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Specifications:
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2-channel, 24 bit, 96-kHz D-to-A
conversion
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192-kHz playback with 48 kHz
analog bandwidth
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THD+N = -106 dB (0.0005%)
measured at -0 dBFS
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116 dB signal-to-noise ratio @48
kHz, A weighted
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AES/EBU (XLR & Coax) and S/PDIF
(XLR, Coax, & Toslink) inputs
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Digital input source-selection
switch
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Balanced, low-Z XLR outputs
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+29 dBu output level capability
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Unbalanced RCA outputs
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Variable or preset output level
controls, switch selectable
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Direct connection to powered
monitors
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Built-in Benchmark HPA-2, a
high-output, ultra-clean headphone amplifier with dual outputs
jacks
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Automatic De-emphasis for 44.1,
48, 88.2, and 96 kHz when Pre-emphasis bit is set
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Size: 1 3/4" H x 9 1/2" W x 9
1/3" D
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Weight: 3.5 Pounds
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MSRP: $850 USA
Benchmark
Media Systems, Inc.
www.benchmarkmedia.com
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Introduction
Early in 2003, recording and mastering engineer Bob Olhsson, famed for his
work on “The Motown Legend”, told me about Benchmark Media's diminutive,
amazingly low-priced unit. In doing so, he echoed the praises of recording
engineer Bob Katz, long associated with Chesky Records, who had initially
turned him on to the DAC-1.
Gushing quotes from both engineers have since joined a host of other
professional endorsements that are posted on Benchmark's site. Olhsson
notes: “This thing has outrageous bass reproduction and as good a sense of
image and depth as I have ever heard including vinyl…”
Katz, formerly associated with Chesky and now with Digital Domain writes:
“The Benchmark is a killer!… I've NEVER heard a $850 DAC that sounds as
good as this Benchmark. It has definitely established a new
price/performance ratio.”
While I've never met Katz, I have been friends with Olhsson for many
years. Not only was I well acquainted with his listening set-up during the
time he lived in Northern California, but I have also reviewed a number of
recordings he has mastered for Hearts of Space. Knowing his high
standards, I take his comments seriously.
It took less than a month for me to contact Allen Burdick of Benchmark
Media and obtain a DAC-1 for review. Burdick was quick to explain that the
DAC-1 was designed with the recording engineer in mind. With so many low
price studios churning out flat, harsh, one-dimensional digital
recordings, Burdick's goal was to provide studio engineers with a
low-price option for radically improving recorded sound.
Because Benchmark's target audience is audio professionals rather than
consumers, most audiophile reviewers have steered clear of this product.
Whether or not its exceptionally reasonable price, far less inflated than
a lot of audiophile gear, has something to do with the cold shoulder is a
matter for speculation.
As far as I know, only high-end reviewer John Marks, at least two of whose
excellent JMR Recordings I have reviewed for Secrets, has commented on the
unit in the audiophile press. Marks writes of the unit: “[The DAC-1 is]
the lowest-priced piece of digital gear that can give sonic performance
that is not just improved mid-fi, but genuinely high-end. There are
less-expensive CD-playing solutions, but I think that the Benchmark (and
anything else with similar performance) is at the watershed
point—unquestionably among the hills that lead to the highest peaks.”
Given such praise, you may wonder why I've held off writing the first
full-length audiophile review of this product until now. There are several
reasons.
The first is that for more months than I wish to recall, I have held onto
the hope that Theta Digital would finally be able to break loose a review
sample of their new $10,000 Gen. VIII DAC/preamp so that I could compare
it with the DAC-1. The Gen. VIII, which for all I know will arrive within
a week or two of completing this review, is expected to replace my
long-time venerated reference, the highly musical but unquestionably
outdated Theta Gen Va. While I expect that the Gen. VIII will outshine the
DAC-1 in most or all areas – it had better, given the huge price
differential between the two – I remain of the belief that the virtues and
shortcomings of a piece of gear are often most clearly delineated when
compared to “statement” products of significantly greater cost. I thus
regret that the DAC-1/Gen. VIII comparison could not be performed by press
time.
Secondly, I have held off drawing ultimate conclusions about the unit
until several upgrades to my system had time to settle in. Most notable of
these are:
1. The replacement of my old Audio Alchemy DDS-Pro transport with a
heavily modified Sony 707ES from the workshop of Alexander Peychev http://www.aplhifi.com.
