DVD ---> DAC

[Blackdawn]

Hi, has anyone had good results combining a cheap dvd player (playing CD's) with a better external DAC ? (connected to amp/speakers) e.g. is the transport more important than the DAC or vice versa? Will there be much improvement in SQ over the cheap DVD player once a better DAC has been connected? Thanks.

 

[matt49]

Hi, has anyone had good results combining a cheap dvd player (playing CD's) with a better external DAC ? (connected to amp/speakers) e.g. is the transport more important than the DAC or vice versa? Will there be much improvement in SQ over the cheap DVD player once a better DAC has been connected? Thanks.

I haven't done this with DVD player, but with a cheap CD player. The principle's the same. Adding an outboard DAC did make a big difference in my case, though I've since moved to a computer-based system.

It's a contested area. Some people will say all well designed DACs sound more or less the same; others maintain that there are real, discernible SQ differences between DACs. I subscribe to the latter view BUT I'd say it very much depends on the rest of your system. If the amp and speakers are very revealing, differences between DACs will be more apparent, and vice versa.

As for transports, the only thing a transport can do to digital sound is make it worse, whether by adding out-of-band noise or by reading the disk inaccurately. As long as your transport is doing a decent job of reading the disk and isn't creating lots of noise, then IMO there's not much point in spending much money on a transport. IMO it's the DAC that makes the difference.

In other words, a cheap DVD player may well do a perfectly decent job, and if you have (or plan to buy) a revealing amp and speakers an outboard DAC can make a big difference.

:cheers:

Matt

 

[BigH]

I think the main problem with dvd players is loading of discs and noise of transport whilst playing. Some say a dedicated cd player will be better but others disagree. Re DACs I have not found a great deal of difference between them but have not tried any expensive ones.

 

[John Duncan]

I tried it once with an £80 Pioneer DVD player and found it sounded a bit flat, so came to the conclusion that the transport was at fault, since I tried it at the same time with an AEX and a Primare CD player and did not experience this.

Always worth trying it yourself...

 

[mitch65]

Hi, has anyone had good results combining a cheap dvd player (playing CD's) with a better external DAC ? (connected to amp/speakers) e.g. is the transport more important than the DAC or vice versa? Will there be much improvement in SQ over the cheap DVD player once a better DAC has been connected? Thanks.

I haven't done this with DVD player, but with a cheap CD player. The principle's the same. Adding an outboard DAC did make a big difference in my case, though I've since moved to a computer-based system.

It's a contested area. Some people will say all well designed DACs sound more or less the same; others maintain that there are real, discernible SQ differences between DACs. I subscribe to the latter view BUT I'd say it very much depends on the rest of your system. If the amp and speakers are very revealing, differences between DACs will be more apparent, and vice versa.

As for transports, the only thing a transport can do to digital sound is make it worse, whether by adding out-of-band noise or by reading the disk inaccurately. As long as your transport is doing a decent job of reading the disk and isn't creating lots of noise, then IMO there's not much point in spending much money on a transport. IMO it's the DAC that makes the difference.

In other words, a cheap DVD player may well do a perfectly decent job, and if you have (or plan to buy) a revealing amp and speakers an outboard DAC can make a big difference.

:cheers:

Matt

Matt, that mirrors my take on DAC and transports, I've noticed differences (whether better or worse) with every DAC I've tried.