DVD-A
won't play
March
20, 2018
Marc,
I
recently purchased a Pet Sounds DVD-A on a recommendation. Interestingly, this
disc is double-sided, DVD-Audio on one side and DVD-Video on the other. I suppose the
DVD-A is higher resolution. Both sides play fine in my Pioneer Elite DV-79AVi, but the disc will not play on either side in the
Ayre
DX-5 DSD. I tried it a couple of times. The player just makes its normal noise when it
is taking its sweet time loading up on certain CDs, but then it turns to another noise and
finally reads "unknown." Is the disc damaged or does the Ayre's mechanism not
work the greatest?
Jeff
Levine
I've
had issues in the past with certain discs -- always DVD/DVD-As -- not playing in certain
players. I don't recall one that wouldn't play in the DX-5 DSD, but I did have a couple
that wouldn't play in the Ayre C-5xe MP I had before. I'm not sure the authoring of those
discs is uniform, so sometimes they don't play for some reason. In terms of Pet
Sounds, at least that is available as an SACD, and that disc should play with no
problems in the DX-5 DSD. I think there might be multiple DVD versions too. -Marc
Mickelson
$500
USB?
March
14, 2018
Marc,
Are
there any USB cables you might be smitten with for this side of $500?
Sheldon
Simon
I'm
still not a full-fledged adopter of file playback, so my experience with USB cables is
limited. I wrote about -- and was very impressed by -- Nordost's Valhalla 2, but it's far above $500 in price. However, Nordost
has recently debuted two USB cables that are in your price range: Red
Dawn and Frey 2, which, like Valhalla 2, benefit from Nordost's
Micro Mono-Filament technology. I've not heard either of these cables -- they are both
brand new -- but we should be covering one or both on TAB in the near future.
-Marc Mickelson
Audio
Research or PS Audio?
March
10, 2018
Vance,
I
just read your review of the Audio Research DAC9 from last May. I;m
trying to decide between the DAC9 and the PS Audio DirectStream myself. Have you had a
chance to compare them with the latest PS Audio Huron firmware update?
Rob
Mika
While I’ve not compared the Audio Research DAC9 with a Huron-equipped
DirectStream, I do have a couple of observations about the differences between DACs at
this level of performance.
PS Audio’s decision to hire digital guru Ted Smith to design and continually
improve the unit’s FPGA firmware was brilliant. It makes the DirectStream extremely
competitive and extends its useful lifetime far beyond what many DACs can offer.
That said, my ears tell me that there’s more to a DACs performance than
firmware alone. As important as digital conversion certainly is, the analog stage of a DAC
has as much to do with how the final product sounds to our ears. Because we listen in the
analog domain, the way a DAC delivers the analog signal can be what separates a competent
DAC from a musically satisfying one.
The
DAC9’s use of tubes, coupled with Audio Research’s time-tested management of its
products power supplies and output stages, resulted in a sound that was, to my tastes,
significantly more musically engaging than the DirectStream’s performance with
Torreys firmware. Since that time, Ted Smith has designed two subsequent firmware
versions, so it would be folly to speculate how a current DirectStream unit would compare
to the DAC9.
PS
Audio offers a risk-free in-home trial, and I believe the DirectStream is a DAC that
should be on the audition list of anyone curious about what’s possible in the
under-$10,000 price category. I also encourage you to contact an Audio Research dealer to
hear what a tube-inspired DAC can do. -Vance Hiner
Please
add me . . .
March
1, 2018
Marc,
Please
add me to your distribution list so that I’m aware of the latest articles.
Aline
Schmitt
You've
been added. To join TAB's reader list and find out about new articles first,
send e-mail to rl@theaudiobeat.com.
-Marc Mickelson
