To our newcomers welcome to the old crew welcome back. We sincerely hope you enjoy this review. Don’t forget, you can join us over at audiolounge on Telegram 🐅
Thanks for the review. I love my D90SE. I heard a lot of DACs including recent models from RME and Musical Fidelity and this DAC is on another planet. This DAC just bring out so much detail that it is hard to imagine anyone could do better regardless of price. What you say about blurring the picture when a lot happen in the recording do not happen in my setup. I have Sonus Faber speakers, Custom made Tube preamp and Theta Power Amp.
One of the best audio descriptions of the dac I've heard so far & I've pretty much listened to them all. I also agree on the price explanation, then again he did say he enjoyed it more than the competition at that price point. I do think him using filter 5 might have scewed a little bit of the audio as I would only use filter 2, 3 & 6. But with that many nonsense filters who can really be expected to go into all that. If I had more gear available to me like he clearly does, I might not. I wonder if he has any recommendations on how to make a D90se/A90 stack with an Arya Stealth sound less clinical?
@@mopnem for EG Felics audio ekko for example, but there are others under $1000 What is one if you can get hold of it on the US market might be the best for this category If you want to stick to the stack
Nice review! I really do enjoy my D90se but I really want to experience the Spring 3 KTE and hopefully complete my chain. I'm thinking in the next month or 2!
@@ConvinceMeAudio I'm in the hunt for one, so that's great news. Any chance of an Exasound e62 review? What are mostly reviewed these days are DACs from China. Although I do like to hear about them too, and they mostly seem to be good values, warranties along with shipping could possibly be an issue. I live in North America and Exasound is a Canadian company, so that might be of some benefit for me in particular.
@@cablebrain9691 The logistics of some of these DAC shipments can be an issue unfortunately To be honest of you sometimes it’s a fricking nightmare, but we are doing our best to get as many pieces of gear as possible for review Really looking forward to bringing the moolahmoolah for review to put up against the may KTE
Certainly is not, I wonder what the mistake is I need to look at this review again. This was from a couple of years ago I think Cheers bud appreciate it
It is easy to tell when you are filming on your mega yacht @0:51 by the gentle way the camera rolls with the waves. This happens several times in this video. I am assuming you are docked when you film and that this bob only happens when other boats pass by and create a swell to rock your boat. It may be my imagination, but I am also assuming that a $600 A90/A90D will power the Focal Stellia’s just fine.
🤣😎🐅 You assume correctly, it can drive them perfectly fine, they don’t require too much power to be honest But they scale up tremendously with finesse and control For example when you jump from that category with those headphones to something like the ferrum oor It’s tonality that’s really important to these headphones
You know what makes you BETTER than other CZcamsrs - AND your fellow Greek Tycoons - you take the time to answer YOUR viewers comments. Stay healthy and don’t drive that purple Lamborghini too fast.
@@ConvinceMeAudio The “Family”. See there’s that Mafia connection again. Man that Ferrum Oor is a beauty! Your not making my headphone amp purchase decision any easier : ) A90D? SMSL SP400? Marantz HD-DAC 1? And now the Ferrum Oor? It is hard enough for me to decide what ice cream to buy! That reminds me, I still gotta get that McDonalds milkshake. Have a nice day.
Absolutely on point about the volume difference issue. Vocals are often to quiet when they move away from the main focus. For example: - The Strokes - bad decisions (chorus: guitar and drums are loud, vocals are not enough) - Van der graaph generator - scorched earth (2 : 23 this vocal sequence lacks impact because the singer is behind and pretty quiet) In these moments i always want to turn up the volume knob on my amplifier. But it will be too loud in normal moments(esp drums) then... Everything is good for me in this dac except this strange imaging/volume problem. sry bad english :)
What DAC would you recommend under $1500? I was thinking of TOPPING D90 III that's updated one, but i'm not so sure since it's very much similar to this one, at least by the reviews. My next pick would probably be Holo Cyan 2. I mainly listen to electronic music and then classical. Would appreciate any suggestion if you have one. (I would pair it with VIOLECTRIC HPA V222 or Schiit Mjolnir 3 + Meze Empyrean 2)
@@varbane nooooo don’t do that mate, you need to buy holo cyan too. It’s incredible and goes punching so high above its category. It’s ridiculous. It’s a $3000 sound in the DAC. Category.
