DrMikeOz Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 (edited) 7 minutes ago, Artnet said: Yep am excited. I am curious about burn in times from other 4.1 or Abbas DAC owners? Excited is wanting to tube roll before its had a chance to settle in let alone arrive I think all SE models get about 100 hours with Mr Abbas before they ship - at least I know my 2.3SE did. I’ve put another ~ 50 hours or so on it and it’s definitely opening up more (all the tubes were unused so that probably explains part of it) Edited May 2, 2021 by DrMikeOz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 (edited) The Abbas DAC's are already incredible out of the box, but do continue to improve for quite some time. Maybe 100 to 200 hours? Can't really remember how long mine took. Edited May 2, 2021 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 37 minutes ago, DrMikeOz said: I think all SE models get about 100 hours with Mr Abbas before they ship - at least I know my 2.3SE did. I’ve put another ~ 50 hours or so on it and it’s definitely opening up more (all the tubes were unused so that probably explains part of it) Thanks @DrMikeOz Looking forward to hearing Abbas's magic. Curious if you have an opinion on the different chip sets in regards to output stages ? Am running a F2A11 SET amp that i hope compliments the PCM 58 chip. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 11 minutes ago, MattyW said: The Abbas DAC's are already incredible out of the box, but do continue to improve for quite some time. Maybe 100 hours? Can't really remember how long mine took. I wont be any hurry i think will just enjoy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 2, 2021 Share Posted May 2, 2021 15 minutes ago, Artnet said: I wont be any hurry i think will just enjoy. Best way to do it with the Abbas DAC's. They sound fantastic to begin with and only get better in time. No point leaving it turned on just for burn in. Better to enjoy it while it's on. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccrchairman Posted May 3, 2021 Author Share Posted May 3, 2021 21 hours ago, MattyW said: @cccrchairman do you have any further updates on your 4.1SE? I think it fits a very nice price point in the Abbas range. If I were in the market for another DAC..... Thanks for the interest @MattyW I am certainly putting some hours on this DAC. I don't really think in terms of digital or analog when playing music now I have the Abbas. More often than not I'll happily reach for a CD without a second thought. Before the Abbas if anyone was around and showed some interest in the Altecs I had my go to records and that was that. Not any more. The Abbas has such a big, open and detailed sound it is hard not to feel the connection. And it scales up so well. Low volume to max vol. the dynamics are there. Obviously there are a number of variables from system to system etc but it is a welcome addition here. Sensitive speakers, tubes. I held off doing an A/B with the turntable for a while. It's not better and not worse. Maybe a bit more space and depth with the analog but that doesn't mean you can't dig into the image from the Abbas. I have a couple of records and a couple of CD's so it is a great fit. I still don't have a legit SPDIF cable yet. I think I might have to stump up the big dollars and get an Abbas cable. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 35 minutes ago, cccrchairman said: I still don't have a legit SPDIF cable yet. I think I might have to stump up the big dollars and get an Abbas cable. Not so expensive in a short length but cant tell you how it sounds yet. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 (edited) 45 minutes ago, Artnet said: Not so expensive in a short length but cant tell you how it sounds yet. Yeah, a half meter one was $165 + $7 post. Might be a few more weeks before it arrives. Slow post from the Ukraine. I'm finding with digital cables the shorter the better. In the meantime I'm running a pure silver MS Audio branded interconnect which is tripple shielded. It's no slouch. A shame it's no longer on the market really. @cccrchairman definitely recommend getting some Abbas RCA cables as it adds depth, width and naturalness. Similar effect to running transformers really. The SPDIF cables in shorter lengths are cheap enough to get vs other options anyway Edited May 3, 2021 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccrchairman Posted May 3, 2021 Author Share Posted May 3, 2021 Appreciate that @MattyW. I will most likely head down that track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 3, 2021 Share Posted May 3, 2021 (edited) 29 minutes ago, cccrchairman said: Appreciate that @MattyW. I will most likely head down that track. A word of warning though.... His RCA cables are what in the end made the Abbas DAC surpass my vinyl rig. It brought benefits in the vinyl chain too, just not as great. The second best RCA's I've tried are a tie between two Aurealis Audio cables.... The Duelund 50, and the R1 mixed copper & silver Litz depending on the overall balance of your system. I mention this as if you're running separate pre and power amps you've an additional cable in the system. I've found running the Abbas cable after the source is great but a second one in the chain is just too much of a good thing. It becomes overpowering. Edited May 3, 2021 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gemini07 Posted May 13, 2021 Share Posted May 13, 2021 On 02/05/2021 at 7:56 PM, Artnet said: Hopefully my 4.1SE will arrive in the next day or so, currently moving around in Aus post according to tracking. Looking forward to it. But curious to hear how it developes with use. Any updates on the new DAC? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 13, 2021 Share Posted May 13, 2021 Recieved his SPDIF cable this week.... I'm not actually sure I like it at this point. Will burn it in a while before I decide though. It's more subtle than his RCA leads and it could go either way at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccrchairman Posted May 13, 2021 Author Share Posted May 13, 2021 2 minutes ago, MattyW said: Recieved his SPDIF cable this week.... I'm not actually sure I like it at this point. Will burn it in a while before I decide though. It's more subtle than his RCA leads and it could go either way at this point. Interested to hear how this cable settles in. I have been dragging my heels on making a call on a SPDIF cable. I was thinking of giving the Aurealis silver a shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 13, 2021 Share Posted May 13, 2021 1 minute ago, cccrchairman said: Interested to hear how this cable settles in. I have been dragging my heels on making a call on a SPDIF cable. I was thinking of giving the Aurealis silver a shot. If this one doesn't do it for me there's a pretty good chance I'll go Aurealis as well. My system is a mix of Aurealis and the occasional Abbas Audio interconnect. Basically mixed cables to achieve the sound I want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 13, 2021 Share Posted May 13, 2021 2 hours ago, gemini07 said: Any updates on the new DAC? Sorry have been busy listening. The parcel whent the long way home, Kiev Sydney, Melbourne, Perth then Melbourne again. It sound is real, detailed its been said. The detail from the PCM 58 is impressive. It is still settling in and opening up more. Transformers were a little noisy to start but have settled down. Am using it with CD transport only at the moment and its never sounded so good. Will sort out streaming later. Have his RCA already burnt in (only 1 the rest of my cables are Aurealis R3i AgCuL) but using his SPDIF that arrived at the same time. Once burnt in I will play some with synergy. Yes I can get more excited but to me it is always if it keeps me listening and enjoying the music. More later because for now its terrific. