# Audeze Deckard - class A amp, USB DAC



## lamode

Seems that Audeze is widening their product range, and like many of their competitors, they now offer an amp of their own:
  

  
*Class A headphone amp and USB DAC.*

 * DAC processes 16/32 bits and up to 384kHz (limited to 192kHz on Windows devices due to operating system limitations). It does not do DSD.

 * Can be used as a line level preamp.

 * I*ndustrial design by BMW DesignWorks USA* (same as the new EL-8 headphone)

 * Output power: 795mW at 33ohms, 465mW at 300ohms, 235mW at 600ohms

 * *Retail price: $699*

 * *Ships: 3/2015*
  
*Looking forward to auditioning it!*


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## citraian

Niiice, can't wait to hear more about it


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## IAMBLEST

why would they offer such high end headphones with a DAC that is nowhere near high end?
  
 If they are going for the cheaper / portable market like with the EL8 - then shouldnt they be making more of a portable AMP?
  
 it doesnt seem to fit with me...they make some of the best headphones on the planet, and are priced accordingly...then they make this DAC which doesnt seem to line up with many of the other DAC's available?


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## lamode

iamblest said:


> why would they offer such high end headphones with a DAC that is nowhere near high end?


 
  
 Have you heard it yet? It's a bit soon to complain about the performance!


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## IAMBLEST

lamode said:


> Have you heard it yet? It's a bit soon to complain about the performance!


 

 i didnt complain about the performance.  It's clear they are NOT positioning this in the high end of DACs.  It doesnt look all that fantastic, doesnt do DSD, doesnt seem to have a balanced output, no LCD screen or anything like this.  It just doesnt *look* like a high end product which they usually are synonymous with.


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## lamode

iamblest said:


> i didnt complain about the performance.  It's clear they are NOT positioning this in the high end of DACs.  It doesnt look all that fantastic, doesnt do DSD, doesnt seem to have a balanced output, no LCD screen or anything like this.  It just doesnt *look* like a high end product which they usually are synonymous with.


 
  
 Well I see your point of view (and I will probably never buy this myself) but I would never expect an LCD screen on a DAC/amp. Even balanced configuration is wasted on headphones, imo. As for DSD, your audio player can likely convert this to 24/88 PCM, and no-one on earth can hear any difference in a blind test  I'd take even a beautiful sounding 16/44 DAC over a DAC with all the bells and whistles any day!
  
 My point is that the SOUND may be high-end, which is all that matters to me. It's too soon to tell.
  
 On the subject of styling, it seems to be a common issue. The Chord Hugo is certainly loved for its sound, for example, but the looks??... aargh!


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## IAMBLEST

lamode said:


> Well I see your point of view (and I will probably never buy this myself) but I would never expect an LCD screen on a DAC/amp. Even balanced configuration is wasted on headphones, imo. As for DSD, your audio player can likely convert this to 24/88 PCM, and no-one on earth can hear any difference in a blind test  I'd take even a beautiful sounding 16/44 DAC over a DAC with all the bells and whistles any day!
> 
> My point is that the SOUND may be high-end, which is all that matters to me. It's too soon to tell.
> 
> On the subject of styling, it seems to be a common issue. The Chord Hugo is certainly loved for its sound, for example, but the looks??... aargh!


 

 I thought the Hugo looks fantastic!
  
 I guess im comparing it to my HA-1 which really is a fantastic bang for buck amp.  Not the best in the world im sure but really great as an all in one system with lots of bells and whistles.


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## daniel_hokkaido

Audeze Deckard hmm? (chin stroke) We can call the subsquent Chinese copy 'The Replicant' so. I wonder was the amp called this cause the Audeze house sound makes the Blade Runner OST sound extra sweet ?


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## XVampireX

The first thing that crossed my mind with the name Audeze Deckard.. was "Stay a while and listen" 




iamblest said:


> I thought the Hugo looks fantastic!
> 
> I guess im comparing it to my HA-1 which really is a fantastic bang for buck amp.  Not the best in the world im sure but really great as an all in one system with lots of bells and whistles.




HA-1 looks so much better than the Hugo....

Edit: misquoted it but still getting likes, quote is fixed now.


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## Mediahound

Is this powerful enough to drive Audeze headphones optimally?


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## GrindingThud

Not according to the specs for their headphones on thier website. They claim optimum is 1-4 watts, so in this case, their own propaganda sells them sort. Marketing fail.



mediahound said:


> Is this powerful enough to drive Audeze headphones optimally?


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## lamode

mediahound said:


> Is this powerful enough to drive Audeze headphones optimally?


 
  
 No-one can answer that for you without knowing how loud you like your music.


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## XVampireX

grindingthud said:


> Not according to the specs for their headphones on thier website. They claim optimum is 1-4 watts, so in this case, their own propaganda sells them sort. Marketing fail.


 
  
 It's not only about the power. check out ALO PanAm, doesn't give out that much power, however I've had a listen to it in the last local meet up and it did an amazing job with the LCD-3.
  
 Though more power to the driver will give out better bass pulse but the thing with audio is, there's certainly a point of diminishing returns, and even though we know that, we still know, there's still some return for the extra buck, even though it's much lower.
  
 Regarding the Audeze Deckard Amp, I'm certain that they will design it in the same way that they think their Audeze headphones should sound.


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## Mediahound

xvampirex said:


> It's not only about the power. check out ALO PanAm, doesn't give out that much power, however I've had a listen to it in the last local meet up and it did an amazing job with the LCD-3.
> 
> Though more power to the driver will give out better bass pulse but the thing with audio is, there's certainly a point of diminishing returns, and even though we know that, we still know, there's still some return for the extra buck, even though it's much lower.
> 
> Regarding the Audeze Deckard Amp, I'm certain that they will design it in the same way that they think their Audeze headphones should sound.


 

 I'm certainly interested in hearing impressions of it. The price seems not bad, and it has a preamp out too!


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## HeyWaj10

You guys who write off gear before ever listening to it need to go. Your comments have absolutely ZERO merit. But good, don't listen to it, don't buy it, and move along to your beloved buzzword-compliant equipment. Allow those actually interested to enjoy this product in the near future.


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## Mediahound

heywaj10 said:


> You guys who write off gear before ever listening to it need to go. Your comments have absolutely ZERO merit. But good, don't listen to it, don't buy it, and move along to your beloved buzzword-compliant equipment. Allow those actually interested to enjoy this product in the near future.




Turn the snark down a notch please.


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## HeyWaj10

Sorry, my snark doesn't do DSD


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## GrindingThud

I'm going off Audeze themselves who's website states it's not optimal. If they don't think its good enough for the LCD, why bother for those. That being said, it's certainly worth listening to and evaluating, especially with the phones it's designed for. . I'm actually looking forward to hearing one, especially with their new headphones. It also seems to have a decent voltage swing into high impedance loads which will be interesting to listen to.


heywaj10 said:


> You guys who write off gear before ever listening to it need to go. Your comments have absolutely ZERO merit. But good, don't listen to it, don't buy it, and move along to your beloved buzzword-compliant equipment. Allow those actually interested to enjoy this product in the near future.


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## dagothur

Based on my complete lack of expertise or experience with this amp, this is probably a foot-in-the-door product for Audeze.  They might try something a little sexier (maybe with dual 3-pin and 4-pin balanced jacks) down the road when they have a better handle on the process. Judging by the money we as a community have thrown at this company the past four years, I think it's safe to say they know what they're doing.


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## wnmnkh

Well, I heard it.... And I can say it's ok. Nothing wrong... but also nothing great.
  

  
 It is not like something terrible or underpriced..... But seriously this is a typical me-too product. People who are not familiar with other hifi brand will buy this.


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## GrindingThud

Any photos of the inside yet?


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## smial1966

grindingthud said:


> Any photos of the inside yet?


 
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
*Just kidding!  *


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## Matias




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## Stillhart

They were using a Pono as a DAC to demo the EL-8. I'll let you draw your own conclusions on what that means for the DAC in the Deckard.


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## Mediahound

stillhart said:


> They were using a Pono as a DAC to demo the EL-8. I'll let you draw your own conclusions on what that means for the DAC in the Deckard.


 
  
  It looks to me like they are using the line out of the Pono player into the RCAs of the Deckard amp. This doesn't mean the DAC in the Deckard is no good.


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## Stillhart

mediahound said:


> The input in this picture is set to RCA (analog ins), not USB. Are sure about your statement? It looks to me like they are just using the line out of the Pono player into the RCAs of the Deckard amp.


 
  
 Yes?  Analog inputs mean the Deckard is just acting as an amp, not as a DAC.  They used the Pono for the DAC and the Deckard for the Amp.  Why would they do that when the Deckard has a DAC built-in?  It doesn't give me confidence in the DAC implementation.


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## Mediahound

stillhart said:


> Why would they do that when the Deckard has a DAC built-in?  It doesn't give me confidence in the DAC implementation.


 
  
 Maybe because it was the Pono booth? Or they didn't have a computer to hook up at that moment to the Deckard amp. It could be any number of reasons.


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## Stillhart

mediahound said:


> Maybe because it was the Pono booth? Or they didn't have a computer to hook up at that moment to the Deckard amp. It could be any number of reasons.


 
  
 You're like my wife, constantly giving everyone the benefit of the doubt.  It's adorable.  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



  
 But no, it was the Audeze booth (source:  I took that picture) and they had many tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment there.  They could have gotten a few laptops or tablets if needed.


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## Mediahound

stillhart said:


> You're like my wife, constantly giving everyone the benefit of the doubt.  It's adorable.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 

 Well maybe they wanted to show off the Pono sound through the amp. You can't do that if connecting the amp to a computer, you'd need to actually connect the Pono for that. 
  
 Others have shown pics above in this thread of the Deckard connected to computers via USB, so not sure what your point is. 
  
 The fact that they connected the amp via different inputs does not mean the DAC sucks, as you seem to imply.
  
 Anyone who has been to can-jam or any other audio shows knows that multiple devices are often connected to any amps on display throughout the day.


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## Stillhart

mediahound said:


> Well maybe they wanted to show off the Pono sound through the amp. You can't do that if connecting the amp to a computer, you'd need to connect the Pono for that.
> 
> Others have shown pics above in this thread of the Deckard connected to computers so not sure what your point is.


 
  
 No point, feel free to draw your own conclusions.  
  
 In my mind, I see a company selling a new DAC/Amp combo yet not demo'ing the DAC at the biggest electronics show in the world.  To me that smacks of lack of confidence.  Obviously you feel differently, and that's perfectly fine with me.  I just thought the folks questioning the quality of the DAC might find this little tidbit interesting.


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## Mediahound

stillhart said:


> No point, feel free to draw your own conclusions.
> 
> In my mind, I see a company selling a new DAC/Amp combo yet not demo'ing the DAC at the biggest electronics show in the world.  To me that smacks of lack of confidence.  Obviously you feel differently, and that's perfectly fine with me.  I just thought the folks questioning the quality of the DAC might find this little tidbit interesting.


 

 If you felt that way, and you were there, why didn't you ask them to hook it up the way you wanted and actually take a listen and compare? Since you did not do that it seems you are the one drawing conclusions.


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## Stillhart

mediahound said:


> If you felt that way, and you were there, why didn't you ask them to hook it up the way you wanted and actually take a listen and compare? Since you did not do that it seems you are the one drawing conclusions.


 
 Honestly?  At the time, I didn't know it was a DAC also.  I saw that it was being used as an amp only and it didn't occur to me that it might also be a DAC.
  
 And yes, I'm drawing a conclusion.  People do that when presented with facts.  Not sure why you're getting so personal about it.


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## Mediahound

stillhart said:


> Honestly?  At the time, I didn't know it was a DAC also.  I saw that it was being used as an amp only and it didn't occur to me that it might also be a DAC.
> 
> And yes, I'm drawing a conclusion.  People do that when presented with facts.  Not sure why you're getting so personal about it.


 

 For all we know, the DAC could have not even been installed inside the case. New devices are often demo'ed with what is ready, not finalized revs. This does not automatically mean it sucks.


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## HeyWaj10

I'm in the same camp as phototristan...it's very likely that Pono was working to push their presence at this year's show and paired up with some top vendors to use the Pono player as a source. To me that seems perfectly logical.


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## eugenius

I pretty much expect a resistor ladder volume control or at least a chip instead of a potentiometer in a boutique $700 preamp / headphone amplifier these days.
  
 The DAC is ok as a feature, but I'd rather have the option to delete it to save some money.


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## Rem0o

grindingthud said:


> Not according to the specs for their headphones on thier website. They claim optimum is 1-4 watts, so in this case, their own propaganda sells them sort. Marketing fail.


 
 I challenge you to feed your headphones 1 watt and put your ears close. LCD-3 needs 0.00014 W (or 0.14 mW) to reach 90 db SPL according to innerfidelity's measurements. Power ratings are over rated and this amplifier should have plenty of power for all Audeze's models. But all that tells nothing about the sounds, so let's wait and see.


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## GrindingThud

I agree with you, which is why I think Audeze should change their website. 



rem0o said:


> I challenge you to feed your headphones 1 watt and put your ears close. LCD-3 needs 0.00014 W (or 0.14 mW) to reach 90 db SPL according to innerfidelity's measurements. Power ratings are over rated and this amplifier should have plenty of power for all Audeze's models. But all that tells nothing about the sounds, so let's wait and see.


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## Rem0o

grindingthud said:


> I agree with you, which is why I think Audeze should change their website.


 
 And most of Head-fI's mentallity when it comes to amplifiers and power.


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## Matias

Audeze disclosed the wrong power rating for the Deckard, they will fix it soon on their website. It is more powerful than it was disclosed.


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## thecourier

eugenius said:


> I pretty much expect a resistor ladder volume control or at least a chip instead of a potentiometer in a boutique $700 preamp / headphone amplifier these days.
> 
> The DAC is ok as a feature, but I'd rather have the option to delete it to save some money.


 
  
 True. But sometimes there are fairly priced Dac/amp combos.


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## YtseJamer




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## walfredo

heywaj10 said:


> You guys who write off gear before ever listening to it need to go. Your comments have absolutely ZERO merit. But good, don't listen to it, don't buy it, and move along to your beloved buzzword-compliant equipment. Allow those actually interested to enjoy this product in the near future.


 
  
 +1


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## abvolt

I  really like the look of this amp myself and hope for more info before it's release, Audeze has a great name I can't see why there amp wouldn't be good at least that's what I'm hoping for anyway..


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## BDM-Fi

matias said:


> Audeze disclosed the wrong power rating for the Deckard, they will fix it soon on their website. It is more powerful than it was disclosed.


 
 At Hifiplus the following (significantly higher) power ratings were mentioned:
  
"The class A amp section of the Deckard is quite powerful, putting out 3.2 watts at 20 Ohms (for purposes of driving Audeze’s LCD-X headphone), 2.1 watts at 30 Ohms (for the Audeze EL-8), 900mW at 70 Ohms (for the LCD-2), and 581mW (for the LCD-3)."
  
http://www.hifiplus.com/articles/ces-highlights-from-venetian-floor-30-and-lvcc-south-hall-headphones-and-related-electronics/?page=2
  
 Curious about the power delivery matching with LCD3... .


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## abvolt

bdm-fi said:


> At Hifiplus the following (significantly higher) power ratings were mentioned:
> 
> "The class A amp section of the Deckard is quite powerful, putting out 3.2 watts at 20 Ohms (for purposes of driving Audeze’s LCD-X headphone), 2.1 watts at 30 Ohms (for the Audeze EL-8), 900mW at 70 Ohms (for the LCD-2), and 581mW (for the LCD-3)."
> 
> ...


 
 Thanks for posting this wow lots of power sure is right can't wait for the reviews..


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## zackzack

xvampirex said:


> It's not only about the power. check out ALO PanAm, doesn't give out that much power, however I've had a listen to it in the last local meet up and it did an amazing job with the LCD-3.
> 
> Though more power to the driver will give out better bass pulse but the thing with audio is, there's certainly a point of diminishing returns, and even though we know that, we still know, there's still some return for the extra buck, even though it's much lower.
> 
> Regarding the Audeze Deckard Amp, I'm certain that they will design it in the same way that they think their Audeze headphones should sound.


