XXHighEnd

Hi Guys

A guy out my way in the Gold Coast area in Australia got a hold of a Phasure DAC and we heard it compared to a very well respected DAC, the PDX, with its maker at the manufacturers factory on the Gold Coast.

It was written up on our local forum and people here may be interested:
http://www.stereo.net.au/forums/index.php?/topic/55227-phasure-dac/

It was with some new VERY transparent speakers one of the guys present had ordered from the maker and it was also to hear them.  They are wild - each speaker alone weighs 43kg's and sits on stands that weigh about 55kg's each for a total weight of each speaker nearly 100kg.  They are made out of HD3, lined internally with 1/4 inch copper, use Duelund Cast Copper Capacitors, 10 gauge air coil inductors and have Bybees bonded to the terminals of the drivers.  It, and variants, are by a long shot the best speaker I have heard - I have a variant on order myself as well as one being burnt in awaiting final tuning going to a friend in Canberra.

For convenience I will re-post the first 3 posts

I just returned from Mike Lenehan's where a group of us congregated to hear Doggihowser's new Limited and a new DAC (the Phasure DAC) Acg (Anthony) had taken delivery of.
 
I will let Doggie comment on his speakers - but like all the Limited I have heard it sounded fantastic - this will be about the Phasure.
 
Anthony popped it on and immediately I noticed it was just very very clean, clear, pure, and pristine.  Everyone liked it straight off.  I described it like when you flick a crystal goblet - a beautiful, refreshing clear sound.  Next it was compared to the PDX.  Generally to me the PDX has a real character - it doesn't sound valvey with dripping honey - if its adding anything it's subtle and most certainly its not what anyone would describe as euphonic.  But against the Phasure it was clearly euphonic - still sounding great mind you - but clearly and obviously it was adding something to the sound that was absent with the Phasure.  To my ears the Phasure was simply more accurate - and obviously so. 
 
Another interesting thing I noticed was the treble sounded a bit recessed and muted to the point you thought it was self effacing - was it lacking in detail?  No - listen carefully and its there - just not obviously so.  I kept on thinking it was like being at live events which has a generally muted treble compared to many hi fi systems that create false detail.  This DAC was like that - nothing false, unnatural or accentuated - simply accurate - very very accurate - in an understated and perhaps under whelming way.
 
We played a number of tracks but Dianna Krall - Case Of You was a particular standout - the piano was just so accurate - free of any kind of nasties or distortion - to me the PDX was clearly colored.  This is the first time I have heard that.  The best rendition of this track I have yet heard.
 
A very very impressive DAC.
 
Do I want to get one?  I chatted to Anthony and he is more than happy to bring it along to the DAC GTG with the PDX, Killer, and Playback Designs.  I will make up my mind then.  Again a very very impressive super accurate DAC.

The purity of the Phasure Nos1 sound was delicious to me and I must say that Doggies ML2 Limiteds sounded fantastic even with a couple of hours on them as they were this afternoon. The NOS1 is also brand new and only halfway through its recommended burn in time, but the sound seems to have stabilised a little so I brought it on down for an early impression.

This afternoon was the first time that I have listened to it from cold and I must say that I was underwhelmed by the first couple of hours of listening but the longer it warmed up the better it sounded, and boy the Diana Krall track right at the end was STUNNING. In particular the reproduction of that piano was extraordinary. I would love to been able to get the dac down to
Mike yesterday so that it was hot to trot because every time we pressed play it sounded better.

I have been listening to it for about two weeks now and am quite familiar with what it brings to the table, and I do think you were onto some of its traits from the getgo Bill. Another couple of weeks of burn in and some tweaking of the playback software and I will be ready for this dac GTG. In preparation I think I will need to get the NOS1 down to Mike a day or two early to get it all warmed up. I know my Offramp sounds much better after a few days of being left on and I suspect the Phasure will also be at its peak if it is never turned off (it is recommended to leave it on 24/7).

I was really quite intrigued by this DAC a couple of years ago. Stacked PCM1704 R2R (georgehifi shd love that!) and customisable using the XXXHighend software.
 
But I never had the balls to take a gamble. Looks like I really lost out. It's a superb sounding system.
 
I'm still not sure I am that keen to much around with a PC system again and the playback process which took a while to start seemed a bit too much work for me :) but the sound quality is top notch.
 
I suspect I'd still prefer the Phasure feeding something like my Audio Research 5SE preamp. The DAC has details in spade but the tubes in the ARC should just infuse a bit more depth and width to the soundstage.

As the write up said the next step is a DAC shootout we will be organizing with the Phasure, PDX, Killer DAC and Playback Designs.  Watch out for that it should be very very interesting.

Thanks
Bill

Hi Bill

Thanks for the nice review. If you are seeing all these qualities in the NOS1 wait when you have a PC configured specifically for XXHE/NOS1 with the best settings for your sound system in the software. Then you will hear the NOS1 at its best, perhaps then you will be convinced that it sounds better without a preamplifier. I look forward to your other test.

Best regards,
Juan

You beat me to it Bill. :)  It was good to catch up with you again mate.

Juan, I was running an XX pc built to Peters recipe, but of course not tweaked to best suit the system. 

When fully burnt-in and warmed up I am sure it will sound much better again at the upcoming dac get-together.

I should add that this is only the second NOS1 in Australia!!  I guess everyone has been waiting for someone else to take the plunge.


Cheers,

Anthony

Hey Anthony, I see you are very close to the best NOS1 sound (at least as close as anyone else). I imagine the feeling of being a pioneer in that huge country letting your fellows amazed with the wonderful sound..  :veryhappy:

Best regards,
Juan

G'day there Bill and Anthony too of course,

Bill, you as the DAC guru over there did a nice job at "reviewing" our NOS1. I must honestly say that at reading the first lines of your post I already started to make up responses in my mind ...
But it was not necessary. So, great.

Still let me please tell you this :

Once in a while it happens that we listen to a new NOS1; just a matter of it still being hooked up after final measurement. The sound compared to my own NOS1 (sitting just 50cm further in the rack) is :
- Totally grey;
- Without resolution;
- Not carrying the freshness intended;
- Does not sound "short" enough.
... And I would never buy it.

Haha. But I am serious.
All I want to say with this is that it really needs 30 days of being on 24/7 and play with it a couple of hours each day.
After this it sure will be on par. Having it off for a couple of hours for travelling is OK and I don't think it needs even an hour of warming up after that to perform.
Still it is so that after many more days (like months) you will find albums played previously after the burn in period, seem unrecognizable again.

So, please have it passed those 30 days for the real experience.

Great thanks and best regards !
Peter

Hi Bill, I've just posted over at CA in reply.

The only thing I'll mention here is that I've got Miska's HQPlayer working at 32/768 with the NOS1. I'm finding it really educational, to the extent that I now feel Arc Prediction may be creating some audible side effects. Offering some minimum-phase filters, and maybe also some noise-shaping schemes, as options in XX would be very welcome.

Mani.