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HollowState
198
Sep 19, 2017
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From the Massdrop description: " Upgraded with the latest Sabre DAC ES9028Q2M ..." It is unclear whether the intent is to say the "Q2M" is the latest, or the latest Sabre DAC was the ES9028 series. I'm guessing most know that the ES9028 series is not the latest. In fact, I'm hoping to see a relatively inexpensive implementation of Sabre's ES9038 DAC. "Relatively" because the current ES9038 DACs range between $1000 and $9000...going by reports dating back a couple weeks to a month. It appears that this particular chip will never be as cheaply priced as other Sabre DACs, because this chip requires more supporting circuitry. At any rate, I for one would really like to spend a bit of time auditioning the new ES9038. Massdrop? Are you listening?
John57
2
Sep 19, 2017
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HollowStateThe ES9038 has the equivalency of eight 9028s in parallel. Unless there is a need for eight channels the performance of the ES9038 is wasted in a stereo setup. The ES9038 chip is not cheap either about $105 from one source.
HollowState
198
Sep 19, 2017
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John57Hi! It is difficult to describe DACs due to their structure. Upon a single "chip" are both the actual digital-to-audio conversion and certain interfaces for downstream circuitry. As a result, I think we may be speaking at cross purposes. For instance, the ES9018 and ES9028 both support 8 channels. That isn't much, because sonic purity requires a pair of "converters" for each function of the finished product using on-chip interfaces for the "cleanest"sound. If you are offering connections for, say, both balanced and SE outputs, you are using different "channels" for each. When you start looking at things like differing output protocols (DSD, etc) the channels get gobbled up pretty quickly. The alternative would be additional extra-chip circuitry which would introduce sound degrading elements. So, when you talk about the ES9038 being equal to 8 ES9028s, it would seem to be rather easy to use up alt those channels in high quality Oppo and Ayre DACs. I understand that being able to accommodate multiple streaming protocols is high demand; ie. using a lot of channels. The actual ES9038 chip is a real brute in that it has a lot of capability in the on-chip interfaces. One example would be the multiple on-board digital volume controls.
I'm not trying to be argumentative. I don't even know much about DACs, at all. I'm just trying to convey what I've read from product developers and modders.
I'm not trying to be argumentative. I don't even know much about DACs, at all. I'm just trying to convey what I've read from product developers and modders.
HollowState
198
Oct 14, 2017
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FrogmeatThanks for the link, it does look interesting. I hadn't seen that particular post before, although some of what I had learned previously came from earlier posts on that site.
Triplefun
3
Dec 12, 2017
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HollowStateHifimediy have a es9038 DAC but no mention of DSD. See https://hifimediy.com/DACs/ready-made-dacs/UX1-dac. More interesting see the Sabaj da3 with 2 es9018q2c, xMOS xcore200xu208 for dsd512 support, usb powered, and balanced output for $100 from aliexpress.
HollowState
198
Dec 13, 2017
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TriplefunThanks for the heads up, but your link is to a ES9023 DAC - an interesting one none the less. The SPDIF input and output modes are unique for a $70 DAC. Pretty hard to find something as useful, particularly for sampling. Further reading on the site indicates that the ES9038 Pro DAC is still a bit away. There is no final specification for that DAC, but from what I have read, it still interests me.
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