 

 Pan Am is great for a lot of headphones, dynamic ones. There is no way you can be satisfied with PanAm if you are listening with orthodynamic Audeze LCDs


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## kawaivpc1

I'm interested in.
 How does it sound?
 Does it sound as good as Hugo? or Grace Design DACs?


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## Bartez75

I like the design. If the sound is great then nothing to complain.


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## abvolt

\Wonder if Audeze is still going to try and ship the end of March after there burglary, my balanced cables were shipped right away hope so..


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## a-mal

Where is this manufactured? Doesn't Audeze take pride in making the rest of their products in the USA? That thing looks like those cheap amps you buy on ebay from china.


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## Matias

They corrected the power:
 "Output Power: 4W at 20 ohms"
 https://www.audeze.com/products/amplifiers/deckard


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## Rem0o

matias said:


> They corrected the power:
> "Output Power: 4W at 20 ohms"
> https://www.audeze.com/products/amplifiers/deckard


 
 In my opinion, they just changed the way they rate it, it's still the same power. And of course, they don't specify RMS or peak.

 Makes 1.13 W at 70 ohms for the LCD-2 and 0.72 W at 110 ohms for the LCD-3. My guess is that the original ratings were RMS and now they throw in that 4W at 20 ohms (most likely peak), just to be "coherant" with their "needs 1-4W" marketing.


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## winterandsummer

well thats just sad, ive just realize that the preamp out is a line-level preamp out
 so the volume knob cant be used as a passive attenuator, which makes the deckard 100% useless with studio monitor


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## luisandre

Hello to everyone!

I have a question regarding the deckard output on the back panel.
Does it act like a preamp, meaning that I can connect it to a power amp and control the volume with the deckard? 

Thank's!!


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## HiFiRobot

zackzack said:


> Pan Am is great for a lot of headphones, dynamic ones. There is no way you can be satisfied with PanAm if you are listening with orthodynamic Audeze LCDs


 
  
 Hehe, me and some others think otherwise. In my opinion, Pan Am is the amp for Audeze.
 http://www.headfonia.com/portable-desktop-alo-the-panam/2/
 http://headfonics.com/2012/10/alo-audio-the-pan-am/
 http://thehighfidelityreport.com/alo-pan-am-headphone-amp-dac/
 http://thehighfidelityreport.com/the-alo-pan-am-on-steroids/
 http://audio-head.com/the-alo-pan-am-desktop-headphone-amplifier-and-usb-dac-review/


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## exsomnis

winterandsummer said:


> well thats just sad, ive just realize that the preamp out is a line-level preamp out
> so the volume knob cant be used as a passive attenuator, which makes the deckard 100% useless with studio monitor




Well they are a manufacturer of headphones and did design it with their headphones in mind. We most likely won't see any kind of loudspeaker friendly features until they decide to make planar magnetic speakers too.

It's going to be interesting to see what they achieve with it, regardless.


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## luisandre

I got an e-mail from audeze saying that I can use the deckard as pre-amp connected to a power amp and be able to control the volume from the deckard.


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## joeexp

You can also use it to fry your eggs in the morning.  Class A makes that possible.
 A machine of many talents!


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## dnuggett

So with the Cavalli available for order now, and the prices very similar.. what advantages does this unit hold?


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## tg123

Does anyone have any information on the DAC?


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## rshuck

Received my Deckard today. I am quite happy to announce that, so far, it seems to drive the K1000s. No promises, but they get loud enough for me on the High gain setting. I am not disappointed with the purchase even a little bit right now.


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## Amish

I looked at this amp when I first read about it on their site. My only question was why it doesn't put out 1w@50 or more since they state the LCD2 can handle that and above.
  
 I suppose it doesn't matter much (quality over quantity) but I like my music loud. Like the kinda loud that most cringe at I'm sure...at least my wife says so anyway. I've been looking for and listening to amps that run 2.5 watts + for my LCD2 and I have a amp that runs 5 watts into the cans and the LCD2 handles it fine. Now normally I'm running them off my BHA-1 which is less power for sure but I just wonder why they went with an amp at under 1watt rms?
  
 Don't take this the wrong way...Ive not heard this amp and I'm sure it powers the Audeze cans beautifully.


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## GrindingThud

I was critical of the literature at first, but when ithe amp was finalized, it puts out 1.5W at 50. Still looking to hear one. 9VRMS is approaching krell KSA5 power levels, more than plenty of power for LCD2.2. 



amish said:


> I looked at this amp when I first read about it on their site. My only question was why it doesn't put out 1w@50 or more since they state the LCD2 can handle that and above.
> 
> I suppose it doesn't matter much (quality over quantity) but I like my music loud. Like the kinda loud that most cringe at I'm sure...at least my wife says so anyway. I've been looking for and listening to amps that run 2.5 watts + for my LCD2 and I have a amp that runs 5 watts into the cans and the LCD2 handles it fine. Now normally I'm running them off my BHA-1 which is less power for sure but I just wonder why they went with an amp at under 1watt rms?
> 
> Don't take this the wrong way...Ive not heard this amp and I'm sure it powers the Audeze cans beautifully.


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## rshuck

It powers the LCD2.2s just fine, even on low gain. I think their literature kinda sells the amp short of its capability. The K1000 is actually too loud for me past about 2 O'Clock on the dial. I just bought this for my work rig, but it is really very good.


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## Coldfate

any idea how does it compare to the Asgard 2/Bitfrost combo


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## hk29

Any additional reviews using it from USB? Thanks!


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## rshuck

Other than the fact that it works natively through a lightning to USB adapter (Or Camera Kit, whatever they call it now), I have no other comments yet. I have an iPod Touch at work connected directly to the Deckard through USB, and it sounds great. It does not charge the iPod at the same time, if you were curious.


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## cdave

coldfate said:


> any idea how does it compare to the Asgard 2/Bitfrost combo


 

 Same here or the Lyr2/Bitfrost combo. Any comparison would be most appreciated.


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## peacewalker215

cdave said:


> Same here or the Lyr2/Bitfrost combo. Any comparison would be most appreciated.


 
  
 Luckily I had the opportunity to hear Lyr 2/Bifrost combo before Deckard. However I've just play music on Deckard on 2 hours only so this impression is purely early and unfinished. When Lyr 2 with 6BZ7 stock tubes offers a full bodied bass and marvelous high range, Deckard tends to play everything more balanced (more but not as balanced as expected). Midrange leans a little bit forward on my 580 and DT990, which is a very good thing on vocal tracks, but I expected a little bit more with classical.
  
 Comparing with Bifrost, the background is clean, perfectly clean indeed. But the soundstaging can be described as a 6.8/10 where Bifrost holds an 8/10 according to my taste. Drives 300 to 600 ohm pairs easily but I obviously don't expect my HD800 to shine on this amp just like it did on Ragnarok.


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## karthiksn

Has anyone gotten a chance to listen to either the Deckard or the ALO Pan Am with the LCD-X?


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## TJ Browning

Ditto on other impressions/comparisons! Finally had the chance to hear the EL-8 and was very, very pleased. Crossing my fingers Audeze made another winner with the Deckard. In the same price range as the Soloist SL and Schiit combos... I love the design; hoping it sounds as good as it looks...?


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## elvamir

Just got the Deckard yesterday, after demoing and hearing the great synergy between it and the Fostex TH900's. That is now my primary listening combo. Loving this amp so far, and it's day 2. Can only imagine after it breaks in over time. Already very low noise floor (on all gains but particularly low gain), gives a bit more punch to the bass, the soundstage breaths nicely, all around well balanced. Have used the analog and DAC and both sound amazing. 

A note of caution - this is clearly designed as a desktop amp or preamp, not a straight headphone amp. Although it has an analog output, it is not a passive pass-thru. So to get audio to the next source it need to be powered on, no headphones connected, and it's volume will adjust the output to that source. So it may not be ideal for a home theater setup where another amp is in play, if that's what you're considering it for.


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## Matias

New review about the Deckard: http://headphone.guru/the-audeze-deckard/


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## elvamir

Great review!


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## ToTo Man

Does the DAC in the Deckard employ a bit-perfect clock management system (e.g. like Schiit's line of DACs), or does it resample the source input stream regardless of its original sample rate?


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## TJ Browning

elvamir said:


> Just got the Deckard yesterday, after demoing and hearing the great synergy between it and the Fostex TH900's. That is now my primary listening combo. Loving this amp so far, and it's day 2. Can only imagine after it breaks in over time. Already very low noise floor (on all gains but particularly low gain), gives a bit more punch to the bass, the soundstage breaths nicely, all around well balanced. Have used the analog and DAC and both sound amazing.


 
 Elvamir, would you mind measuring the dimensions of the Deckard for me? I know there are measurements online, but those measurements usually include the volume knob, any protruding speaker terminals, connectors, etc. I just want to know the dimensions of the main body itself...


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## elvamir

tj browning said:


> Elvamir, would you mind measuring the dimensions of the Deckard for me? I know there are measurements online, but those measurements usually include the volume knob, any protruding speaker terminals, connectors, etc. I just want to know the dimensions of the main body itself...



Just the chassis itself is 6.25" wide, 2" tall, 10" deep


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## TJ Browning

Perfect! Thank you!!


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## Jonfairway

Well had my new Deckard Amplifier a few days now and wanted to share a few thoughts on it with everyone. 
  
 Firstly I had been using my Graham Slee Solo SRg11 and Dacmagic One  ( yes Dacmagic One ) as my preferred source for quite a while. 
  
 First day I swapped over and powered the Deckard up I did think to myself my god this does sound very different to the Solo, and it does... 
  
 The Idea was to get some synergy for the LCD2's with an Amplifier designed with them and the rest of the Audeze "sound" in mind. 
  
 And I am pleased to say the Deckard is all of this and a lot more too. 
  
 Just to get some stuff out the way first before I give you all my thoughts on the sound of this amplifier, the workmanship is beyond belief for an amplifier at this price, heavy, solid, oozes quality certainly nothing to complain about here. 
  
 The amp likes to warm up !..  I realized this as soon as I powered the beast up, give it a good 10 minutes to reach temperature before listening to some music, its odd but the hotter this puppy runs the better it sounds. 
  
 Okay here we go, this amp has plenty of ooomph to drive any of the LCD series on low gain it drives my LCD3's to nice and loud by 1pm on the clock ( and yes I do listen at 2pm most the time ) the sound is warm, lush, and extremely detailed, the extra detail was what struck me when I swapped over to it, I was hearing things that my other amps were missing, its quite astonishing that my attention was drawn to the detail with the LCD3's rather than the Bass and beautiful Mids, but there it is, detailed highs. 
  
 It has a good sound stage certainly improved on the Solo which was already better in that regard than the Beyer A1 anyway. The Deckard creates a believable picture of the music, good depth, reality, Instruments sound like the should, but it doesn't over emphasize any part of the music, its almost if the amplifier was designed to compliment the Audeze Sound, just bringing together music in a believable way that is so musical, one finds oneself listening to album after album addictive even. 
  
 This is a resolving amplifier, I could see it being a bad match for some headphones, overly bright headphones may find this detail a little overpowering, the slightly laid back highs of the Audeze sound really gel with the Deckard, both my LCD headphones benefiting from the partnership. 
  
 It has a great sense of PRAT , separation is great, I listen to mainly rock, female vocals and acoustic material which suit the Audeze sound anyway, so any improvement in definition is welcomed. 
  
 As I am writing this I am listening to some Alan Parsons Project and hearing things in the mix that have eluded me in the past. 
  
 got maybe 40 hours on it so far and it is still improving so I think a long burn in is going to be the order of the day, only concern is how hot the top of this Class A amplifier is getting !!!!  its to hot to hold your hand on it !!!! 
  
 I would say that the LCD2 is the better partner over all so far with the amplifier, it just brings out the best in it, having said that I have the LCD3's on my head   LOL 
  
 so far haven't tried it with any of my offboard DAC's , the sound of the complete package has removed my will to play so far. 
  
 If I consider the Solo with PSU1  is more than this and so is the Beyer amplifer  and both do not include a top notch DAC as well, its easy to see how good value this amplifier/DAC  really is, hard to believe its less than £1000. 
  
 heres a picture of the beast, it snot been turned off yet since it arrived, just dumped on top the Beyer and off we go...... 
  
 will post more later, maybe try it with some Sennheisers...


----------



## ToTo Man

jonfairway said:


> only concern is how hot the top of this Class A amplifier is getting !!!!  its to hot to hold your hand on it !!!!


 
  
 That's interesting, as mine only runs lukewarm temperature.  I'm driving 300 ohm Sennheiser HD600s with it though so that could explain it.
  
 Nice review BTW.


----------



## elvamir

toto man said:


> That's interesting, as mine only runs lukewarm temperature.  I'm driving 300 ohm Sennheiser HD600s with it though so that could explain it.
> 
> Nice review BTW.




Agreed, in that mine gets warm but nothing of concern, I'd say. It's clear the design of the chassis is that it works as a heatsink, so pulling the heat to the surface is better than it sitting on the components, I say.  Also agree that it was a great review! I concur on all fronts, although my experience has been with different headphones than the LCD's.


----------



## GrinJe

I run this solution with my HD800. The sound is very good to my ears. The sound is a bit warm and good details. I agree with the review on post 79.
  
 Its hot, but maximum around 30-40 degrees (C). It use quite a while to warm up, so i usually start it up a while (10-20 min) before i will use the system. I feel the amp plays better when it is warm and also a bit louder. For the price this seems like one of the best choices i have tried.
  
 Question: I can run the HD800 on all the different settings, low, mid and high. Which on is best to use from the amp perspective?
  
 Thanks!


----------



## Jonfairway

I usually go where the dial ends up at my normal listening level, if the dial is around 12 noon to 1pm its on the right setting, this gives smother control if you wish to turn it up a little, the high gain setting seems to jump to much and the 0 gain is being pushed to much, depends also on what level you like to listen I guess too  
  
 If it helps the Graham Slee was always a little keen for my likes with my listen level around 9pm and it was loud enough, the Beyer got to about 2pm at the right level for my ears.
  
 maybe an over simplistic way of doing it, but hey, I just go off what sounds good.
 This was of course using LCD2 and LCD3, I have not tried anything else with the Deckard so far, I have a feeling my Philips L2 might be to bright for a good synergy, its gonna suit a pretty Neutral Headphone best.
  
 I can imagine the 800's being very revealing a combination !
  
 might try my HD598's  tomorrow see how they hang


----------



## GrinJe

jonfairway said:


> I can imagine the 800's being very revealing a combination !


 
 Indeed. You need really good quality music or else it just doesn't sound that good. But as far as i hear that's very normal with the HD800 in general?


----------



## camui78

If the Deckard likes neutral headphones, I suppose the HE-400i would be a good match?


----------



## Jonfairway

I quite fancy a pair of HD800's it has to be said, yes very detailed, heard them described as ruthless !
  
 The 400i should make a good match with the Deckard.
  
 Spent a good 3 hours tonight comparing the Beyer A1 ( with DacMagic One )  and the Deckard and I can say I love the Deckards Presentation over the Beyer, its just better integrated, more detailed, more believable, yes its a tad warm and full , especially vocals, vocals may even be placed slightly foward, but it just hangs together well, the overall picture isnt clinical like the Beyer, its Musical !
  
 will post more as time goes on, I need to try some more cans with the Deckard see how it handles some Mid cans.
  
 think it will work well with my DT1350's  thats tomorrows test...


----------



## TJ Browning

camui78 said:


> If the Deckard likes neutral headphones, I suppose the HE-400i would be a good match?


 

 +1 to this!
  
 The HE-400i are my first and only pair of planars so far, and I'm loving that ortho sound! Think my next headphone is going to be the Audeze EL-8. Been eying the Deckard for a while now for that reason, but until recently good reviews have been scarce...
  
 Does anybody have any impressions of the Deckard compared to the Burson Soloist SL for handling planars? From what you guys are saying it sounds phenomenal! Haha I'm just looking for more excuses to buy it.


----------



## Jonfairway

> Does anybody have any impressions of the Deckard compared to the Burson Soloist SL for handling planars? From what you guys are saying it sounds phenomenal! Haha I'm just looking for more excuses to buy it.


 
  
 The soloist is a good looking product, it is however only an amplifier NO inbuilt DAC like its bigger brother the Conductor.
  If you already have a good DAC then its def worth an audition.
  