At least when listening to music via its AES/EBU output, the Peychev-modified
Sony offers far more resolution, brilliance, transparency, and detail. Its
lower noise floor, grain-free highs and tighter bass are an especial boon,
enabling me to hear deeper into the heart of the music.
2. The replacement of the short power umbilical cord between Perpetual
Technologies P-1A and Monolithic Power Supply with a Revelation Audio
silver power cable. Especially notable is the increase in bass response.
While at Allen Burdick's suggestion I did not use the P-1A when reviewing
the DAC-1, I always use it when listening to my reference DAC, the Theta
Gen. Va.
3.
The latest modification to my Talon Khorus X speakers. This includes the
addition of Bybee Filters to tweeters and woofers, a switch to Shunyata
internal wiring, a change of crossover capacitors and values – the new
crossover is entirely different than the Khorus X's first generation
crossover -- and speaker repositioning. The latter was accomplished with
the invaluable assistance of Bob Bergner of
http://www.rbaudio.com, who
used a soundcard and program developed by Rives Audio to measure the Khorus X's frequency response and interaction with my relatively untreated
listening room. The good news is that the Khorus X's response is now
remarkably flat throughout the spectrum, with few bumps and dips. The
sound is far more extended on both ends of the spectrum, with much greater
transparency, smoothness, and detail. This upgrade has definitely enabled
me to more clearly what is going on with a particular piece of equipment.
It has also granted me untold amounts of pleasure.
The Design
This teeny, lightweight baby can be variously used as a DAC/preamp or
stand alone DAC. You can listen to it via speakers or one of its two
headphone outputs. The unit accepts either coaxial (RCA-terminated), XLR (AES/EBU),
or optical digital inputs; the loud-clicking input selector switch is
located on the front of the unit.
The DAC-1 offers a choice between coaxial (RCA) and balanced (XLR)
outputs, and accepts an aftermarket three-prong power cable of your
choice. Output level can either be set to “Calibrated,” in which mode it
is adjusted via little screws on the rear of the unit and the volume
control on an external preamp, or to “Variable.” In “Variable” mode, when
the unit functions as both DAC and preamp, output level is controlled by
the volume control on the front of the DAC-1. This volume control also
adjusts headphone level.
The front of the unit includes a blue Power indicator, red Error indicator
and yellow “non PCM” indicator. The lights may be acceptable for recording
studios, but they are much too bright and distracting for home systems.
Whenever I listened to the DAC-1, I blocked out the lights.
Since Benchmark's website offers a complete technical description and
specs, three graphs, and downloadable cut sheet and manual, I relegate
parrots to their native habitat and invite you to peruse them at http://www.benchmarkmedia.com.
If you don't have Acrobat Reader, you can download it for free from Adobe.
Auditioning
Since the DAC-1 can be used either as a stand-alone DAC or all-in-one DAC/preamp,
I auditioned it in both modes. When used as a DAC only, I employed as
preamp the $6250 Reflection Audio OM1-Quantum in wall-power mode. (The
unit comes with an optional rechargeable battery power supply that
provides pure DC). My interconnects and speaker cables, save for the
exception described below, were Nordost Valhalla; powercords were a
combination of Elrod EPS and EPS Signature. While it is doubtful that most
music lovers who spend only $850 on a DAC (let alone a DAC/preamp combo)
will have a system whose other components and cables cost so much more,
using expensive statement products enabled me to clearly hear the DAC-1's
characteristics.
The only problem I encountered when beginning my final round of auditions
was that the DAC-1 refused to read the AES/EBU output of Alex Peychev's
transport. In e-mail correspondence with Allen Burdick, who subsequently
communicated with Peychev, Burdick explained:
“We have never had any experience with the DAC muting when decoding a
valid AES or S/PDIF bit stream from ANY transport. This is the first
report of any muting of a signal mute other than someone sending an AC3
Dolby signal to the DAC, for which it was not designed.
“When the error light comes on the design is saying that there is a
problem with the signal that it is receiving. Since this unit is, as you
say, highly modified, our suspicions are that there is a problem with the
AES signal that is being sent to the DAC. I checked with our chief
engineer and his design will mute with only two conditions. The first is
if the bit stream says it is professional and the status bit indicates a
non-audio signal. The second is when data is sent in consumer mode. CRC
errors will not mute the DAC. These are status bit errors.
