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(More customer reviews)Being a budget stereophile, I was looking forward to improving the sound of my Zone-2 setup, consisting of a pair Mordaunt Short 902i bookshelf speakers on BTech BT-77 stands. These speakers are connected to an Onkyo TX-SR604 a/v receiver Onkyo TX-SR604 7.1 Channel A/V Receiver (Black) and Pioneer DV-610 universal DVD player Pioneer Dv610av-s Silver Multi Region Code Free Hdmi 1080p Upconverting DVD Player with SACD and DVD-Audio Playback.
Background:
I have a very good collection of CDs that are mostly made in the European Union (E.U.). To make the best of my CD collection, I was initially planning on getting a budget CD player under USD500. I had rounded up on two budget CD players - Cambridge Audio 550C & Emotiva ERC-1. I had heard the Emotiva ERC-1 at a friends place and it was too good for the money - USD400. The slot loading mechanism of the Emotiva ERC-1 was a deal breaker for me. I have had bad experiences in the past with slot loading CD players. I especially hate the way they attract dust on the slot opening and they eventually leave soft scratches on the CDs. I w'd have surely bought the Emotiva ERC-1 if only it had a tray loading mechanism. It is otherwise a superbly capable CD player with functions such as a 12V trigger and a whole lot of other great features. Anyone who does not mind slot loading CD player sh'd surely give it a listen.
That left me with just the Cambridge Audio 550C CD player. I was at a point in my hobby where I was planning to get into Hard Drive / Server based music, sometime later this year. I was planning to rip all my CDs into FLAC or WAV and store them in a HTPC with an optical out or may be in a Network Media Player with an optical out. So I decided against the idea of adding a CD player and instead started researching budget DACs. I wanted to get started by just connecting the Pioneer DV-610 universal DVD player, I had at hand, to a DAC for improved CD playback and then later move on to a Network Media player such as LaCie Lacinema Classic HD 1TB 1TB LaCinema Classic HD Multimedia High Definition Media Player. I had rounded up on two very popular budget DACs - Musical Fidelity (MF) V-DAC priced @ USD300 and Cambridge Audio (CA) DacMagic priced @ USD400 Cambridge Audio DacMagic Digital-to-Analog Converter with USB, Black.
DacMagic vs V-DAC:
I ordered the MF V-DAC from Amazon & I managed to borrow a CA DacMagic from a friend for comparison. I used a Monster ILSR-1M Fiber Optic Audio Cable Monster ILSR-1M Toslink Fiber Optic Audio Cable (1 meter) & a pair of Monster 400i Stereo Audio Interconnects Monster MC 400I-1M Ultra-High Performance RCA Stereo Cables (1 meter) with both the DACs.
I felt that the V-DAC has the Magic & the DacMagic has the value. It's surely not the other way around. DacMagic offers a lot more bells & whistles for just USD100 more. It has multiple digital inputs, incoming signal strength indicator, sound filter adjustments etc. V-DAC is designed to be hidden behind the rack, while DacMagic is designed to be seen. Both are British DACs and they cost a lil' more in the US than in the UK. Both DACs immediately showed a difference in my system. There was more separation in both voice & instruments. The soundstage improved & the sound was more fleshed out, more like adding meat to bones. More realism than I have ever heard in my system before. The better the quality of recording in the CD, the better the realism. I'am rediscovering my music collection all over again. It's only after extended listening that U actually realize & appreciate the benefits of having an external DAC.
I preferred the midrange smoothness of the V-DAC & I preferred the dynamic range of the DacMagic. I liked V-DAC more with songs that were high on vocals & I liked DacMagic more with both instrumental & bass heavy music. I listen to all kinds of music & I felt that I could live with either DAC. Over extended listening, I found V-DAC a lil' more soft on the ears. Over all, I preferred the smooth midrange of the V-DAC over the dynamic sound of the DacMagic. It kind of grows on U over time. V-DAC has surely taken my system to the next level. Anyone considering to buy either of these DACs sh'd surely give them both a listen / demo. U'r surely going to prefer the presentation of one DAC over the other. Both DACs are not perfect and could have offered a lil' more for the money.