 I have another AMP + DAC  combo called the Dared EF99  it is a valve amplifier, I have changed the Valves around quite a bit, but the stock unit is very good, and can be found for around £200 and would make an excellent match for the 400i's  it also has a warm sound, good bass extension, well detailed, just a good valve amp really at a good price, may have to look around for a bit cause they don't get sold on very often, I find it works really well with my Sennheisers and the Philips L2, looks brill in the dark too   
  
 To get back to topic a little, the Deckard really has raised the bar on an  AMP + DAC combination at this price, solid engineering, good components, plenty of power, and very good sound. Its gonna bring the others down to raise their games too.


----------



## ToTo Man

Out of curiosity I connected my Schiit Bifrost Uber to the Deckard's analogue inputs and spent the night flicking between the Deckard's USB and RCA input, and I'll be damned if I can hear any difference.  Both sound identical to my ears, and quite exquisite I have to say!  I don't understand how this is possible, as I would have expected the analogue board in the Bifrost to impart its own sonic character on the output it is sending to the Deckard.  Perhaps my ears are just not quite golden enough to detect what little difference exists?
  
 My ears are however good enough to detect a difference between the Deckard and my Schiit Valhalla 1.  Outputting the Bifrost Uber to both amps simultaneously (with RCA splitters), the Deckard is audibly superior to the Valhalla 1.  The Valhalla 1 exhibits a fatiguing harshness in the lower treble that is not present on the Deckard.  The Deckard's presentation is smoother and more neutral and the treble is more open and resolving (but in no way rolled off).  I'm actually a bit disappointed by this because I really love the aesthetics of the Valhalla and the whole romance of the 'tube' thing.  I just wish it sounded as open and relaxed as the Deckard.
  
 A bit off-topic but does anyone know if the Valhalla 2 sounds better than the Valhalla 1?


----------



## sheldaze

toto man said:


> Out of curiosity I connected my Schiit Bifrost Uber to the Deckard's analogue inputs and spent the night flicking between the Deckard's USB and RCA input, and I'll be damned if I can hear any difference.  Both sound identical to my ears, and quite exquisite I have to say!  I don't understand how this is possible, as I would have expected the analogue board in the Bifrost to impart its own sonic character on the output it is sending to the Deckard.  Perhaps my ears are just not quite golden enough to detect what little difference exists?
> 
> My ears are however good enough to detect a difference between the Deckard and my Schiit Valhalla 1.  Outputting the Bifrost Uber to both amps simultaneously (with RCA splitters), the Deckard is audibly superior to the Valhalla 1.  The Valhalla 1 exhibits a fatiguing harshness in the lower treble that is not present on the Deckard.  The Deckard's presentation is smoother and more neutral and the treble is more open and resolving (but in no way rolled off).  I'm actually a bit disappointed by this because I really love the aesthetics of the Valhalla and the whole romance of the 'tube' thing.  I just wish it sounded as open and relaxed as the Deckard.
> 
> A bit off-topic but does anyone know if the Valhalla 2 sounds better than the Valhalla 1?


 
 I will risk continuing to go a little off topic by opening first with agreement. I too heard the treble harshness of the Valhalla when switching to recent purchase, a new solid state headphone amplifier. I truly wish I did not because I bought both a black Bifrost Uber and a black Valhalla, which were a really cool looking stack. At a recent headphone meet, I was at a table with my original version Valhalla and HD650 headphones. At my same table was a gentleman with Valhalla 2 with a Bifrost Uber and HD600 headphones. I spoke to him and asked him what he thought were the differences. He said basically none other than the output impedance, which can be switched on the newer model to suite a wider variety of headphones. I also listened to his setup, and preferred my setup simply because I prefer the HD650 sound signature over the HD600.
  
 I suspect there's no difference between the two generations of Valhalla in terms of sound signature.


----------



## Jonfairway

Tube amplifiers often impart a little distortion of some measure into the mix, its what makes them have character, rolling tubes can usually get the sound to the desired synergy for the headphones being used.
  
 Interesting findings on the DAC analysis, they both use different DAC chips thats for sure !
 I have to admit the three DACS I own sound pretty diferent
 The DacmagicOne is a big dynamic, forcefull sound, lacks a little finesse at times, but is fun and spacious, it works well with the Orthos.
 The Dac-Ah  has  a Dark nature, good detail resolution and a well controlled Bass and Mids, its top end is slightly laid back making it a good partner for lively Cans like the L2
 The Perpetual techonolgies P-3A is well rounded, analytical, has good bass drive but a little rolled off at the top, but fails to convey any feeling, when partnered with the Beyer it is truly a clinical combination but has no soul, a truely neutral combination.
  
 Horses for courses as they say, in comparison the Deckard is fun, powerful, detailed, and provides a realistic musical presentation with a wide variety of Genre's. It is a great little amplifier.
  
 One thing that does surprise me is if I compare the sound against my Ming DA MC34, I had always wanted that fullness of sound in my headphone amplifiers but not acheived it till the Deckard.
 To bring out that real speaker sound into a headphone is a special treat , and the Deckard does just that.


----------



## ToTo Man

sheldaze said:


> I too heard the treble harshness of the Valhalla when switching to recent purchase, a new solid state headphone amplifier. I truly wish I did not because I bought both a black Bifrost Uber and a black Valhalla, which were a really cool looking stack. At a recent headphone meet, I was at a table with my original version Valhalla and HD650 headphones. At my same table was a gentleman with Valhalla 2 with a Bifrost Uber and HD600 headphones. I spoke to him and asked him what he thought were the differences. He said basically none other than the output impedance, which can be switched on the newer model to suite a wider variety of headphones.  I suspect there's no difference between the two generations of Valhalla in terms of sound signature.


 
@sheldaze Thank you for confirming what I feared.  I agree that it is a shame, as the Valhalla has to be one of the coolest looking components.
  


jonfairway said:


> Interesting findings on the DAC analysis, they both use different DAC chips thats for sure !
> I have to admit the three DACS I own sound pretty different.


 
@Jonfairway Yes I am quite surprised I am struggling to hear a difference between my Bifrost Uber and the Deckard, because I heard a significant difference when I upgraded from my original Bifrost to the Bifrost Uber!  What DAC chip is in the Deckard?


----------



## ToTo Man

Before I risk blowing my speakers, can someone please confirm, is the level of the Deckard's analog outputs controlled by the volume knob, or are they fixed at full volume?


----------



## Jonfairway

The Deckard uses the
PCM5102A  (ACTIVE)  2VRMS DirectPath™, 112dB Audio Stereo DAC with 32-bit, 384kHz PCM Interface


----------



## Jonfairway

> Before I risk blowing my speakers, can someone please confirm, is the level of the Deckard's analog outputs controlled by the volume knob, or are they fixed at full volume?


 
  
 I will connect mine up to a Power Ampifier tomorrow and let you know...


----------



## ToTo Man

jonfairway said:


> I will connect mine up to a Power Ampifier tomorrow and let you know...


 
 I appreciate that but please don't blow your speakers on my behalf! 
  
 EDIT - I'm feeling brave, - I'm going to try it just now.  Wish me luck!...


----------



## ToTo Man

I can confirm that the pre-outs are variable level and are controlled by the Deckard's volume knob.  They are also affected by the Gain toggle switch so be careful with that.  I find the Low position gives me a nice clean sound and good range on the volume control.  The high position overloads things and only gives you a fraction of the turnable range before it becomes too loud.


----------



## elvamir

toto man said:


> Before I risk blowing my speakers, can someone please confirm, is the level of the Deckard's analog outputs controlled by the volume knob, or are they fixed at full volume?


 
They control it. They are not passive outputs. For them to work, the Deckard needs to be turned on and the volume knob will control the output.


----------



## TJ Browning

toto man said:


> @sheldaze Thank you for confirming what I feared.  I agree that it is a shame, as the Valhalla has to be one of the coolest looking components.


 
 Definitely agreed, I have the Valhalla 2 and it is an awesome looking piece of gear. Off topic a bit, but I just recently bought the Sony UDA-1, and I was pretty surprised (and a bit saddened) to find that the Sony opened up the dynamics of my HD650 to a greater extent than the Valhalla 2 ever has. However... There's always something to be said for class A amps and that rich tube sound! Different flavors are good and that's what still interests me in the Deckard (that, and the Sony doesn't seem to handle planars with the same authority as the HD650). I'll never put the Valhalla 2 away; there's some albums that were just made for a tube. In fact, it's inspired me to try rolling some tubes in it. Who knows, it might impress me all over again. 
  
 Have you rolled any tubes in yours? If so, any great successes?


----------



## smial1966

Slightly off topic so please forgive the deviation, but I wonder whether any thread readers have compared the Deckard with the Chord Hugo? Admittedly these are two very different components, yet they're both DAC/AMPS and could be used in a desktop or home system. If the Deckard stacks up well against the Hugo, it will be a veritable audio bargain given the cost differential.


----------



## Jonfairway

Are we talking comparing a £600 dac/amp with a £1400 dac/amp ?
  
 interesting price difference !
  
 And the Chord has been getting reviews comparing it with £5000 amplifiers !!!
  
 always the diminishing returns is order of the day, but I would hazzard a guess the Chord Hugo is a better sounding combo.


----------



## smial1966

It would be an interesting comparison, as to my mind/ears the Hugo DAC is noticeably stronger than it's amplification section, so if the Deckard amplifier is more competent than the Hugo's but it's DAC implementation trails behind the Chord's, then a sonic equity of sorts might occur? 




jonfairway said:


> Are we talking comparing a £600 dac/amp with a £1400 dac/amp ?
> 
> interesting price difference !
> 
> ...


----------



## Jonfairway

> It would be an interesting comparison, as to my mind/ears the Hugo DAC is noticeably stronger than it's amplification section, so if the Deckard amplifier is more competent than the Hugo's but it's DAC implementation trails behind the Chord's, then a sonic equity of sorts might occur?


 
  
 Yup would be fun to have a listen to both side by side for sure, the differences in kit when the prices get in the £1000's isnt much most of the time, and certainly only real enthusiasts go the last mile to find sonic nirvana.
  
 At  the moment have the LCD3's on my bonce , the Deckard in full flow , listening to Susie Suh and the warmth of Her vocals sends a shiver up my back, so personal, so Intimate, thats the beauty of Headphones.


----------



## smial1966

Even though I enjoy using my Hugo it can sound a touch dry or cold on occasion, so the Deckard's 'warmth' greatly appeals to me. Now where's my credit card?  




jonfairway said:


> Yup would be fun to have a listen to both side by side for sure, the differences in kit when the prices get in the £1000's isnt much most of the time, and certainly only real enthusiasts go the last mile to find sonic nirvana.
> 
> At  the moment have the LCD3's on my bonce , the Deckard in full flow , listening to Susie Suh and the warmth of Her vocals sends a shiver up my back, so personal, so Intimate, thats the beauty of Headphones.


----------



## Jonfairway

> Even though I enjoy using my Hugo it can sound a touch dry or cold on occasion, so the Deckard's 'warmth' greatly appeals to me. Now where's my credit card?


 
  
 You like a warm sound ?
 Use foobar 2000 ?
 find the Pultronic EQ110P   DSP addin and fill your tube sound boots !!!


----------



## Jonfairway

Current settings for warm tube sound


----------



## Jonfairway

> Original By ToToMan
> I can confirm that the pre-outs are variable level and are controlled by the Deckard's volume knob.  They are also affected by the Gain toggle switch so be careful with that.  I find the Low position gives me a nice clean sound and good range on the volume control.  The high position overloads things and only gives you a fraction of the turnable range before it becomes too loud.


 
  
 question
 can the usb input be output to the line level preamp output  or only the RCA in ?


----------



## smial1966

Excellent information, thanks very much, most kind of you. 




jonfairway said:


> Current settings for warm tube sound


----------



## Alphaman0606

Has anyone used this with anything really hard to drive like HE-6?  I know they increased the power ratings on it which seemed to put it in HE-6 territory.


----------



## ToTo Man

jonfairway said:


> question
> can the usb input be output to the line level preamp output  or only the RCA in ?


 
  
 Yes, USB or RCA can be "pre-outed".


----------



## ToTo Man

tj browning said:


> Have you rolled any tubes in yours? If so, any great successes?


 
  
 I haven't done any tube rolling in the Valhalla.  To be honest I wouldn't know where to begin, and I fear my ignorance in this area would make it quite an expensive path to pursue!


----------



## Jonfairway

> Alphaman posted
> 
> Has anyone used this with anything really hard to drive like HE-6?  I know they increased the power ratings on it which seemed to put it in HE-6 territory.


 
  
 It drives my LCD3's on low gain settings.. if thats anything to go on.
  
 sure seems to have plenty of power...
  
 On another note, had an up and down day today, thought I would see how the Line Level outs were like performance wise, hooked them up to my Crimson 520 Power Amp and a pair of Linn Kans and blow me if the Power amp had'nt developed a fault in storage and blew  one of the bass drivers on the Linn's and then proceeded to blow up itself up for good measure.what a Smell .......
  
   hey some one predicted it !!!! .. what are the weekend lottery numbers ????
  
 anyway on to nicer stuff.... tried the line outs to my Naim System and I can confirm this is a good sounding pre-amplifier, good detailed, fast, taut bass, nice seperation, good weight and imaging..... Class A  pre amp for sure !!!
  
 shame about my Linn Kans....    
  
 Oh well was always going to upgrade them anyway........


----------



## TJ Browning

jonfairway said:


> Current settings for warm tube sound


 

 Pretty 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




 Thanks! Definitely going to check this out!
  
 Sorry to hear about the Linn Kans btw :/


----------



## cdave

I've had the Deckard for about 2 weeks now and I agree with allot of the posts here. Audeze has set the bar for a DAC/amp combo at this price point. It drives all of my cans on Mid gain no problem. 

Depending on what source I'm using I'll switch to high gain but not often as I like my volume pretty loud, I'm usually at 3 o'clock minimum. On the Deckard I keep it around 2. 

I have to admit I was very skeptical about the Deckards ability to drive my LCD 2 at first because of the price and this being Audeze first production amp. But after about 10 hours with it I couldn't be happier with any other solution at this price point. Tube or solid state. It has a warm sound for a solid state but not to warm. Sounds really good with my grado PS500 and LCD 2. Personally I think the Deckard has a better overall sound than the Uber/ Lyr or Val combos. Neither one shinned to me in any category and the highs on both Schit amps ruined it for me. They're good amps but I'm not sold on the newest versions of either. This was a great solution for me at this stage of the game. Being that my wife didn't want me to spend money on an amp. Because as soon as I told her about she magically produced a list of things she needed to buy. But anyway like I said I couldn't be happier at this price point. And I talked her into letting me get a Sony 4K for my office. So it all worked out. Down the road I'd like to go with a woo 5 or 22. From reading the threads tube rolling is an investment in time I don't have right now. 
Oh yeah. I also have the RCA's going to a pair of A5+ on low gain which I feel like may be to much power for them. I'm thinking about replacing them with a passive pair of bookshelves.


----------



## Tambourine Guy

I use their LCD2 and I am considering the Deckard... anyone care to share an internal shot of it?


----------



## hoth

I'm surprised there isn't more talk about this amp.  At this price it's pretty hard to beat.  I currently have the Deckard and Antelope Zodiac+ in house as well as a Dacmagic+.  For a long time my main headphone amp/dac was a Benchmark DAC2.  For the past few days I have been listening to the Deckard through my collection of headphones, in ears and feeding a pair of Neumann KH120's.
  
 The Deckard has very lovely characteristics. It has ample power (although claims of people running it in low/mid gain with a LCD3 seem hard for me to imagine) which makes for a forceful presentation.  Nice soundstage although maybe not the biggest, especially compared to the Zodiac.  Fine presentation of details but never getting overly bright, even with Bayerdynamic T1 and T90.  The Deckard pairs really well with the LCD3's with the presentation being open but very present - that is a combination I love.  There were times when it may have been on the verge of sibilance but the amp reined everything in before the highs ever got harsh.  I was listening to some Stones songs and heard things that I had never heard before, e.g., in Keith's channel Keith yelling "Whoa" just under the guitars right before each chorus of "Angie".  I know these are all vague terms but trying to describe sound with words is difficult.  With the HE560's I hear loads of detail but the soundstage suffers somewhat, especially in comparison to the LCD3's, but there is that price differential between these two phones.    
  
