bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) Hi Guys Its been a bit of a wait with more than a few twists and turns but I have been told my Killer has been competed enough to test it out - but more needs to be done. To get it up and running it has initially been set up with SPDIF but my final version will use I2S fed by my Off-Ramp. Its first outing will be the Canberra GTG tomorrow where we will do a comparison to my PDX and NAD M51. So now its simply what the listening tests will show. Will keep everyone informed. Thanks Bill Edited January 26, 2013 by bhobba 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nada Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 That's great news Bill. Thanks for sharing. Will there be any DAC's of similar cost to the Killer t the GTG for a more valid comparison? I reckon it would be great down the track to mod your PDX with the DIY boards that will allow the PDX to not just run off I2S but do that with super low jitter and chuck out that DF1704 filter so you can run it NOS or with software sophisticated minimal phase oversampling filters. The DF1704 is likely to be the biggest choke of sound quality in the PDX so chucking it could be very interesting and allow a descent match with the NOS TDA1541 DAC onr day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) I will add my Buffalo II to the contender line. Just to stir the water a bit with something that is polite, balanced, non-tube and not into-your-face. I would not assume that the price is a measure of quality. We are talking mainly about DIY effort here. Edited January 25, 2013 by Decky 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) Hi Nada I am in Canberra right now but when I get back will of course be comparing it to my Playback Designs and have lined up guys with DAC's like the Audionote to see what the go is. Regarding NOS the designer Clay is aware of the new software that upsamples to 384 making the digital filter to some extent redundant But prior to that sort of software being available he tried it NOS and the digital filter was easily better. Also its not a trivial matter to drive the PCM1704 NOS - it requires some 'glue'. But above that many computers such as my current Mac Mini do not have the horsepower to do that - I know I have tried it with my PD which goes that high and it crashed quite frequently. Still maybe in the future. Thanks Bill Edited January 25, 2013 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) I will add my Buffalo II to the contender line. Just to stir the water a bit with something that is polite, balanced, non-tube and not into-your-face. I would not assume that the price is a measure of quality. We are talking mainly about DIY effort here.Hi DeckyIf you are going to the GTG no problemo. If not it may be taken back to Brisbane to install the I2S for when I get back - don't know the logistics. But once I find out will drop you a line and we will see if its possible to get it over to your place before it returns to Brisbane. Thanks Bill Edited January 26, 2013 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willco Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Good One Bill-- Like I mentioned I heard the Killer at the Sydney Show with my own test disc and was disappointed considering the buzz/etc-- upon listening to your PDX at Mikes I felt the PDX superior--but will await your conclusions with great interest-keep up the great work! Incidentally which AN Dac will you be using Willco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Hi Bill I will be there. I will bring my Ampino on steroids as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 I will be there. I will bring my Ampino on steroids as well. Great. My Duelund upgraded Arion HS-500 and upgraded NAD M51 will be there as well - but maybe only Sunday. Thanks Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Willo Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Upgraded NAD M51!!! What are these upgrades of which you speak??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreasmaaan Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Looking forward to hearing about it Bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 Upgraded NAD M51!!! What are these upgrades of which you speak??? It was in the M51 thread. Clay figured out how to replace the switching power supply with an analogue one. Thanks Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Macfarlane Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Sounds like a fun gtg guys. Looking forward to seeing the pics and hearing the stories. Have a good one guys. G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Is this THE "killer dac"? The one that never used to fail to start civil wars? All the best with it,hope it woks out really well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soundscape Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Sounds like a fun gtg guys.Looking forward to seeing the pics and hearing the stories. Have a good one guys. G +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Upfront Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Sounds like a fun gtg guys.Looking forward to seeing the pics and hearing the stories. Have a good one guys. G +1 +2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob181 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Bill...when you get back lets do a comparison with my "Art" modded W4S...trust me...you WILL be impressed...Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 Bill...when you get back lets do a comparison with my "Art" modded W4S...trust me...you WILL be impressed...Rob Of course. Thanks Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikey d Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 You guys are gunna have a ball. Hope you got some great music to trash all that sweet gear with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwhitesox Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 It was in the M51 thread. Clay figured out how to replace the switching power supply with an analogue one. Thanks Bill I think that could be a killer Dac killer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joz Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Will be waiting impatiently for all your thoughts about the day. Go guysgo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) Duplicate post Edited January 25, 2013 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) I think that could be a killer Dac killer Its good all right but having heard a Killer a on a number of occasions I have to give it to the Killer - still one never knows. But that is hardly surprising - the Killer is nearly 4 times the price and took on a DCS stack in a shoot-out where it was declared a tie. But again one never knows - which is what makes such things fun. Also to my ears the NAD really needs an Audiophilleo or Off-Ramp to really strut its stuff and I didn't bring mine with me. More on that later when I get the Killer in my system. Sorry for the double post - but there is something funny going on and I couldn't edit or delete it. Thanks Bill Edited January 25, 2013 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Once was an audiophile Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) Good One Bill-- Like I mentioned I heard the Killer at the Sydney Show with my own test disc and was disappointed considering the buzz/etc-- upon listening to your PDX at Mikes I felt the PDX superior--but will await your conclusions with great interest-keep up the great work! Incidentally which AN Dac will you be using Willco Interesting opinion as i have heard both kd and pdx and a modded pdx by me which is now in qld our ears are very different yet unamplified music has only our ears as reference imho Enjoy your journey Edited January 26, 2013 by kajak12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt200sr Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 Looking forward to the outcomes of the comparo Bill, especially once the killerdac is being fed via the Offramp Good stuff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 (edited) Hi Guys Had a great day yesterday and meet a few guys who I had conversed with before such as Onthebeach, VMF and Ozmilzy. First due to a few technical hitches couldn't check out some things like the PDX (I left the power supply back at my place) but they will be rectified today and hopefully we can check out some more stuff. OK we tried the AMG's on the old vintage speakers we were using - don't know what they were but it was an old style single driver. Very interesting - they made a difference 100% for sure and I personally preferred it with the AMG's - better bass and the music has more life to my ears. But not everyone agreed - some preferred bricks instead. We had a chance to compare the Killer to my NAD 51 - sorry - the KIller SLAUGHTERED the NAD - the difference was simply huge. But it did give us a chance to check out something else very interesting You will find some people saying the order of priorities is speakers, amps then DAC and DAC's only make a subtle difference compared to the other two. I have never agreed with this - I believe speakers are the most important - yes - but the DAC is a close second with the amp a distant third. Well what we did was hear the NAD through a very good valve amp (really good in fact) - a restored Leak (there were other amps there as well) - and the Killer through an an inexpensive but high quality Gain Clone amp - the Patek. Even though the Patek is very good the Leak was clearly better but the combination of the Killer and Patek was WAY ahead of the M51 and Leak. I suspect at least one person there had never really experienced this before and was surprised. If you are putting together a system my suggestion is to spend about 45% on speakers, 35% on a DAC and 20% on an amp. That is only up to a certain price point though - I cant say I have really experienced any significant improvements with spending more than about $5K on an amp or DAC so if your budget allows you to exceed that I would spend the difference on better speakers. Ok we will be continuing the listening today where we will hear the PDX, the Arions, and some other speakers. Thanks Bill Edited January 26, 2013 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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