New MSB Cascade DAC

[Solecky]

Sadly, I’ve been away and haven’t had a chance to seriously sit down and listen. Hopefully this weekend or next.

Any updated impressions on the cascade?

 

[Brucemck2]

It’s a really nice DAC. Great “solidity and stability” without being artificially illuminated (which gets confused for solidity like too much contrast or an incorrect black point in a photograph). Precise but at the same time not fatigue inducing. I’m spending more time enjoying the music than I am critiquing the DAC, which is new for me.

I’m feeding it with an Antipodes via both USB and AES

 

[Solecky]

It’s a really nice DAC. Great “solidity and stability” without being artificially illuminated (which gets confused for solidity like too much contrast or an incorrect black point in a photograph). Precise but at the same time not fatigue inducing. I’m spending more time enjoying the music than I am critiquing the DAC, which is new for me.

I’m feeding it with an Antipodes via both USB and AES

Thx!

 

[gleeds]

Thank you for the welcome! I appreciate the response.

I do wish Chord would include a USB output on their upcoming higher-end upscaler, but that doesn’t seem to be present on the prototype they showed at Munich. I agree, they’d almost definitely sell many more units if they did make an effort to make them more compatible with other DACs. Looks like there are a few pro DACs that’ve used dual-AES in the past in addition to the Chord and dCS upscalers and DACs, but between Chord and dCS for outboard upscalers and a few pro companies for PCIe transports, there certainly aren’t enough devices out there for a dedicated input module to make business sense. I could probably fashion a solution together with one of these pro PCIe transports just to satisfy my curiosity.

I’m a huge car guy, and I’ll be at Concours d'Elegance if I can make it. I appreciate the invite, and I’d love to stop by! If not me, someone from my team will definitely be there.

Jameson. Welcome to WBF!

It's a great forum; having you as a knowledgeable contributor will be a positive.

Gary Leeds

 

[rau]

I have been using the Cascade over a week now , I look forward to listening most every night to this incredible DAC . I'm sure it will continue to better in the next couple weeks .

 

[itay123]

My next project !

Amazing.

 

[Cincy2]

I have been using the Cascade over a week now , I look forward to listening most every night to this incredible DAC . I'm sure it will continue to better in the next couple weeks .

I found that my Cascade burn in took over a month before the unit showed all that it could do. Paired with a Pink Faun Dual Ultra Server, the presentation is sublime. They are a good pair.

Cincy

 

[Daniel Francis]

I have been using the Cascade over a week now , I look forward to listening most every night to this incredible DAC . I'm sure it will continue to better in the next couple weeks .

Congrats on the new DAC @rau !

 

[rau]

I found that my Cascade burn in took over a month before the unit showed all that it could do. Paired with a Pink Faun Dual Ultra Server, the presentation is sublime. They are a good pair.

Cincy

I have tried a few diffrent music servers and always went back to my LDMS , rock solid excellent support and great value .

 

[earlinarizona]

Looking forward to many of the new Cascade owners posting the differences of the New Cascade. Surprised at the limited number and hope more will post lengthy detailed reviews, especially with the new Taiko card.

 

[battles]

I’ve had the Cascade in my system for a couple of months and have been thrilled with its contribution/enhancement to my system. I previously owned the Select II, and while the sound signature is similar, it brings more of everything…dynamics, detail, texture, insightfulness, nuance, low sound floor, imaging, bass control, etc. It’s only inhibitor is recording quality. For the best recordings, I’ve never been so close the artist and in the recording venue. For poor recordings, it’s very honest; in fact, you may hear imperfections in tracks that you thought were excellent or worthy of being reference recordings in the past. And as a preamp, it’s wonderful. It has many inputs and has noticeably improved the sound quality of my analog sources. I also love its nondescript form factor. Mine is in stealth black finish and fades into the black backdrop of the listening background. For me, this is important, as I do not care for component chassis that call attention to themselves with glowing LEDs, bright screens, or unusual designs. A few other things I enjoy about the Cascade is the ability to physically separate the Digital Director chassis from the DAC and power base chassis that affords greater isolation and/or less component clutter in the listening room. And would agree that it does take the Cascade a month+ to sound its best.

