Bricasti Design Model 1 Series II D/A Converter and M5 Network Player Review

I’m not able to be referred to as outdated at 61, however I need to admit I’m making boneheaded errors I presume are related to age. Such was the state of affairs once I referred to as Damon Gramont, Director of Sales and Marketing for Bricasti Design, to debate an issue with the overview unit of the Model 1 Series II DAC (hereafter M1S2). The USB enter was not working, a showstopper contemplating that USB is my major connection for listening to digital audio. Damon was eminently affected person and considerate as I mentioned the state of affairs with him.

Years in the past, Bricasti DACs have been considerably vulnerable to having their USB boards burned out by surges from audiophiles scorching swapping USB cables. The Owner’s Manual states that a pc supply needs to be turned off earlier than the USB cable is connected or modified when linked to a Bricasti DAC. After assembling the primary system with it and placing a number of attractive listening periods underneath my belt, I used to be reconfiguring the system when the mishap occurred. Apparently, USB cables which can be outdoors of regular specs and never shielded could cause injury to a DAC. Bricasti was seeing lots of injury brought on by one significantly in style cable firm’s USB cables, prompting the corporate to replace their USB boards to guard towards it.

It’s not as if I had cavalierly disregarded the Manual’s directions. I turned the M1S2 off fully, on the again energy provide in addition to the entrance Power button. But evidently the USB carries an influence sign from the pc that will nonetheless be current. Damon and I each scratched our heads mentally, and he politely provided that if the USB board was broken the unit must be serviced earlier than continuing with the overview. I had even eliminated, then reinserted, the USB cable to make sure it was seated correctly. It did appear a bit unfastened, a telltale signal that ought to have been definitive proof that my setup was flawed.

Rarely in 14 years of reviewing have I incurred injury to a product on mortgage, and this was a shock. I struggled to suppose how delicate the M1S2 have to be that it may very well be broken by swapping a USB cable whereas the unit is off. Damon advised that I test whether or not the unit would work correctly with a SPDIF connection. I glumly ended the decision and advised him I might test it and report again. I grabbed an applicable digital coaxial cable and scanned the again of the unit for the connection.

That’s once I noticed it.

Before I open myself as much as well-deserved snickering, I want to buffer my confession with an enchantment to age. You see, I had the USB cable within the Ethernet port! How silly! How inept! How extremely unobservant to misplace the cable after which name for assist! But wait, there have been some mitigating circumstances, together with dim lighting (why placed on all of the lights to insert a easy USB cable?), not sporting my glasses (at 61, I’m struggling to confess I want them for superb work), and I used to be brief on sleep, having awoken at 3:30am and drained from a vigorous exercise. Yeah, these are all excuses, the type that at my age I’m not so embarrassed to make use of!

It’s a very good factor I used to be motivated by Damon’s suggestion to strive the SPDIF connection, as a result of it was whereas leaning over and peering into the dimness whereas eradicating the USB that I noticed a sq. port just below the place the USB was plugged in. I knew right away I had dedicated a sin of the aged! Lazy, with unaided sight, in dim mild, assuming I knew the unit higher than I did, it was an ideal storm of overconfidence.

I’m not the one one. The odds are good that when you’ve spent a lot time reconfiguring your rig through the years, you might have skilled a duh second. I’m grateful I didn’t get discouraged and stop, figuring out to ship the unit again for repairs. When I referred to as Damon to share the embarrassing however excellent news, he revealed that 80% of the items which can be despatched again for restore work completely! It seems that many audiophiles discover fantom issues. The ethical of the story is I’ve no proof the USB enter of the M1S2 is vulnerable to USB scorching swapping (however observe the instructions to energy off the pc/server anyway!), that I need to extra gracefully settle for my growing old and limitations, and that you could be wish to decelerate and rethink you probably have missed one thing earlier than returning a wonderfully working element!

In celebration of the joyous decision, I made up my mind to begin my listening with just a few applicable tracks, akin to Avi Kaplan’s “I’m Only Getting Started” and Vanessa Williams’ “Oh, How the Year’s Go By”! Yes, to the youthful listener, it’s geezer music. What can I say?

