Cambridge Audio DACMagic

You can enquire from Highway Laser in SS2. Perhaps they can let u audition before u buy.

toda6866 wrote:

alex wrote:

toda6866 wrote:nice DACmagic

I read in many reviews its one of the best DAC u can buy in the market...

any owners here connect to PC's SPDIF output? how it sounds like?

If you plan to audition this baby, dont forget to include MF V-DAC in your list.

where can i audition V-DAC?

Where is your location? One of the hifi shop in Seremban (well, sban got 2 hifi shops only) carries it and hiway-laser @ SS2 if u r in KL. The setup in Seremban consists of NAD cdp, carat amp and Chario bookshelf.

Last week i visited and price was RM1.2k before nego. I can help to ask for best price if you are interested

Alex,

You are very familiar with Maison Audio?

Normal only nia, bought few items from KC (shop owner). I knew him before he shifted to the new shop, previously at Rahang.

IMO, his price is quite competitive though, sometimes cheaper than KL.

Fyi, he is carrying Dali now. Saw Ikon 1 & 6 lask week.

He has sold a few pairs of Helicon 400 MkII as well.
But he no longer take in Cambridge Audio stuffs.
Check with him and see...

Once he showed me a picture that he installed a pair of Helicon at KL. As you know, Helicon 400 is HUGE and that guy owns gigantic Panny 103" lcd tv if not mistaken.

That Helicon looked puny beside that panny...

I never recalled he sold CA?

That was like a long time ago.
His shop is still listed in the CA website.

alex wrote:

toda6866 wrote:

alex wrote:

toda6866 wrote:nice DACmagic

I read in many reviews its one of the best DAC u can buy in the market...

any owners here connect to PC's SPDIF output? how it sounds like?

If you plan to audition this baby, dont forget to include MF V-DAC in your list.

where can i audition V-DAC?

Where is your location? One of the hifi shop in Seremban (well, sban got 2 hifi shops only) carries it and hiway-laser @ SS2 if u r in KL. The setup in Seremban consists of NAD cdp, carat amp and Chario bookshelf.

Last week i visited and price was RM1.2k before nego. I can help to ask for best price if you are interested

thanks alot for your offer but im still thinking...


since im in PJ, i will definitely go pay hiway laser a visit n hear them out!

auronthas,
Whats the progress like?

auronthas wrote:

mugenfoo wrote:Why not just upgrade to a more robust PSU?

Yes, Mr. Wabun is helping me with a new PSU to replace the current one.

jazzy939 wrote:
Whats the progress like?

Received the new PSU in metal casing with 50VA toroidol transformer c/w IEC socket and UK plugtop for DacMagic - perhaps Mr. Wabun can further elaborate.

Obviously, i can hear the sound produced is much smoother, cleaner and less noise (better filtering, rectification and regulation perhaps) compare to the existing PSU, as i mentioned earlier the crack of existing PSU is more severe and obvious now due to excessive heat.

Also the DacMagic unit itself is less hotter now.

Most audiophiles like to upgrade the power supply transformer to toroidol because it is small size, low weight compared with traditional stacked laminated transformers, Low induced noise (hum)
Low level of radiated magnetic field and the typical output regulation is around 11%. Beside cost constraint , I did not see any reason of
traditional transformer betters the toroidol..honestly speaking

Calling out any DACMagic owners out there, for an A/B test with a behringer SRC2496 UltramatchPro unit.

Damn curious for an audio comparison Test between a DACMagic and a Behringer Ultramatch Pro.

Any venue is fine, any partnering equipment is also fine.
Can also run a "complementary" test mode of the Behringer as an Upsampler then feeding into the CA DacMagic.

Anyone game for this exploratory session ?

yes. i would like to join in with a modded cd63se, audio-gd dac 19mk3 and audio-gd REF1. any venue and gear is fine.

Cool ... anymore folks keen to explore ? the more the merrier...

Ooops. hope u dont mind the audio-gd gears are in different league than the behringer and ca dacmagic. the dac19mk3 is mid entry while ref1 is high end.

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f7/dac-popularity-check-454955/index13.html

Then all the more reason to test the Behringer and DACMagic vs the Audio-gd.

Wait.. Do I see an upcoming A/B test?
Bila bila? Mana mana?
See I can squeeze some time out to join or not..

