Ayre recently released their fourteenth upgrade to the QB-9 model, the "P" revision, which they called "Twenty." The update includes the following changes, and costs $1.500,00:
Diamond output circuit improves musicality and bass response.
A new JFET differential stage lowers the noise floor.
AyreLock power supply regulation for better rendering of fine musical detail.
New AC noise filtering for improved resolution.
Custom Ayre Asynchronous USB technology further reducing electrical noise in the system.
New ESS DAC chip for improved signal to noise ratio and spacial detail.
Six layer board design for optimal circuit isolation.
Proprietary reclocking to eliminate USB domain jitter.
PCM play back up to 384 kHz
Native DSD capability up to DSD256 (4x)
HDCD decoding
There are a lot of very positive feebacks about the update, including three very interesting comments from Ryan Berry, Ayre's President:
"Everyone will hear systems differently, and I would say that any Ayre product has similarities between the lines that has always been present, just as any manufacturer tends to, of course. That said, I'd be pretty surprised if anyone found the QX-5 Twenty and the QB-9 DSD as only sounding slightly different from one another. The QX-5 Twenty has always been on its own level in clarity to us at Ayre, and I would have a hard time thinking anyone that spent some time with the two systems wouldn't hear it in short order. Obviously, the QX-5 also boasts more ways to use the product, including as a streamer, but the QB-9 DSD and the QX-5 Twenty are really fundamentally different. While the QB-9 Twenty is a closer move toward what the QX-5 Twenty contains, they are still quite separated in a side-by-side comparison to my ears. There's simply components in the QX-5 Twenty that would have blown the budget of the QB-9 Twenty upgrade that would have made it not feasible (not to mention figuring out how to fit everything inside the QB-9 box!) Where to draw the line is something we always tend to struggle with in a new design...it's always "just one more thing" that we want to add until we end up with something that has every bell and whistle that we can dream up and have to start over again, but the QB-9 had a lot of the groundwork already done after having just designed the QX-8".
"I would agree with that, Felipe. The QB-9 DSD was essentially the same circuit as the DX-5 DSD without the video or transport circuits. Without this extra circuitry, I'd argue that the QB-9 DSD is probably better than the DX-5 as a straight USB DAC. As such, I'd consider the QB-9 Twenty pretty universally superior to the DX-5 DSD at this point".
"These two products [QB-9 and QX-8] are the closest to one another. Obviously the QX-8 is more than a USB DAC with its various inputs and streamer option, but many elements of the QX-8 went into the QB-9 Twenty design. The QB-9 Twenty CURRENTLY sports the latest USB section which we know sounds superior to our previous design. That makes a side-by-side a bit difficult right now, but I'd expect this to change before long".
Has anyone here tried this new DAC? What are the impressions? Was it possible to compare it with other equipment? In 2020 I will make the purchase, but only based on the reports of colleagues. That's why they are so important.
Regards from Brazil.
Diamond output circuit improves musicality and bass response.
A new JFET differential stage lowers the noise floor.
AyreLock power supply regulation for better rendering of fine musical detail.
New AC noise filtering for improved resolution.
Custom Ayre Asynchronous USB technology further reducing electrical noise in the system.
New ESS DAC chip for improved signal to noise ratio and spacial detail.
Six layer board design for optimal circuit isolation.
Proprietary reclocking to eliminate USB domain jitter.
PCM play back up to 384 kHz
Native DSD capability up to DSD256 (4x)
HDCD decoding
There are a lot of very positive feebacks about the update, including three very interesting comments from Ryan Berry, Ayre's President:
"Everyone will hear systems differently, and I would say that any Ayre product has similarities between the lines that has always been present, just as any manufacturer tends to, of course. That said, I'd be pretty surprised if anyone found the QX-5 Twenty and the QB-9 DSD as only sounding slightly different from one another. The QX-5 Twenty has always been on its own level in clarity to us at Ayre, and I would have a hard time thinking anyone that spent some time with the two systems wouldn't hear it in short order. Obviously, the QX-5 also boasts more ways to use the product, including as a streamer, but the QB-9 DSD and the QX-5 Twenty are really fundamentally different. While the QB-9 Twenty is a closer move toward what the QX-5 Twenty contains, they are still quite separated in a side-by-side comparison to my ears. There's simply components in the QX-5 Twenty that would have blown the budget of the QB-9 Twenty upgrade that would have made it not feasible (not to mention figuring out how to fit everything inside the QB-9 box!) Where to draw the line is something we always tend to struggle with in a new design...it's always "just one more thing" that we want to add until we end up with something that has every bell and whistle that we can dream up and have to start over again, but the QB-9 had a lot of the groundwork already done after having just designed the QX-8".
"I would agree with that, Felipe. The QB-9 DSD was essentially the same circuit as the DX-5 DSD without the video or transport circuits. Without this extra circuitry, I'd argue that the QB-9 DSD is probably better than the DX-5 as a straight USB DAC. As such, I'd consider the QB-9 Twenty pretty universally superior to the DX-5 DSD at this point".
"These two products [QB-9 and QX-8] are the closest to one another. Obviously the QX-8 is more than a USB DAC with its various inputs and streamer option, but many elements of the QX-8 went into the QB-9 Twenty design. The QB-9 Twenty CURRENTLY sports the latest USB section which we know sounds superior to our previous design. That makes a side-by-side a bit difficult right now, but I'd expect this to change before long".
Has anyone here tried this new DAC? What are the impressions? Was it possible to compare it with other equipment? In 2020 I will make the purchase, but only based on the reports of colleagues. That's why they are so important.
Regards from Brazil.
