14 replies to this topic

[@nThOnY]

Hi all

Just purchased a Nak cd700II with the mf-51 5 disc changer. When reading the specs of the mf-51, just have the feeling that it is not going to keep up to my expectation with sound quality (stage, dynamics, smoothness).

So I did a search on the net and found the Nakamichi dac-41. Does anyone know if this will help to improve the sq of my changer. Or are there any other products around that can help?

Thanks for any help in advance

[gooki]

Hello.

From my experience with the nakamichi CDC100 and DAC101 you will get an improved level of SQ from using the external DAC, only if the CD700 doesn't use it's own DAC when playing tracks from the CD Changer.

Does the MF51 have it's own digital audio out? If not you'll have to hack open your CD changer cable (which isnt a big deal) to get the digital out.

[golf_bht]

I am currently using MF51 in my car. I would say it have the cleanest digital out I ever heard. Yes this stacker have coax digital builtin. I would recommend you to hookup an external DAC the same way I do. Apogee is the go if you have enough money to spend. soundstream da20e is very nice too. !!!!!!! do not convert coax to optic no matter what you do, you will loode so much more than gain!!!!!!

[Winno]

I had a CD-45z, MF-51, DAC-41 combination a little while ago.
The DAC-41 made a definite improvement to the sound of the MF-51 as the DAC used 20 bit filtering compared to the changer's 1 bit.

For the time it was almost unbeatable...then the CD-700 arrived on the scene. No MF-51/DAC-41 combo could keep up with this head unit. They came pretty close though.

[@nThOnY]

Thanks for the replies

So I shall cut down my choices of dacs will be down to the Nak dac-41, 101 and the Apogee. May I know

The Nak dac-41 sounds ideal to me. But do you guys have an idea on price? And is it still avaliable in the market? And is there a "flagship" dac from Nakamichi?

To Golf-bht, may I know which Apogee dac you are using? I've always been curious about these dacs but just have no clue which is the most suitable for car audio application.

Thanks heaps...feeling fuzzy for asking so much :?

Regards

@nThOnY

[gooki]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...ssPageName=WDVW

Nakamichi DAC 111 for $179USD from a very reputable trader - I have ordered 3 items from this trader and they have all arrived promptly and well packaged.

[golf_bht]

the dac in question is Apogee minidac 24/192. It is the best dac on the earth. well every studio use it as their reference. I brought mine from manys nusic in melbourne. they were A$3500 for the dac.

[@nThOnY]

wow...that apogee dac is quite an expensive piece of gear. But may I know how this dac has improve the SQ (stage, smoothness etc) ? And how would you compare this with the dac from the cd-700?

Thanks

[E320Titanium]

How do you like the cd700II?

I have the cd700 and love it. I must be one of the lucky one as i have had no issues with the problems that have plagued this model.

I didn't bother with the changer for the reason you outlined above.

[daniel price]

I run Nak gear up front too, and from experience I believe that the benefit of the MF51 over the MF31 is that by using the digital coax cable you allow the stacker to benefit from the higher processing of the HU. so while the stacker works off a 1 bit DAC, hooking it to the CD700 allows processing at the HU's 24 bit DAC.

If you were to get an external DAC I would recommend the 111 from the Ebayer mentioned elsewhere in this topic, he is reliable and has great prices.

[golf_bht]

but if you can afford to buy the kind of reference DAC. surely it will sound much better then the HU one. and as fer as external DAC ic a concern. I would recomend you to use the dac in your HU. DAC 111 arn't sound as good as the HU one. it does sound sweeter and more mellow but the DAC in your HU still beat it in term of staging and detail. the dac 111 can't match the top end of cd 700 due to more bits resolution. anyway you will need to get a good digital coax to go with it. a nomal RCA won't do. audioquest is the go but if you can't afford it neotech digital cable will do the jub just fine. don't go for normal or expensive RCA, it is design to carry different kind of signa, hence will contaminate it

[@nThOnY]

Thanks for the info guys. My cd700 is still in the box and running a Nak mb100 atm. Cognitive dissonance is kinda setting in now because don't know if the difference in sq between these 2 HU will be that signficant to jusify the price paid. I like Nak HUs (even the cd400 is great imo) because I find the sound more natural, used an alpine cda-7894rb before and never impressed with it.

Do a lot of contestants use these Apogee dacs during sq comps?

[golf_bht]

well if you have a mb100 HU then don't waste you time installing the CD700 in your car!!!! my research found that a good digital cable between the HU and the DA will make this HU a sleeper!!!! buy Audioquest DVM-1 digital cable and forget about CD700.

Well the only two car I ever seen using stand alone DAC are my car and Cyber Punky car. I still can't be the winner. I got beaten by a guy using Alpine 9815!!!!

SQ isn't all about what you got, but it is all about how you set your system up. HU play an important role in the system but installation is even more important that the speaker or amps you got.

[gooki]

If you are still looking at an external DAC:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...ssPageName=WDVW

[@nThOnY]

golf_bht said:

well if you have a mb100 HU then don't waste you time installing the CD700 in your car!!!! my research found that a good digital cable between the HU and the DA will make this HU a sleeper!!!! buy Audioquest DVM-1 digital cable and forget about CD700.

Haha, for my mb100, the cable between the dac and the changer is made of 80% silver. It did made a vast improvement over the stock cable and in my opinion it is not far away from the cd700. I actually decided to stick with the mb100 but once saw the cd700, just could not resist it. :?

And yeah, been buying a lot of gadgets for my car lately so my mind just drifted away from install and tuning. I have upgrade plans for my frontstage too, just a few things I am not happy with at the moment.

gooki said:

If you are still looking at an external DAC:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...ssPageName=WDVW

Thanks gooki, I looked into the the mcintosh mx5000 with the mda5000 combo before too but was too pricey. I think I will install the cd700 and see how it goes from now on.

Thanks for all your help !!