Does the Chord DAVE Improve with a Headphone Amplifier?
Banana!
The only headphone amplifiers I had for this experiment was the Airist Audio Heron 5 and the Moon Neo 430HA. Needless to say, these amps are in different classes but I figured it would be interesting to see how the sound changes when the DAVE line outs to an amp.
Simaudio Moon Neo 430HAD
This amplifier is a superb piece of equipment. It’s a truly a reviewer’s dream (Words of the Godfather Tyll from Innerfidelity). I also felt the internal DAC sounded pretty good and better than Chord Hugo (portable) when lined out with RCA. I love this amp.
Now as far as power, the amp built into the DAVE is sufficient to power the Abyss to ear-splitting levels. I don’t really go past the -10 dB mark. It gets pretty painful. That answers the question “Is the DAVE amp section sufficient to power current thirsty headphones?”
So what are the sonic differences between direct-from-DAC or having an amp in-between? Two things:
- Softness
- Transparency
The softness actually helped me tame that harshness I mentioned previously (which I didn’t get with the Lumin or Berkeley Reference). It actually doesn’t sound bad and smooths out the rhythm a bit. I do notice a thin veil to the overall sound. With direct-to-DAC, there’s literally nothing between your ears and the microphone. Without a direct comparison, you wouldn’t notice this as the 430HAD is so transparent. Speaks volumes on the Moon amp IMO. In any case, direct-to-DAC improves clarity, layering, dynamics, and transparency. Imaging and soundstage sounded similar to my ears.
I have to say, the differences aren’t huge, but it’s there. For high-resolution recordings, the direct-to-DAC was superior…by a fair margin. For studio and synthesized recordings, it’s not as apparent and I could be happy with either.
Airist Audio Heron 5
I heard this amplifier at CanJam and asked Will if he could send me one for evaluation. I’ll conduct a formal review at another time.
With the DAVE feeding the Heron 5, the sound was much softer and a bit veiled. Dynamics weren’t anywhere close to the 430HAD but given the price difference, that may be fitting. The sound was really, really smooth…which wasn’t quite my taste but I could imagine others who may prefer it. As opposed to the Moon comparison, in this scenario, the differences where night & day. The Heron 5 colored the sound but the presence of depth and detail is still there. This allows DAVE owners to really tailor the sound to their own liking without losing the many benefits of the DAVE.
Wells Audio Headtrip Reference
I heard this amp at SoCal Canjam 2016 and I thought it was absolutely spectacular. I probably spent a good half hour listening to it at the show. I preferred it to the Headamp GS-X.
I’m in the middle of arranging a demo of the reference with Jeff Wells (Great guy and one of my favorites in the industry). He does amps right. This page will be updated when that happens.
So far, we know a high-quality digital power cable is essential for the DAVE. Now for the grand finale…is the DAVE truly immune to source? This was by far the most interesting part of project.
Fantastic review! Just wondering what you think about the Mojo and how it stacks up against the other dacs mentioned here. How does it compare to the Dave?
My first few days with Mojo had me shedding tears as well as receiving goosebumps. There were many times when I was listening to artists such as Dean Martin and Elvis and felt as if they were singing into my soul! Does the dave also have Mojo’s euphonic characteristic but a super refined presentation?
Hey Max! Sorry for the late response. IMO the Chord Hugo portable is still technically better than the Mojo but the Mojo is, like you mentioned, euphonic. The DAVE is just plain transparent. It doesn’t color the sound in any way and gives it to you raw. It is the most detailed DAC I’ve ever heard.
I really enjoyed this article, and it was really one of the pieces that directed me to get the DAVE.
