Gieseler Audio Posted January 8 Posted January 8 (edited) TDA1541A Special Edition (SE) Kompakt II DAC I have had a few enquiries about possible upgrades of the current TDA1541A Kompakt II DAC. I was already very happy with it’s performance & build quality but I decided to take another look at it to see if any areas could be improved slightly. Below is a list of the changes ( & photo) - it does bring a slight improvement to the sound quality. The upgraded version will be called the TDA1541A Kompakt II SE and list for $2500 The current version will remain and stay at $2350. I would not recommend current owners changing over to it as the difference is only slight but definitely the way to go for new buyers. @MrBurns84 has both versions so I'm sure he will be happy to add a few comments. Changes made in the SE version. Bridge rectifier now swapped to the Japanese Shindegen D6SBN20 As per a Japanese guru on DIY audio this is supposed to be the absolute pick of bridge rectifies for sound quality. Totally grainless. TDA decoupling capacitors now changed to Nichicon aluminum film plus higher value 2uf on Pins 12, 13, 18 & 19 - supposed to improve bass. On board regulators count actually reduced now to improve headroom. New Nichicon Gold Tune KG snap in final filter capacitors - improved power Delivery. New series Amanero USB board - not really sure of the differences but apparently the new clocks are lower jitter. Regulated 5v supply feed to Amanero power in pin rather than 3.3v feed into backbend of board. this should actually improve the Amanero power supply as the on-board 3.3 V regulators are low noise and close to the circuitry so better than my previous external 3.3 V supply which was quite long way away. Inductors now replacing resistors in CRC filtering. Output PML caps increased from 4.7uf to 10uf plus Wima foil film 0.01 bypass. hard to know if this will make a difference but certainly can't be a bad thing. +5v regulator for TDA swapped to NJM7805 type. These NJM three terminal regulators really do sound good. Photo below of the SE version Edited January 8 by Gieseler Audio 9 1
MrBurns84 Posted January 8 Posted January 8 (edited) Congratulations to Clay @Gieseler Audio for the release of the TDA1541A Special Edition of the Kompakt II DAC. I have had the SE for over a month, patiently comparing it with the Original TDA Kompakt II and the SE edition. I believe Clay is being a bit modest in stating that the new Special Edition (SE) Kompakt II DAC is only slightly better than the ORG. I am currently away from home to attend to some family business but stay tuned for my detailed impressions soon when back this weekend. Edited January 8 by MrBurns84 7
RockRolley Posted January 8 Posted January 8 Clay, forgive my question which may seem clear to more tech savvy people: did you create a new board or is it all just different components? 1
Gieseler Audio Posted January 8 Author Posted January 8 Simon - there were so many changes I had to do a whole new board. The resistors in the main filter power supply circuit could be replaced with inductors on the current model but I very much doubt that would make a listenable difference. It is a total combination of all the component changes that add up to the audible difference. 4
MrBurns84 Posted January 8 Posted January 8 (edited) Thought i'd share this initial impression to those with interest. This is an extract of my conversation with Clay in lieu of my notes on the SE Kompakt II whilst away from home. " The SE Kompakt II took a while to run in, but once it did, the differences were evident. The SE is impressive, and there is hardly anything to criticise about it. It took an ORG with the S1 crown chip to level the playing field to match what the SE delivers in sound. The things that comes most to mind is this - 'Refinement', ease of listening, a sweet grainfree midrange (a must for me), but yet it retained all the usual traits of the ORG TDA and Kompakt II house sound. I believe that system pairing will play a significant role in determining which model will suit and sound better in one's system. The ORG has a more neutral sound character compared to the SE. The SE offers a smoother, more refined, layered, and richer listening experience, which many would prefer. Adding a crown chip enhances the overall experience further. And here is where this separates both the ORG and SE models. Some folks just love that livelier sound and for them the ORG will suit just fine with a STD chip, but for the more discerning listener, the SE model is the one to go for. One thing I noticed more on the SE is that the bass is much fuller and more pronounced, but this is where pairing and system synergy come into play. I had to tone down the bass on the SGR's subs to balance the sound." Edited January 8 by MrBurns84 6
