出美国原装BEL CANTO DAC1 24/96K 升频解码 [复制链接]

Bel Cant DAC1 24/96K D/A 译码器 测试报告
作者 : 徐志伟

Bel Cant DAC1 24bit/96KHz 译码器(以下简称DAC1)笔者已使用了三个多月 ,  直接从美国厂方购得 , 当时该产品正找寻代理 ,笔者在完全没有试音,没有看过实物的情况 , 只从浏览网上杂志 Sound Stage时 , 发现 Bel Cant Design出了一部可将 16bit/44.1KHz CD数码输入提升至 24bit/96KHz 输出的译码器 , 实时登入 Bel Cant Design 的网站观看, 发觉价钱不贵 定价 US$2,000 特价 US$1295  及有10天试用保证 , 本来笔者正想购买 24/96K译码器Assemblage DAC-3.0 , 但当知到有DAC1后 , 笔者便改变原意 , 购卖DAC1 .

可能是世上第一部内置提升取样频率变换器的D/A译码器
       市面上装有 24bit/96KHz DAC芯片的译码器 , 一定要接上设有24bit/96KHz数码输出的DVD-Video , 回放小部份采用24bit/96kHz 两声道PCM录音DVD音乐碟时 , 才能发挥其优异特性 ,若果回放 CD , 新一代 24bit/96KHz DAC芯片的译码器便无用武之地 , 效果与旧一代译码器分别不大 .
以下是一般 24bit/96KHz译码器回放 24bit/96KHzDVD音乐碟的流程图:[ DVD音乐24bit/96KHz碟] -> [设有24bit/96KHz数码输出的DVD-Video机] -> [装有 24bit/96KHz DAC芯片的译码器] --> = 输出具 24bit/96KHz (* 频率响应 : 0 ~ 40KHz)的Analog讯号 *普通CD为 16bit/44KHzHz(频率响应 : 0 ~ 20KHz)
若果想将普通CD提升至 24bit/96KHz(频率响应 : 0 ~ 40KHz)质素 , 在DAC1出现之前 , 必需使用独立的取样频率提升变频器.
以下是使用取样频率提升变频器的流程图:[普通CD(16bit/44kHz)] --> [CD机 /转盆] --> 16bit/44KHz数码输出 --> [取样频率提升变频器] -->24bit/96KHz数码输出 --> [装有 24bit/96K DAC芯片的译码器] --> = 输出具 24bit/96KHz (频率响应 : 0 ~ 40KHz)的Analog讯号现在市面上巳有几款 , 取样频率提升变频器应市 , 例如:顶级的 dCS 972 (HK$55000元) , 中级的 Z-Systems Z-3src(约HK$1万多元) .
DAC1出现之后 , 想在普通CD回放中 , 得到 24bit/96KHz( 频率响应 : 0 ~ 40KHz)质素 , 将变得简单 , 及成本大大降低.
DAC1的工作流程图如下:[普通CD(16bit/44kHz)] --> [CD机 /转盆] --> 16bit/44KHz数码输出 -->[DAC1内置取样频率提升变频器和24bit/96K DAC芯片的译码器] --> = 输出具 24bit/96K (频率响应 : 0 ~ 48KHz)的Analog讯号.笔者认为DAC1是现在新数码时代中最低用的D/A译码器


DAC1内部结构 , 简单直接而精密 , 上层为主板 ,下层为电源部份 . 电源使用两个变压器 , 独立供应 "Digital"及"Analog"部份 , 再用两条 Kimber Kable 连接主基板 , 在主板上你会看到本机心脏芯片Grystal CS8420取样频率提升芯片 , 负责将16bit/44KHz数码讯号提升为 24bit/96KHz ,  96KHz 数码滤波器为Burr Brown DF1704 ,DAC Multi bit译码芯片为 Burr Brown PCM1704 24bit/96KHz . Analog 部份使用 Burr Brown OPA627A 和OPA2134PA  , 另外更使用十多枚昂贵而好声的Caddock电阻 . 厂方宣称大幅将以下三种译码器经常发生的失真和误差减至最低 : 1)DAC时钟的时间性 Jitter  2)EMI电磁干扰  3)数码 -> 仿真转换过程出现的量子化噪音 .同时, 具有缓慢滚降的48KHz数码滤波线路 , 完全消除传统砖墙滤波器(在 22KHz剧烈衰减100dB)在时间领域引起的扭曲

  为了使测试更为客观 , 及令读者更容易理解试听结果 ,特别借来一部 PS Audio UltraLink 2 来比较 , 为什么用UltraLink 2 作比较呢 ? 因为 , UltraLink 2 价位与 DAC1 差不多 , 约二万元 , 而且相信很多朋友也亲耳听过其表现 ,在A/B比较下试听了多张CD , 包括 :

RCA 09026-61795 Beethoven Symphony No9 Fritz Reiner .Chicago Symphony
Philips 416 821-2 Tchaikovsky.Sibelius.Violin ConcertosMullova.Boston Symphony Orchestra.Ozawa
Decca 417 459-2 Schubertrout Quintet/Death and The Maiden Curzon/Wiener Oktett
RCA 09026-61503-2 Rhapsodies- Liszt.Enesco.Wagner.Smetana STOKOWKI
JVC VDP-5182 Salena Jones
EMI CDC 5 55026 2 9     Sarah ChangPaganini: Concerto NO.1 IN D
Polydor 817 143-2  邓丽君15周年
点将唱片 DJCD-96108  民歌蔡琴
DAC1明显比 UltraLink 2 ,通透得多,最要命的是DAC1完全听不到有数码声 , 润滑柔美 , 但不失生猛活泼 ,结像力强 , 而UltraLink 2有明显的数码声 , 音色较为呆板 , 中高频有少许哑暗及干 , 结像较大 . 回放一些十多二十件乐器的音乐 , DAC1的表现起码高 UltraLinK 2 几班 .  DAC1的表现令我很难相信是出自一部一万元的译码器 , 如果是一年多前起码要三万多元的译码器 , 才有相同效果 ,至于 UltraLink 2 是否一无是处呢 , 这又未必 ,  UltraLink 2 始终也是一部二万多元的译码器 , 由于具有较强的电源供应 , 在回放极为爆棚的乐段时较为稳定及强劲(一般十几二十分钟的交晌乐可能只有十多秒大爆棚).