 For a long time I had a Benchmark DAC2 and I would say that I like the presentation better with the Deckard than the Benchmark.  I cannot say if I like the Deckard more than the Zodiac, however, that in and of itself says a lot that I think the amps can be compared as the Zodiac is a special amp.  The Dacmagic+ tries to hold its own at times against the Deckard but you can hear it struggle when you are listening to more complex orchestral material with headphones that need a lot of juice.  The Deckard reminds me of a calm muscular bouncer keeping everything always in check while the Dacmagic+ is the skinnier, wiry drunk party-goer yelling while he gets tossed outside. The Zodiac would be a librarian watching an opera and not missing a detail.     
  
 All in all, for $699 I would think it's hard to find another amp that SOUNDS better than the Deckard at this price point.  It also has some nice features like it is both an amp and a DAC, it has three different gain settings including a setting for in-ears (I have the Westone W40's and W60's, and various Shures), it gives a very nice black background, it is built like a tank and feels well-made, and it can function as a pre.  And if you already have an Audeze headphone, this pairing is a no-brainer.


----------



## tg123

tg123 said:


> Does anyone have any information on the DAC?


 
  
 The DAC was posted previously in this thread already.


----------



## Tambourine Guy

Could someone share an internal photo of this amp.  I want to pair my LCD2 with a new amp and this is on my short list : )


----------



## hoth

Sorry. I'm not particularly handy so I don't want to go opening up something when I don't need to. Out of curiosity, what are you looking for in a gut shot that will tell you if you should or should not buy the amp?


----------



## Tambourine Guy

A gut shot shows a lot... The size and type of the transformer, the niceness of the component layout, the quality of the components, the amount and type of power caps, power supply section, etc etc... But I fully understand your decision. Thank you.


----------



## WilCox

tambourine guy said:


> Could someone share an internal photo of this amp.  I want to pair my LCD2 with a new amp and this is on my short list : )


----------



## Alphaman0606

tambourine guy said:


> A gut shot shows a lot... The size and type of the transformer, the niceness of the component layout, the quality of the components, the amount and type of power caps, power supply section, etc etc... But I fully understand your decision. Thank you.


 

 Is the package about the size you were thinking?  It may get a lot done with a smaller than average package?  I'd be interested to know how you think it stacks up?
 Remember....It's not the size of the boat but the currents in the ocean...or something like that...


----------



## Tambourine Guy

Thank you so much for sharing this photo.  It is nice indeed, linear power supply, good size transformer, Elna caps, symmetrical layout, alpot, changeable op-amp.  This boat is definitely sea worthy in an ocean of choices.


----------



## WilCox

A very positive review of the Deckard by Michael Lavorgna was just posted over at AudioStream.  This is very timely, since I just received mine on Tuesday and find it to be a superb amp for my LCD-2s as well as my Alpha Dogs.  What's even more surprising is that it works extremely well with my HD 800s with strong, foundational bass and smooth, non-fatiguing treble.  I need more listening time, but right now, I think the Deckard is a better match for the HD 800 than the HDVA 600 -- and a bargain as well.


----------



## 0rangutan

Can any Deckard owners help with this quick query?
  
 When using the pre-amp outputs, what happens when you plug in a pair of headphones?  Do the pre-amp outputs mute or do they play at the same time as the headphones?
  
 Thanks!


----------



## heishiro

wilcox said:


>


 

 looks like a photo copy of Matrix M-Stage HPA-3U ????


----------



## 0rangutan

It's not subtle is it!
 Presumably Matrix are OEM'ing it for Audeze.
 So is the Audeze casing worth an extra $280?


----------



## WilCox

It would be interesting to do a listening comparison between the Matrix and the Audeze.  There are a number of changes between the two which could result in very different voicing: SMT vs. through-hole and a different USB input board for starters.  A few years back, I built four versions of a Pete Millett hybrid amp, each with different power supply caps, coupling caps, resistor types, gain settings, output transistors and tubes.  Each one had a very distinct voicing and performance characteristics but, using the same PC board, the circuit was essentially the same for all.  Ultimately, the proof is in the listening and the Deckard sounds very, very good.


----------



## elvamir

0rangutan said:


> Can any Deckard owners help with this quick query?
> 
> When using the pre-amp outputs, what happens when you plug in a pair of headphones?  Do the pre-amp outputs mute or do they play at the same time as the headphones?
> 
> Thanks!




Mute. They are not pass-thru type outputs. They also require the amp to be on and the volume knob will adjust the output level.


----------



## Cook77

Hey everyone, I'm a new member on here.  I'm just getting into this foray of a hobby and I am enjoying it very much.  I had a couple questions about the Deckard. 
  
 I just ordered a pair of EL-8 closed back cans, but I also have a pair AKG 3003i IEM's and some older Westone W3's.  I recently sold a pair of SE846's that I wasn't too impressed with.  
  
 I have the Geek Out 100 IEM DAC/amp that I use through my MBP and Audirvana software.  I also just ordered the Geek Out 1000 and I have the Geek Out V2+ Infinity on the way for when I want to go portable with my iPod.
  
 My questions are this:
  
 1.  I know the Deckard will be just fine to power my EL-8's, but will the low setting be too much for my AKG 30003i or W3's?  My 3003i sounds great out of my iPod, and of course even better through the Geek Out 100 and Audirvana with my high-res files (mainly 192/24, some 96/24), but will they sound even better through the Deckard?  
  
 2.  What kind of difference will the EL-8's sound like through the Deckard compared to the Geek Out 1000?  
  
 3.  Lastly, what would be a good rig set up for me?  I read so much stuff on here and I'm trying to discern through all of it.  I want a nice portable rig that (I was thinking Astell Kern AK100 II) and amp that I could slap together and have it be decent for my EL-8C and my IEM's.  Then what do you recommend for a desktop amp?  Will the Deckard suffice if all I plan on doing is running it through my usb output on my MBP?  Is there a better option?  I want to keep my portable set up under $1000-1200 and my desktop set up under $1000 as well.  I can get the Deckard for $549.  
  
 Thanks for your help, I appreciate all the good info contained in here!
  

 Caleb


----------



## hoth

I'll try to provide some answers but really the answers have to do with your tastes.
  
 1.  The Deckard should be able to handle the full range of in-ears to planar headphones.  However, what sounds better is ultimately up to you.  I would presume the geekout can drive the planars fine but I have read complaints about in-ears.  I think the issues of really high-powered amps without a low gain setting driving in-ears typically have to do with not enough range in the volume settings, hiss and too high impedance.
  
 2.  As both seem to have enough power for the EL-8's, the differences can come through in voicing, soundstage, depth, clarity of treble or bass, etc... Some may describe these differences as subtle and others dramatic.  My GUESS from internet posts (take it for what you will) is that the Deckard might be more "refined".  But really it might just come up to your taste.  Sometimes things that others have described as dealbreakers on amps haven't bothered me at all and vice versa.     
  
 3.  This is a difficult hobby.  Often I think we're chasing our tails and some people just like the acquisition aspect of the hobby.  Therefore, a lot of people are always finding fault in what they have to justify buying other - often more expensive - gear.  The AK100 and the Deckard are a great setup.  I think people would say the Deckard is a better "bang-for-the-buck" than the AK. But I had the AK100 and now have the AK240 and love it so everyone's definition of what is worth the price is different.


----------



## MacedonianHero

0rangutan said:


> It's not subtle is it!
> Presumably Matrix are OEM'ing it for Audeze.
> So is the Audeze casing worth an extra $280?


 
  
 Remember the Deckard has a DAC included.


----------



## 0rangutan

They both have a DAC! I believe that the Matrix also supports DSD.


----------



## MacedonianHero

0rangutan said:


> They both have a DAC! I believe that the Matrix also supports DSD.


 
  
 The M-Stage HPA-3B does not, sorry...I thought you were referring to that amp (though it is an outstanding amplifier with a huge amount of value)...I happen to be reviewing one right now....actually the review is done and waiting to be scheduled for publication...coming soon!  The Deckard with the DAC offers outstanding bang-for-the-buck performance as well (my review can be found in my sig below)...it's a winner too!


----------



## 0rangutan

I was comparing against the HPA-3U (with DAC), not 3B (without). Will check out your review though


----------



## MacedonianHero

0rangutan said:


> I was comparing against the HPA-3U (with DAC), not 3B (without). Will check out your review though


 
  
 Sorry, I was confused on which amp we were talking about.


----------



## heishiro

0rangutan said:


> They both have a DAC! I believe that the Matrix also supports DSD.


 

 yes the HPA-3U supports DSD

  
 the back part also look exactly the same

 the front is also same but the Matrix has additional led near the headphone jack


----------



## Matias

It is the same amp+DAC, no question about it.


----------



## cheesegrados

I'm curious is this mark up version of the HPA-3U? Meaning I could get the HPA-3U for less money?


----------



## WilCox

cheesegrados said:


> I'm curious is this mark up version of the HPA-3U? Meaning I could get the HPA-3U for less money?


 
  
 The Audeze version has several "upgrades" from the stock HPA-3U:
  

through-hole components vs. surface mount
different USB input card
what appears to be a discrete "diamond buffer" stage vs. an integrated circuit on the HPA-3U
  
 Not sure if this makes the Audeze "better", but I bet the two units do not sound identical.  There could be other component changes as well that aren't visible in the pictures.


----------



## Matias

They are too similar to be a coincidence. Probably the Deckard is a newever version/specification of the OEM project.


----------



## heishiro

wilcox said:


> The Audeze version has several "upgrades" from the stock HPA-3U:
> 
> 
> through-hole components vs. surface mount
> ...


 

 Yup sound will not be the same since they dont use the same dac as Audeze dont support DSD
 while the cheaper one does..
 output power is not the same the Audeze has a little bit more power
  
 Output power Audeze : 795mW @ 33ohms, 465mW @ 300ohms, 235mW @ 600ohms
 Output power HPA-3U : 2800mW @ 33ohms; 420mW @ 300ohms; 210mW @ 600ohms


----------



## WilCox

heishiro said:


> Yup sound will not be the same since they dont use the same dac as Audeze dont support DSD
> while the cheaper one does..
> output power is not the same the Audeze has a little bit more power
> 
> ...


 
  
 Agreed. The Audeze website now states that the Deckard delivers 4 Watts into a 20 ohm load with THD+N <0.1%, 20Hz - 20kHz, so plenty of power for most planar headphones.


----------



## UNOE

Does the HPA-3U work with powered monitors as a pre amp with volume control.


----------



## WilCox

unoe said:


> Does the HPA-3U work with powered monitors as a pre amp with volume control.




The Deckard works that way. Don't know about HPA-3U.


----------



## luo6232

Has anyone tried these out with a LCD-3, LCD-X for an extended period of time?


----------



## Jonfairway

Sure have, it works fantastic with the LCD 3's, terrific amplifier gets better with a good long burn in too.
 one word Musical....


----------



## luo6232

Thanks Jon, thats what I was hoping for. I'll have to test them myself at some point but none of the stores around me carry it.


----------



## luo6232

Have you listened to the burson soloist as well? I had another member recommend that for the LCD3 but he has not listened to the deckard so he couldn't help me make a comparison.


----------



## Hifi59

luo6232 said:


> Have you listened to the burson soloist as well? I had another member recommend that for the LCD3 but he has not listened to the deckard so he couldn't help me make a comparison.




The Burson Soloist and the LCD-3f sound fantastic together. I've been listening to this combo every night for months.
The lcds never sound wrong with the Soloist. 

I have also auditioned the Audeze Deckard amp with the lcds. This combo also sound great but is a little bit more laid back in comparison to the Soloist. The Solist gives the Lcds more energy and it just says sounds correct. 

I have 5 sets of headphones (lcd2/3fs , Hifiman HE-560 , Mr Speakers Alpha Dogs and Oppo PM-2). They all sound great on the Soloist. The only headphone to date that I feel sounds wrong with the Soloist are the Fostex TH-900s.
The Audeze Deckard is a better fit for them. I am inclined to believe this is due to the speed of both the Burson and the Fostex,both being very fast, and so the sound of the Fostex just comes across as dry and hard sounding. Not harsh, but hard.


----------



## legcramp

hifi59 said:


> The Burson Soloist and the LCD-3f sound fantastic together. I've been listening to this combo every night for months.
> The lcds never sound wrong with the Soloist.
> 
> I have also auditioned the Audeze Deckard amp with the lcds. This combo also sound great but is a little bit more laid back in comparison to the Soloist. The Solist gives the Lcds more energy and it just says sounds correct.
> ...


 
  
 I believe I have the same experience with my Audeze Deckard vs Sony UDA-1 on my TH-900. The Sony sounded dry and hard as you described compared to the Deckard. I really liked the sound from my UDA-1 on my D2000 though.


----------



## stickboy85

Picked up ones of these on the weekend to replace my portable Centrance HIFI M8.......Very impressed! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




 My HE400i's have never sounded so good. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 
  
 Thinking of connecting my Naim integrated amp to this and using the Naim as a power amp! Anyone got any experience of this and whether it produced good results? Subjective I know!
  
 Also, my Centrance is now on sale if anyone's interested.


----------



## Jonfairway

pushed my Deckard thro my Nait and it works really well as a preamp, just remember to keep the volumes down at first ! it gets real loud...


----------



## stickboy85

jonfairway said:


> pushed my Deckard thro my Nait and it works really well as a preamp, just remember to keep the volumes down at first ! it gets real loud...




Thanks for the reply! Much appreciated!
What cables did you use to connect the two? Did you go via the AV bypass route?


----------



## hoth

Well I had my Deckard on my computer table unused for about a week.  Just fired it up now that I have time to listen, and the computer cannot see it.  I've tried different USB cables and different USB ports with no luck.  I have turned it on and off a few times also with no luck.  I guess I have to get it in for a warranty repair.  I don't have a lot of hours on it either.  The only thing that gives me a little pause is that I updated to El Capitan this week and wonder if that has anything to do with it.  Bummer.  
  
 Edit:  I'm actually having problems with another device now so it's starting to look like it's El Capitan and not the Deckard.  Ugh Apple. 
  
 Edit #2:  After doing much under-the -hood troubleshooting and reworking, the issue was El Capitan.


----------



## Daeder

Hey everyone! Joining the Audeze Deckard club. Should be here sometime next week. I'll be using them to mainly drive my HE-560 but I do plan on other headphones if I see it pairs well.

 I also have a question about the Deckard and driving the AKG k701/k702/k7xx and how it pairs with the Deckard. If anyone has tried it, I would love to know how they pair even though my current setup pairs really nicely.
  
 Thanks and Cheers!


----------



## Jonfairway

Hello
  
 I would think the Deckard will work well with a multitude of headphones, it certainly will not have an issue driving them !
 its pretty flat and neutral, maybe slightly bright , but only a touch.
  
 It works well with all my all Sennheisers and AKG 550  , drives the LCD's to ear breaking volumes, and seems robust and built well enough for anything chucked at it !!


----------



## WilCox

daeder said:


> Hey everyone! Joining the Audeze Deckard club. Should be here sometime next week. I'll be using them to mainly drive my HE-560 but I do plan on other headphones if I see it pairs well.
> 
> I also have a question about the Deckard and driving the AKG k701/k702/k7xx and how it pairs with the Deckard. If anyone has tried it, I would love to know how they pair even though my current setup pairs really nicely.
> 
> Thanks and Cheers!


 
  
 I've been using the Deckard to drive my k702 (with bass port mod) with excellent results.  Bass is full and tight with extended, smooth treble -- a more balanced and enjoyable headphone experience.  Highly recommended.


----------



## Daeder

wilcox said:


> I've been using the Deckard to drive my k702 (with bass port mod) with excellent results.  Bass is full and tight with extended, smooth treble -- a more balanced and enjoyable headphone experience.  Highly recommended.


 
  
 Thanks for your input. Sounds like it should pair nice with my k7xx.


----------



## domho7

Hi Deckard owners presently I am using a Cayin N5 and Cayin C5 and LCD2, am thinking of changing the amp to deckard, what are your views gurus. Tks


----------



## nokialover

legcramp said:


> I believe I have the same experience with my Audeze Deckard vs Sony UDA-1 on my TH-900. The Sony sounded dry and hard as you described compared to the Deckard. I really liked the sound from my UDA-1 on my D2000 though.


