The packaging is slick, and the product even better. And yes, the cambridge audio dacmagic plus has certainly earned my recommendation as the new benchmark for dac performance. Network players naim qb naim muso naim uniti atom naim uniti star naim uniti nova. Now the supernait 2 is out, im most likely to pull the trigger on either one of them. Look at the threads on ripping software before you get started. Cambridge dacmagic plus v benchmark dac1 gearslutz.
Oct 30, 20 on paper the cambridge audio dacmagic xs usb dac seems too good to be true. Once inside the cobalt, the inbuilt mqa code executes further. Not a good dac compared to my dac it, the dac is good for improving the overall sound of lowerend speakers, if i need to compare this dac to other lowend dacs i owned i would compare it to the nuforce icon, the dacmagic 100 isnt amazing but you could hear the difference all tho that isnt. I auditioned a supernait a couple of months ago, and i kind of fell under its spell. One can also buy any of naims separate power amplifiers, for use in place of the supernait s own, by means of its preampout jacks. The v dac bass felt more stressed than the naim dac. Cambridge audio dacmagic xs, portable usb dac black.
Aug 21, 20 the new supernait 2 is much more controllable in this respect, whether via the remote handset provided or using the system automation features available via naims range of streamers. This is the same chip as used in the rega dac although the rega uses two of them in a parallel configuration. Apr 17, 2014 cambridge includes a 6 cable with the dac magic xs that houses a usb type a connector on one end, to plug into your computer, and micro usb on the other to attach to the dac. The vdac bass felt more stressed than the naim dac. It will take a few months, but the day will come when the sound you hear from the supernait 2 will grab your attention and not let go. The dac is built on a different converter to the plus. The usb cable seems a tad budget, but you could always replace this if needs be not sure if you would really notice much difference though. In employing the latest naim audio dr discrete regulator circuits in its power supply, it sits right at the forefront of naim audio amplifier technology. Moving up the scale to a comparison with the benchmark dac1 usb, the supernait had a harder time. It has an aux 2 socket that can power a stageline or a prefix phono stage. The cambridge audio dacmagic plus is an inexpensive, lightweight, chinesemade dac with astounding performance it has the highest performance of any dac ive ever measured, and is among the least expensive. Cambridge audio dacmagic plus digital to analog converter. Our multiaward winning proprietary fpga technology has become legendary and remains the most advanced in the world. Cambridge explains part of the reason for this cable is to relieve the usb connector on your computer from the pressure applied when adjusting volume on the dac.
Integrated amps naim nait 5si naim nait xs 2 naim supernait 2. If youre connecting a streamer to to your dac magic via the optical or coax it will have no effect on sound again its just data. The dac is very good in sound production, perhaps a little more mid range heavy than top end that i usually like but very. While our hardware would be able to play this format, linux and the raspberry pi cant playback 384khz. What the dacmagic does well is simplicity of presentation and not trying to do things it will make a mess of. Theres little here to give away that bargain price. Comparison of cambridge audio dacmagic 100 vs cambridge audio dacmagic plus signal converters.
Also, if youre willing to trade tonal quality for transparency this dac will be wellsuited. The hegel always pleases, but having tasted the supernait s strengths the h160s omissions have become more noticeable. Pc users will need to download dedicated driver software from. For my desktop i use a cambridge audio dac magic, i run an uncompressed digital output spdif via digital coax to the dac magic. Which integrated amp for better musicality parasound hint vs primaluna vs ive been having a blast looking up threads and doing some research but my dilemma is this i want to get more enjoyment out of my music dont we all. Reviewed in the united kingdom on october 29, 2015. I bought this dac to use with a chromecast audio on my hi fi system. As to your question yes files ripped from cds can sound great. Peachtree dacit or cambridge audio dacmagic and why. Infact, if i had found a dac this side of the price of a used car that i liked more than the essence, i would have bought it by now. The supernait has bags of inputs and more than enough power to stoke up the ls50s, is undemanding in terms of operation, plus its headphone amp is a goodun. Connecting your usb dac to windows 10 and 7 youtube. I have used the internal dac with my cambridge audio cxc transport and the supernait also has a great headphone section. Connecting your usb dac to windows 10 and 7 pc optimization guide windows 10 note.
Welcome to canuckaudiomart, a classifieds site for used audio and hifi. Main focuses are sound quality and ease of use by my wife. The cambridge audio uses a single dac chip helping to keep the cost down. This upgrade of the wildly successful original dacmagic adds advanced wolfson dacs, an asynchronous usb input, and the new preamp mode. Ive got the same headphone yamamoto combo and use it with a musical fidelity v dac. With audiophilegrade wolfson dacadcs, the m audio super dac performs 24bit192khz highdefinition audio conversion over a usb 2. The new supernait 2 is much more controllable in this respect, whether via the remote handset provided or using the system automation features available via naims range of streamers. Jan, 2014 everything that takes a digital signal and outputs it to something you can hear has a dac. Cambridge audio has a usb one to supplement its line the dacmagic xs. May 07, 2008 has anyone compared the naim supernait vs bryston b100da sst dac integrated amplifier.