总结
DAC1 全频丰满厚润 , 感情丰富 , 结像力强 , 空气感接近 LP级数 (旧一代和没有提升取样频率的24bit/96KHz译码器很难做到 , 除非是五 , 六万元以上的顶级译码器),而其较弱一面是冲击力和爆炸力 , 相信是其电源供应的暇疵 , 厂方增值电源供应 改进其冲击力和爆炸力 , 音效更为完美 ! 研究室正在开会 , 如何用最少资源改善暇疵 , 一有结果笔者会第一时间通告 .

看样,好象电脑解码!

帮顶!

谢谢!!很好声的.

重在内涵

好东西，成色不错。声音很有模拟味。帮顶

PM了,诚意请来电13661671626

顶了

PM最低价,谢谢!

顶顶顶

Bel Canto Design DAC 1 D/A processor

Robert Deutsch


It's hard to know what the best strategy is for digital upgrades. Maybe you bought your first CD player when you became convinced that the format was going to succeed, and it seemed that players were about as good as they were going to get. Some time later, you tried one of the new outboard digital processors, and the sonic improvement was such that you just had to have it. Then you replaced the player itself with a CD transport, so you could benefit from improvements in servo control and digital output circuitry. At this point you were generally happy with your digital front-end—until you read about how 16-bit DACs (which is what your processor had) were old hat now that 20-bit DACs were available. But alas, your processor couldn't be upgraded, and was worth maybe 30% of what you'd paid for it. So you took a loss and bought a new-generation digital processor, and things were fine and dandy...for a while.



Now the rallying cry is "24-bit/96kHz!" It's possible to spend several thousand dollars on a digital processor that could become obsolete as rapidly as do today's cutting-edge computers. SACD and DVD-Audio are about to duke it out in the marketplace, and it's too soon to predict how this epic fight will turn out. The CD will likely continue as the dominant format for at least the next few years, so it makes sense to have your CD playback optimized. You'd like your CD playback equipment to be as up to date as possible, but you'd also like to stay in the moderate price range, so you won't lose too much in the inevitable next round of obsolescence.

The Bel Canto DAC 1 was designed for people like you.

Description & Design
If what you're looking for is a piece of equipment that will impress your audiophile friends with its milled-from-solid titanium case and array of flashing lights, the DAC 1 will not satisfy. It's a smallish black box, albeit with a classy gold-plated "Bel Canto Design" metal plate on the side. At one end are the inputs (one S/PDIF, one TosLink), at the other the analog outputs (RCA coax). There's an LED that changes from red to green when the DAC 1 locks on to a digital datastream, and a pushbutton inverts absolute phase.

As described in the "User's Guide," and in more detail in a white paper on the Bel Canto website, designing the DAC 1 involved attempts to reduce four sources of error in D/A conversion:

1) timing jitter in the DAC clock

2) quantization noise in the D/A conversion process

3) time-domain smearing

4) distortion from electromagnetic interference (EMI)

Without going into the technical details—which I understand at only a very general level—the DAC 1's design involves use of the popular Crystal CS8420 sample-rate converter chip, which converts all input sources to 96kHz and adds 8 bits of dither to bring the data depth up to 24 bits (unless the source is already 24/96), then sends this "upsampled" data to the Burr-Brown PCM1704 24/96 DAC. A crystal oscillator provides a buffered clock output that controls both the sample-rate converter and the DAC, thus reducing jitter. A slow-rolloff digital filter set at 48kHz produces what Bel Canto claims is a more "analog-like" impulse response than the 22kHz brick-wall digital filters used in some other processors.

EMI—which, as Bel Canto uses the term, includes radio-frequency interference (RFI)—has long been recognized as a significant source of distortion, and Bel Canto's white paper on the DAC 1 points out that the problems start with the radiation of high-frequency clock and data signals. "Radiation requires an antenna, which is any unshielded wire of sufficient length." It now becomes clear that the DAC 1 is made small not to save money (or not just to save money) on chassis costs, but because its design calls for short signal paths. Critical clock and data line lengths are a fraction of an inch, and the DAC 1's small size allows it to be placed close to the preamp or data source, requiring only very short cables. (The DAC 1 is also available in an "internal" version that can be part of a Bel Canto preamp or integrated amp.)

On the analog side, the DAC 1 uses all Caddock resistors and polypropylene film and foil capacitors, with separate power supplies (including separate transformers) for the analog and digital sections, and star grounding. The analog section's S/N ratio is said to be equivalent to 20-bit performance.

Getting Started
Connecting the DAC 1 is simplicity itself—the only decision is whether the coaxial S/PDIF or TosLink input should be used. And because my PS Audio Lambda II transport has no TosLink output, I didn't even have to make that decision. Linked by the excellent Kimber Illuminations D-60 coax, the Lambda II/DAC 1 pairing worked well except in one respect: with every CD, when the first track started playing, and whenever I changed tracks manually, there was a slight pop through the speakers. I've used this transport with a number of digital processors, and this has never happened, which made me suspect the DAC 1 was the source of the problem. However, when I used the Rotel RCD-991 as the transport, the pop was gone.

I discussed the issue with John Stronczer, designer of the DAC 1, who acknowledged that with some transports they've found this sort of interaction, which, he said, indicated momentary loss of lock. He suggested that I try one of the late-generation DVD players and use its TosLink output, which they've found to work better in this application than most CD transports. He also sent me a new sample of the DAC 1 that incorporated the latest revision of the CS8420, which was said to have better locking performance. Indeed, the new sample of the DAC 1 did not produce the pop when used in combination with the Lambda II (or any other transport I had on hand).