“As far as using a different transport for your evaluations, that is just
fine. The DAC was designed to be free from transport anomalies, with the
exception of AES bit stream mistakes.”
I of course had the option of reverting back to my Audio Alchemy DDS-Pro,
whose AES/EBU output works perfectly with the DAC-1. But since Alex's
transport allows me to hear so much more detail, and I had devoted a lot
of time to carefully positioning it and isolating it from vibration, I was
averse to removing it. Instead, I called into play a Nirvana
BNC-terminated digital cable to use between the modified Sony transport
and DAC. In
part because this necessitated the use of a BNC-to-RCA adapter at the
transport end, and a second adapter for the P-1A when performing
comparisons, the Nirvana came across as flatter sounding and less
brilliant than the Nordost Valhalla. (The Nordost costs three times more
than the Nirvana). To insure that comparisons were performed on a level
playing field, the Nirvana digital cable remained in the chain for all
comparisons.
And then . . .
Let me correct that last statement. It should read “the Nirvana digital
cable remained in the chain for almost all comparisons.” As it turned out,
after I had completed my major listening comparisons and written the bulk
of this review, Alexander Peychev of APL and Stephen Balliet of Reflection
Audio came over to take hear how the DAC-1 sounded in my upgraded system.
(Both were delighted by the sound of the upgraded Khorus X). We soon
discovered that we were able to “trick” the DAC-1 into reading the signal
from the Nordost Valhalla AES/EBU cable by first locking onto the
Nirvana's coaxial signal and then switching the DAC-1 to “XLR” mode. I
will append my observations about what was revealed to the end of my
report.
Listening
As every self-respecting critic should, I listened to the DAC-1 in
ultra-critical mode. If in the end my observations focus as much on the
DAC-1's limitations as on its strengths, they should be comprehended in
the larger context. We are comparing an $850 DAC/preamp either with a DAC
chain (P-1A/Monolithic/Theta Gen. Va) that would now list for far more
than $5000, or a DAC chain/state-of-the-art preamp that together would
list for over $11,000. If the far more expensive equipment didn't sound
better than the DAC-1, something would be way off.
What I ask you to keep in mind as your read my observations is that the
DAC-1 is truly an extraordinary unit.
I did not audition the DAC-1 via headphones. I don't ordinarily use them,
and none of my reference equipment has a built-in headphone jack. Without
a reference, and with older headphones to boot, I decided to pass.
While I expect my reference discs will change once I have the Theta Gen.
VIII and Sony XA9000-ES SACD player chez Serinus, for the moment I have
stuck with selections from a group of recordings that I can safely say I
canlisten to all night.
The first choice was Arleen Auger's Love Songs (Delos), specifically
Copland's “Pastorale” and Obradors" “Del Cabello más sutil.” With DAC-1
doing double duty as DAC/preamp, I thought the sound optimally
transparent. Dalton Baldwin's piano sounded very full, albeit not as
resonant as I would have wished. There was wonderful detail to the
singing. But the one thing that disturbed me was the tone. It seemed all
of one piece, with a somewhat glassy uniformity and a steely edge
on the highs that obscured the distinct colors of piano and voice.
When I paired the DAC-1 with the Reflection Audio OM1-Quantum, the tone of
both piano and voice became more rounded and full. The voice seemed more
grounded, with undertones restored to their rightful place. There was also
a magical sense of quietness on the Obradors that I did not experience
when the DAC-1 had performed double duty. Initially I thought I had lost
some transparency, but what I came to realize instead was that the
Reflection Audio is a much more neutral, less edgy preamp than the DAC-1s.
This may be due in part to limitations of the DAC-1's inexpensive volume
control, which is bypassed when the DAC-1 is used solely as a DAC.
Regardless, having use of a preamp of the OM1-Quantum's caliber, I much
preferred to listen to the DAC-1 in DAC-only mode.
The P-1A/Theta chain definitely lacked the brilliance of the DAC-1's
sound, and seemed more veiled. Such are the limitations of the Theta's
older technology and 18-bit chip. Nonetheless, the Theta (paired with the
P-1A) compensated with highs more refined and magical. It may seem
contradictory to suggest that something that sounded a tad veiled and less
transparent nonetheless sounded more realistic, but the fuller lower
midrange and bass of the Theta combined with a more refined top more
clearly and accurately displayed the range of colors present in the voice
and piano. I missed the DAC-1's 24-bit, 96 khz transparency and
three-dimensionality, but I preferred the greater musicality of the older,
far more expensive unit.