 
 Slightly off topic, how would you compare the schiit stack v2 uber to the sony UDA-1 for only headphone listening?


----------



## legcramp

Sorry I can't give you a comparison since I have not listened to the stack v2.




nokialover said:


> Slightly off topic, how would you compare the schiit stack v2 uber to the sony UDA-1 for only headphone listening?


----------



## sheldaze

Has anyone compared this against a Schiit Mjolnir 2 or Cavalli Audio Liquid Carbon? Or strictly through the DAC against the Grace Design m9xx?
  
 EDIT: Added Grace Design to the question - why? It costs $500, and I've seen the Audeze for less than $600, as a customer returned item still under full warranty.


----------



## raoultrifan

heishiro said:


> yes the HPA-3U supports DSD
> 
> 
> the back part also look exactly the same
> ...


 
  
 If you look closer inside of both amps (Deckard and M-Stage 3U) you'll see that they both look the same in all aspects: 
  
 vs.
  

  
  
 Pictures were taken from http://www.head-fi.org/products/matrix-m-stage/reviews/13475 and http://www.head-fi.org/t/749486/audeze-deckard-class-a-amp-usb-dac/120#post_11872066.
  
 The 3 capacitors from bottom-left are different, transistors are not SMD for DECKARD, resistors are not the same as well, but it strikes me that even PCB looks to be the same (at least all components are in exactly the same places), the big capacitors are the same Nichicon Gold Tune, same black-velvet ALPS volume pot, same WIMAs and same relays. It would be very interesting to get more pictures from inside DECKARD, maybe what transistors are in there?
  
 BTW, I own the M-Stage 3B, which is fully balanced & non-DAC headamp (sort of a 3U, but balanced). Reviews and mods here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/770610/introducing-the-matrix-m-stage-hpa-3u-and-hpa-3b-review-to-follow.
  
 L.E.: I think I missed heishiro's post here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/749486/audeze-deckard-class-a-amp-usb-dac/120#post_11890471 showing both amps side-by-side. Sorry for this!


----------



## WilCox

raoultrifan said:


> It would be very interesting to get more pictures from inside DECKARD, maybe what transistors are in there?


 
  
 I'll try to take some internal pictures of the Deckard and ID the transistors in the next week or so.


----------



## raoultrifan

Drivers transistors, output transistors, transformer model/type and OPAMP if visible in your pictures it will be great.
  
 Thank you, WilCox!


----------



## legcramp

I am using the Deckard with my new pair of LCD-3F and they drive them with ease. Mid-gain around 1-2 o'clock on the dial is very loud for me. Sounds beautiful out of them by the way.


----------



## judge888

I using the deckard with my hd800. I have to admit the amp does an amazing job of smoothing out the rough edges of the treble. That being said i had to trade out the provided usb cable for a belkin gold one as there was noticable noise when no sound was being outputted. Never put much stock in cables having an effect but this time at least the belkin cable seems better.


----------



## WilCox

raoultrifan said:


> Drivers transistors, output transistors, transformer model/type and OPAMP if visible in your pictures it will be great.
> 
> Thank you, WilCox!


 
  
 Opened up the Deckard case to take a closer look but didn't take many pictures since I didn't have time to mess with my digital SLR & macro lens.
  
 Here's some info on the components used in the Deckard:
  

Driver transistors are BC550 (NPN) and BC560 (PNP)
Output transistors are C3421 (NPN) and A1358 (PNP)
Op amp is LME49860NA
Voltage regulators on the heatsink are 7818A (+18V) and 7918A (-18V)
Large power supply caps are Nichicon KG type 4700uF
Local caps are Nichicon Muse 330uF
  
 All in all, very good component selection and excellent design and assembly.
  
 A few pics:


----------



## raoultrifan

wilcox said:


> Opened up the Deckard case to take a closer look but didn't take many pictures since I didn't have time to mess with my digital SLR & macro lens.
> 
> Here's some info on the components used in the Deckard:
> 
> ...


 
  
 Thank you for the very detailed info, *WilCox!*
  
 Looks like drivers are more powerful than the ones used in Matrix (TO92 case instead of SOT-23), but the gain is the same, so I believe BC550/560 are not heating more than 70-75C, right?
  
 Same output transistors, OPAMPs, capacitors and power regulators like the ones used in Matrix M-Stage 3U & 3B. PCB seems to be the same, just DECKARD is using THT components; I like the Through-The-Hole drivers and resistors, because it makes life easier for DYI-ers to upgrade and repair this amp...if needed.


----------



## pavement714

I recently purchased the Deckard as my first desktop AMP/DAC combo. I'm really liking it, but I did see the Chord Mojo is at a similar price point. And the Schiit stack is obviously much cheaper. Does anyone have any experience with either of those to determine whether the Deckard is the best choice in this price range?
  
 I use Hifiman 400i as my headphones. Thanks!


----------



## legcramp

pavement714 said:


> I recently purchased the Deckard as my first desktop AMP/DAC combo. I'm really liking it, but I did see the Chord Mojo is at a similar price point. And the Schiit stack is obviously much cheaper. Does anyone have any experience with either of those to determine whether the Deckard is the best choice in this price range?
> 
> I use Hifiman 400i as my headphones. Thanks!


 
  
 I own both the Deckard and a Mojo w/ HE-560. The 560 sounds better on the Mojo directly vs. Mojo -> Deckard or Deckard by itself. Soundstage is bigger and it is more detailed / airy through the Mojo.
  
 My TH-900 matches better with the Deckard vs. Mojo and I have not tested the LCD-3 on the Mojo yet as it sounds stunning on the Deckard.


----------



## pavement714

legcramp said:


> I own both the Deckard and a Mojo w/ HE-560. The 560 sounds better on the Mojo directly vs. Mojo -> Deckard or Deckard by itself. Soundstage is bigger and it is more detailed / airy through the Mojo.
> 
> My TH-900 matches better with the Deckard vs. Mojo and I have not tested the LCD-3 on the Mojo yet as it sounds stunning on the Deckard.


 

 Thanks for the insight! It's so hard to make a decision. I love the audio and design of the Deckard but I also want the best sound quality for the money. Decisions...


----------



## bmd1191

I'm looking to buy the Audeze LCD-2.2 in the near future as my first pair of high end headphones. I don't currently own a dac or amp so was looking at purchasing the Deckard to power the LCD2's. Is this a good combo? Both are made by Audeze, but I thought I read somewhere that the Deckard is better for the EL-8's. So is the Deckard worth it for the LCD2's?
  
 I was also interested in maybe a Schiit Asgard 2/Bifrost stack. Better option for the LCD2's than the Deckard?
  
 Thanks!
  
 Edit: Also my source is a 2015 Macbook Pro 15"


----------



## obzilla

bmd1191 said:


> I'm looking to buy the Audeze LCD-2.2 in the near future as my first pair of high end headphones. I don't currently own a dac or amp so was looking at purchasing the Deckard to power the LCD2's. Is this a good combo? Both are made by Audeze, but I thought I read somewhere that the Deckard is better for the EL-8's. So is the Deckard worth it for the LCD2's?
> 
> I was also interested in maybe a Schiit Asgard 2/Bifrost stack. Better option for the LCD2's than the Deckard?
> 
> ...






Congrats on stepping up. The Deckard will be more than adequate to run the LCD2s and run them well. I've run the gambit of high end DACs and amps, and once you get to the level you're aiming at diminishing returns sets in in a very real way. Headphones first (80% or more of the sound sig), amp second (maybe 15% contribution), DACs last (5% contribution at best) forget cables (aesthetic contribution only). That should be how you prioritize your rig.

Not to say there isn't more to be had with better/different sources and amps, just that that you'll spend lots of money for minor improvements, or even simply marginal differences. So long as the amp meets or exceeds the power requirements of your phones, and the DAC has the features you want and it isn't some total botch job, you're more than set.

The Deckard and about a million other amp/DAC combos in this price segment do that all handily, and they all sound much more similar than different. 

Deckard sounds stunning with my LCD3s, every bit as good as a $5,000 WA5 + flagship DAC combo did.

Now, watch me get flamed


----------



## bmd1191

Thanks for the info. I think I'm gonna go with the Deckard as it has everything i'm looking for and I look of it. I'll also keep in mind the diminishing returns at this level of stuff.


----------



## pavement714

bmd1191 said:


> Thanks for the info. I think I'm gonna go with the Deckard as it has everything i'm looking for and I look of it. I'll also keep in mind the diminishing returns at this level of stuff.


 

 You're really going to enjoy it. I used the Deckard as a DAC/amp combo when I first got it and absolutely loved it.
  
 This is a debate that will never end in hifi, but I don't agree that a DAC is only 5 percent of the sound. 
  
 I recently got the Schiit Bifrost Multibit DAC and there was a very noticeable improvement in the detail and presence of each instrument. 
  
 If you eventually want to go to the next level with a DAC, I highly recommend it. Or to explore other multibit DACs. Paired with my Deckard, it really shows how you can get a lot out of a nice pair of headphones (in my case, the HE-400i or your LCD 2.2) when paired with the right amp/DAC.
  
 But like I said, the Deckard's DAC also works very well. 
  
 Enjoy!


----------



## obzilla

pavement714 said:


> This is a debate that will never end in hifi, but I don't agree that a DAC is only 5 percent of the sound.


 
  
 That's the thing though, a DAC is a calculator, it has one job. Interpolate 0s and 1s into wavforms. If DACs sound different, they have their own spin on the math, which means they are coloring the sound in ways that the manufacturer will probably never divulge. 
 Whether or not we like the coloration, or what percentage of impact we perceive it to have is irrelevant.
 If DACs are doing their job right, they will all sound the same.
  
 But I digress. To each his own so long as we are having fun and no one gets hurt.


----------



## GU1DO

I just got this amazing Amp/Dac  witch is an upgrade from (JDS Labs The Element) ,
  
 and really* it is mush better in sound clarity and details *, 
  
*One thing to consider and an advise to all owners : *
  
*NEVER use the USB cable that come with it !!!!!!!!!!!!!*
  
*Use ( **iFi Mercury USB Cable**)** its a day and night deference**  ..*
  
  
*My rig : PC -->  iFi Mercury USB Cable --> Audeze Deckard --> LCD-X*
  
*Playing  HD Flac files with foobar2000*


----------



## andromeda1954

have someone here   compared  the Deckard  with the ifi Audio IDSD micro ?


----------



## desik

Does the Deckard produce any popping sound in the headset when DAC or PC is turned on? Like 1st generation Schiit amps did. I hope they took care of this minor issue.


----------



## cdave

desik said:


> Does the Deckard produce any popping sound in the headset when DAC or PC is turned on? Like 1st generation Schiit amps did. I hope they took care of this minor issue.



I don't have that issue on a Mac through USB. I'm not sure about PC.


----------



## bobmysterious

I'm running mine the same way (Macbook Pro) and haven't had any issues.


----------



## desik

Thanks.
  
 Some more questions:
 - Can it be used without drivers? In USB 1.1 mode?
 - I'm also wondering about USB interface. Is it asynchronous? is the USB chip powered on by the USB power line? Many DACs although require external power, still have their USB interface chip powered by USB line.
  
 I have a Modi 1st gen right now, and had some issues with it being powered by USB - when connected to USB 3.0 sound would occasionally drop-off for 1s when playing games, once in a few minutes. Switched to USB 2.0 and the problem disappeared. Was considering buying a Modi 2U for its spdif interface, just to be safe from such problems. Now I'm considering this thing, but it only have USB.


----------



## GU1DO

desik said:


> Does the Deckard produce any popping sound in the headset when DAC or PC is turned on? Like 1st generation Schiit amps did. I hope they took care of this minor issue.


 
 I just turnd off/on my PC and the DAC ,,* No problems at all* , dead silence ..
 Also *No popping sound *when inserting the headphone cable into the Deckard ..

  


> Some more questions:
> - Can it be used without drivers? In USB 1.1 mode?
> - I'm also wondering about USB interface. Is it asynchronous? is the USB chip powered on by the USB power line? Many DACs although require external power, still have their USB interface chip powered by USB line.


 
  
 - About the drivers ,, I tried it on my other PC ,, the windows install a Generic Headphone Driver* but it does not work* , you have to install the Audeze driver.
  
 - Am not sure if the USB is asynchronous or not but i think its not that important , I am totally satisfied with the performance it gives for the price , i had the chance to compare it with the *McIntosh MHA100* and could not here the deference with the LCD-X , i wish it had more features but for what it do with the USB input is an end game for me ..
  
 - About the USB DAC if it is powered by the USB or not ?  also I don't know  but i am planning to get the* iFi micro  iUSB* with the* iFi Gemini USB cable* to make sure that it gets all the clean power it needs, specially that i can hear the deference with iFi Mercury USB Cable straight from my PC .
  
 - The surprising thing is that the* iFi iPurifier is not good with the Deckard* , it give like a 3D effect on the sound , make it  more fun but not accurate at all . i didn't like it, although it was working fine with the previous DAC/AMP (JDS Labs The Element).
 I dont know why


----------



## desik

You compared Deckard with an endgame AMP. This doesn't say anything about the DAC section. I guess if a purifier makes a difference, then the DAC is not asynchronous, or at least, despite being asynchronous, still has some jitter. Speaking of USB buffer devices, wouldn't a Schiit Wyrm be enough?


----------



## GU1DO

desik said:


> You compared Deckard with an endgame AMP. This doesn't say anything about the DAC section. I guess if a purifier makes a difference, then the DAC is not asynchronous, or at least, despite being asynchronous, still has some jitter. Speaking of USB buffer devices, wouldn't a Schiit Wyrm be enough?


 
*McIntosh MHA100 *have USB DAC also* !!*


----------



## CMTB

Has anyone had the opportunity to compare the Deckard with the Oppo HA-1?


----------



## GU1DO

desik said:


> Thanks.
> 
> Some more questions:
> - Can it be used without drivers? In USB 1.1 mode?
> ...


 

 It appears that the Deckard after all have one of the most advanced USB chips on the market
  
*The XMOS Asynchronous USB Audio Class 2.0*
  
 http://www.thewelltemperedcomputer.com/HW/USB_DAC_Async.htm


----------



## desik

The site just lists Deckard in the list of DACs with Asynchronous USB 2 mode.
 It doesn't say which chip is used. Anyway, asynchronous makes sense, that's why it cannot work in Windows without drivers at all.


----------



## raoultrifan

I was able to identify if my ASUS U7 DAC is sync or async by using USBtrace application: http://www.head-fi.org/t/669127/asus-xonar-u7-dac-amp-impressions-thread/495#post_11957576. Feel free to read the initial thread from here http://www.head-fi.org/t/546092/confirming-whether-your-dac-is-asynchronous-as-claimed-or-not#post_7362553 if you like.


----------



## GU1DO

desik said:


> The site just lists Deckard in the list of DACs with Asynchronous USB 2 mode.
> It doesn't say which chip is used. Anyway, asynchronous makes sense, that's why it cannot work in Windows without drivers at all.


 
 My dear ,, when you install the driver it clearly says : *XMOS USB Audio   *





 
  
 BTW most of the listed DACs in the Link Above are using XMOS USB chip , you just didn't notice it ..


----------



## desik

It makes sense now. Actually XMOS chip is visible here: http://www.head-fi.org/t/749486/audeze-deckard-class-a-amp-usb-dac/165#post_12189310
  
 Thanks!


----------



## stickboy85

Hi guys,
I own the Deckard but am thinking of purchasing a meridian explorer 2 DAC for its MQA capabilities (I use TIDAL which will be MQA compatible very shortly).
Question is, would the Meridian work connected via the deckards rca connections?

PC>Meridian>Deckard(via 3.5mm to x2 rca cable)

Has anyone tried this, either with the Explorer or a similar external DAC?


----------



## pavement714

stickboy85 said:


> Hi guys,
> I own the Deckard but am thinking of purchasing a meridian explorer 2 DAC for its MQA capabilities (I use TIDAL which will be MQA compatible very shortly).
> Question is, would the Meridian work connected via the deckards rca connections?
> 
> ...


 

 I don't see why it wouldn't. But to be honest, you might have better gains in fidelity by going to a mulitbit DAC like Schiit's Bifrost. I certainly did.
  