-Prince- Posted January 10 Posted January 10 (edited) Congratulations Clay on your SE Kompakt ll. Great comparison feedback Mr.Burns - some serious HI-FI here. @Gieseler Audio Edited January 17 by VJC 3
MrBurns84 Posted January 10 Posted January 10 (edited) This is part 2 and a more detailed impression of the Kompakt II SE TDA1541a dac that I had posted earlier. I figured, rather than post up all of my notes of this dac in a very long post, I’d summarise and post up a TLDR version instead as most of you are either owners of the ORG TDA version wanting to know what the differences are or possibly members that are wanting to dip their toes into the TDA dac sound. TL: DR It took a while to run this dac in, best of 2 weeks of continuous playing for 8 hours a day in the background before the sound settled. I'd start out with the key differences first. Midrange As you'd know the TDA 1541a excels at midrange and this is where the SE pips ahead over the ORG - grain free midrange. As mentioned before, it took the ORG version with a S1 crown dac chip to level the SE with a standard chip. And when the vocals get a bit of hash or grain, it annoys me. The SE just delivers in spades here in this trait and this alone is worth the upgrade (for me at least) IMO. This is probably due to the Japanese Shindegen D6SBN20 bridge rectifier used in the SE. Highs The SE Kompakt II offers up a more refined listening experience over the ORG. Finer details, especially in the highs are better expressed in the SE, and are more tonally and texturally saturated than the ORG. I listen to a fair bit of music centered around acoustic guitars; the string plucks are a tad more airy, good level of decay that conveys better realism of the instrument, but it does it so without bringing it to attention of the listener. It took me a while to discern this trait over the ORG version but it’s there. I feel that the changes to the power delivery (caps, inductors, regulators) and the addition of the 0.01uf bypass cap to the 10uf output capacitor brought out this benefit as i have done a similar tweak to my Musical Paradise preamp and noticed a similar effect. Bass The bass on the TDA Kompakt II SE is much more fuller sounding, more pronounced, definitely punchier over the ORG. I feel that the change of the output caps from 4.7uf to 10uf contributes much to this. The ORG version is a bit leaner in comparison, but still as punchy. I had to drop the bass output by 2db to level the bass output from my SGRs with the SE dac. Soundstage width, depth, height Not much to report here as both dacs are about the same in this respect. This was a hard one to discern, but in the end, I felt that they were equally as good in this respect. If anything, there was a bit more ‘space’ between the instruments, vocals with the SE dac according to my “Gustard R26/Stax” headfi mate. Headroom Again, not much to report here as both are equally as good. I cranked up the volume to the 12 o'clock mark and they were both effortless with no noticeable distortion. Conclusion To close this out, in two words – refined and sublime comes to mind. It will be my current reference dac for a long time. Just for fun, I had a listen to my MP tubed AKM based dac, and the outcome was ‘yeah…nah’’. Now let’s talk value proposition here, I felt it took an S1 crown chip plus the ORG dac to level the performance with the SE dac. If I were to start over, I’d go straight to the SE version. So how do you improve something, that i had thought was already a really good implementation of the TDA1541a dac? Well Clay did his homework, tweaked and successfully delivered it! For those who have heard of Pedja Rojic and his continuous improvements towards the Audial dacs (v5 now I think) there seems to be more life to be extracted from these older multibit TDA1541a dacs through better architecture design and improved power delivery and distribution to bring out the best from this vintage dac. Edited January 10 by MrBurns84 7 1