I was intrigued by Stronczer's suggestion to use the TosLink connection from a DVD player. The collective audiophile wisdom on TosLink is that it's inferior to coax S/PDIF, having lower bandwidth and being more prone to jitter. Stronczer admits that TosLink has relatively high jitter, but says that this does not present a problem with the DAC 1 because of this processor's ability to reject jitter. He likes the fact that TosLink can get rid of ground loops, and feels that the large (16MB) storage buffer built into DVD players is an effective way of suppressing low-frequency jitter components from the datastream that comes off the disc. In any case, I felt compelled to check out the suitability of a DVD player/TosLink as a source.

The DVD player in regular use in my home-theater system is a Sony DVP-S7000, a first-generation player; so I borrowed a Pioneer DV-09, a current top-of-the-line model. The first comparison I made was between the TosLink (AudioQuest OptiLink 2) and coax S/PDIF (Kimber Illuminations D-60) outputs of the DV-09, playing Chesky's familiar Jazz Sampler & Audiophile Test CD (JD37). The sound with the TosLink connection was fine in general terms, but compared to the coax it seemed subdued, slightly muffled, and subjectively slower. Comparing the DV-09 and the Lambda II, both using the coax outputs, there was not much difference; if anything, the Lambda II was a bit more detailed. I used the Lambda II for most of my subsequent auditioning of the DAC 1.

720304 在 2007-1-13 15:51:47 发表的内容 好东西，成色不错。声音很有模拟味。帮顶

谢谢，好声音。

Bel Canto Design DAC1 Digital-to-Analog Converter

It’s the 21st century (almost) and we’re all so terribly modern -- even those of us who still listen to analog have sizable CD collections. And we’re constantly being bombarded with hype and spin about the next big thing, whatever that’s going to be. SACD? Sounds good, but the public demand seems parked at somewhere below nil. DVD-Audio? Love that bandwidth -- but it ranks even below SACD on the mass-market’s must-have meter.

But what if I could reap the benefits of these advanced technologies without committing to either of them? What if I could buy a piece of kit that would improve the sound of all those CDs I already have? You know, upsample them to 96kHz and add in a nice, gentle roll-off digital filter, too. Sounds almost too good to be true, eh?

Well, that’s the premise behind Bel Canto’s DAC1 -- and brace yourself Brigit, it really is all that.

If you have great talents, industry will improve them

I can’t speak for anyone else, but what immediately impressed me about the DAC1 was its extreme simplicity. No matter how fancy the DAC1 might be inside, on the outside it shows only a single two-color LED (to connote digital lock), coaxial and TosLink inputs, a pair of RCA jacks for analog output and an IEC mains jack located at either end of its longish, narrow chassis. No switches or controls, not even an on/off switch, mar its functional minimalism. Its chassis is diminutive at 3.6"H x 3.6"W x 9"D, and can be easily placed near -- even next to -- a digital source, even on a tight shelf.

Yet for all of its Spartan air, it is definitely solidly built -- its deep black metal sidewalls and hefty connectors aren’t flashy, but they sure are butch. But don’t let this fool ya -- its innards are packed with fancy-schmancy high-quality parts (Caddock and Roederstein resistors, Wima caps and suchlike).

The DAC1’s chief glory is its sampling-rate converter (SRC), which adds 8 bits of dither to the incoming 16-bit digital signal. This increases the apparent data depth to 24 bits. The added dither pushes the DAC1’s quantization residue without adding to the recording’s noise floor -- a side-effect of other resolution-enhancing processes. The DAC1 processes 16-bit 32kHz, 44.1kHz, or 48kHz data at 24-bits/96kHz. No additional dither is used in processing 24-bit/96kHz DADs -- Bel Canto says that the noise floor of the original recording or microphones "will effectively provide dither of the last few bits of any 24-bit recording." The DAC1 also minimizes jitter by making the DAC clock a local Crystal oscillator, which drives the digital filter/DAC directly. The digital filter’s buffered output is returned to the input sample-rate-converter circuit, where it is compared to the incoming data, setting internal registers that monitor the relationship between the incoming S/PDIF data and the DAC clock. Since there’s no VCO control port, jitter cannot enter the circuit and D/A conversion is performed in a "jitter-free environment," according to Bel Canto.

While the DAC1 doesn’t use Pacific Microsonics’ PMD-100 digital filter (which means it doesn’t offer HDCD decoding), Bel Canto claims that its proprietary 48kHz slow roll-off filter has a similar effect to the PMD-100’s superb digital filter when used for normal CD playback or for 24/96. It also has a far tighter transient response than a "brick wall" type filter, which causes time smearing on transient information, and thus reduces imaging accuracy.

Bel Canto’s detailed white paper on the DAC1 can be found at: http://www.belcantodesign.com/whiteprint.html.

Let schoolmasters puzzle their brain with grammar, and nonsense, and learning

Before I proceed to the meat of the review, I need to address two issues that are particularly galling because they don’t make sense in the strictest "bits-is-bits" reductionist worldview. The first is that I tried the DAC1 with a variety of transports and it sounded different with each of them. Not radically, but as different as different stampers of the same mastering of an LP. CDs played on my Pioneer DV-525 DVD player through the DAC1 sounded slightly lightweight compared to CDs played on my Musical Fidelity A3CD or the Levinson No. 39. Why this should be, I cannot fathom -- but I heard it consistently.

The other thing that had me puzzled was the difference between using TosLink and coaxial S/PDIF. When using the DAC1 to decode CDs from pretty much any transport, coaxial sounded better -- brighter and more focused. TosLink, in comparison, sounded sweeter -- honeyed would be the word, implying a slightly amber coloration to boot. This changed, however, when decoding 24/96 DADs from my DV-525 with TosLink -- those sounded explosively lifelike and dynamic. Wow!

