Just want to make this clear for myself......(DACs, CDPs, AVRs)

kolyan2k

CDP has DAC
external DAC obviously has DAC(s)
and AVR also has the same purpose DAC

all 3 do exactly the same thing and pretty much it up to the user to choose which sounds better, right ?

thsmith

Seems reasonable except some DACs do it better than others, the analog side is where alot of DACs fail to deliver.


I can tell you my CDP has a nice DAC, my external DAC is best and my AVR has a DAC that is very basic and not hard to beat.

kolyan2k

Another thing is that i dont quite understand why or how say a $200-300 external DAC sounds better then say a DAC in $1500 AVR..........

any comments on this ? anyone

ps. I have DAC-AH M1 and Yamaha HTR-9060. I do think that DAC-AH sounds better..........but hey maybe its a placebo effect. DAC-AH has 8 old Philips DACs and Yahama has Burr-Brown I believe

mmadden28

There is a lot more to an AVR than just the DAC obviously. You have the amps, the the signal processors (some of which reauire a license fee), certifcations (THX), rca and binding posts galore, etc etc etc. It should also be mentioned that just because the MSRP is $1500 doesn't mean taht value wasn't infalated by the mfrgr to begin with.

Anything that is mainstream or should I say mass marketed is going to be built with some shortcuts/savings somewhere, and why not where most are likely not to hear the difference anyway.

Its the same reason why separate amps are usually better than the amps in an AVR. Its just that a dedicated component is going to have that attention to detail-and likely more quality (and expensive) components used--more so than an all-in-one unit.

Same goes for just about any market, esp cars-- you can always put better tires on, or a better battery, or an after market stereo, speakers, amps, etc.

tcrossma

Yeah, a $1500 receiver has to balance many things, the DAC being one of them. And if the DAC wasn't a priority to the manufacturer of said $1500 AVR, then it might not be very good. I'm sure having a dedicated power supply and good clean power going to the DAC section has a big affect on the quality of an external DAC as well.

Marty913

Well said Mike, and then there's the "what else do you have" factor. Depending upon the source quality, speakers, etc. it is possible that you won't even hear the difference - or may not hear a difference in line with what the added cost. Then again, with the right stuff you may be blown away by the difference.

Sometimes just removing the DAC function from all the other heat, noise, power supplies, etc. in a modern receiver can make a difference which might explain some of what you're hearing with the DAC-AH M1 and Yamaha HTR-9060.

Erik Tracy

And, depending on how you have your equipment connected up and in what mode you are in, you could be listening to several DACs and their accumulative affect on the sound before it comes out of your speakers.

Know thy rig!

kolyan2k

thanks for replies guys.