 That being said, I've heard MQA vs other high quality formats but not through a Meridian DAC. Very curious to compare the two, but I have no real use for buying an Explorer.


----------



## stickboy85

pavement714 said:


> I don't see why it wouldn't. But to be honest, you might have better gains in fidelity by going to a mulitbit DAC like Schiit's Bifrost. I certainly did.
> 
> That being said, I've heard MQA vs other high quality formats but not through a Meridian DAC. Very curious to compare the two, but I have no real use for buying an Explorer.




I can't see why it wouldn't either tbh. Just thought I'd ask just in case.

Thanks for the suggestion re the Schiit bit that's a bit more than I'm willing to invest right now.

Will be much easier to decide when Tidal finally switch to MQA streaming.
What was your impression of MQA?


----------



## pavement714

stickboy85 said:


> I can't see why it wouldn't either tbh. Just thought I'd ask just in case.
> 
> Thanks for the suggestion re the Schiit bit that's a bit more than I'm willing to invest right now.
> 
> ...


 

 There is a ton of analysis (included spectrographs) of it out on other audio sites, but in my experience it sounded good compared to the same mastering in super high-res. The Tidal integration is very smart of them -- I don't see it going anywhere as a format you buy vs lossless.


----------



## freitz

Curious how this compares to a Bitfrost 4490 or Multibit + Asgard 2 or Valhalla 2 combo?
  
 Can anyone shed some light on their experience. Will be hooking up EL-8's Closed and Audio Engine speakers.


----------



## cdave

I think the DAC in the Deckard sounds as good as the bitfrost. I had a bitfrost + Ly 2 combo and I went with the Dekard because I'm not crazy about hybrid amps. Havjng said that my next amp will be a tube amp. You can't go wrong with this amp. It should sound good with EL-8s.


----------



## sheldaze

cdave said:


> I think the DAC in the Deckard sounds as good as the bitfrost. I had a bitfrost + Ly 2 combo and I went with the Dekard because I'm not crazy about hybrid amps. Havjng said that my next amp will be a tube amp. You can't go wrong with this amp. It should sound good with EL-8s.


 
 Bifrost 4399 (original), Uber, 4490, or Multibit? If audio sent through USB, which version?
  
 I've heard all 4 generations of Bifrost and all 4 types of inputs (USB ver 1, USB ver 2, Toslink and COAX), so more information helps my perspective. Thanks!


----------



## cdave

sheldaze said:


> Bifrost 4399 (original), Uber, 4490, or Multibit? If audio sent through USB, which version?
> I've heard all 4 generations of Bifrost and all 4 types of inputs (USB ver 1, USB ver 2, Toslink and COAX), so more information helps my perspective. Thanks!




Bitfrost Uber through USB. I haven't heard multibit.


----------



## pavement714

sheldaze said:


> Bifrost 4399 (original), Uber, 4490, or Multibit? If audio sent through USB, which version?
> 
> I've heard all 4 generations of Bifrost and all 4 types of inputs (USB ver 1, USB ver 2, Toslink and COAX), so more information helps my perspective. Thanks!


 

 I've only heard the multibit version of the Bifrost vs the Deckard's DAC, and the Deckard is definitely not as good. They're probably talking about the Uber. BTW, the Deckard (amp only) and Multibit pairs amazingly.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> I've only heard the multibit version of the Bifrost vs the Deckard's DAC, and the Deckard is definitely not as good. They're probably talking about the Uber. BTW, the Deckard (amp only) and Multibit pairs amazingly.


 
 Have you compare multi bit + asgard 2 vs Deckard? It seems clear the bitfrost multi bit is better however it seems that the bitfrost multi bit combo with asgard 2 vs deckard dac/amp, the deckard is better over all?
  
  
  
 Also curious if anyone has compare this to the IFI DSD Micro.


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Have you compare multi bit + asgard 2 vs Deckard? It seems clear the bitfrost multi bit is better however it seems that the bitfrost multi bit combo with asgard 2 vs deckard dac/amp, the deckard is better over all?
> 
> 
> 
> Also curious if anyone has compare this to the IFI DSD Micro.


 

 I haven't heard the Asgard 2 so I can't compare it as an amp. Nor have I heard the Solid State Lyr 2 which I think is a fairer comparison in price. (If you somehow stuck a Schiit Modi in the Lyr you'd have about the same price combo as the Deckard).
  
 If you are asking about the Bifrost Multibit + Asgard 2 combo vs just the Deckard and its amp as overall sound quality, and in that price range I would say the Schiit combo would win purely on the strength of the DAC. But I have no idea what headphones you have, how much power they require. I bought the Deckard originally to use as an all-in-one unit, and it did that very well. But pairing its Class-A amp with other, better multibit DACs is a wonderful listening experience.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> I haven't heard the Asgard 2 so I can't compare it as an amp. Nor have I heard the Solid State Lyr 2 which I think is a fairer comparison in price. (If you somehow stuck a Schiit Modi in the Lyr you'd have about the same price combo as the Deckard).
> 
> If you are asking about the Bifrost Multibit + Asgard 2 combo vs just the Deckard and its amp as overall sound quality, and in that price range I would say the Schiit combo would win purely on the strength of the DAC. But I have no idea what headphones you have, how much power they require. I bought the Deckard originally to use as an all-in-one unit, and it did that very well. But pairing its Class-A amp with other, better multibit DACs is a wonderful listening experience.


 
 Sorry should have gave background.
  
 Budget - 700$
 Headphones - Audeze EL-8 Closed Back.
  
 In that range I am looking at
 Bitfrost 4490 with later upgrading to multibit and a Asgard or Valhalla 2. So it seems the Deckard is a lyr grade amp with a original bitfrost grade DAC? Multibit is just out of my current budget for current needs without scarifying the amp. (EL-8's are in the mail). 
  
 I could get a Bitfrost Multi Bit and get a Schiit Magni 2 Uber. But that would be a nice Dac is an Okay Amp. I think its 1/2 of the people on here believe a Amp is more important then the Dac?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Sorry should have gave background.
> 
> Budget - 700$
> Headphones - Audeze EL-8 Closed Back.
> ...


 

 At your budget then, I would do Bifrost 4490 and try out the Schiit amp then. And definitely upgrade the Bifrost when you have the budget. That's my deciding factor on suggesting that vs. just the Deckard.


----------



## cmacsocial

May I have your expert opinions? I'm running my Audeze EL-8 closed off an Oppo HA-2 portable amp. DAP is a FiiO X5II. I'm looking to upgrade my work setup. What would I notice by upgrading the HA-2 for the Deckard? Instrument separation is good now, but I'd love more bass slam. 
  
 Would especially love to hear from anyone who's upgraded from a portable amp to a desktop amp. Thanks in advance for your help.


----------



## sheldaze

cmacsocial said:


> May I have your expert opinions? I'm running my Audeze EL-8 closed off an Oppo HA-2 portable amp. DAP is a FiiO X5II. I'm looking to upgrade my work setup. What would I notice by upgrading the HA-2 for the Deckard? Instrument separation is good now, but I'd love more bass slam.
> 
> Would especially love to hear from anyone who's upgraded from a portable amp to a desktop amp. Thanks in advance for your help.


 
 I'm happily running my EL-8C via portable (CEntrance HiFi-Skyn and Chord Mojo) and via desktop (Asgard 2 and Ragnarok). Yes, the EL-8C scales quite nicely when played out the balanced output from a Ragnarok. But none of these are Audeze Deckard, thus I feel I would be hijacking this thread to discuss.
  
 I'll only repeat - the EL-8 headphones scale quite nicely!


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> At your budget then, I would do Bifrost 4490 and try out the Schiit amp then. And definitely upgrade the Bifrost when you have the budget. That's my deciding factor on suggesting that vs. just the Deckard.


 
 Is it the DAC portion of the Deckard that is holding it back?
  
 Off of your combo would it be better to get the Deckard and at a Bitfrost MB down the road? I imagine the Deckard like you said is as strong of an amp as the Lyr 2?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Is it the DAC portion of the Deckard that is holding it back?
> 
> Off of your combo would it be better to get the Deckard and at a Bitfrost MB down the road? I imagine the Deckard like you said is as strong of an amp as the Lyr 2?


 
  
 First caveat, this is my subjective impression as someone who's heard a decent amount of headphones, amps, and DACs. But it's just my personal opinion.
  
 The Deckard's DAC is very good for a $700 Class A amp/DAC combo. I believe it's a Brown-Burr DAC. But it's still a Delta Sigma 1-bit chip. I heard immediately noticeable gains in detail and presence of instruments when switching from the Deckard DAC to the Bifrost Multibit. Once you switch to multibit you'll notice just how "harsh" and "digital" DS DACs sound in comparison. Like upscaling a 480p image to 1080p vs a true 1080p image. Sure, the picture is there but it's been filled in digitally with approximations of the actual original source data -- in this case, music. The Bifrost Multibit keeps all the samples for 16-bit CD quality music (or streaming) and in my opinion it shows. 
  
 Some people unbendingly think DACs are a minor part of the sound and might advise against my opinions. All I can say is I am a firm believer in multibit technology, specifically Schiits and their digital filter. While it seems expensive spending $600 on the Bifrost Multibit and $700 on the Deckard, it gave me an amp/DAC system that would cost 4-5x more from other companies and probably not even sound as good.
  
 Deckard is interesting because it really isn't being hyped up/discussed as much as other amps in that price range. I have limited experience with amps, but multiple review sites have said the Deckard pairs well with top of the line, difficult to power headphones like the HD800. I am currently using the HE1000, which isn't as power hungry yet is still one of the best headphones (if not the best) available and I think it has more than enough power to run it well.
  
 It is a beautifully designed/looking amp that had thought put into it to make it quality, not just a headphone manufacturer throwing out whatever it could scrape together to earn a buck.
  
 The only downside I currently have is that it's missing is balanced output. But you'll hear opinions on both sides as to how much that matters. I'm sure the Lyr 2 sounds great, but I'm very, very happy with the Deckard.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> First caveat, this is my subjective impression as someone who's heard a decent amount of headphones, amps, and DACs. But it's just my personal opinion.
> 
> The Deckard's DAC is very good for a $700 Class A amp/DAC combo. I believe it's a Brown-Burr DAC. But it's still a Delta Sigma 1-bit chip. I heard immediately noticeable gains in detail and presence of instruments when switching from the Deckard DAC to the Bifrost Multibit. Once you switch to multibit you'll notice just how "harsh" and "digital" DS DACs sound in comparison. Like upscaling a 480p image to 1080p vs a true 1080p image. Sure, the picture is there but it's been filled in digitally with approximations of the actual original source data -- in this case, music. The Bifrost Multibit keeps all the samples for 16-bit CD quality music (or streaming) and in my opinion it shows.
> 
> ...


 
 It looks like you started with just the deckard and added the Bitfrost Multibit later?

 From what I have read on the forums. Deckard is comparable to the Lyr2. However anything below that it is better as an Amp. Like you said it lacks as a DAC - should be comparable to the Bitfrost Uber maybe even the 4490 (also a Delta Sigma 1 bit chip).
  
 It seems the best solution according to what you have experienced is run with the Deckard then add the Multibit later? This seems to have created an more advanced system, like you said would cost 4-5x as much. For me to get a Bitfrost MB + a Lyr 2 hybrid would be around 1100$.. The Deckard can be found on sale around 599. Adding the Multibit Bitfrost later would only be 599.
  
 Keep in Mind my last set up was the original Modi Magni schitt stack for desktop and a JDS LAB C5D for my iphone and laptop paired with AKG K 550's. I sold all that and bought Shure SE535LTD's with a silver lutz cable directly to my iphone with an E11. Sounds great and better then that entire setup before it in my opinion even sold the E11 after a while.


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> It looks like you started with just the deckard and added the Bitfrost Multibit later?
> 
> From what I have read on the forums. Deckard is comparable to the Lyr2. However anything below that it is better as an Amp. Like you said it lacks as a DAC - should be comparable to the Bitfrost Uber maybe even the 4490 (also a Delta Sigma 1 bit chip).
> 
> ...


 

 Yeah, I got the Deckard for $100 off as well and ran that solo for awhile, then got the Bimby. I would recommend that path. The caveat being that I have no experience with nice IEMs. Good luck!


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Yeah, I got the Deckard for $100 off as well and ran that solo for awhile, then got the Bimby. I would recommend that path. The caveat being that I have no experience with nice IEMs. Good luck!


 
 Thanks everyone for the Advise.
  
 Going to grab the Deckard for starters, at the discount can't beat it.


----------



## freitz

I am curious.
  
 who is using the stock cable vs who bought a usb cable for this?
  
 Thinking about the audioquest forest usb a to b.


----------



## bobmysterious

I picked up an AQ Carbon to go with it, sounds pretty nice to me.


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> I am curious.
> 
> who is using the stock cable vs who bought a usb cable for this?
> 
> Thinking about the audioquest forest usb a to b.


 

 I will say upgrading the cable made a difference to me. I got the Schiit PYST cable, they sell it for $20 on their site and it's the exact same cable the company Straight Wire sells for $60.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> I will say upgrading the cable made a difference to me. I got the Schiit PYST cable, they sell it for $20 on their site and it's the exact same cable the company Straight Wire sells for $60.


 
 I was considering this. I need like 5-6 feet.
  
 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00415J7V8?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_sfl_title_1&smid=A29BZ1S30D0GLZ


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> I was considering this. I need like 5-6 feet.
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00415J7V8?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_sfl_title_1&smid=A29BZ1S30D0GLZ


 

 Sure, Audioquest makes quality cables. And dat forest green color, mmmm.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Sure, Audioquest makes quality cables. And dat forest green color, mmmm.


 
 I assume amazon is a safe bet to buy this cable without getting a fake?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> I assume amazon is a safe bet to buy this cable without getting a fake?


 

 You would assume correctly.


----------



## cmacsocial

freitz said:


> Thanks everyone for the Advise.
> 
> Going to grab the Deckard for starters, at the discount can't beat it.


 
 Where are you buying the Deckard at a discount? I'm interested!


----------



## freitz

Here is a question for the group.
  
 Using just my iphone headphone sounds excellent.
  
 Just purchased the Deckard for my desk top set up. On Mid and High Gain There is a static tap tap tap tap tap tap tap tap when no music is playing. Is this normal?
  
 Thanks.


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Here is a question for the group.
> 
> Using just my iphone headphone sounds excellent.
> 
> ...


 

 You're using IEM right? They don't need high gain. Is it loud enough on low gain? That noise usually means that the amp is proving too much power to the headphone.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> You're using IEM right? They don't need high gain. Is it loud enough on low gain? That noise usually means that the amp is proving too much power to the headphone.


 
 Actually using my EL-8's right now. Usually only can hear the noise on Mid - High Gain.
  
 On Low gain I can hear it a little bit too when turning the volume up.


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Actually using my EL-8's right now. Usually only can hear the noise on Mid - High Gain.
> 
> On Low gain I can hear it a little bit too when turning the volume up.


 

 Hmm weird. I don't know what the EL-8 closed efficiency is, but I think they were designed to be driven by portable sources so it might not be necessary to go higher than mid. I would ask in the EL-8 thread about how much power they need to be driven.


----------



## freitz

So the only thing it could be is to much power?
  
 On just an iphone its loud enough with no amp esp. in a quiet rooms. Haven't taken them outside.
  
 Using the Forest .5% silver usb cable. Tried different ports, different computer, and different cables.
  
 On Low gains when I touch the headphone cable where it connects to the amp I can get the static ticking noise.
  
 Its like interference, *when I point my wifi antenna at it, the ticking is lessened.*


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> So the only thing it could be is to much power?
> 
> On just an iphone its loud enough with no amp esp. in a quiet rooms. Haven't taken them outside.
> 
> ...


 

 Ah yeah then it's definitely an interference issue. I've never experienced it, sorry I can't be more help. But someone on here should be able to help you.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Ah yeah then it's definitely an interference issue. I've never experienced it, sorry I can't be more help. But someone on here should be able to help you.


 
 Figured it out. RF noise from my Router.
  
 Any quick fixes other then move the Router?