Associated Equipment:


CD players: Musical Fidelity A3CD CD player, Mark Levinson No. 39, Sony CDP-CX400
DVD player: Pioneer DV-525

Preamplifiers: Conrad-Johnson Premier 17LS, Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista

Power amplifiers: Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 300, Conrad-Johnson Premier Eleven A

Loudspeakers: Dynaudio Contour 1.3 Mk II, Thiel CS7.2

Cables: AudioTruth Midnight interconnect, Illuminations D-60 Dataflex Studio S/PDIF datalink, Monster Cable Interlink Lightspeed TosLink cable, AudioQuest Dragon speaker cable

Accessories: Osar Selway Audio Racks, Audio Power Industries Power Wedge Ultra 116

Room treatment: ASC Tube Traps, Slim Jims, Bass Traps





Then I ran into my cousin by marriage, Ernie Meunier, at a memorial service for my father-in-law. After the service we went out to dinner and began talking about audio, as we audiophiles are wont to do. I mentioned how much I was enjoying the DAC1, and Ernie said he’d read somewhere that it "liked" TosLink in lengths greater than a meter. "I heard two meters works better than a meter -- something to do with internal reflections," Ernie said.

Hmmm. That’s a cheap enough mod for a guy with a closet full of cables, so I tried it. Damn! It worked. The difference with CDs was (I can’t help myself) illuminating -- very little coloration remained. Well, just a hint. And with DADs? Oh mama -- papa like!

No, I can’t explain any of this. Yes, I find it frustrating. And no, don’t bother writing and telling me it’s impossible -- listen for yourself, if it bugs you.

All progress is based upon a universal innate desire on the part of every organism to live beyond its income

In the last few years there has been such progress in the $3k-$5k CD-player arena that I actually posited a theory of shrinkage in variation during a series of reviews of such players. It’s not that there aren’t differences between players in that range -- it’s just that the differences are extremely minor in nature and indicate just how good the entire field has become. That said, there still remains a gulf between the performance of those players and the truly state-of-the-art designs, such as Krell’s KPS-25sc, Mark Levinson’s Nos. 30.6/31.5 combo, or the Linn Sondek CD12. The essence of that gulf is exactly what the Bel Canto DAC1 brings to the table.

Don’t get me wrong -- an inexpensive transport plus the DAC1 does not equal the performance of those top-end players, but the magical presence, coherence and essential sweetness of those S.O.T.A. players is brought to mind by the presence of all of those qualities in the DAC1. You get more than a taste of the best that digital has to offer with the Bel Canto, but the best remains an expensive proposition, dag nabbit.

The glorious mono sound of Miles Davis’ Relaxin’ [JVC XRCD VICJ-60125], like the lily, don’t need no gilding. And it doesn’t receive any from the DAC1 -- at least, it doesn’t get any "hi-fi" sound. Davis’ limpid, reticent trumpet flashes like quicksilver as it darts in and out of the melodies. ‘Trane’s presence is almost physical, and Paul Chambers’ bass and Philly Joe Jones’ drums sound startlingly sharp and clear. This music was captured in the air nearly 46 years ago? No, it’s news just in -- as surprising and delightful as when it was first minted.

Good as this disc sounded when I auditioned it upon release just five months ago, its sense of nowness collapsed disappointingly when I removed the DAC1 from the circuit. (And keep in mind, this is the Musical Fidelity A3CD player I raved about and still love -- except it sure sounds better driving the DAC1.) I couldn’t re-connect it fast enough and I never would have removed it again, except out of a sense of my reviewerly duty. The sacrifices I make for my job.…

The brand spankin’ new four-CD Little Feat retrospective, Hotcakes & Outtakes [Warner Archives R2 79912], got a lot of play with the DAC1 -- with 57 newly remastered tracks and 25 demos and rarities, how could it not? The big thang with Feat, especially the original quartet and early sextet (not the synth-driven later records from the original lineup), which are my personal favorite configurations, was the group’s unique timing. As good as the post-Lowell George bands might have been, they never matched that gloriously off-kilter lag behind the beat that was George’s signature -- friends have argued with me about my lack of respect for the later incarnations of the band, but lacking that easy, greasy timewarp, they’re just not the same. (I’m the same way about the Rolling Stones -- it was that slightly oriental twang that stemmed from Keith Richards’ and Brian Jones’ inability to play perfectly in tune that defined the Stones' sound for me, and no matter that the band has produced a few great records since Jones’ death, it ain’t the band I loved.)

Well, let me tell you that, when it comes to timing, the DAC1 has two degrees in bebop and a PhD in swing. It captured that shudder-step lag in Lowell’s slide lines, as well as the forward romp of Paul Barr鑢e’s lead. The Bel Canto locked into Kenny Grabney’s deep funk bass like nobody’s business -- it was earthily solid and as deep as a mineshaft. And detail? Man -- I’ve been devouring Little Feat recordings for almost 30 years, and the combination of these new masters and the DAC1 was pulling details out of these songs I’ve never heard before. The delicacy of the decay of Lowell’s slide guitar was simply stupefying. And the sweetness of his upper-register slide work speaks volumes about the Bel Canto’s extension and beautifully gradual filtration. The notes are sweeter than a mint julep and hang in space like wash on a clothesline on a sunny Monday.

Then there’s the experience of listening to 24/96 DADs through the Bel Canto. Keep your nitro pills or asthma inhaler close to hand, because whatever ails you, the experience will set off an attack. (A note: If you have a Pioneer, as I do, you must be sure the unit is outputting 24/96 or it will truncate the signal internally and output 16/44.1, which is not what you want.) When I originally reviewed Classic’s reissue of Muddy Waters’ Folk Singer [Classic DAD –1020], I didn’t have the DAC1 and concluded that the 24/96 remastering wasn’t essential if you had access to any of the previous reissues (or the original). Well, I was wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. I’d never heard the record before, it turns out -- not like this! Muddy’s alive and he’ll come to your house if you’ll buy a DAC1 and a copy of this DVD. Wow!

First off, Muddy’s physically in the room with you -- and Buddy Guy’s guitar is throwing off liquid overtones that are as solid as watermelon seeds. The acoustic of the session surrounds and enfolds you -- maybe Muddy’s not the one that’s been transported after all. Listening to Folk Singer is an instant ticket to 2120 South Michigan Avenue -- I’d recognize that reverberation signature anywhere. Its almost too much information to process, but if it hurts, it hurts sooo good.