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 13, 2021 Share Posted May 13, 2021 Mmmm, I found the Aurealis R3i AgCuL didn't blend with mine very well..... I ended up running Abbas RCA's from the DAC to my passive pre, and Aurealis Duelund 50 from the pre to the power amps. That turned out to be a great combo. Always good to swap cables around. I switch between the following when tuning my systems now: Abbas RCA Aurealis R1 Dragon Aurealis R3i AgCuL Aurealis Duelund 50 Between those it's always a guaranteed great result.... It's my digital cables I'm tweaking now. Turns out they DO sound different though I really don't understand the why of it. It's all 1's and 0's after all though I understand it's not packet based like computer data transfer. That said even USB cables seem to make a difference and that IS packet based. I don't know, and I'm not interested enough to research it further. I'll just accept that even digital cables make a difference. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gemini07 Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 12 hours ago, Artnet said: Sorry have been busy listening. The parcel whent the long way home, Kiev Sydney, Melbourne, Perth then Melbourne again. It sound is real, detailed its been said. The detail from the PCM 58 is impressive. It is still settling in and opening up more. Transformers were a little noisy to start but have settled down. Am using it with CD transport only at the moment and its never sounded so good. Will sort out streaming later. Have his RCA already burnt in (only 1 the rest of my cables are Aurealis R3i AgCuL) but using his SPDIF that arrived at the same time. Once burnt in I will play some with synergy. Yes I can get more excited but to me it is always if it keeps me listening and enjoying the music. More later because for now its terrific. Thanks for the update. Can you post some pics? What CD transport do you use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, gemini07 said: Thanks for the update. Can you post some pics? What CD transport do you use? I don't have a CD player in that system. I run Roon output via USB to my Mutec MC3+USB with the output from that run into the Abbas DAC. All music is either local or streamed from Tidal (though I intend to move to Qobuz eventually). My second system downstairs shares it's Denon DN0500BD Mk2 BlueRay player for CD playback (via a NOS TDA1540D DAC via Western Electric 111C transformers into a Pass Amp Camp Amp) and movies (via a Tascam PA-R100 AVR). Both amps share a pair of B&W DM-16 speakers via a speaker switch box. Running a combination of Aurealis RCA's, fake Nordost Odin coax cables and Bills Boutique speaker cable in that system. EDIT: Ah, sorry guys. Just realised you were asking Artnet rather than me. Sorry to go off topic. Edited May 14, 2021 by MattyW 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 13 hours ago, MattyW said: Between those it's always a guaranteed great result.... Its a good combo of cables! I had R1 in balanced length but opted for the R3iAgCuL on single ended for the shielding. I have compared them both but only in XLR and the RI had the edge but the R3i was a little softer. The Abbass RCA is big in lots of ways as you have indicated and have shuffled it between DAC, pre and amp. left it on the DAC for now. Tempted to try another. Comparisons are fun but it is so system dependant. Interested in your comments on the Dueland 50, and might have to try one of Geoff's SPDIF cables also as nothing to compare with at the moment but happy with Abbas's magic. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 12 hours ago, gemini07 said: Can you post some pics? What CD transport do you use? Let me tidy my room first. CD is a CEC tl51xr which has a not too shaby DAC of its own. As a CD player and transport its great. I havent compared it with another player and probably wont as very happy chap at the moment. I did play SACD in DSD two channel from a primare bd32 but think the Abbas and CEC combo in 16/44 is better. Havent given up on SACD just need to get an old Sony to play them on. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 The Aurealis Duelund 50 is my second favorite interconnect. I've written about it elsewhere here at length so won't rehash things. Suffice to say it's a fantastic cable and blends beautifully with the Abbas sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artnet Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 10 hours ago, MattyW said: The Aurealis Duelund 50 Thanks MattyW will give it a read. look forward to your final impressions on the Abbas SPDIF, if it changes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Artnet said: Thanks MattyW will give it a read. look forward to your final impressions on the Abbas SPDIF, if it changes? I'm not sure whether it's improving or I'm just getting used to it.... But it does seem to be improving and sounds better each listen. Then again, I've a Tchernov Special clock cable burning in still too so I really can't attribute improvements to one or the other.... Changed too much in too short a period of time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cccrchairman Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 @MattyW I know you mentioned somewhere the size of the connectors on the Abbas RCA cables are mega. Would you mind putting the verniers on them and posting a dimension. I have concerns I may not have the real estate to accomodate these. Many thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 6 hours ago, cccrchairman said: @MattyW I know you mentioned somewhere the size of the connectors on the Abbas RCA cables are mega. Would you mind putting the verniers on them and posting a dimension. I have concerns I may not have the real estate to accomodate these. Many thanks. I would.... But I don't possess any verniers. Best I can do is get within a mill or two using a ruler.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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