Rega DAC or Audiolab DAC with Rega Brio-R

[jcarruthers]

I have recently bought a Rega Brio-R to go with my B&W 602 S3 and Pro-Ject RPM 1.3 — so far I love how entertaining it is compared with my old NAD C320.

I have been using a Music Fidelity V-DAC and an AppleTV to stream music which seems fairly decent — but want to explore upgrading to something better as I feel the amp has added something to digital — it has clawed back something of what the vinyl gives me.

The obvious choice is the Rega DAC as it should match the amp — and I cannot get away that visually it'll work well.

The Audiolab DAC seems like a good choice too — slightly more expensive but seems to have better connectivity using USB — which I have started to use now.

I will probably get my old NAD 520 CD player out of the loft and try using that as a source via the DAC too as I have big CD collection that hasn't been used for years and may get a new lease of life via a decent DAC.

Opinions please 🙂

 

[bluedroog]

Similar quality, slightly different presentation. There isn't much in it but the Rega a tad warmer and perhaps favoured by fans of analogue, the M-dac excels at detail, some may find it more fatiguing. Try them both and see which works better in your system. Personally I think I'd favour the Audiolab based on an excellent feature set.

 

[plastic penguin]

Had the Rega on home dem and it's very good indeed. However, I found that speaker/room size gave it a little bloated sound to the bass on certain tracks.

You'll need to hear both at home before parting with your money.

 

[jcarruthers]

Thanks for your views.

Auditioning them sounds like the right way.

I have a gut feeling that maybe the MDAC will pair nicely with the musicality of the Brio-R.

 

[Mutsu]

Near the start of my hifi journy I bought myself a Brio-R and loved it compared to what else I had heard so far.

I was seeking more detail from my system, so home auditioned the Rega DAC. It was a definate step up from my previous DAC, but the lack of features compared to the MDAC made me want to hear that also.

Initially I found it difficult to decide which DAC I preferred. So asked for a demo of the 2 dacs with different amps in store. I was shocked to find that I hated both the Rega Dac and Brio-R compared to everything else I heard. The Rega gear to my ears changed the nature of the music too much.

I ended up taking home the MDAC and an 8200P. Later I found out the MDAC was brand new for the home demo and that the sound changes significantly are the caps are burned in, and I tend to agree here. The sound opened up a lot more over the course of a week.

I've replaced my speakers since, and I think I'm now at the point of audio nirvana for my budget 🙂

 

[jcarruthers]

Thanks for the views.

From having heard an Audiolab amp and aligned with reviews I've read it sounds like it suits your ears.

I have to say that I know what you mean about colouring the sound. I've found that has mellowed since I've owned it — and for sure you need to leave the amp on. From cold it takes a couple of hours to bed in — at least that's my feeling.

A worry about demoing it at a shop — perhaps I should ask them to plug it in before I get there.

 

[jcarruthers]

Thanks for the views.

From having heard an Audiolab amp and aligned with reviews I've read it sounds like it suits your ears.

I have to say that I know what you mean about colouring the sound. I've found that has mellowed since I've owned it — and for sure you need to leave the amp on. From cold it takes a couple of hours to bed in — at least that's my feeling.

A worry about demoing it at a shop — perhaps I should ask them to plug it in before I get there.