The art of drawing sufficient conclusions from insufficient premises

OK, you get the idea -- I really like the Bel Canto DAC1. I do -- I would not voluntarily remove it from my system, but I have other upsampling processors already queued up for review -- including the MSB, Sonic Frontiers D2D, and the Perpetual Technologies PA3.

Does the DAC1 have any shortcomings? Well, it’s a shade lightweight tonally, compared to the Mark Levinson 30.6/31.5 combo or the Linn Sondek CD12, but it’s light years better fleshed out than most affordably priced contenders. It did wonders for my Musical Fidelity A3CD and will do even more for less up-to-date units. And I’m puzzled over the differences in transports and cables I heard -- these may well also occur in the other units I have yet to audition or they might point to design glitches in the Bel Canto’s interface. That has yet to be determined.

But I’m not too concerned over such niggles. If I had a CD player that was showing its age, and I didn’t want to commit to something really costly until I saw how the market for new technologies shakes out, I’d seriously consider buying the Bel Canto. It will make every CD you have now sound much better and it opens the door on the spectacular-sounding world of high-sampling-rate digital -- which is a huge thrill. While the $1295 retail price is not exactly cheap, it works out to a scant few coins per disc if you have a large CD collection. And that makes the DAC1 a bargain to be reckoned with.

...Wes Phillips

这种专业色彩的解码了解的人还是少啊。LAVRY没听过，但比BENCHMARK DAC1 动听多了

Bel Canto Design DAC-1
Upsampling D/A Converter

Frank Alles

2 October 2000


Specifications

Input Sample Rates: 32 to 96kHz
Bit Depth: 16 to 24 Bit
Signal to Noise Ratio: >112 dB, A-weighted
Dynamic Range: 112 dB
Total Harmonic Distortion: <0.003%
Frequency Response: 0 to 48kHz –3 dB
Output Impedance: 50 ohms
Output Level: 2 Vrms
Input Options: 1 Toslink optical; 1 SPDIF coaxial RCA-type
Dimensions: 3.6"H × 3.6"W × 9"D
Weight: 4 lb.
Price: $1,295. USD
Warranty: Lifetime for first owner, 10 years for subsequent owners.

Manufacturer
Bel Canto Design
212 Third Avenue North, Suite 345
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Phone: 612/317-4550
Fax: 612/359-9358
Email: Info@BelCantoDesign.com
Web: www.belcantodesign.com

"There are other upsampling DACs currently available around the price of the Bel Canto DAC-1. In truth, I haven’t heard them in my system—but I have heard the DAC-1, and it will remain in my system as my benchmark…"

Bel Canto Design is one of those small cutting-edge companies that has consistently received praise and kudos in the audio press for providing musically involving products at reasonable prices. I have used the Bel Canto SEP-1 tube line stage preamp in the past and was very taken not only by its excellent sonic presentation, but by its modern styling and features.

The Bel Canto DAC-1 is not a piece of gear that you’d buy for its aesthetic appeal or features. Save for the gold embossed Bel Canto nameplate, it is your basic black box, small enough to fit inconspicuously behind other gear. The point of the piece is to elicit a level of sonic performance from CDs, by using the latest technology, which was virtually unattainable until recently. Bel Canto has focused on reducing errors in four areas: 1) Timing jitter in the DAC clock, 2) Quantization noise in the digital to analog conversion process, 3) Time domain smearing and, 4) Sources of electromagnetic interference. I have no way of making scientific measurements in these areas, but I think that the results of Bel Canto’s efforts can be ascertained by the most sensitive of instruments—the human ear.

As I said, the features of the DAC-1 are scant. On the front panel, two inputs are provided, 1 Toslink optical, and 1 SPDIF coaxial RCA-type, there is also a push button to invert polarity—a feature that I often use. One set of gold-plated RCA analog output jacks is located on the rear panel along with an IEC connector, for use with audiophile AC cords (or even the stock cord provided). That’s it—your basic "plug & play" device.

In my experience with the DAC-1, I discovered (early on) that the unit’s performance can vary dramatically with changes in transports or isolation bases and feet. Such changes resulted in shifts in tonal balance—which affected the perceived character of the sonic portrait. Please know that this phenomenon is not unique to the Bel Canto DAC, similar changes occurred with other DACs I’ve tried—so this would appear to be the rule—not the exception.

I got very good results locating the DAC-1 on the bare MDF shelf of my Plateau equipment rack, and also when I used a Townshend Seismic Sink between the rack and the DAC-l. When I tried some home-style feet beneath the unit, the sound became brighter in the high frequencies, offering more detail, but becoming a bit too bright for my taste.

Initially, I used the DAC-1 in combination with my Parasound (C.E.C.) C/BD-2000 belt-drive transport and was rewarded with a splendid analog-like presentation, with a rich vibrant character, sharp clear transients, and a level of "air" and ambience around instruments that I had not previously witnessed with a CD source. I was quite pleased.

With a little prodding from Bel Canto’s Chad Baures, I bought a DVD player to use as a transport (Pioneer 626D) and hooked it up via a $35.00 optical Toslink cable by Monster Cable. With expectations high, I put on a track from Santana’s Supernatural (Arista 07822-19080-2) but was somewhat let down by the more brittle and clinical presentation that resulted. Switching to my Harmonic Technology (HT) coaxial digital cable (that I had used with the Parasound) reduced the brittleness somewhat, and I have to admit that the soundstage was very dimensional. The dynamics were great and the bass was "killer" too, but still I felt that the presentation with the Parasound transport was smoother and more analog-like, especially through the midrange. By contrast, the DVD transport sounded dryer and slightly coarser.

Baures has told me that customers have reported excellent results using DVD transports with the DAC-1 and in fact, he recommends it. My results could be atypical, but since I achieved better results with the Parasound C/BD-2000 transport and HT coax digital cable, that’s what I used for my listening evaluation.

Cure For the Digital Blues!