@@ConvinceMeAudio can't wait to hear your opinion on Bifrost 2. I got it after watching all available CZcams videos of comparisons and indeed, it's amazing to me - it's a significant upgrade from Fulla 3 and Modius, all from Schiit Audio. I almost went with Denefrips Ares II but halted and went with Bifrost after watching a reviewer mentioning a slight delay of audio when watching movie or video so not suitable for normal PC use. Anyways, please Paint Me A Picture of Bifrost 2!
I noticed your XBox controller in the background. I have a A90 running my headphones off my pc for music and gaming lately. Would this DAC benefit me for gaming? I have heard it doesn't have a very good 3D sound to it?
I think it would be more than adequate, to be honest what I might be concerned about is latency, that I need to investigate, and apologies about the late reply only got this notification now
@@ConvinceMeAudio I have already tried it out and my two year old ROG motherboards dac is better suited for gaming audio. This DAC is exceptional for music though. That was amazingly apparent.
Honestly mate, I’ve not reviewed that one but I have heard enough about it to know, it’s definitely not an upgrade, maybe a slight side grade and I think the RMV might actually be better
No offense brother. But the D90SE is the worse sounding DAC I’ve heard. Thin and bad timbre. I much preferred the Topping D30pro. But that just like other topping products have bad analog output stages and veil the sound and take away weight of instruments. Again I hope no offense. Just my opinion as a musician of 40 years. Peace.
Oh, definitely, this is a very old video for the budget line these days. They’re DAC that annihilate it Mojo 2 for example, it wasn’t good for a few months in its day It also depends what you put it through. It did okay on the set up at the time
To our newcomers welcome to the old crew welcome back.
We sincerely hope you enjoy this review.
Don’t forget, you can join us over at audiolounge on Telegram
🐅
Thanks for the review. I love my D90SE. I heard a lot of DACs including recent models from RME and Musical Fidelity and this DAC is on another planet. This DAC just bring out so much detail that it is hard to imagine anyone could do better regardless of price. What you say about blurring the picture when a lot happen in the recording do not happen in my setup. I have Sonus Faber speakers, Custom made Tube preamp and Theta Power Amp.
One of the best audio descriptions of the dac I've heard so far & I've pretty much listened to them all. I also agree on the price explanation, then again he did say he enjoyed it more than the competition at that price point. I do think him using filter 5 might have scewed a little bit of the audio as I would only use filter 2, 3 & 6. But with that many nonsense filters who can really be expected to go into all that. If I had more gear available to me like he clearly does, I might not. I wonder if he has any recommendations on how to make a D90se/A90 stack with an Arya Stealth sound less clinical?
Thank you, it’s very much appreciated, I recommend something like the ekko tube amplifier, which is a nice pre-, and pre into the unit possibly
@@ConvinceMeAudio Appreciate the advice. Can you provide the specific pre amp name or a link? thanks
@@mopnem for EG Felics audio ekko for example, but there are others under $1000
What is one if you can get hold of it on the US market might be the best for this category
If you want to stick to the stack
Nice review! I really do enjoy my D90se but I really want to experience the Spring 3 KTE and hopefully complete my chain. I'm thinking in the next month or 2!
D90SE users should upgrade to the latest firmware(1.88). Added features and sound similar to the new D90LE.
If you have the change I would love to hear your review of the Denafrips Pontus II DAC. Love your reviews!
A very thorough review.
I'd love to hear one of the Terminator II, especially in comparison to the Spring 3 or May DACs.
There are some extremely exciting DAC coming after Christmas, you guys are going to fricking love it
🐅🐅🐅🐅
@@ConvinceMeAudio I'm in the hunt for one, so that's great news. Any chance of an Exasound e62 review?
What are mostly reviewed these days are DACs from China. Although I do like to hear about them too, and they mostly seem to be good values, warranties along with shipping could possibly be an issue. I live in North America and Exasound is a Canadian company, so that might be of some benefit for me in particular.
@@cablebrain9691 The logistics of some of these DAC shipments can be an issue unfortunately
To be honest of you sometimes it’s a fricking nightmare, but we are doing our best to get as many pieces of gear as possible for review
Really looking forward to bringing the moolahmoolah for review to put up against the may KTE
I2S is not for HDMI audio from a TV. You might want to correct that in your video
Certainly is not, I wonder what the mistake is I need to look at this review again. This was from a couple of years ago I think
Cheers bud appreciate it
It is easy to tell when you are filming on your mega yacht @0:51 by the gentle way the camera rolls with the waves. This happens several times in this video. I am assuming you are docked when you film and that this bob only happens when other boats pass by and create a swell to rock your boat. It may be my imagination, but I am also assuming that a $600 A90/A90D will power the Focal Stellia’s just fine.