----------



## raoultrifan

Hi,
  
 Usually interferences are getting inside an amplifier through signal and power cables and not through the thick aluminum case. Your Audeze headamp is having a ground decoupling technique that removes a little bit of unwanted noise coming from the power cable (resistor + capacitor), but doesn't really have a decent EMI/RFI filter, so you may want to try some of the following workarounds:
  
 1. Try switching with 180 degrees your headamp power cable plug: inverse neutral with live and see if it decreases the noise. Do the same for your router and see if noise decreases.
  
 2. Do you have amplifier's ground connected to power outlet's ground? Do you have a decent ground on your power outlet? When you touch volume knob or metallic case with your finger this noise gets lower or higher? Are you using good shielded signal cables?
  
 3. I also remember that I had this noise with my Matrix M-Stage HPA-3B (similar amp, same schematic and design actually) and issue was caused by my computer's switching power supply (amplifier + DAC were standing on top of my desktop, just above the PSU). Problem was solved by re-routing both L/R XLR cables, with headphones connected + no music playing + volume almost to max. to better hear the noise. Also, better shielded signal cables and power cables helps here too.
  
 4. Can you re-arrange your router's antennas? Can you decrease your wireless power from 100% to about 75% or even 50%, just to check if this will decrease this noise? My wireless router is about 40 cm away from my headamp and I don't hear strange noises at all. Also, an aluminium thick sheet may be used to reflect antenna's waves (http://www.hightech-edge.com/video-hack-tips-diy-wifi-boost-signal/1190/).
  
 Good luck, 
 Raul.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> Hi,
> 
> Usually interferences are getting inside an amplifier through signal and power cables and not through the thick aluminum case. Your Audeze headamp is having a ground decoupling technique that removes a little bit of unwanted noise coming from the power cable (resistor + capacitor), but doesn't really have a decent EMI/RFI filter, so you may want to try some of the following workarounds:
> 
> ...


 
 Rual, Thanks for the reply. Here is some answers after trying some of the suggestions.
  
 1. I don't understand what you are suggesting here.
  
 2.Amp has good connection to power outlet and is grounded. Good ground on outlet. Just touching the knob doesn't do anything but when I touch the cable it gets lower. Also lower when I touch the router (This is my router https://www.asus.com/us/Networking/RT-AC5300/). I have a shielded USB cable from audioquest. Should I have purchased otheres just using USB for now.
  
 3. I am using USB cables that shielded but not power cable that is.
  
 4. I can move the router further away, this lessens the noise. Cannot decrease power on wireless.


----------



## freitz

One more thing. When I grab the power cord of the deckard. The clicking stops... Could it be that I need a shielded cable?


----------



## freitz

Shielded power cable*


----------



## raoultrifan

Try reversing the polarity of your power plug by unplug it from mains outlet, rotate the plug with 180 degrees and re-plug it. This should work if you have a regular Schuko plug
  
 Also, find/borrow a decent power conditioner or search after DIY EMI/RFI filter, perhaps it will help. For example I shielded transformer and installed an EMI/RFI filter inside my Matrix 3B to get rid of all unwanted noise (http://www.head-fi.org/t/770610/introducing-the-matrix-m-stage-hpa-3u-and-hpa-3b-review-to-follow/45#post_12120336).
  
 BTW, if you unplug the USB cable from your Deckard is that noise still there? What about using an external DAC connected to RCA inputs, do you still have that noise?


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> Try reversing the polarity of your power plug by unplug it from mains outlet, rotate the plug with 180 degrees and re-plug it. This should work if you have a regular Schuko plug
> 
> Also, find/borrow a decent power conditioner or search after DIY EMI/RFI filter, perhaps it will help. For example I shielded transformer and installed an EMI/RFI filter inside my Matrix 3B to get rid of all unwanted noise (http://www.head-fi.org/t/770610/introducing-the-matrix-m-stage-hpa-3u-and-hpa-3b-review-to-follow/45#post_12120336).
> 
> BTW, if you unplug the USB cable from your Deckard is that noise still there? What about using an external DAC connected to RCA inputs, do you still have that noise?




Noise is there with or without use plugged in.

As I said above touching the power cable the noise goes away? Is it as simple as replacing that with a shielded cable to the dac/amp?

When 3-5 feet from router noise disappears as well.


----------



## raoultrifan

If home electrical wiring is having a decent grounding then a good shielded power cable might do the difference. Also, re-positioning power cables helps sometime.
  
 Have you tried reversing the power plug from your cable? (http://www.ecoustics.com/articles/eliminate-hum-buzz/)
  
 Perhaps powering your router from a different outlet might help too.
  
 Sorry I can't be more helpful here.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> If home electrical wiring is having a decent grounding then a good shielded power cable might do the difference. Also, re-positioning power cables helps sometime.
> 
> Have you tried reversing the power plug from your cable? (http://www.ecoustics.com/articles/eliminate-hum-buzz/)
> 
> ...


 
 Moved Router to other power outlet. its now about 5 feet away. Can only hear the sound on high Gain (Which I never use no need to with EL-8's they are easy to drive). 
  
 I think a shielded cable might make its better.


----------



## freitz

I think this might solve my problem. 100$ for a power cable though....Not sure if anyone recommends a cheaper shielded solution need 6 ft.
  
 http://www.amazon.com/AudioQuest-NRG-X3-6ft-Power-Cable/dp/B0055ONLZC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1456597344&sr=8-2&keywords=audioquest+power+cable


----------



## freitz

I bought that power cable for my Deckard.
  
 Going to put Ferrite beads on my router cable and see what happens. Think this will help too?


----------



## raoultrifan

Hi, 
  
 Sorry I didn't see your post earlier, but I don't think the power cable from the above link is shielded. It's definitely a very good cable, but I don't think it will remove the noise you are speaking about, even after placing ferrite beads over the cable. Ferrite beads removes high frequency noise that usually is inaudible, not your case I'd say. Anyway, I'm waiting for you to give it a try, maybe will help a bit after all.
  
 Raul.


----------



## stickboy85

Has anyone on here come across the ifi nano iusb 3.0 yet?
If so do u think i would notice an improvement when paired with the deckard?

Nearly purchased the Schiit wyrd but having second thoughts after seeing the ifi.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. 

Thanks.


----------



## pavement714

stickboy85 said:


> Has anyone on here come across the ifi nano iusb 3.0 yet?
> If so do u think i would notice an improvement when paired with the deckard?
> 
> Nearly purchased the Schiit wyrd but having second thoughts after seeing the ifi.
> ...


 

 I have the Wyrd with the Deckard and definitely saw an improvement. Haven't used the ifi nano though.


----------



## stickboy85

pavement714 said:


> I have the Wyrd with the Deckard and definitely saw an improvement. Haven't used the ifi nano though.




Can I ask what sort of improvement you gained from the Wyrd?


----------



## freitz

stickboy85 said:


> Has anyone on here come across the ifi nano iusb 3.0 yet?
> If so do u think i would notice an improvement when paired with the deckard?
> 
> Nearly purchased the Schiit wyrd but having second thoughts after seeing the ifi.
> ...


 
 Shouldn't have to many USB issues with a powered DAC.. the USB doesn't power the Deckard. I also bought a audioquest Forest USB cable.


----------



## dagothur

freitz said:


> Going to put Ferrite beads on my router cable and see what happens. Think this will help too?


 
   Unless you're trying to measure the height of surface asperities on a micro-scale RF transmitter, you don't need Ferrite beads.


----------



## freitz

dagothur said:


> Unless you're trying to measure the height of surface asperities on a micro-scale RF transmitter, you don't need Ferrite beads.


 
 Not sure if you are just catching up but can't seem to get the TICK TICK TICK TAP TAP TAP or whatever of my router to go away.I moved it about 5 feet apart. I now only hear it on high gain or if I stand up at my desk.
  
 Ordered those and a shielded power cable for my Deckard.


----------



## dagothur

freitz said:


> Not sure if you are just catching up but can't seem to get the TICK TICK TICK TAP TAP TAP or whatever of my router to go away.I moved it about 5 feet apart. I now only hear it on high gain or if I stand up at my desk.
> 
> Ordered those and a shielded power cable for my Deckard.


 
 I've read about the issue but don't believe heavy duty shielding is going to fix it.


----------



## freitz

dagothur said:


> I've read about the issue but don't believe heavy duty shielding is going to fix it.


 
 What do you think will fix it?


----------



## pavement714

Just a heads-up, another very positive review of the Deckard from Steve Guttenberg, someone I respect a lot:
  
 http://www.cnet.com/news/a-desktop-audio-system-to-die-for/


----------



## freitz

Update -
  
 Shielded Cable came.. No difference.
  
 Ferrite Beads. Also no difference 
  
 How can I get this RF interference away in my deckard?


----------



## raoultrifan

Sorry to hear that freitz.
  
 Are you 110% positive this cable is shielded? I've seen the specs from the Amazon cable you wrote on the other page, but couldn't identify if shielded or not.


----------



## bobmysterious

Just a shot in the dark, but have you tried a ground lift plug?


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> Sorry to hear that freitz.
> 
> Are you 110% positive this cable is shielded? I've seen the specs from the Amazon cable you wrote on the other page, but couldn't identify if shielded or not.


 
 http://www.audioquest.com/power-cables/nrg-x3
  
 There is the link for the cable. Maybe I am wrong maybe that is not shielded. If not can you recommend one that is?


----------



## freitz

bobmysterious said:


> Just a shot in the dark, but have you tried a ground lift plug?


 
 What is a ground lifting plug?


----------



## GU1DO

freitz said:


> Update -
> 
> Shielded Cable came.. No difference.
> 
> ...


 

 not sure if it will help you ,, check it out ...
  
 Tacima Power Conditioner
  
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGdJFLUgMl0


----------



## bobmysterious

Used to use them all the time for random hums, etc. in the studio I worked in on Music Row in Nashville.  It's worth a shot.


----------



## raoultrifan

I don't think this cable is shielded and I can't recommend you spending additional money for a new cable because is really expensive.
  
 Instead I can recommend you to manufacture your own power cable by yourself, based on a lot of DIY tutorials over Internet (between 20 to 35 USD per 1.5m of shielded cable) or at least add some "3M flex braid shield" over the existing power cable and connect it directly to power outlet's ground if possible (please, be careful with this and don't do it if you don't feel comfortable working with electricity!). You can cut the cable and remove the power plug so you can connect this 3M braid, then buy a new power plug too. Do not connect the 3M braid to Audeze Deckard metallic case, just isolate 3M braid and only connect it to power outlet's ground!
  
 In case you don't feel comfortable working with electricity, feel free to use the 3M flex braid shield over the existing power cord and just connect it to metallic case of your Deckard (Don't connect it to power ground as well! This shield can only be connected to either metallic case of your amp, either to electricity power ground).


----------



## freitz

bobmysterious said:


> Used to use them all the time for random hums, etc. in the studio I worked in on Music Row in Nashville.  It's worth a shot.


 
 Would this fix the tap tap tap from the Router? I know its the router sending out to much RF interference. If I go to another room its gone.


----------



## bobmysterious

I'm honestly not sure, but it's cheap to try.  They're only a few dollars or so.
 *EDIT* Try it on the DAC, then try it on the router.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> I don't think this cable is shielded and I can't recommend you spending additional money for a new cable because is really expensive.
> 
> Instead I can recommend you to manufacture your own power cable by yourself, based on a lot of DIY tutorials over Internet (between 20 to 35 USD per 1.5m of shielded cable) or at least add some "3M flex braid shield" over the existing power cable and connect it directly to power outlet's ground if possible (please, be careful with this and don't do it if you don't feel comfortable working with electricity!). You can cut the cable and remove the power plug so you can connect this 3M braid, then buy a new power plug too. Do not connect the 3M braid to Audeze Deckard metallic case, just isolate 3M braid and only connect it to power outlet's ground!
> 
> In case you don't feel comfortable working with electricity, feel free to use the 3M flex braid shield over the existing power cord and just connect it to metallic case of your Deckard (Don't connect it to power ground as well! This shield can only be connected to either metallic case of your amp, either to electricity power ground).


 
 I don't mind spending the money if it fixes it. I don't have the ability to make the cable. Would you recommend a good shielded cable?


----------



## dagothur

freitz said:


> What do you think will fix it?


 
 Shy away from spending a lot of money on insulated power cables and focus on what produces change.  Interference can't be a major contributing factor if heavy duty shielding doesn't make a difference.  Touching the components themselves _does_, which indicates it may have something to do with the electrical contacts themselves.  Do you get feedback from any other wireless devices?  I.e., does placing your cellphone near the DAC have any effect?


----------



## freitz

dagothur said:


> Shy away from spending a lot of money on insulated power cables and focus on what produces change.  Interference can't be a major contributing factor if heavy duty shielding doesn't make a difference.  Touching the components themselves _does_, which indicates it may have something to do with the electrical contacts themselves.  Do you get feedback from any other wireless devices?  I.e., does placing your cellphone near the DAC have any effect?


 
 yes cell phone esp. when placed directly on the el-8's cable. Does that mean something else?


----------



## dagothur

freitz said:


> yes cell phone esp. when placed directly on the el-8's cable. Does that mean something else?


 
 Troubleshooting.  If a cellphone near your headphones or Deckard doesn't do anything then it's probably not interference.  Have you tried using other headphones with your Deckard?


----------



## freitz

dagothur said:


> Troubleshooting.  If a cellphone near your headphones or Deckard doesn't do anything then it's probably not interference.  Have you tried using other headphones with your Deckard?


 
 Just did the same thing with my shure Se535's the tap tap tap tap tap static noise, and when putting the cell phone on the wire I get louder static.
  
 My usually headphones EL-8's do the same thing.
  
*Cell phone near headphones makes more noise, static etc.*


----------



## dagothur

freitz said:


> Just did the same thing with my shure Se535's the tap tap tap tap tap static noise, and when putting the cell phone on the wire I get louder static.
> 
> My usually headphones EL-8's do the same thing.
> 
> *Cell phone near headphones makes more noise, static etc.*


 
 If nobody else has reported this problem with their Deckard you may have a faulty unit.  I don't think I've ever heard of a wireless router interrupting regular DAC usage before.


----------



## freitz

dagothur said:


> If nobody else has reported this problem with their Deckard you may have a faulty unit.  I don't think I've ever heard of a wireless router interrupting regular DAC usage before.


 
  
 Here is the router 
 https://www.asus.com/us/Networking/RT-AC5300/
  
 When tested if I take the Deckard into the other room away from the router I no longer hear the Tap tap tap tap static. Stop about 4 feet from the router.
  
 Can only be heard on High Gain. When really close can be heard on med gain.
  
 Just moved the antenna's of the router facing away and the noise is gone. Very Strange.


----------



## sheldaze

I've been lurking, but still have no clue your source for such a quick purchase at a reduced cost.
 I'm waiting for my vendor to get inventory, which is not a problem from my perspective. But I cannot provide you any assistance.


----------



## freitz

sheldaze said:


> I've been lurking, but still have no clue your source for such a quick purchase at a reduced cost.
> I'm waiting for my vendor to get inventory, which is not a problem from my perspective. But I cannot provide you any assistance.


 
 You have a PM.


----------



## freitz

Another question I have is when the Deckard is on RCA and nothing plugged into the RCA; sound is turned up high enough I can still hear it through my headphones... Seems Strange.
  
 Where can I get a true shielded power cable. I wonder if that would fix it.


----------



## raoultrifan

I had this noise when my amplifier was with its case open, so without the upside cover to shield the internals from outside interferences. With my sensitive AKG K550 headphones and high-gain setting I could easily hear strange noises coming from power outlet or power cable. Can you check if all the screws from your Deckard are fully screwed? Use a decent screwdriver to check this, but don't use too much force...you don't want to loose your warranty right now.
  
 Belden 83803 should be OK: http://www.ab-system.hk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=119. All I know is that if your power outlet's ground is not good, then this cable will not help at all. Also, indeed-hi-fi-lab seems to have quite decent cables on its eBay shop; if they're really using the same shielded cable from their eBay pictures then I really think this might be a good investment.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> I had this noise when my amplifier was with its case open, so without the upside cover to shield the internals from outside interferences. With my sensitive AKG K550 headphones and high-gain setting I could easily hear strange noises coming from power outlet or power cable. Can you check if all the screws from your Deckard are fully screwed? Use a decent screwdriver to check this, but don't use too much force...you don't want to loose your warranty right now.
> 
> Belden 83803 should be OK: http://www.ab-system.hk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=119. All I know is that if your power outlet's ground is not good, then this cable will not help at all. Also, indeed-hi-fi-lab seems to have quite decent cables on its eBay shop; if they're really using the same shielded cable from their eBay pictures then I really think this might be a good investment.