One of the first CDs I played was The Specials’ The Singles Collection (Chrysalis F2 521823), not because it’s a great-sounding CD, but because it tends to sound a bit harsh (like a poor recording) when played on other equipment. I was quite surprised by the DAC-1’s ease in presenting a rich, harmonically coherent portrait. The brasses sounded natural, with just the right amount of bite and the vocals seemed more fleshed out and less edgy than what I remembered from previous listening. The soundstage had more depth, the bass was fuller, and the organ sounded exceedingly authentic—alive, in its own holographic capsule. "This is great," I said to myself, "Let’s see how it sounds with other material."

Listening to US 3’s "Dark Side," from hand on the torch (Blue Note CDP 0777 7 80883 2 5), I was intrigued when I heard some low level electronic effects in the background that had gone unnoticed in earlier listening sessions. The high frequencies seemed delicate and focused, and they lacked any edginess or hardness, which can be the bane of lesser DACs. Indeed, Ray Brown’s "The Real Blues," from Summerwind (Concord Jazz CCD-4426), was rife with air and dimensionality from the filigreed brushwork of Jeff Hamilton. It was a sweet treat for the ears.

What’s more, the zydeco washboard on Queen Ida’s "My Tu Tu" from Caught In The Act (GNP GNPD 2181), was clear and precisely defined with surgical precision—sans scalpel. And on cut 5, "Cotton-Eyed Joe," the Bel Canto had no trouble mastering Peter Allen’s furious fiddle strokin’--which was mighty close to my recollection of the live instrument’s sound.

Whipping out my favorite Stravinsky CD recording, L’ Histoire du Soldat (Everest EVC 9049), I observed the striking clarity of the trumpets and the poignancy of the cello on "The Devil’s Triumphal March". Copious air around the pounding drums at the close of the piece punctuated the DAC-1’s considerable ability to evoke the dramatic flair of the composition. Playing track 11, "Moderato" from The Ebony Concerto, on the same CD, I was simply enchanted by the dynamic lifelike presentation. The horns, drums, and acoustic guitar and harp were truly magnificent. Even at multiples of the DAC-1’s price, I find it difficult to believe that it could sound much better.

To this point, I haven’t said very much about the bass performance of the DAC-1, but the truth, is that I found its reproduction of the lower octaves to be both ample and articulate. It seemed to capture just the right balance of weight to agility, edging my Parasound D/AC-2000 in terms of ultimate extension and power. Electric bass was bouncy and easy to follow, drums sounded natural and I had a better sense of hearing the character of drum skins on various recordings. The bass of the DAC-1 was quite up to the task.

And the Winner Is…

We audiophiles are actually the big winners here, in that we can reap the sonic rewards of more advanced technology at an affordable, reasonable price. To my ears the DAC-1 offered a rightness of tone, along with greater inner detailing and certainly more air and ambient information than I have heard from any of the "old-school" DACs. It purveyed an enhanced sense of dynamic shadings and quite frankly sounded very close to the performance of my hefty analogue turntable system—at a much lower total cost and minus the ticks and pops.

There are other upsampling DACs currently available around the price of the Bel Canto DAC-1. In truth, I haven’t heard them in my system—but I have heard the DAC-1, and it will remain in my system as my benchmark, until I hear concrete proof that a better sounding piece exists in the same price range. Highly recommended.

Sound
Bel Canto is best known for single-ended-triode tube electronics (including the SETi40, a Sam Tellig fave), and despite the fact that there are no thermionic tubes to be found anywhere in the DAC 1, this heritage was apparent in the sound. "Smooth," "musical," "non-fatiguing," and, yes, "analog-like" were some of the descriptors that came to mind. I know that some audiophiles are still inclined to characterize CD playback as harsh, edgy, and clinical, and I've certainly heard these sorts of sounds from digital front-ends in the past—but I don't see how any fair-minded person can describe the sound of CDs played back through the DAC 1 in these terms. As always, the sound of an audio system depends on the source material, other components in the system, and setup and listening environment. But if a system includes the DAC 1 and the sound is forward, aggressive, or harsh, the DAC 1 would be the last component I would suspect of being responsible for these problems.

Bel Canto Design DAC 1 Digital-to-Analog Converter

by Marc Mickelson

"…we should all rejoice that this  level of sound quality is available  at a price more people can afford."  


Review at a Glance
Sound  "Sweet, smoothly detailed, involving, organic, engaging"; "it has some serious bloom happening too"; makes listening to music a pastime, a pleasure.

Features  Upsampling and jitter reduction; coaxial and TosLink digital inputs, one set of RCA outputs; lifetime warranty; can be ordered as an internal upgrade for Bel Canto SEP1 and SEP2 preamps.

Use  Small size means it will definitely fit almost anywhere; TosLink input is acceptable, but does not sound as open or resolving as coax.

Value  Provides sound that would have cost many times its price only a few years ago -- and still does in some instances today.



How many CDs do you have? I have over 1000. How many of these am I willing replace in whatever new format is around the corner? My answer is a quickly derived "very few." About the only CDs I’m willing to buy again are those I know can be improved greatly with remastering -- the Dylan catalog, certain Prestige discs, maybe some Johnny Cash. As with many LPs, some CDs will never make it to whatever is next, so I’ll be listening to those discs forever. And in terms of new music, I suspect it will be years at the very least until labels like HighTone and Rounder move to the new format, whatever it will be, and so I’ll still be buying CDs, and happily too.

For all of the crowing in print or pixel about 24/96, SACD and DVD-Audio, we in the audio press are not representative of the buying public -- or even fellow audiophiles. As we’ve come to learn over time, there are audiophiles who are not interested in the super-duper formats to come, and they are far closer to being adopters than the bulk of average buyers who will be the ones to drive the next format. Given this, what have we in press wrought? Are we spending too much time writing about smoke and mirrors, and should we be covering more products that have utility in the here and now?