However, there is a fatal flaw in your assessments, which has to do with your choice music, inasmuch as introducing recordings that are dynamically limited, compressed, and clipped, one cannot possibly claim a critical listen, no matter the DAC, power cables, interconnects, etc. (which, by the way, is not limited to just your review of the DAVE). The simple fact is, in order to attain what the DAVE is supposed to do, i.e. render the closest one can get to the original analog source, any recording that has been killed by overt digital manipulation in the mastering phase cannot be considered a quality source for deep aural investigation. To wit, here are but a few examples with their corresponding DR values:
Colbie Caillat – Never Gonna Let You Down – DR6
Coldplay – Hymn For The Weekend – DR5
Coldplay – Adventure Of A Lifetime – DR5
Eminem – Love The Way You Lie – DR6
Taylor Swift – Everything Has Changed – DR7
Adele – Can’t Let Go – DR6
Ice Cube – Ask About Me – DR8
Paramore – Crushcrushcrush – DR5
Damien Rice – 9 Crimes – DR6
While you certainly have some dynamic cuts on your roster, even the introduction of one compromised track is akin to walking into a lab with your cleanroom suit, only to unzip your fly and introduce urine into the petri dish. The experiment has been compromised.
I say all of this not to dog you out, but for greater care to be taken with further articles, and how you allow your choice of music to effect the outcome in a less than optimal way, especially since you have a great passion for music, and well-tempered control methods for arriving at your conclusions.
Indeed, most assuredly I do not possess your technical knowledge; nevertheless, I know that there is a quite a difference between the music that I would thump in my ride vs. the songs (and their inherent musical cues) that I would test a series of DACs with. After all, it is about the music, first, and its inherent properties that dictates its qualitative outcome. Anything less than the attempt to get as close to the original source as possible will render a 7K audio cable as useful as a sack llama feces.
Your pal,
The Devil
Hey Nick! My apologies for the late response, been working on a few projects. I really appreciate your feedback and glad you decided on a DAVE. You’re right, unequivocally the choice of music does matter when evaluating audio gear and some of my choices might’ve not been optimal for critical listening. However, after coming up with various methodologies of evaluating gear (including keeping to strictly great/renowned recordings with high dynamic range), I’ve concluded testing audio equipment with music you’re extremely intimate with carries more weight than one would think. This is regardless of whether it was mastered well or not. That said, well-engineered recordings would be preferred and necessary, but you’d be amazed at the audible benefits from what some would consider poor or low DR recordings. It brings more euphony and details to recordings you hold close…and that’s what matters the most.
It’s important to realize high DR is just one attribute of a great recording but I’ve found, even after digging through sites like http://dr.loudness-war.info/, just because a recording has high DR, doesn’t mean it sounds great and would necessarily be advantageous in evaluating and comparing equipment. Some high DR, quieter passages actually sound very similar between the devices but often times with low DR, busier, and high energy recordings, the differences are clearly audible. Even with low DR, poorly produced/compressed albums like Adele’s 21, there’s still merit in evaluating those tracks. Consequently, I’ve found with low DR recordings, you’re able to pick out the minute differences within a narrower area of the spectrum, which allows me to recognize and focus on those frequencies in other recordings.
Musical enjoyment is largely subjective and equipment evaluation is pseudo-objective, I think throwing in a variety of recordings, “audiophile-grade” or not, is healthy for a more holistic impression and evaluation of the equipment. My goal for the DAVE review was to zone into the overarching differences between the various DACs and by listening to all types of recordings, I feel this builds more confidence in my conclusion. I believe this approach enhances rather than compromises the experiment.
That said, if you have any recordings you would like to be included in any future reviews, I’d be glad to check them out 🙂
Jay, you are complelty awesome. I mean that. Your reviews are great, and I will not argue your methods.
It is true; I am a sad soldier, in combat on the front of losing war. Not a voice crying in the wilderness, but one of the few voices, indeed. We will lose this war.
It is equally true that full dynamics do not always sound great, even good, or even listenable. I, however, really feel the push on my eardrums, this claustrphobic headache I get from low DRs, almost – almost – without exception.
It doesn’t matter, though. This is your home and I’m thankful that you’ve invited me in. Now, allow me clean the dirt I tracked in from your carpet.
Don’t be silly, you could wear your shoes into this home anytime. I’m still curious as to which albums/tracks you would like to see in these reviews. I would gladly include them. Who knows, maybe my methodologies need a bit of tweaking and I’m open to that.