Turning to Terry Evans' “Blues No More” track from Puttin' It Down (JVC-XRCD),
the clarity of the DAC-1 was outstanding, but compromised by a certain
lack of mellowness and midrange warmth. The results were far more in your
face, with highs a bit noisy and splayed. This is not to suggest that the
recording was unlistenable – compared to 99.9% of home systems, it sounded
fantastic – but the bright edge on the highs, including a glassiness to
the cymbals, was certainly apparent.
When the DAC-1 was connected to the OM-1 Quantum, I was blown away by the
huge amounts of very tight bass I heard. The cymbals also seemed far less
glassy.
With the P-1A/Theta, I sensed an even wider soundstage than with the
DAC-1. As with the Auger, the diminution of transparency, brilliance and
three-dimensionality was more than compensated for by a mellower, more
refined and musical presentation.
It's important to note that while my basic observations did not alter as I
continued to listen, the differences between recordings helped me to
further consolidate my thoughts about the DAC-1. I shall thus confine
further comments to the experiences that stuck most in my mind.
George Faber's Blues (BAT) is recorded at a higher level than any other
disc I auditioned. I intentionally chose not to alter volume to discover
what would happen. With the DAC-1 used either as either DAC/preamp or
stand-alone DAC, I found the opening “Takes a Better Man” too noisy for my
ears. The Theta lacked nothing in the way of drive and punch, but its
mellower presentation, more refined highs and increased fullness on the
lows more than compensated for the slight film over the proceedings. Even
at high volume, I was able to enjoy the music.
“El Choclo,” the opening track on Será una Noche (MA Recordings) and the
first few tracks on Karina Gauvin's extraordinary performance off
Canteloube's Chants d'Auvergne (CBC Records) brought the striking air and
transparency of the DAC-1 to the forefront. It also highlighted the unit's
somewhat mono-dimensional range of colors, an experience common with many
digital components (especially preamps). By comparison, what struck me
most when listening to the
P-1A/Theta chain was the difference in coloration between bongos, bass,
and other drums on “El Choclo” and the fabulous range of color in the
chamber accompaniment to Gauvin's incomparable singing.
As mentioned above, I was able to briefly audition the DAC-1 using the
Nordost Valhalla AES/EBU cable. The gain in clarity served to further
confirm my conclusions. Any DAC-1 owner with a good, neutral sounding
preamp on hand (no easy task to find – I've been through bunches,
including lots of tube changes, before I've found two I can live, the
Bruce Moore Companion III in highest upgrade mode and the Reflection Audio
OM-1 Quantum) and an extra set of high quality interconnects is encouraged
to try the Benchmark in DAC-only mode. This may give you the best of both
worlds for the lowest possible price.
Modifications
As in the case with many SACD players, the Perpetual Technology gear, the
old McCormack DNA amplifier line, and other equipment built to a price
point, upgrading the DAC-1 can result in noticeable improvements.
I have now had two brief opportunities to listen to a DAC-1 modified by
Stephen Balliet of Reflection Audio http://www.reflectionaudio.com. While
Stephen is reluctant to divulge all his secrets, he has told me that his
modifications include adding Bybee filters, isolating the power supply,
and cryogenically treating components.
To my ears, Stephen Balliet has worked wonders with the DAC-1. In DAC/preamp
mode, I still find the sound somewhat monochromatic, but the highs are far
more tamed and musical. The bass is also fantastic, almost on a par with
the Theta Gen. Va. Used solely as a DAC, with the Reflection Audio OM-1
Quantum serving as preamp, not only does the color of instruments and
voice come very close to what I'm accustomed to hearing from the
Theta/P-1A chain, but there is far more transparency and
three-dimensionality. The upgraded unit still lacks the last degree of
Theta's ultimate fullness and killer bass, but what it does present it
presents with greater veracity and musicality than before.
Frankly, if I did not know that the Theta Gen. VIII DAC/preamp is slated
to arrive chez Serinus sometime before the melting of the polar icecap –
which means it had better arrive sooner than later – I would be sorely
tempted to go with Stephen Balliet's modified DAC-1. For less than a third
of the price of the Theta, it performs an astounding job. For DAC-1
owners, Stephen's upgrades are well worth considering.
Click Here to Go to Part
II - On the Bench, and Conclusions
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