Well, the only new digital story isn’t the impending format, but something that the new format has put in the minds of designers and buyers alike: higher sampling rates. The CD is limited to 44.1kHz -- or is it? dCS has had a professional upsampling digital-to-digital converter on the market for some time and has just announced the availability of a consumer version of that product -- at $4995. You still need a DAC, of course, which increases your cost even more. The results are reportedly very significant, as the upsampling technology digitally transforms a CD into a 96kHz -- or above -- recording, albeit at a price.

Bel Canto to the rescue with its DAC1, which upsamples too, but at a more reasonable cost: $1295. And it doesn’t require an additional DAC, handling the digital-to-analog conversion too. The technology used in the DAC1 is very new, perhaps newer than any of the high-rez alternatives, but makes sense even to a technical novice like me.

Petite

You can’t help but notice the size of the DAC1 when you see it. It’s a mere 3.6"H x 3.6"W x 9"L and weighs only three pounds. But don’t let this fool you; inside it is packed with high-quality parts (Caddock and Roederstein resistors and Wima caps among them) and its small size allows Bel Canto to offer the DAC1 as an internal add-on for the company’s two preamps, reducing the number of boxes on your equipment rack and the number of pairs of interconnects you have to buy. The side of the DAC1 opposite of the faceplate has no connections on it. These are handled on each end -- left for the IEC power cord and RCA outputs, right for the coax and TosLink digital inputs and phase-inversion button. As long as your interconnects are flexible, you should have no problem tucking the DAC1 just about anywhere on your rack and still displaying its faceplate for everyone to see. The DAC1 has no on/off switch -- when it’s plugged in, which should be all the time, it’s on.

The technical centerpiece of the DAC1 is its sampling-rate converter (SRC), which adds 8 bits of dither to the incoming 16-bit digital signal, increasing the apparent data depth to 24 bits. This information is processed at 96kHz and then rolled off to 48kHz via the DAC1’s special slow roll-off filter, which eliminates the time smear of standard brick wall filters used in virtually all CD players and digital processors. The DAC1 addresses jitter as well, using a new digital-to-analog circuit architecture to eliminate the possibility of jitter finding its way into the signal-processing path. Finally, the DAC1’s small size is said to eliminate internal EMI by reducing the clock- and data-line lengths to fractions of an inch and using isolated analog and digital ground planes. The DAC1 does not use the Pacific Microsonics PMD-100 digital filter, so it does not offer HDCD decoding. However, it can handle 24/96 signals from music DVDs, and Bel Canto maintains that the 48kHz slow roll-off filter has exactly the same advantages whether it is used for normal CD playback or for 24/96 playback. Bel Canto has a white paper that lays out the technical concepts behind the DAC1 in much greater detail than I’ve done here; they are guarded about internal components, however, because of the proprietary brainwork that went into creating the DAC1.

You can purchase the DAC1 from a Bel Canto dealer or directly from the company if you have no local dealer. In either case you have a 10-day money-back trial period with it to determine if it meets your musical needs. The DAC1 comes with a lifetime warranty, which I’ll speculate means that Bel Canto expects the DAC1 to last that long.

Review system

I used the DAC1 in my reference system exclusively: ProAc Response Four speakers, Lamm ML1 and ML2 amplifiers, Lamm L1 line-stage preamp, JPS Labs speaker cables and interconnects, Audio Magic Tubed Interconnect. I also used a melange of power cords from API, JPS Labs, Audio Magic, and ESP. Along with the DAC1, I had my Timbre TT-1 DAC, recently upgraded to TT-1 2000 status, and a collection of CD players to use as transports: CAL CL-20, Mark Levinson No.39, Audio Research CD2 and Linn Ikemi. I used either JPS Labs Superconductor2 or HAVE Canare BNC-to-RCA coaxial digital cables, Monster Cable Interlink Lightspeed TosLink cable, or the terrific DH Labs AES/EBU digital cable (with the Timbre DAC only) to connect DAC and transport.

One of the nice things about the DAC1 is that it fits just about anywhere on your rack, even in some cases on a shelf with another component. So I wouldn’t have to wonder about the electrical effects from other pieces of equipment nearby during the review period, I gave the DAC1 the top shelf of one of my Target racks, where it looked like a power supply among the other components. I began to like it there for this reason. Who says that audio equipment has to be noticed and take over the room? One other thing I thought of: I bet the DAC1 would be easily concealed from the prying eyes of spouses, and even if you were to get caught with it, your alibi would be simple: "It’s a power supply, honey." Ah, the people at Bel Canto are shrewd.

From a small box

As I’ve noted, I used the DAC1 along with a variety of transports and digital cables. Throughout all of this, the DAC1 showed its true colors every time -- with slight variations because of the different partnering equipment, of course. The words and phrases that began to litter my listening notes were ones that I personally hold in very high regard when it comes to digital equipment: sweet, smoothly detailed, involving, organic, engaging. From the very start, the DAC1 did the one thing that great digital does -- it didn’t sound like digital can: grainy, hard, artificially extended, mechanical. Instead, the DAC1 was always easy on the ears, but not veiled or dark. It just had a charming way about it, one that had me listening for hours on end.

Some specifics. Curt Cobain’s voice on "All Apologies" from Nirvana’s Unplugged in New York [DGC 24727] can sound peaky and harsh on some DACs and CD players, especially when the volume is too high. Not so with the DAC1; Cobain’s voice has a very distinct reverberant quality, but always remains composed. Of course, this enhances the experience of listening to this CD -- Cobain seems so much more within his element in the intimate setting of the unplugged set, and his calm, matter-of-fact tone when speaking to the audience makes it all the harder to believe that he was in such emotional pain.

But don’t let the friendly character of the DAC1’s treble fool you -- it has some serious bloom happening too, which is the opposite of rolled off or blunt and an indication of how special the DAC1 is. I’m sure I’m not the only listener to prefer Cassandra Wilson’s Blue Light ‘Til Dawn [Blue Note CDP 0777] to anything she’s done since, and on the Robert Johnson tune "Hellhound on my Trail," Wilson’s voice projects and spreads into the room, as does the guitar, especially when the strings are plucked. But Wilson is at the center of things, and rightfully so, her voice taking over the business end of my listening room and showing ample breathiness and air. Some DACs and CD players, while showing more treble extension, will diminish that sense of bloom, making Wilson appear less three-dimensional. This is the case with the Mark Levinson No.39, which has treble extension galore, but of a different nature. The Bel Canto DAC1 pulls off the illusion in this case with rare dexterity.