I dunno man. Sometimes I can't help thinking outboard DACs are just gimmicks. U buy a cheapo CD player then stick this thing in it's ass and it's supposed to sound better. Why not save up and buy a better player. A friend loaned me one to try and I couldn't live with this clinical DACMagic thingy , preferring the original EXPOSURE 2010 original sound.
Think we listen to much to publication blurb. The writers could be paid to write good stuff you know. Especially Cambridge Audio brand. Think the company spend tons of money for their product campaign. Heard the 840 cd player the other day. Raved reviews in every mag but soulless to my ears.

Cooltube wrote:I dunno man. Sometimes I can't help thinking outboard DACs are just gimmicks. U buy a cheapo CD player then stick this thing in it's ass and it's supposed to sound better. Why not save up and buy a better player. A friend loaned me one to try and I couldn't live with this clinical DACMagic thingy , preferring the original EXPOSURE 2010 original sound.
Think we listen to much to publication blurb. The writers could be paid to write good stuff you know. Especially Cambridge Audio brand. Think the company spend tons of money for their product campaign. Heard the 840 cd player the other day. Raved reviews in every mag but soulless to my ears.

Well, yes and no.

Yes there are Hackjob outboard DACs which costs far more than their quality & performance warrants.

Yes there are super duper single CD player solutions but be prepared to pay top dollar for it. Stuff like Nagra, Wadia, Meridian and the like. Sure you've listened to some of them in action before right? Good sound? Crap sound?

No, as in often times , plugging up the CD player's ass with a DAC can actually improve the sound by night and day, depending on how good is your CD player playing the role of a transport, and how good is the DAC in question as well being partnered with the CD player's ass.

No, as the very nature of synergistic links in audio equipment means that getting all "top rated Class A Superduper ranking Golder-Ear award etc etc" and hokking them up does not assure that the end result is up to expectations. Quite often the contrary that one type of equipment written off by one listener can surprisingly turn out to be the "life-saver" in another listener's system. Which sounds like very much your case it seems.


Gist of the matter:

There is no end to the "buy a better player" debate, someone can just come along as say , "buy a better Transport/DAC" instead. Or maybe the amp/speaker/cables/rack etc etc is not up to mark instead. So mr. Dacmagic here could be revealing all the flaws of a crappy CD player trying to pretend to be a transport instead?



So, the DACMagic didnt work out for you huh. Then what did ? The Exposure 2010 CD Player on its own?
What would be a "better CD player" in your books?



"How far can you put it up ze poopenschaft before it's dangerous?"

Perhaps we have the inherent propensity to be partial to blurbs. Especially so minds inclined to tech gizmos and then assume positions of gurus to educate others. Unlike mag writers they talk about stuff they may not even experience let alone own.
While some of us share real(and subjective) experience here without sounding imposing.
IMVHO that is.

Cooltube wrote:Perhaps we have the inherent propensity to be partial to blurbs. Especially so minds inclined to tech gizmos and then assume positions of gurus to educate others. Unlike mag writers they talk about stuff they may not even experience let alone own.
While some of us share real(and subjective) experience here without sounding imposing.
IMVHO that is.

ok, enuff talk. You keen to participate on the above ? . Feel free to bring your gear as well. can be transport or DAC or super standalone player or whatever. This is a real world opportunity as opposed to forum postings.

I belong to the kind that don't make a habit of lugging around my precious gear to
to street racing.
Gear comparing get together huh? Just don't start pulling hairs over opinions hehe. I've seen near misses even in demo rooms.

But the insecure, introverted will not turn up. I will though, if you're going to be there, without my gear of course. Just wait and see.

Cooltube wrote:I belong to the kind that don't make a habit of lugging around my precious gear to
to street racing.
Gear comparing get together huh? Just don't start pulling hairs over opinions hehe. I've seen near misses even in demo rooms.

But the insecure, introverted will not turn up. I will though, if you're going to be there, without my gear of course. Just wait and see.

I, on the other hand love to go street racing (literally & metaphorically speaking and have my healthy share of them some recent years back with fond memories still) .

But the difference between car types of street-racing vs. "hifi street racing" is that the audience of the car variety come as by-standers to be wow'd and admire the stuff the street racers bring on display.