In sum, if you enjoyed the Select II and MSB’s house sound – honest, organic, natural, analog, detailed, precise, unveiled, dynamic, non-fatiguing, insightful, etc.– the Cascade brings more of it, and IMO is worthy upgrade over the Select II. I have no regrets and am thrilled with my decision to upgrade.

 

[rau]

I have the AES/EBU module on order from dealer , Im using the SPDIF till then with Cascade clock and I perfer that to the Pro USB .

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...very tidy set-up, @rau
Well done, sir.

 

[Jeffy]

I’ve had the Cascade in my system for a couple of months and have been thrilled with its contribution/enhancement to my system. I previously owned the Select II, and while the sound signature is similar, it brings more of everything…dynamics, detail, texture, insightfulness, nuance, low sound floor, imaging, bass control, etc. It’s only inhibitor is recording quality. For the best recordings, I’ve never been so close the artist and in the recording venue. For poor recordings, it’s very honest; in fact, you may hear imperfections in tracks that you thought were excellent or worthy of being reference recordings in the past. And as a preamp, it’s wonderful. It has many inputs and has noticeably improved the sound quality of my analog sources. I also love its nondescript form factor. Mine is in stealth black finish and fades into the black backdrop of the listening background. For me, this is important, as I do not care for component chassis that call attention to themselves with glowing LEDs, bright screens, or unusual designs. A few other things I enjoy about the Cascade is the ability to physically separate the Digital Director chassis from the DAC and power base chassis that affords greater isolation and/or less component clutter in the listening room. And would agree that it does take the Cascade a month+ to sound its best.

In sum, if you enjoyed the Select II and MSB’s house sound – honest, organic, natural, analog, detailed, precise, unveiled, dynamic, non-fatiguing, insightful, etc.– the Cascade brings more of it, and IMO is worthy upgrade over the Select II. I have no regrets and am thrilled with my decision to upgrade.

Did you have the director with the select 2?

 

[mxk116]

I have the AES/EBU module on order from dealer , Im using the SPDIF till then with Cascade clock and I perfer that to the Pro USB .

Which Aurender is that? How does the Lampizator "stack up" v. the Cascade?

 

[rau]

Which Aurender is that? How does the Lampizator "stack up" v. the Cascade?

Aurender N30 Lampizator Horizon 360 vs Cascade I can't answer that honestly right now need more time . I like certain things about each . Also I want to try AES/EBU on both

 

[mxk116]

Aurender N30 Lampizator Horizon 360 vs Cascade I can't answer that honestly right now need more time . I like certain things about each . Also I want to try AES/EBU on both

Thank you. A couple of stunningly good DACs. Should be a fascinating comparison. Enjoy your time with both.

 

[battles]

Did you have the director with the select 2?

I did not

 

[battles]

FWIW, I’ve extensively compared the Pro USB/ISL vs the AES/EBU + Word Clock (where the Cascade Clock was set to master) with my N30SA, and I cannot discern a difference in sound quality. The cables used in this comparison are a Gobel Reference USB cable and Synergistic Research’s reference AES/EBU and Word Clock cables. Believe MSB went to lengths when designing the Cascade DD to equalize the sound quality of the interface input modules. The only input that underperforms to my ear is the Renderer V2, however, that may be a Roon vs hardware issue.

 

[rau]

FWIW, I’ve extensively compared the Pro USB/ISL vs the AES/EBU + Word Clock (where the Cascade Clock was set to master) with my N30SA, and I cannot discern a difference in sound quality. The cables used in this comparison are a Gobel Reference USB cable and Synergistic Research’s reference AES/EBU and Word Clock cables. Believe MSB went to lengths when designing the Cascade DD to equalize the sound quality of the interface input modules. The only input that underperforms to my ear is the Renderer V2, however, that may be a Roon vs hardware issue.

On my setup even SPDIF and Cascade Clock was a clear positive improvement. I also have the new I2S module that I hope to try one day