To all the guys, i will be at smarthome to audition the full tube amp with Harbeth and Monitor audio BR2. If you are interested, please drop by tomolow 5.30pm at smarthome. I will also bring my soundstage 1.5 with Mullard tube to PK with Menthor telefunken tubes. The zero will test to see if its really warm.

Well all are welcome. I will bring the DY2000 and we roll till the cow come home.

Tks to my soundstage 1.5 with Mullard tube, I made the shop owner some sales for the BR2. do bring your cd, we normally listen to Cai Qing.

I hope u get it less than RM 1380. It is very good speaker indeed. u need to run it for some time.

We tried the ZERO DAC with DY2000 compared to a famous Japanese brand DAC (> RM 1000). The ZERO sounds more forward, warm vocal (with coloration of course). The zero dac sounds a lit aggrasive at the top end, probably due to time to run in the unit. The unit in test was from Abel.

vocal wise, Harbeth is still the best.

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Added on July 5, 2008, 10:12 pmActually if you sound can output digital optical it will be fine. If not, u can also use USB and get the USD/SPDIF converter and use ASIO4ALL for output. that will give u bit perfect.

bit perfecT means, whatever digital signal out from PC is received in exact copy by the DAC. The people in Stereophile has done that. trust me.

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 5 2008, 10:49 PM

To tell the truth, I felt great with some of the other opamp but become so so only after a while (the excitement dies). Until DY2000 comes, that excitement is still burning.

All the while, even my Sony NS76H DVD player (which has been a faithful transport) can sound natural and clearer than the ZERO dac. Even the Marantz 63 sounds better than the ZERO DAC in terms of vocal representation. But all this is defeated by DY2000 as I wanted more warm vocal, good separation and the controlled low end. Now wish that someone can provide a Marantz 63 KI to PK against ZERO DAC.

Again this ZERO dac with DY2000 is for DAC section. headphone I am not sure.

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 5 2008, 10:56 PM

OPA 2604 is just like Low Pass filter. It doesnt give you anything extra. OPA 627 is like Bandpass but boasted at the 2 extreme.

Good that DY2000 bulk is going on. Now I really feel steady with ZERO, dunno for how long. But I still know ZERO has Potential to go further than that. I feel the output stage has some improvment to be done.

Yesterday I was wondering why the DAC gain stage is so low, until I realise I forgot to plug in the DY2000 (it was taken out for audition)

I think you wont go wrong with DY2000 if you are those who like vocals.

On the Saturday, I learned another thing i.e. power cord. Bro Abel bring along his mighty Transparent power cord and the amazing thing happens to the full tube amp. The sound just changed and my face expression was like paper.

Now I just wonder if the power cord can do any wonder to ZERO DAC or not ?

what was the setup at the hifi shop? power cord , cable, amp and source?

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 6 2008, 09:33 PM

Well power cord works like filter too. It removes unwanted harmonics / noise from getting into it. some argue the high end power amp will have enuf capacitors to store the current to deliver that momentary power draw. but the fact is power cord does give difference, especially the pcocc single crystal copper that is almost grainless. names like neotech, oyaide, acrolink, JPS, cardas, etc. are the league in this.

The other I tested 1 power cord that cost about RM 1000. It does give alot of diff to the power amp but to the cdp is minimal.

If you guys want to get DY2000, why not try the metal one.

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 6 2008, 10:31 PM

Well I am referring to the RFI/EMI from getting into the cable. There is something about power cord that they do to give you the kind of sound. the zero crystal (not single crystal) gives smoother path for electron to flow.

I think the DY2000 may not disappoint those on the jazz/instruments. You may find the musics dynamics not the same as OPA627, overall it is ok. The striking part of DY2000 is still on the vocal. do check out.

IF you use DY2000, u will sacrifice a bit of dynamics. On fast transients, the music tends to slow slightly. If your ears are really fuzzy, u will notice a bit. overall, this is give and take.

Eddie Wu from diykits is very nice guy, very knowledgeable guy, been in HIFI business for a long long time.

I hope he has a metal DY2000. The DY2000 metal is damn expensive.

I dont seem to see any review on the 1364 and 1469 in the head phone. guys come spill it.

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 7 2008, 09:04 PM

Well, for those who interested in DY2000, pls indicate your interest. I believe GodLuxsXswill be back with the news not too long.The metal one is 10 times better than ceramic, dunno how true, I have not seen it. Discovery hifi in Thailand is selling them.

If you notice Zhaolu 2.5c, it has 2 units of DY2000 in it. shiok.

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 9 2008, 11:11 PM

Oops, the DY2000 stock is limited.

Anyway, pls try the DY2000 on the Headphone and see how it sounds.

I have tried the DY2000 with the B&W 602S3. Playing jazz tracks from the Chesky label, the instrument separation and the beats and ryhthm really make my feet tap and the head banging.Wow, the musics really reach the senses.

Tried the zERO with Grado RS60, never though the grado can sound so natural with human vocal, a bit warm. First experience! Overall it is still the DY2000 that is more like all rounder.

I would love to try DY2000 with LT 1364 at the headphone amp, when meet for ZERO collection.

We also try rolling the opamp like OPA627, DY2000 and OPA 2604 using the Grado SR60.

Grado SR60 sound is more towards clarity, lacks bass and punch. When using DY2000, I think it is more smoother.

i think b4 u jump the gun, better wait for yr zero to arrive. madmen's ear can be a reference.

in my opinion, cable gain no 1 is RCA, followed by power cord.

Cables basically behave like capacitors and inductors at various frequency range. think about skin effect and skin depth... technical cut short, cable makes a difference.

if u change to good RCA and power cord, and still can not hear the difference, then .....

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 14 2008, 11:19 PM

Some rich guys just buy everything one shot. that i would;t comment.

For seasoned hifier, Power cord is a must have if you are into hifi. However most people, given the limited budget, will generally concetrate on Speaker and amp first. This is because this 2 item gives you the taste that u like, whether, vocal, jazz, classical, orchestra, rock. You are sure to go for the best on speaker and amp as much as you can (try not to go for capalang, will end up with a ugly wife).

Then later on, when your system is ready, you will lastly look at the power cord, in general. The so called missing link is the power cord.

So I will not recommend power cord for now. It is only this Abel poison people with his power cord, that is proven to work.

Power cord for DAC or CDP does NOT help much, I have seen it using RM 1000 power cord on CDP and the sound change is minimal. (but that RM 1000 on my soundstage tube amp work wonders)

The power cord really LOWER the noise floor, makes the system more transparent.
If you are looking for power cord, make sure u bring your AMP with the old power cord for test !

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 15 2008, 06:40 PM

So can we make a list who will bring what phone. I hope someone can bring a beyer and GRADO for test. really shiok with Grado. Who has 2x LT1364 for the headphone.

MS carnival and Avant any different?

This post has been edited by ccschua: Jul 15 2008, 09:04 PM

How much is 640C and the CD17? compare to ZERO, that will be expensive.

ZERO is using diff implementation, AD 1852. AD 1852 and CS4392 is 24 bit DAC but different sound characteristics.

1547 is 16 bit, different implementation again, and it is hard to get 1547 liao.

After I bring the coaxial home compare to the digital link and try on my setup, I dont notice much difference. Either my system doesnt give the difference or there is a difference I cant discern. May be I need a good transport.

Any guys here using Grado?