Generally speaking, the same probably doesn't really hold true for the hi-fi scene. If mr/ms so-and-so is going to come for the gathering but has already formed an opinion that (for example) the DACMagic is a crappy little box for whatever reason... that person had better not come lest he/she brings along all the emotional baggage of pre-formed opinions already.

The whole idea of hifi get-togethers is to try old & new stuff out together. Like recently even of all the way from Ipoh, @wabun's homemade chopping-board brand pre-amp that managed to raise a few eyebrows at the recent h4s gathering at HiWay Laser.

I'd watch street racing just to enjoy the crashes and police round ups and have a jolly good laugh.
And I'll be there only to meet a certain self proclaimed guru and see if this recluse writer from technodoom would ever turn up. I'll be wearing a Svetlana tube insignia on my tee shirt. You'll never miss me.
See you soon

Good... just sit pretty and wait for the invitation ya. Who knows, the Svetlana T-shirt could be the single largest sonic impact coming from your end.

He who escapes the police round ups returns to race another day!

Where is your location? One of the hifi shop in Seremban (well, sban got 2 hifi shops only) carries it and hiway-laser @ SS2 if u r in KL. The setup in Seremban consists of NAD cdp, carat amp and Chario bookshelf.

Last week i visited and price was RM1.2k before nego. I can help to ask for best price if you are interested [/quote]

Hi Alex,

Which part of Seremban do you live? Do you use SS amp? Perhaps we can meet up one day.

Rgds,
KY

rsbn589 wrote:

Hi Alex,

Which part of Seremban do you live? Do you use SS amp? Perhaps we can meet up one day.

Rgds,
KY

A meet up in Seremban?
Interesting!!..

Seremban good .... can arrange a venue ?

mugenfoo wrote:Seremban good .... can arrange a venue ?

You are interested?

I am just curious about the Balanced XLR connections found in the DACmagic.

guys, me interested to come for the shoot out too, pls let me know the time/date/venue once you guys decided. Will definately join if possible

It has gone a bit quiet, hasn't it?

car o scope wrote:It has gone a bit quiet, hasn't it?

Maybe it's the calm before the storm!

tycham wrote:
Maybe it's the calm before the storm!

2012? Storm Warriors?

CA DACmagic featured in The Star.

http://sites.thestar.com.my/audio/story.asp?file=/2009/12/7/afreviews/5199747&sec=afreviews

Wow ... the Star newspaper review so good meh ?

But some people are calling such devices as "gimmicks" instead!


So, who lagi pandai, or trying to BS here? Mr. TheStar-Audiofile reviewer or the other one who say the DACMagic is just a "gimmick" device.

mugenfoo wrote:Wow ... the Star newspaper review so good meh ?

But some people are calling such devices as "gimmicks" instead!


So, who lagi pandai, or trying to BS here? Mr. TheStar-Audiofile reviewer or the other one who say the DACMagic is just a "gimmick" device.

Boy! With present day smart and well informed consumers do you think an established brand would dare to market gimmick device?

Save for those white van salesmen hanging around Sim Lim Tower.

tycham wrote:

mugenfoo wrote:Wow ... the Star newspaper review so good meh ?

But some people are calling such devices as "gimmicks" instead!


So, who lagi pandai, or trying to BS here? Mr. TheStar-Audiofile reviewer or the other one who say the DACMagic is just a "gimmick" device.

Boy! With present day smart and well informed consumers do you think an established brand would dare to market gimmick device?

Save for those white van salesmen hanging around Sim Lim Tower.

I dunno man, but you can go ask this person below lah ... he's the one who said it .. not me.

Cooltube wrote:I dunno man. Sometimes I can't help thinking outboard
DACs are just gimmicks. U buy a cheapo CD player then stick this thing
in it's ass and it's supposed to sound better. Why not save up and buy
a better player. A friend loaned me one to try and I couldn't live with
this clinical DACMagic thingy , preferring the original EXPOSURE 2010
original sound.
Think we listen to much to publication blurb. The
writers could be paid to write good stuff you know. Especially
Cambridge Audio brand. Think the company spend tons of money for their
product campaign. Heard the 840 cd player the other day. Raved reviews
in every mag but soulless to my ears.