Naim audio supernait integrated amplifier wdac solid state. Cambridge includes a 6 cable with the dac magic xs that houses a usb type a connector on one end, to plug into your computer, and micro usb on the other to attach to the dac. Compare the main features, specifications, prices and select the best model. Hi there, its suddenly become apparent that the naim dac could be a significant upgrade for me. Cambridge audio cxn v2 streamer vs bluesound node 2i. It looks and feels like a direct rival to the likes of audioquests dragonfly or hrts microstreamer, but only costs around half as much. Naim audio, supernait integrated stereo amplifier with dac. From there its to my nad c326bee amp which feeds a pair of paradigm mini monitors and a. The easiest way to revolutionize your computers audio. Has anyone compared the naim supernait vs bryston b100da sst. It connects quickly and easily to any usb port and allows you to hear your favourite music and movies with every drop of detail, exactly as the artist intended. Chord qutest vs supernait dac hifi corner naim audio. There are nearly as many chipsets and dac models as there are models of laptop, and as many opinions on the efficacy of various implementations.
Is it just the software sending data directly to the usb connection. The wiessbrystonnaim are highly regarded for good reason 2. Having owned a schiit modi multibit aka mimby and now a cambridge audio dac magic plus. Cds, mp3s, wav, flac and almost every audio format. I use the original dacmagic at home and was interested to see how it compared with.
The cambridge audio stream magic 6 gives you most everything youd expect from a network player including the ability to play up to 2496 music from network attached storage nas, usbbased storage, the internet, and it throws in a 24192capable usb dac to boot. I dont think i will connect other digital sources unless the dac blows me away. The naim superuniti combines elements from three of naims stand alone components. The first unfold is executed in software running on the host device. My mother would even think so so its not one of these micro detail maybe topics.
Comparing hegel h160 and supernait 2 pink fish media. The topping d50s will surely benefit more when paired with tube amplifiers and darker speakers. And yet, its almost certain that theyve used not one, but dozens, of dacs throughout their lifetime. Dec 24, 2014 the supernait 2 seems to be a very popular model. In many ways the supernait s dac is the equal of the benchmark. Thanks to a wolfson 24bit dac, a 24bit96khz driverless usb audio 1. Every computer with a microphone or headphone port has one a digital to analog converter dac. Cambridge audio dacmagic 100 zwart coolblue voor 23. Where the original model was a nice dac with a decent headphone output as a sort of bonus feature, zdac v. The potential for upgrading a supernait doesnt end there. Sn1 is a great amp for its price today absolutely but with a rather small dac cost you will get a great update to it. Weve talked about why theyre so great, and how to choose a. Its very obvious when going back to the dac magic that.
Im not that bothered about other features like the dac in the original model. The speakers and headphones youve spent hardearned money on dont sound as good as they could, because your computers audio hardware is likely mediocre. Whether you need a desktop solution, a mobile device for onthego listening, or a dedicated unit for home listening, we have a chord dac for you. Will my dacmagic xs operate with the linux operating system. The best usb dac if youre on a super tight budget, the dacmagic xs is truly portable, requiring no external battery, and connections are simple with just a usb. Jun 30, 2015 the few complaints i had were all minor in scope, yet parasound saw fit to revamp the designfixing all those issues in the process.
I have the original boxs for the supernait unit and it will be double boxed for shipping. The vdac didnt go as deep nor did it sound as fast. High strength at elevated temperature and excellent heat crack resistance. Audio went digital and now pretty much everything we listen to is stored as a bunch of 0s and 1s. If you choose the dac or digi board is a matter of personal preferences. The cambridge audio dacmagic plus adds a headphone amp and. On paper the cambridge audio dacmagic xs usb dac seems too good to be true. The dacmagic xs usb digital to analogue converter dac headphone amp is an instant upgrade to any computers sound output.
I have never had a 384khz file to try, it certainly handles the 192s just fine. Once inside the cobalt, the inbuilt mqa code executes further unfolds, should they exist, and also mqa rendering. The computer now functions more or less in the role as a cd transport. The cambridge audio dacmagic plus adds a headphone amp and asynchronous.
A good digitaltoanalog converter or dac can make all the difference when listening to music, especially through headphones. I am talking about a static hifi dac, rather than a portable, headphonebased setup. Moving up the scale to a comparison with the benchmark dac 1 usb, the supernait had a harder time. Oct 07, 20 simple question for those out there that may be in the know which do you prefer the peachtree dacit or the cambridge audio dacmagic and why. How to choose a dac for home or portable audio crutchfield. Think of a digital to analog converter as an external.
