rs.
2. I sometimes fail to lock power button (unidirectional push switch). It gets better as I get more familiar though.

Except these I am very satisfied with its performance. My take hasn't changed much from the initial impressions. That said, here are my current thoughts.

• Initially I thought its imaging was a bit unsatisfying in that images feel too thin and artificial. This has been largely offset by dsha-3f.
• Still a bit upfront and aggressive presentation. But much less so than any other sabre dacs (or even all ds dacs) I've heard to date, except higher chords (the other extreme; not my cup of tea).
• I am starting to think it overall has the best transient to me.. but 3f seems to play a significant role, too.
• I'd repeat it resolves small info extremely well. Not in flatter and boring ways, but in more involving and delicate ways.
• Conservatively speaking, it will be a solid keeper at least by the end of this year. Honestly, I don't want to switch this dac to any dacs I know, even if I can do so for free. It's that spot on in my book and taste.

PS. My DX3 pro isn't dead yet. Am I just a lucky guy?

 

WHAT ?

Not sure if you wacked your noggin against a few of those 'hacked-to-hell' ( Gustard ) mods by some self-professed idiot of a DAC destroyer (Shitser) or simply lack experience -or hearing acuity/processing capability.

Regardless, the X20PRO Gustard is an excellent DAC -but you can't tell when it's connected to your Sears Audio Receiver and Radio Shack loudspeakers !

(P.S. You may wish to do a basic -and highly recommended- 'Spell Check' before posting -yes, even such blathering nonsense.)

pj

 

First off, thanks to @hifiandrun for loaning me his unit! I won't comment too much on the sound itself since I largely echo hifi's thoughts, but I will describe a bit of my journey to hopefully help others avoid my mistakes.

Setup was as follows: Theta Digital Miles > Gungnir Multibit A1/Gustard X-26 > EC AF (cap modded, no feedback, WE396A, EML 2A3 Mesh) > modded 6xx/modded 800S.

I had somewhat high hopes of the device purely because I was pleasantly surprised how inoffensive the stripped down 9038 variant sounded in my LG V30 phone. I would say that the X-26 gives up a bit of the inoffensiveness for a good bit more texture and liveliness at the cost of a tiny bit of glare in the treble (definitely way better than 9018 based designs by a long shot still).

I went through a bit of difficulty trying to find the right filter since I tend to prefer linear phase filters and the manual doesn't really state which filters are what. I first tried "Gentle" which ironically I found extremely fatiguing, most likely because it's probably a slow rolloff filter. After discussing with others I ended up trying the Vivid filter (likely linear phase), and found that I enjoyed it the most with the least amount of fatigue. I also briefly tried the bypass and CDP OPT PLL modes and didn't find it having much effect in my setup.

I would say that in comparison to the Gungnir Multibit, it definitely does layering and plankton better but loses out on microdynamics. I also like the transient attacks better on the X-26 but found the decay and sustain to be more pleasing on the Gungnir Multibit, but I would say that for a DS DAC that the X-26 does the decay and sustain surprisingly well.

Ultimately I can't say that I would buy it as an upgrade or sidegrade to what I already possess or say that it's a giant killer. However, I would easily recommend it to someone looking to upgrade from mid-fi; just for the love of your ears leave the filter on Vivid.

 

Hi,

My first post here. I am currently not using a preamp. If I get an X-26 can I safely enjoy the SQ with the built-in volume control or should I add a preamp?

Thanks for all thoughts and suggestions.

 

I am not so sure. The digital volume control in DAC chips seem getting better over the years. I couldn't find the related posts but I remember that several posts on SBAF have mentioned that the closer to the maximum volume the lesser degradation of SQ. The 9038 DAC chips process 32 bits. For CD quality music (16bits), it should be fine if attenuation is less than -40dB (roughly 13-14bits). But this is just based on plain paper calculation. YMMV. I myself have been always a fan of preamp.

 

Per ESS's presentation on their digital volume control (2011), their 32-bit internal processing ensures no loss of signal integrity when using the in-built volume control. 'A Digital volume control with access to the DAC internal data path will behave just like the analog one until it reaches the noise floor of the analog components of the DAC'. That said an 'exquisitely well designed analog volume control(s) can still beat even the very best internal digital volume controls if they have a lower noise floor than the DAC itself.'

Plenty of reasons to get a preamp, but you're not going to compromise sound quality by using the built in volume control.

 

Thanks for your thoughts. Hope to hear more positive impressions before pulling the trigger.

 

The Shenzen Audio discount is gone. I'll be waiting for the next discount, hopefully even better. Or something else better will come up. Until then, will save $$ and continue to enjoy the Singxer SU-6/Mutec/PureDac2.

 

Ordered 8/29, scheduled to deliver 8/30, actually delivered 8/29. Kudos to Shenzhen and DHL.

Break-in began. Meanwhile, can anyone tell what the amp value of the fuse?

 

When someone hasn't figured out that SBAF =/= Head Fi.

 

Hello good night, the first thing to introduce myself, I'm Sergio and I'm starting the world of “Dac”. Thank you

I explain my configuration first: The player will be an Oppo 203 (all the music I have in Flac) connected to the “Dac” by coaxial cable. I will also connect the AppleTV by fiber optic: to use the AirPlay and listen to Tidal HiFi played from the mobile (iPhone 7).
From the Dac through the balanced output it will go to the Audio Research SD135 stage, and from the stage to a LRS Magneplanar speakers / Also from the Dac through the RCA output I will connect it to two SVS_2000 Subwoofers cut at 50 or 60 hz (in stereo, one for each channel)..

The Dac that I have chosen has been the Gustard A22 with its double Dac AK4499 (but now I have read that it does not carry the “Shark”  chip). I don't know the benefits of this xip. and I'm considering changing my order, and ordering the Gustard X26.

Although the AK4499 are more modern Dacs and I have seen that they open the image a lot.

Here is a comparison “Matrix Audio Element X ($ 3000) VS ToppingD90 ($ 700)” and the ToopingD90 wins: https://soundnews.net/sources/dacs/topping-d90-review-a-genre-master/

What do you think, which one is better for my speaker configuration, the Gustard A22 or the X26? Thank you very much in advance.

Note: Many will think about the possibility of changing speakers, but I really like the Magneplanar and its great "medium"

 

A22 http://s.aliexpress.com/Aj2ayEJr

VS

X26 http://s.aliexpress.com/VvQneIzq

 

There's next to no people who tried A22 so far. I'd go X26, where there are trusted opinions of.

 

A22 could be an interesting loaner opportunity. I'd be interested to see if the newer chips fixed the Velvet Sound.

 

My worry is that A22 is their first AK4499 "one-off" DAC and that the X27/X28 will take it up another notch..