To be fair to everyone, I have experienced a few cases where if one uses a regular CD Player as the transport to a DAC, even a relatively high-end DAC, the result may not be as good as expected. In fact, in 1 case many years ago, the CD Player with DAC did not sound totally better than without. In other cases, a higher-end CD Player of the same model/range sounded better than a lower-end model with a relatively high-end DAC. So a lot depends on system matching I suppose, or even that some manufacturers may put the digital out on their CD player as more of an afterthought - because everyone has it - and consequently they did not pay attention to the importance of a good and clean digital output.

The way components interact can often surprise the uninitiated, as I learned just a few days ago. Personally for me, I feel one should NOT -generalize- after only 1 or 2 listening experiences, not when the general feedback is the opposite. For sure a proper transport-DAC combo is likely to out-deliver most CD players of the same price-range. But then there are examples in the past, the top-end Accuphase CD Player is one that comes to mind, where because the manufacturer had intentionally wanted to build a standalone CD Player to out-match the best transport-DAC combo (at that time), a standalone CD player was universally agreed (by reviewers and consumers alike) as the best sounding digital source available. I heard a couple in a good setup and it was true. But then others quickly surpassed that standard with separate components.

So, personally, most important is NEVER to make blanket statements, especially inflammatory ones (DACs are gimmicks for e.g.), not when one has not gained a lot of listenting experiences yet. (Note: this is a personal opinion, not an 'order' to forumers from a moderator, just me putting my opinions on silicon so to speak).

In the end, my opinion is that an open mind is most important. Plus a desire to gain experience. After all, the original concept of this 'shoot-out' was purely for everyone to test and experience the Cambridge DAC and also how it compares with other alternatives and how it matches to other components.

The comments have stopped in this thread after the post above. Poof!! Gone silent!! hahahahahaha...

Maybe everyone is busy listening ?

I am in fact waiting for reply. I thought of meeting up and knwoing more friends staying nearby.

I will be more than happy if we can have a teh tarik session in Sban.

Sban is a bit too far for me but will definately try my best to make it if the time fits me

No far lar.. Turn on your turbo and you shall arrive in a matter of minutes.

So many Sban people go to KL everyday and they also did not complain KL is far.

so when can I bring in the dac with dsp processor inside + the computer usb dac for sharing.

OK, so this Friday, we plan for a DACMagic + Behringer session @ Seremban. car-o-scope will supply the venue ... right ? (and Siew Pau also).

Who's bringing the DACMagic ?

I'll bring the Behringer and KAV-300i + some XLO cables.

If Wabun could make it, can test out the Jumpan pre-amp also.

mugenfoo wrote:OK, so this Friday, we plan for a DACMagic + Behringer session @ Seremban. car-o-scope will supply the venue ... right ? (and Siew Pau also).

Who's bringing the DACMagic ?

I'll bring the Behringer and KAV-300i + some XLO cables.

If Wabun could make it, can test out the Jumpan pre-amp also.

Wow... No place for so many people lah..
Very small place only.. max 4 kaki inc me.

mugenfoo wrote:OK, so this Friday, we plan for a DACMagic + Behringer session @ Seremban. car-o-scope will supply the venue ... right ? (and Siew Pau also).

Who's bringing the DACMagic ?

I'll bring the Behringer and KAV-300i + some XLO cables.

If Wabun could make it, can test out the Jumpan pre-amp also.

wat time ah?

car o scope wrote:

mugenfoo wrote:OK, so this Friday, we plan for a DACMagic + Behringer session @ Seremban. car-o-scope will supply the venue ... right ? (and Siew Pau also).

Who's bringing the DACMagic ?

I'll bring the Behringer and KAV-300i + some XLO cables.

If Wabun could make it, can test out the Jumpan pre-amp also.

Wow... No place for so many people lah..
Very small place only.. max 4 kaki inc me.

nvm, I am flexible

car o scope wrote:

mugenfoo wrote:OK, so this Friday, we plan for a DACMagic + Behringer session @ Seremban. car-o-scope will supply the venue ... right ? (and Siew Pau also).

Who's bringing the DACMagic ?

I'll bring the Behringer and KAV-300i + some XLO cables.

If Wabun could make it, can test out the Jumpan pre-amp also.

Wow... No place for so many people lah..
Very small place only.. max 4 kaki inc me.

no worry, if over quota, i can pass

Will keep you informed.
I am waiting for mugen's confirmation.