You are not alone.
Throw on Elvis’ “Elvis is Back!,” track 2, “Fever.” This is one of my favorite tracks to audition a system with. It’s very, very wide stereo in 1960, and if the system is right the recording should give a real holographic sound coming from the natural reverb in the famed RCA Studio 2, Nashville, TN. Moreover, how smooth does his voice come off? How much ambiance do the drums and cymbals give off as they fade to black? Double bass is hard to capture right. Do you hear the physical construction of the strings on the neck, or is it just notes?
This is an extremely good test track. The Sony Legacy Edition is tops!
For the DAVE we know that depth perception is important, as it offers us a new, deeper, view into the music, one that should be there if properly mic’ed, etc. Anyway, a great window into depth should be just about any track from Pink Floyd’s “The Final Cut” album. It was recorded with the experimental Holophonic System, which really works, especially on cans. Just about any edition would do, especially the 1992 & 1994 masters, although the 1983 and 2004 aren’t bad.
Be sure to turn off the DAVE’s crossfeed for the Floyd album.
That’s all I have for now, as I’m trying to figure out how I’ll get me a short run of Shunyata Alpha Digital Zitron with paying close to a G.
Hello Jay,
I’m thinking of getting myself a killer end-all DAC and DAVE is very much on the radar, of course, I still have to save some before I can afford it, but I’ll get it in 2017 (End of 2016 now)
The review is very indepth but I must ask you this, you have on page 5, a section called Raw Notes, I don’t understand it, you were comparing with Lumin? DAC or what? Because you mention Lumin wins everything pretty much, yes, if you must ask, I read the review a little more in the past though not the whole review, and this time either, so no, sorry, can’t read it all.
I’m currently using a decent system: PC > Auralic Vega > Audio-gd Master 9 > HD800S
If you meant something else by the word Lumin and Chord DAVE is a sure killer then, will the simple change of Auralic Vega to Chord DAVE be a massive improvement or is there something that can be improved even better currently? I know DACs as much as those Audio Atheists sing praise science and DACs don’t affect sound quality, I know that they do very much affect the sound.
Best Regards and I hope you’ll still be able to answer my question in the nearby future even though this article is somewhat old already.
Ignore the question about Lumin – I just re-read you meant Lumin S1 as a streamer, just that you talked about it as a DAC too…
So I guess Chord DAVE is a true winner for people looking for both musicality and detail/soundstage.
Addition of Crossfeed setting feature in a uber high-end DACs is also interesting 🙂
Can I ask you about Chord hugo which I had for more than 1 year .
TO be honest it didn’t sound that good. if you still have it ? what’s your chain looks like from pc>usb > hugo or it’s diff than this ?
this is important for me : if I use W4S Recovery + Teradak Linear PSU with hugo do you think it’s will sound way better than before ?
and please comapre it hugoi TT with the same setup pc >usb>W4S Recovery + Teradak Linear PSU .
Thanks alot
There are plenty of DACs that sound better than the Chord Hugo. Even the internal DAC of the Simaudio Neo 430HAD sounded better. I just think it’s the best portable DAC. Of course, all a matter of preference. I’ll be posting a review of all the USB conditioners (iFi USB3.0, Uptone Regen, W4S Recovery, etc in the next couple of weeks). I’ll also be testing a few Linear PSUs. In short, these USB conditioners will make an enormous difference. I no longer have the Hugo TT but these conditioners would benefit the TT as well. We really under estimate the noise from a PC.
My ideal chain for the Hugo would be a microRendu + Uptone LPS-1 and stream from Roon/Tidal. If you have to use a PC, the iFi USB3.0 looks promising and just pair that will a decent linear PSU.
Hi Jay,
do the DAVE gives full power to the Abyss? Do you know the power (watt) that this DAC gives to the Abyss?
Best regards!!!
Nicola
Hey Nicola! The DAVE supplies more than enough power to the Abyss. I don’t go past -8dB. It’s ear-splitting past that point.