Power supplies naps555dr supercapdr xpsdr hicapdr flatcapxs napsc2. Better is a matter of your cd player vs dac vs file types basically comparing your overall implementation for reduced jitter, good conversion, etc. Supernait 3 has received significant performance upgrades, including a builtin phono stage, making it a perfect partner for turntables, as well as for streamers, cd players, or any other music source people want to enjoy with the signature naim sound. It does a superb job of revealing the various layers and innerdetails of your favorite recordings. It would have its own buffer and its driver would include its own user interface player. In many ways the supernaits dac is the equal of the benchmark. Jan 11, 2015 we have reports from customers that couldnt distinguish between our dac and equipment that costs 500. And talking of those streamers, they have digital inputs, so thats that requirement covered off. Discover how a cambridge audio dac can improve the sound of your mac and apple tv. Cambridge audio stream magic 6 network music player.
Supernait 2 combines an 80w power amplifier with six individually decoupled input sockets and borrows advanced technology from naim audios flagship preamplifier, the nac 552. Sep 23, 2017 this little device, along with some software, completely bypasses the standard audio path of the computer to produce great sound. Nov 22, 2011 the plus will do 384 khz files vs 192. My other dac adl gt40 sounds better and has more openness and depth at 9624 setting compared to dacmagic 100 at 9624 when i move to 192 on the dac magic the sound is almost equal to my adl gt40 at 9624 seems odd to me too. The dacmagic plus works by taking a direct digital audio signal from your. I am a dac convert and will be saving my pennies to buy one of cambridge audios dacs with multi inputs to become a permanent part of the home theater system. I much prefer the sound quality of my xonar essence pci card than i do the musical fidelity v dac and cambridge dacmagic that i used to own. The dac used with the supernait in my listening session was a simaudio moon one dont know whether it was the 100d or the 300d and they. The v dac didnt go as deep nor did it sound as fast.
A dac or digitalanalog converter did exactly what it sounds like. Before i tell you why you need this dac or any other, let me tell you what it actually is. Its easy to notice the supernait 2 is a mile quieter than the previous xs2, but thats really just the most obvious of the improvements. I listen to the supernait with all displays muted so it have never been a concern for me and, obviously, it does not effect the sound. The dac difference between supernait 1 and ndx5xs is at least mind blowing big. These dacs were released last year as the latest in a long line of dacs from cambridge audio. I plan to stick with cd and streaming, but the core route maybe a possibility in future if ripped cds are all that they claim to be. Interestingly it uses a more recent wolfson chip, the 8742. Dacs are much more complicated to make perform well than most people including other manufacturers think. Super dac is a usb digital to analog converter with stereo rca analog outputs and both coaxial and optical digital outputs.
It really is difficult to choose between these two amplifiers. In terms of sound quality, does it differ much to the original supernait. For five years, cambridge audios cx range of two integrated amplifiers, a network audio streamer and a cd transport, has been wildly successful and widely acclaimed. I also use beyerdynamic amiron headphones at night when i need to be quiet.
Cambridge audio dacmagic 100 vs cambridge audio dacmagic. Which integrated amp for better musicality parasound. I took my headphonesamp round and had a good long listen and was very impressed. Plusmalli on kuin adrenaliilla pumpattu dacmagic potenssiin 100. Cambridge audio digital dacmagic plus dac silver universal.
I would have guessed that a dac for a pc would totally bypass the pcs sound card, and access the flac file directly. Our dacs are designed to be supported by the windows wdm and mac os built in drivers, however, your dac may work with the linux operating system providing that the suitable usb audio drivers have been installed and your sound manager is configured correctly. From what i can hear, the mimby has a very relax and slightly dark signature to it, having upgraded to the dacmagic plus i find this to be a. I use a rega saturn r and elicit r, but plan to obtain a supernait 3 in the not too distant future. Very pleased with this dac plays up to 192khz files, 24bit, with no difficulties and the headphone amp is very effective bit too good, actually watch out for high volume. Dac, or digital to analogue converter is what takes the ones and zeros of your digital music and turns it into something your speakers or headphones can reproduce.
It is about two digital to analogue converters from cambridge audio the dacmagic plus and the dacmagic 100. I am upgrading my system for the fist time in many many years. Apr 07, 2010 its very obvious when going back to the dac magic that. The cambridge audio dacmagic 100 digitaltoanalogue converter is. I am familiar with the dacmagic, but was recently introduced to the option of the peachtree. A superb highend introduction to the naim sound that. The dac magic acts as da converter and headphone amp. Its not the biggest, toughest, heaviest or mostimpressive looking, but nothing outperforms it sonically.
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