Lampizator Horizon v. dCS Vivaldi Apex Listening Comparison
- Thread starter pk_LA
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The high-end language can be hyperbolic, it has been so for decades. Readers in an high-end forum should be able to read and interpret it, particularly those who know this particular type of music. I think that they will easily understand my terms.
I was not reviewing the DAC. Just giving an example how different two excellent DACs can sound in a system.
My post was an answer to Ron and referred to fast comparisons (one seession, a few specific recordings) , not to you. But if you have the same extremely negative opinion on the Apex that Ron reported, I do not see the point in keeping the dCS as a reference.
I do the same as you - I buy gear and keep it for some time in order to get a proper opinion on it after long auditions and a significant time. If it is not my preferred I get rid of it, or at less I try.
To be true, I still do not know about your musical and sound type preferences. My fault, I apologize for it.
Guys i suggest we should change the terminology so not to hurt the feelings of any DAC on the market .
Apparently they are quit sensitive .
All DACs deserve a place on the market,none is to be excluded
Apparently they are quit sensitive .
All DACs deserve a place on the market,none is to be excluded
Pleased to know you got rid of the Wilsons and kept the stats
Allow me to clarify please. The dCS Vivaldi Apex is a fantastic dac. It does everything well. Truly. And, it is a huge improvement from the prior Vivaldi. The aforementioned is, in part, why it makes a great reference against which to judge others. I do not in any way find it 'bad' or 'poor'.
That said, there are things that some dacs do better imo and to my ears in my system.
I was not pleased to let them go - I really liked the Wilson XLFs. But for my new space I will need a different type of speaker. The real proof of the sound quality of the XLFs is that all my audiophile friends who used to listen to them regret not being able to listen to them anymore. I could get a local buyer just because of their sound quality in my system.
I stand by my previously posted comments. But "extremely negative opinion" is your (mis)characterization of my comments. That is not my opinion.
I do not have an "extremely negative opinion" of the dSC Vivaldi Apex.
I guess the egos of some owners are quite sensitive. DACs don't have feelings, but this was funny.
Happy to know.
Something that can be easily expected. What matters is our ears and system, not other people ears.
Surely it is your opinion, that I respect. I copy some of your words from your last post referring to the Apex.
"synthetic and unnaturally edgy"
" unnatural and silvery."
"made this lively track sound clinical and unengaging."
OK, I withdraw the "extremely" - lets us say only "negative" to avoid the subjective hyperbole. I reacted so because I listened to the tracks you referred and what I listen in my system is the opposite you refer. In fact, influenced by your old posts, I have used the Jeff Buckley "Grace" to demo the XLF.
It would be great if you would provide a link to posts you refer to. Here it is, #76.
As for, quoting from the post:
"On Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah" on Grace the attention-grabbing guitar pluck in the beginning of the song sounded synthetic and unnaturally edgy on the Apex.",
this could also be the server. I have heard comparisons of server configurations that did make the difference between a synthetic and a natural guitar sound, with signal fed into the very same DAC in each case. And different DACs might exhibit different sensitivities to the issue, making DAC comparisons under such potentially sub-optimal circumstances unfair.
As I said, I am at a point where I hardly trust any comparisons that I read on WBF or elsewhere, I have to hear things for myself (and don't get me started on ridiculous impressions from shows where things are rarely even close to optimal). Just this weekend I heard how suboptimal streaming could ruin DAC sound, and a simple CD transport beat it all, and by a rather large margin (even without optimization by a reclocker as I am using).
Two thoughts...
1) If such comparisons are "sub-optimal" and "unfair" then why read threads such as this?
2) I am still anxiously awaiting a better approach...I do find it funny that people here discuss sound from components at shows which are on different systems in different rooms playing different music. And, yet they are quick to negate listening to the components in the same systems with the same music in the same room.
Mike, I am sure you have identified a subset correctly. It works the other way too...some can go around a show and say Wadax is the best dac...I mean what can go wrong...they will get in to the in crowd. After all, Mike Lavigne has endorsed it in his portfolio, Roy Gregory has written about it, it is the highest price, so the safest way to pretend one is golden eared is to say Wadax is the best despite having heard it only at a show
The same goes for lower priced products. There are those who will shun lower priced products because they are lower priced, and some will pretend to be giant-killer finders.
The same attitude is for reviewers, i.e. he is saying that because he is just a reviewer (enter all Caesar quotes) or wow even so and so reviewer endorsed it.
At the end there are subsets for all it is for the reader to decide who is really listening and evaluating for the sonic differences and presenting them accordingly. There is a reason some people are trusted and some are not and that has nothing to do with the price of the components or anything like that.
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I guess it must be a Portugal thing then. Just trying to understand why. I looked on bachtrack which lists all classical concerts anywhere, and it shows 2 classical concerts this year in the country of Portugal.
Your approach is certainly vastly superior to the alternatives that you listed, so I commend you for that.
Maybe your server configuration is fantastic, who knows? I hope it is. Regardless, even if that is the case, comparisons are also dependent on system context, as I pointed out in an earlier post.
Why do I read such threads? Entertainment value, for one thing. And it's still really interesting to read about diverse opinions. I just don't take them at face value.
In any case, I appreciate the reports.
PS: And no, I am not the biggest fan of dCS gear (even though I heard some fantastic sounds from it) and I don't own it, so I have no fish to fry here. I am just, in all fairness, trying to point out caveats.
We are fortunate to have a relatively vast offer, considering the context. Bachtrack simply, and ironically, doesn't track it.
quick links
Música & Festivais - Clássica
Cada vez somos mais : Teatro, Música, Cinema, Dança, Desporto, Exposição, Família
www.bol.pt
Orquestra do Algarve - A Sua Orquestra ao Sul
Orquestra do Algarve: há mais de 20 anos a promover a música clássica nas regiões sul de Portugal. Descubra os nossos concertos!
We are fortunate to have a relatively vast offer, considering the context. Bachtrack simply, and ironically, doesn't track it.
quick links
Música & Festivais - Clássica
Cada vez somos mais : Teatro, Música, Cinema, Dança, Desporto, Exposição, FamíliaOrquestra do Algarve - A Sua Orquestra ao Sul
Orquestra do Algarve: há mais de 20 anos a promover a música clássica nas regiões sul de Portugal. Descubra os nossos concertos!www.orquestradoalgarve.com
Thanks, appreciate the info. I knew that Portugal is a country of culture!
Portugal, that it may be, but it has a lot to answer for to the world as it is the country of my birth. Porto, in the north actually. And the HiFi scene over there is buzzin' as kids today would say.
But now I digress, I just popped open bottles of Vinho Verde and am preparing Porco Alentejana and Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá. Honestly now, audiophiles have to eat at some point.
And I just set up tonight's playlist:
Anna Moura • David Fonseca • Mariza • Rira Redshoes (Pereira)
Devo partir, pois estou com fome e meus convidados estão inquietos. Adeus e boa noite.
But now I digress, I just popped open bottles of Vinho Verde and am preparing Porco Alentejana and Bacalhau à Gomes de Sá. Honestly now, audiophiles have to eat at some point.
And I just set up tonight's playlist:
Anna Moura • David Fonseca • Mariza • Rira Redshoes (Pereira)
Devo partir, pois estou com fome e meus convidados estão inquietos. Adeus e boa noite.
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