-Prince- Posted January 11 Posted January 11 (edited) Thank you Shank for the Part 2 impressions on SE DAC. "Conclusion To close this out, in two words – refined and sublime comes to mind." @MrBurns84 Do you mind asking on what set-up thses Kompakt ll DAC were auditioned please? ( Speakers, amplifier, cables, streamer) as I am newbie to SNA, helps me to understand better about the complete setup..hope most of the long standing members might know your set-up well. Much appreciated your efforts. Thank you Edited January 11 by VJC
MrBurns84 Posted January 11 Posted January 11 1 hour ago, VJC said: @MrBurns84 Do you mind asking on what set-up thses Kompakt ll DAC were auditioned please? ( Speakers, amplifier, cables, streamer) as I am newbie to SNA, helps me to understand better about the complete setup..hope most of the long standing members might know your set-up well. @VJC Sure, no worries. Sources: Quboz streaming service Uptone EtherRegen Ethernet switch powered by 9v ifi IPowerX smps iFi ZenStream (Roon endpoint only) powered by Topping P50 Linear Power Supply Gieseler Reinegen (USB Reclocker) Preamp: Musical Paradise MP-701 mk2 (modded - Jupiter Copper PIO caps, bypassed with Duelund CAST silvers, Audio Note choke 20H, Mundorf Silver/Gold Oil & Supreme Evo bypass caps, Valvo NOS E80CC tubes (x3) GEC U52 rectifier) Speakers: SGR Audio CX4F mk2 actives Cables: Gothic Audio silver USB cables (ZenStream to Reinegen and to KompakII dacs) Robertson Audio Elite RCA cables (KompakII dacs to Preamp to SGR actives) Stock IEC power cables 2 1
-Prince- Posted January 11 Posted January 11 5 hours ago, MrBurns84 said: @VJC Sure, no worries. Sources: Quboz streaming service Uptone EtherRegen Ethernet switch powered by 9v ifi IPowerX smps iFi ZenStream (Roon endpoint only) powered by Topping P50 Linear Power Supply Gieseler Reinegen (USB Reclocker) Preamp: Musical Paradise MP-701 mk2 (modded - Jupiter Copper PIO caps, bypassed with Duelund CAST silvers, Audio Note choke 20H, Mundorf Silver/Gold Oil & Supreme Evo bypass caps, Valvo NOS E80CC tubes (x3) GEC U52 rectifier) Speakers: SGR Audio CX4F mk2 actives Cables: Gothic Audio silver USB cables (ZenStream to Reinegen and to KompakII dacs) Robertson Audio Elite RCA cables (KompakII dacs to Preamp to SGR actives) Stock IEC power cables Thank you so much Shank. 1
Kirby66 Posted January 11 Posted January 11 On 10/01/2025 at 6:05 PM, MrBurns84 said: Now let’s talk value proposition here, I felt it took an S1 crown chip plus the ORG dac to level the performance with the SE dac. If I were to start over, I’d go straight to the SE version Thanks for the comparison review @MrBurns84, don't suppose you have a spare S1 for my ORG - an SE would take my Gieseler DAC count to four ... I love my ORG version so much that I sort of hope I don't get to do the same comparison as it can be VERY hard not to pull the trigger - all Clay's DAC's (and other components) are such incredibly good value 2
MrBurns84 Posted January 12 Posted January 12 4 hours ago, Kirby66 said: Thanks for the comparison review @MrBurns84, don't suppose you have a spare S1 for my ORG - an SE would take my Gieseler DAC count to four ... Lol @Kirby66 - I wish i had a spare. The current one I have, I had to beg, sweet talk and trade over a few weeks before the seller was willing to part with it. I still kick myself till today for selling off a legit S2 taiwan crowns 12 years ago. 4 hours ago, Kirby66 said: I love my ORG version so much that I sort of hope I don't get to do the same comparison as it can be VERY hard not to pull the trigger - all Clay's DAC's (and other components) are such incredibly good value I know the feeling.. Had thought that the ORG version was already very good, until I heard the SE... damn this hobby!..lol 1
-Prince- Posted January 16 Posted January 16 (edited) @Gieseler Audio Hi Clay, Good day, do you mind asking you....a question... what is your all time favourite DAC from your Gieseler brand, and also all time favourite DAC from Non Gieseler brand? Thank you Edited January 27 by -Prince-
pete_mac Posted January 16 Posted January 16 4 minutes ago, VJC said: @Gieseler Audio what is your all time favourite DAC from Gieseler brand, You’re asking Clay to nominate his favourite child!! Hehe 2
Gieseler Audio Posted January 16 Author Posted January 16 @VJC my all time GIESELER favourite DAC - that is a tough one. Probably the PCM1704K NOS Kompakt II closely followed by the NOS TDA1541A SE Kompakt II However it really depends on system matching as they are both very good but quite different in sound character eg the TDA has a much warmer sound compared to the PCM. Favourite commercial DAC. MSB Reference 6 1
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