🤣😎🐅
You assume correctly, it can drive them perfectly fine, they don’t require too much power to be honest
But they scale up tremendously with finesse and control
For example when you jump from that category with those headphones to something like the ferrum oor
It’s tonality that’s really important to these headphones
You know what makes you BETTER than other CZcamsrs - AND your fellow Greek Tycoons - you take the time to answer YOUR viewers comments. Stay healthy and don’t drive that purple Lamborghini too fast.
@@spiritualarchitect4276 thank you for the kind words, it’s very very much appreciated. Welcome to the fam.
@@ConvinceMeAudio The “Family”. See there’s that Mafia connection again. Man that Ferrum Oor is a beauty! Your not making my headphone amp purchase decision any easier : ) A90D? SMSL SP400? Marantz HD-DAC 1? And now the Ferrum Oor? It is hard enough for me to decide what ice cream to buy! That reminds me, I still gotta get that McDonalds milkshake. Have a nice day.
Absolutely on point about the volume difference issue. Vocals are often to quiet when they move away from the main focus.
For example:
- The Strokes - bad decisions (chorus: guitar and drums are loud, vocals are not enough)
- Van der graaph generator - scorched earth (2 : 23 this vocal sequence lacks impact because the singer is behind and pretty quiet)
In these moments i always want to turn up the volume knob on my amplifier. But it will be too loud in normal moments(esp drums) then...
Everything is good for me in this dac except this strange imaging/volume problem.
sry bad english :)
What DAC would you recommend under $1500? I was thinking of TOPPING D90 III that's updated one, but i'm not so sure since it's very much similar to this one, at least by the reviews. My next pick would probably be Holo Cyan 2. I mainly listen to electronic music and then classical. Would appreciate any suggestion if you have one. (I would pair it with VIOLECTRIC HPA V222 or Schiit Mjolnir 3 + Meze Empyrean 2)
@@varbane nooooo don’t do that mate, you need to buy holo cyan too. It’s incredible and goes punching so high above its category. It’s ridiculous. It’s a $3000 sound in the DAC. Category.
Bifrost 2 is my endgame dac. It sounds so lifelike but also punchy and fun. Best DAC under $1K imo
I need to bring it in for review, I’ve had it on my mind and on my review list for ages
@@ConvinceMeAudio can't wait to hear your opinion on Bifrost 2. I got it after watching all available CZcams videos of comparisons and indeed, it's amazing to me - it's a significant upgrade from Fulla 3 and Modius, all from Schiit Audio. I almost went with Denefrips Ares II but halted and went with Bifrost after watching a reviewer mentioning a slight delay of audio when watching movie or video so not suitable for normal PC use. Anyways, please Paint Me A Picture of Bifrost 2!
Dynamic weak ? You're wrong, I have D90SE and it has huge dynamic and it is ultra detailed. Please try again ...
I’m really looking at those studio speakers you got behind you. What brand is that?
The big monsters? Mackie hr824 they were built in the United States around 1997, you’re not going to get those these days mate
I noticed your XBox controller in the background. I have a A90 running my headphones off my pc for music and gaming lately. Would this DAC benefit me for gaming? I have heard it doesn't have a very good 3D sound to it?
I think it would be more than adequate, to be honest what I might be concerned about is latency, that I need to investigate, and apologies about the late reply only got this notification now
@@ConvinceMeAudio I have already tried it out and my two year old ROG motherboards dac is better suited for gaming audio. This DAC is exceptional for music though. That was amazingly apparent.
You don’t need 3d for gaming. You need Location accuracy which it does well.
YOu think D90SE is an upgrade to the RME adi2 DAC ?
Honestly mate, I’ve not reviewed that one but I have heard enough about it to know, it’s definitely not an upgrade, maybe a slight side grade and I think the RMV might actually be better
No offense brother. But the D90SE is the worse sounding DAC I’ve heard. Thin and bad timbre.
I much preferred the Topping D30pro. But that just like other topping products have bad analog output stages and veil the sound and take away weight of instruments.
Again I hope no offense. Just my opinion as a musician of 40 years.
Peace.
Oh, definitely, this is a very old video for the budget line these days. They’re DAC that annihilate it
Mojo 2 for example, it wasn’t good for a few months in its day
It also depends what you put it through. It did okay on the set up at the time
TBF, the channel is in a different category, just check out the bliss review LOL