MF V-DAC c'd have improved on the following:
1) The AC-DC wall wart adaptor (rated @ 12V DC, 0.5A) is very ugly looking when U plug it in U'r home theatre power strip. The least MF c'd have offered is a well designed universal power supply unit (PSU) for the money, something in the lines of NuForce Icon 42W PSU NuForce Icon 42W PSU. I'm glad MF at least offers a PSU upgrade for its V-Series components: the MF V-PSU Musical Fidelity - V-PSU - Upgrade Power Supply.
2) MF c'd have offered a universal wall wart / PSU that works on 110V - 220V. This w'd have really complimented the highly portable MF V-DAC.
3) V-DAC c'd have offered at least one more digital input just like the DacMagic. This w'd have helped people to get more from other sources as well.
4) Build quality of the V-DAC is not really as bad as some people have stated. It's just plain & functional. It w'd have been great if it was also available in silver color just like the DacMagic.
DacMagic c'd have improved on the following:
1) The AC-AC wall wart adaptor (rated @ 12V AC, 1.5A) is worse than the one that comes with the V-DAC. This power supply really puts DacMagic to shame. CA sh'd at least give its customers a choice of buying a better PSU, depending on their needs. C'mon U can still offer this choice to customers who are not happy with their existing power supply.
2) An on/off switch on the DacMagic is good, a 12V trigger w'd have been even better. This w'd have helped to automatically turn on & off the DacMagic along with other components that have an inbuilt timer & a 12V trigger on it. Most a/v receivers these days come with a timer & a 12V trigger.
Conclusion:
Is spending USD300-400 on a DAC really worth it? Answer is yes and no. A DAC is purely for anyone wanting to improve server / PC based music or someone who does not want to waste space on their rack by adding a CD player. Others who want to improve CD playback c'd also consider investing in a good CD player for more robust playback functions such as shuffle play which most DVD / Bluray players are not great at.
I'm currently using the MF V-DAC with the MF V-PSU & I c'd not be happier with the improved performance. I also replaced the Monster ILSR Fiber Optic Cable with the WireWorld Supernova 6 Glass Optic Cable & the Monster 400i Stereo Interconnects with the Anti-Cables Anti-ICs with Eichmann Copper Bullet plugs to compliment the setup (see pix). I'm really surprised at the improvement each upgrade has made to my budget system. The MF V-PSU takes the already superb performance of the V-DAC to the next level. I cannot imagine ever using the V-DAC again without the V-PSU.
Just my $0.02.
Brgds.
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Cambridge Audio DacMagic Digital-to-Analog Converter with USB, BlackEnjoy digital music like never before...Adapted Time Filtering (ATF) asynchronous upsampling technology might sound complicated but the benefits are instantly audible. Essentially it converts 16-24 bit audio to 24 bit/192kHz so you hear so much more from compressed material. Meanwhile a 32 bit Digital Signal Processor (DSP) eradicates jitter which is especially effective with hard disk playback from PCs or Macintosh computers. Whether your digital music collection is stored on a PC or you use a network music client - SqueezeboxTM, SoundBridgeTM, SonosTM etc - the difference in audible quality is incredible! Games just explode into lifeGaming isn't just about the moving image. By connecting your games console - PlayStations(PS2 and PS3TM), XboxTM and Xbox 360sTM to your hi-fi via DacMagic, dramatically improved soundtracks and special effects are immediately apparent. DacMagic is an audiophile tour de force!DacMagic sports a range of components you'd never dream could be crammed into such a compact case. These include a 32-bit Texas Instruments Digital Signal Processor (DSP), dual Differential Virtual Earth balanced filter topology and twin Wolfson WM8740 high quality DACs in dual differential mode for excellent stereo imaging. Other features include a choice of digital filters - linear phase/minimum phase/steep filter - and an incoming sampling rate indicator which shows the original source quality. You can experiment with different filters for each source connected but DacMagic always remembers the last one assigned to that source. It's flexible and easy to set-upUp to two digital sources - network music devices, games consoles, CD/DVD players etc. can be connected concurrently using S/PDIF or Toslink inputs. Additionally, you can connect DacMagic directly to your PC using a USB connection (no drivers needed) and dramatically improve the quality of your digital music.
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