The energy of an improve cycle

It has been about 5 years since I final labored by digital sources to search out one appropriate for listening and reviewing. During that point, digital merchandise, akin to HiFi servers and built-in streamer and file playback parts akin to preamps, DACs, and amps have been on the ascendancy. It seems the normal preamp, amp, and built-in amp are much less widespread.

Each audiophile wants to find out whether or not they’ll settle for a stagnated rig long run or pursue SOTA (state-of-the-art) sound, with emphasis on the phrase pursue. Sound high quality modifications and SOTA is a transferring goal, because the gear turns into higher with new know-how. From my perspective, the trail towards higher analog sound is just not clear, as there are few measures to make sure that the precise sound is improved. An individual can change a vinyl rig’s plinth, motor, tone arm, cartridge, footers, cables, and nonetheless have little technique of demonstrating that the change was efficacious.

In distinction, digital is measured to dying, with arguments about whether or not a specification is related to the second or third decimal level. Perhaps, lastly, the digital reductionists, the “bits are bits” individuals, who held again many are dropping as extra listeners improve their digital supply and discover out to their shock that servers, streamers, DACs, and cables have huge affect upon the sound high quality. Not solely so, however the panorama of digital sound high quality and merchandise out there is altering so quicky that anybody who doesn’t purposefully sustain is doomed to have antiquated sound inside 5 years.

That is the conclusion I reached about my very own system this previous week. Because I used to be out of contact with newer merchandise and system constructing strategies for digital sources, my digital sound slid away from SOTA additional than I had thought. Not anymore! This overview marks a brand new elevation reached in my digital entrance finish and it got here with the Bricasti M1S2 underneath overview, and somewhat shock tucked in towards the top of this overview. (Hey! No peeking! You don’t wish to wreck the entire overview!)

Comparisons of digital sources have grow to be problematic

The days of a easy comparability of two digital merchandise are receding into the previous. The ease of dropping a disc into two CD gamers or swapping out a devoted DAC for comparability are fading away. In its place is a bailiwick of features, connections, and software program. There are so many built-in parts that use a wide range of consumer interfaces and on-line music sources that it has grow to be virtually not possible to isolate one variable to match. This overview is an instance of that problem. As for the previous 5 years I used a single digital supply, I didn’t have to choose my means by the maze of at present out there streaming digital sources. Now that I’m dealing with a number of streaming sources from totally different producers, I notice that there are a minimum of three important parts to streaming audio that defy simple comparability. Those three parts are the bodily {hardware}, the consumer interface, and the net music supply.

For occasion, how would you evaluate these two digital sources:

Aurender N20 Digital Transport (streamer), USB cable, DAC, such because the COS Engineering D1, Aurender Conductor consumer interface, and Tidal or Qobuz music service.

Bricasti M1S2 DAC with inbuilt Network Player, Audirvāna or Roon consumer interface, and Tidal or Qobuz music service.

The solely variable that probably could be remoted on this occasion is the music service. The variables with every digital supply defy a easy comparability. That is the state of affairs I discover myself in as I’ve been trying to find a brand new digital entrance finish. I reviewed the Aurender A20, which is akin to the Bricasti M1S2 because it incorporates a streamer, DAC, and preamplifier in a single field. I adopted that up with a overview of the Aurender N20, a devoted streamer, arrange as I simply described. In assessing the Bricasti’s capabilities I’ve been switching between the 2 setups described above.

How is a person imagined to arrive at a decent comparability of those merchandise? It is just not doable. All that may be executed is to share impressions of outcomes and talk about the benefits or disadvantages of combos of substances, software program, and music sources. I might take into account suspect anybody who advised they may definitively state which piece of electronics is superior. By the time one provides within the variables of cables and amplification, a lot much less audio system, — and let’s not overlook private preferences — the evaluation has misplaced a lot of its precision. Nevertheless, that’s the activity that audiophiles should try, typically as they store remotely from an internet site, and it’s the activity I’ll try on this article. Suffice to say that until discussing normal ranges of efficiency that come up from collection of low, mid, and high-fidelity gear, what could be mentioned definitively is proscribed.

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May 21, 2024 at 07:51PM