The images the DAC1 portrays are a touch lean when compared to those of the ARC CD2 and my reference Timbre TT-1 2000 DAC, but this is not a liability given the DAC1’s software-friendly disposition and graceful resolving power. The very fine remaster of Dave Brubeck’s Time Further Out [Columbia/Legacy CK 64668], the follow-up to Time Out, is slightly less present and full with the DAC1 in use. The CAL CL-20 in particular sounds more filled out, even plump, but it doesn’t throw a soundstage with as much air or lateral spread. The ARC CD2 is just about ideal in this regard and many others, but it’s not as smooth and easy to listen to on the widest possible range of recordings as the DAC1. Oh, and if you love Time Out, you need Time Further Out. On it, Paul Desmond is spectacularly restrained -- inside the framework of the tunes’ varying time signatures, of course.

The bass of the DAC1 is good overall, very expressive and able to display detail. And while it goes low, it doesn’t have the bass weight and slam of something like the Audio Research CD2 or, again, the Timbre TT-1 2000 DAC. However, this emphatically does not mean that the DAC1 has trouble pushing rhythmic music along. Quite the contrary. "Slap Leather" from the James Taylor’s New Moon Shine [Columbia CK 46038] is tight and explosive down low, and if you want to turn it up, you won’t be chased from the room by hard or grainy treble, but you will hear more thumping. So turn it up!

The more I listen to the DAC1, the more I am convinced that its real accomplishment is in making the equipment unimportant. I know we reviewers trot this argument out when we want to convey how really special a piece of equipment is, but in this case I offer it as an observation. You can settle into the DAC1 like a favorite chair, put on a disc and unwind -- or listen intently to the music instead of your system. The DAC1 draws me into the music, not itself or the experience of listening to music on an elaborate and expensive audio system. Some listeners will want greater fireworks, a more attention-grabbing sound. Everyone’s tastes are different for sure, but if music comes first with you, the DAC1 is your ally.

Two more performance issues. First, I found the DAC1’s coaxial connection to be superior to TosLink, which sounds smoother still, but also slightly darker and obscured. Bel Canto stresses how good the DAC1 sounds with lesser transports, and I suspect that the TosLink connection may be partially responsible for this as it may tone down the hash that some transports can have. I didn’t have a chance to use the DAC1 with, say, a Pioneer DV-414 or DV-525 DVD player, but if this can be arranged, I will report on my findings in a follow-up review. Also, while the DAC1 can decode 24/96 DVDs, I found that with the CAL CL-20 as transport, these did not sound nearly as good as when played directly with the CL-20. However, CDs didn’t sound as good either, the CL-20 sounding veiled and uninvolving as a transport. Again, a report with another 24/96-capable transport like either Pioneer model mentioned would allow me to make some definitive statements about how the DAC1 sounds with 24/96 DVDs.

Dare to compare

Longtime readers know how zealous I am about my Timbre TT-1 DAC, now updated to 2000 status ($5000). It’s the best digital component I’ve heard, which is why it’s been in my system for over five years. It has a gorgeous, music-enhancing character that’s never hard on the ears, offers potent bass, and has the unique ability to sound both friendly and highly resolving. Although I’ve encountered DACs and CD players that do one or two things better than the TT-1, nothing I’ve heard equals its overall level of involvement.

Nothing, that is, until the DAC1. In fact, I’m surprised that the DAC1 equals the Timbre DAC in the smoothness and resolution departments -- nothing else I've heard does -- while falling just short in terms of bass weight and image fullness. With some software, I was able to switch back and forth, adjusting the output level between, and essentially hear the same thing -- natural retrieval of detail and a clear picture of the sound that draws me in. The latest version of the Timbre DAC costs almost four times the price of the DAC1, and it’s no way four times better. While I still prefer the sound of the TT-1 2000, and I suspect that many other listeners would too, the difference in price makes the two equal in my estimation, and will put the DAC1 far ahead to other people.

Last words

CD sound is getting to be so good, just when some other format is on the horizon. Is there a connection? In the case of the DAC1, perhaps its 24-bit/96kHz heart is responsible for the lion’s share of its beautiful sound. Or perhaps it’s the upsampling and slow roll-off filter. Or maybe it’s the jitter-reduction circuitry. In any case, we should all rejoice that this level of sound quality is available at a price more people can afford. If you hate digital, the DAC1 is worth checking out -- and the same thing applies if you are a fan of the Timbre TT-1 2000 DAC but not its price tag. The DAC1 made reviewing hard because I connected so closely with the music, making the standard audio review seem all the more difficult to write.

But you are not in my shoes, so run out and hear a Bel Canto DAC1. It will hold up to analysis -- and defy it.

The DAC 1's smooth, easygoing nature was apparent with a wide range of CDs, and was a particular asset with ones with which I have a love/hate relationship: love the music/performers, hate the sound. Alas, I have more than a few CDs in my collection that are in this category, including many of the show-music releases from Varèse Sarabande. Perhaps "hate" is too strong a word—Varèse Sarabande's sound is never that bad—but I've often wished that No One Is Alone (VSD-5623), an otherwise outstanding recording by Laurie Beechman (who died so tragically young) sounded less up-close and aggressive. Using the DAC 1, the forward quality and excessive sibilance that I had accepted as characteristics of the recording did not seem as bothersome, and it was easier for me to concentrate on Laurie's singing alone. I don't have a lot of recordings in the 24/96 DVD format—most of the music on these releases just doesn't interest me—but the DAC 1 sounded great with the ones that I tried, Jon Faddis' Remembrances (Chesky CHDVD176) sounding much better than its CD equivalent (JD166).

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