 
 All Screws feel tight. 
  
 Any chance it could be getting in from the open RCA cables slots on the back of the Dac Amp?
  
 I can give one of those cables a try.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> I had this noise when my amplifier was with its case open, so without the upside cover to shield the internals from outside interferences. With my sensitive AKG K550 headphones and high-gain setting I could easily hear strange noises coming from power outlet or power cable. Can you check if all the screws from your Deckard are fully screwed? Use a decent screwdriver to check this, but don't use too much force...you don't want to loose your warranty right now.
> 
> Belden 83803 should be OK: http://www.ab-system.hk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=119. All I know is that if your power outlet's ground is not good, then this cable will not help at all. Also, indeed-hi-fi-lab seems to have quite decent cables on its eBay shop; if they're really using the same shielded cable from their eBay pictures then I really think this might be a good investment.


 
 Awesome Cable but need 6 feet.


----------



## raoultrifan

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audiophile-Power-Cable-Cord-IEC-USA-plug-Indeed-PC-700A-/250762879304?hash=item3a62a1e148:g:NFoAAOxyFrNRxexO is about 5.8 feet. I believe you need to try finding a cable to a local dealer/store or on eBay.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audiophile-Power-Cable-Cord-IEC-USA-plug-Indeed-PC-700A-/250762879304?hash=item3a62a1e148:g:NFoAAOxyFrNRxexO is about 5.8 feet. I believe you need to try finding a cable to a local dealer/store or on eBay.


 
 Do you think that will help that cable?


----------



## raoultrifan

If this cable is really shielded like shown in the pictures (and I really think it is), then it should definitely remove most of the noise/interference getting from your router into Deckard's power cable, but only if your mains ground is in good condition.
  
 What this cable will not do:
 - If your home power ground is not good enough then this cable may actually inject more noise instead of removing it because the shield may actually become an antenna that will get this noise into Deckard's power source instead of grounding the noise.
 - I don't think this is your case, but if your router has a cheap PSU that "injects" switching noise from its internal power supply into your mains power outlet then this cable can't possible remove this noise, so what you'll need would be a good EMI/RFI filter like this one or like this one between your Deckard and your power outlet to remove the noise coming from mains (http://www.head-fi.org/t/573231/advice-on-power-line-noise-and-recommendation-on-power-conditioners thread might help too). With a little bit of DIY a simple 10 USD EMI/RFI filter bought from Mouser + a power stripper might be as good as the above 200 USD devices, in case you feel like doing this by yourself.
  
 I'm really sorry I can't be more helpful here, but it's more like trial & error and I don't feel comfortable playing with your nervs and money; maybe you'll find some head-fier able to borrow you a shielded power cable and/or a power stripper with EMI/RFI filter inside so you can take some tests. I remember I had a hard time myself removing the noise from my HPA-3B headmap and my Wi-Fi router was only 2 feet away (items 2. and 3. from http://www.head-fi.org/t/770610/introducing-the-matrix-m-stage-hpa-3u-and-hpa-3b-review-to-follow/45#post_12120336)
  
 Good luck, 
 Raul.


----------



## freitz

raoultrifan said:


> If this cable is really shielded like shown in the pictures (and I really think it is), then it should definitely remove most of the noise/interference getting from your router into Deckard's power cable, but only if your mains ground is in good condition.
> 
> What this cable will not do:
> - If your home power ground is not good enough then this cable may actually inject more noise instead of removing it because the shield may actually become an antenna that will get this noise into Deckard's power source instead of grounding the noise.
> ...


 
 Thanks for the help.


----------



## freitz

Update 2
  
 For those following I spoke with Audeze.
  
 The further I move the router away the less noise I hear. Right now at 3 1/2 feet and pointing the antenna's in another direction seems to have lessened the noise so I can barely hear it. I then adjust the rotation of the router and I can't hear it right now. So it is something with the router, I would assume the internal clock.
  
 Here is the router
  

  
 I have a feeling that its just the tri band and the power this router is putting out into the Air. With the Deckard being aluminum this is causing the issues. Audeze said they have a couple routers they tested with and the noise usually goes away between 2-3 feet. 
  
 Not sure if this helps anyone who was helping me to try and think of another solution.
  
 I could always make a faraday cage shelf to go over the deckard.


----------



## freitz

Re-organized some things on the desk and moved the Deckard 5 inches further. Sound is gone. Very Strange. All fingers point to the router.


----------



## pavement714

Wow that was a lot of back and forth for a very simple solution!


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Wow that was a lot of back and forth for a very simple solution!


 
 Right. I guess this router just puts out a lot of RF interference. Might not be FCC rated for that or something.


----------



## WinterThrice

> (although claims of people running it in low/mid gain with a LCD3 seem hard for me to imagine)


 
  

 Hoth, could you elaborate a bit on this? I find that my LCD-3 on high gain with the Deckard gives you essentially no volume control, as anything past 9 o'clock is to loud. However, much A/B testing with medium and high gain has lead me to believe that medium gain sounds just as good, if not better than high gain and you have much more volume control.
  
 Also, Audeze recommends medium gain with the Deckard and LCD-3 as well. But hey, in the end its all up to your ears!


----------



## pavement714

I've noticed punchier bass and presence w/o distortion using my HE1000 on high gain, for what its worth. Still have lots of volume control too.


----------



## WinterThrice

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't the HE1000 much easier to drive than the LCD-3? How can you have lots of volume control? Also, I too keep telling myself "the bass is just a little bit more punchy on high gain", but when I play the same section of a song over and over comparing medium to high gain I think the difference is just due to the volume being a little louder on high gain.


----------



## pavement714

winterthrice said:


> Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't the HE1000 much easier to drive than the LCD-3? How can you have lots of volume control? Also, I too keep telling myself "the bass is just a little bit more punchy on high gain", but when I play the same section of a song over and over comparing medium to high gain I think the difference is just due to the volume being a little louder on high gain.


 

 I can get the volume pot up to 3PM or so on high gain depending on the song and it's nowhere near blasting loud. I don't have a way to do exact volume level matching, but I've done a lot of switching back and forth and I just think it sounds a bit cleaner in the vocals and attack. I prefer it to pushing medium gain up to 3PM or more. If it's all in my head, then so what? I can keep playing with them and testing.


----------



## sheldaze

winterthrice said:


> Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't the HE1000 much easier to drive than the LCD-3? How can you have lots of volume control? Also, I too keep telling myself "the bass is just a little bit more punchy on high gain", but when I play the same section of a song over and over comparing medium to high gain I think the difference is just due to the volume being a little louder on high gain.


 
 I am still puzzled where that notion started - though I have had many a person dismiss my testing with HE1000 for that reason.
  
 To generate 90dB with LCD-3F requires 0.14 mW and 0.127 Vrms.
 To generatie 90db with HE1000 requires 2.60 mW and 0.297 Vrms.
  
 This is from Innerfidelity.


----------



## WinterThrice

sheldaze said:


> I am still puzzled where that notion started - though I have had many a person dismiss my testing with HE1000 for that reason.
> 
> To generate 90dB with LCD-3F requires 0.14 mW and 0.127 Vrms.
> To generatie 90db with HE1000 requires 2.60 mW and 0.297 Vrms.
> ...


 
  
 So given my limited knowledge of this stuff, that would make the HE-1000 much less efficient due to its lower impedance and still being harder to drive?


----------



## sheldaze

winterthrice said:


> So given my limited knowledge of this stuff, that would make the HE-1000 much less efficient due to its lower impedance and still being harder to drive?


 
 Erm...I don't think it is related to impedance. Life get's complicated when you start to talk about that, and it becomes more of an interaction with the amplifier.
  
 Simply put, more volts and more watts are required to drive the HE-1000 to the same volume (i.e. 90db) versus the LCD-3F. So the HE-1000 is less efficient


----------



## freitz

Anyone using this as a pre-amp for speakers? Thinking about adding A2+ from audio engine to my setup. Any other suggestions?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Anyone using this as a pre-amp for speakers? Thinking about adding A2+ from audio engine to my setup. Any other suggestions?


 

 I own the A2 and yes, it works great on low gain as preamp. I turn the A2 all the way up and do all the volume control from the Deckard.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> I own the A2 and yes, it works great on low gain as preamp. I turn the A2 all the way up and do all the volume control from the Deckard.




I would assume the dac in the deckard is better then the one in the a2+ by a fair margin so I will be using the deckard dac but the a2+ amp built into it right?


----------



## pavement714

Yes, as long as the A2+ isn't plugged into your computer via USB it just acts as a speaker, I would think. I don't have the plus though, just the regular version without a DAC.


----------



## cdave

pavement714 said:


> Yes, as long as the A2+ isn't plugged into your computer via USB it just acts as a speaker, I would think. I don't have the plus though, just the regular version without a DAC.



Correct. I have a pair of A5's setup just like that. As long as the amps set to low gain you're good.


----------



## SwedishBass

Here's a question for owners of the Deckard (I searched the thread, but didn't find the answer I was looking for). Does the Deckard support optical digital input, or is it USB only? I'm looking for a home setup, and I'd like to have the ability to connect my PS4 to it via optical out.


----------



## freitz

swedishbass said:


> Here's a question for owners of the Deckard (I searched the thread, but didn't find the answer I was looking for). Does the Deckard support optical digital input, or is it USB only? I'm looking for a home setup, and I'd like to have the ability to connect my PS4 to it via optical out.


 
 I understood that it supports input via RCA, Digital, and USB but if not USB it does not use the DAC. I might be wrong I haven't tested myself.


----------



## bobmysterious

It's just USB. No mas.


----------



## pavement714

But it works great as an amp + optical from another DAC, like my Gumby.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> But it works great as an amp + optical from another DAC, like my Gumby.


 
 Just noticed you use the Gungnir as your Dac but the Deckard only as amp? What kind of improvements have you noticed?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Just noticed you use the Gungnir as your Dac but the Deckard only as amp? What kind of improvements have you noticed?


 

 I sent this as a response to a private message on reddit's headphone group, but here's the best way I can describe ti:
  
It's really hard to describe the difference, but I'll try. From your iPhone to your MacBook to the Deckard's built-in DAC, those DAC chips sound pretty good. Sharp, detailed in the main instruments, vocals are clear, etc. 

What multibit does, specifically Schiit's multibit, is really make each instrument have a 'place' and depth in the music. Do you want to focus on just the guitar in the left channel? Well it's over there and detailed enough that you can hear pretty much everything it's doing. The scraping of the strings, the tapping of the guitar body, its exact tone and attack. Music on other DACs just sounds closed-in and "digital" in comparison. 

Did someone cough before the song started in the studio? You'll hear that level of detail too. The bass isn't just a "thump" -- each note is clearly enunciated, and it can hit your body in a way that's beyond just a 'bass bump'. It goes deeper. It's all presented in a very smooth, analog-sounding way that once you go back to other DACs you'll immediately noticing the lack of.

If you in any way can spend $600 on a DAC without it being a huge financial hit, I would recommend trying it. Or even buy the Bifrost Multibit to try it out and return it if it doesn't do what you want it to do -- it'll cost you $30 to try it out and send it back.

I was very happy with the Deckard, but once I read thoughts on the Bimby on audio sites my itch to try it grew and grew. I don't regret it at all -- in fact I sold the Bimby and got the Gumby. So yeah, I think it's worth it.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> I sent this as a response to a private message on reddit's headphone group, but here's the best way I can describe ti:
> 
> It's really hard to describe the difference, but I'll try. From your iPhone to your MacBook to the Deckard's built-in DAC, those DAC chips sound pretty good. Sharp, detailed in the main instruments, vocals are clear, etc.
> 
> ...


 
 Thanks for the details. So The Deckard amp is class a excellent but the dac improvement is drastic.
  
 Have you compared this to the Wa7 and Wa7tp setup? I love the way the Deckard sounds but I always like to know my next step. I think they are a contender for sure but I am not sure about the DAC in that WA7 WA7TP set up.
  
 Are you stacking the Deckard on top of your Dac?


----------



## pavement714

freitz said:


> Thanks for the details. So The Deckard amp is class a excellent but the dac improvement is drastic.
> 
> Have you compared this to the Wa7 and Wa7tp setup? I love the way the Deckard sounds but I always like to know my next step. I think they are a contender for sure but I am not sure about the DAC in that WA7 WA7TP set up.
> 
> Are you stacking the Deckard on top of your Dac?


 

 Nope, haven't heard any other high-end amps. Not sure how much improvement they could offer over the Deckard. 
  
 I have stacked the Deckard on the Gungnir and it worked great. But now I sit them next to each other.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Nope, haven't heard any other high-end amps. Not sure how much improvement they could offer over the Deckard.
> 
> I have stacked the Deckard on the Gungnir and it worked great. But now I sit them next to each other.


 
 Whats interesting is the Deckard is a high end amp, but no one is extremely happy with the Dac. Since this is the best Dac amp I have had since the original Schiit Modi Magni stack I have no complaints.
  
 Do you have pictures of them stacked and un stacked?


----------



## WilCox

freitz said:


> Whats interesting is the Deckard is a high end amp, but no one is extremely happy with the Dac.


 
  
 Well I, for one, am very happy with the DAC in the Deckard.  I don't find anything lacking when comparing it to my Bryston or Bel Canto DACs.  The main problem with the Deckard is that it's priced too low for the performance it delivers and doesn't get the respect it deserves.


----------



## freitz

wilcox said:


> Well I, for one, am very happy with the DAC in the Deckard.  I don't find anything lacking when comparing it to my Bryston or Bel Canto DACs.  The main problem with the Deckard is that it's priced too low for the performance it delivers and doesn't get the respect it deserves.


 
 Don't get me wrong I think it is great.


----------



## pavement714

Yup, the Deckard is a beast at $700 (or $600 as a lot of retailers seem to be discounting it to). It has a fantastic delta sigma DAC. I'm just saying that to me personally, Schiit's multibit DACs are a big upgrade if you're looking to get that much more performance out of the Deckard.


----------



## WilCox

pavement714 said:


> Yup, the Deckard is a beast at $700 (or $600 as a lot of retailers seem to be discounting it to). It has a fantastic delta sigma DAC. I'm just saying that to me personally, Schiit's multibit DACs are a big upgrade if you're looking to get that much more performance out of the Deckard.


 
  
 I also have a Schiit Bifrost Multibit and Valhalla 2.  While the Schiit combo is very good (and should be for $950), I prefer the Deckard for both its sonic signature (or lack thereof) and its ability to drive planar headphones in a great one-piece solution with no hassles.  A Deckard / LCD-2 combo is a "poor man's" reference system for music lovers that will take a lot more cash outlay to get a significant improvement.  Once you start going down the rabbit hole of upgrades, there is no stopping (check out my profile).  The Deckard could be a good end-game DAC/amp for many.


----------



## pavement714

wilcox said:


> I also have a Schiit Bifrost Multibit and Valhalla 2.  While the Schiit combo is very good (and should be for $950), I prefer the Deckard for both its sonic signature (or lack thereof) and its ability to drive planar headphones in a great one-piece solution with no hassles.  A Deckard / LCD-2 combo is a "poor man's" reference system for music lovers that will take a lot more cash outlay to get a significant improvement.  Once you start going down the rabbit hole of upgrades, there is no stopping (check out my profile).  The Deckard could be a good end-game DAC/amp for many.


 

 Oooh someone who has directly compared the Deckard to the Valhalla! I was wondering about the Lyr 2 in comparison since both are solid state and in a similar price range, just out of curiosity. But I haven't found anyone yet who has heard both.


----------



## freitz

pavement714 said:


> Oooh someone who has directly compared the Deckard to the Valhalla! I was wondering about the Lyr 2 in comparison since both are solid state and in a similar price range, just out of curiosity. But I haven't found anyone yet who has heard both.


 
 I am really looking for someone who compared the Wa7+Wa7tp vs the Deckard.


----------



## WilCox

pavement714 said:


> Oooh someone who has directly compared the Deckard to the Valhalla! I was wondering about the Lyr 2 in comparison since both are solid state and in a similar price range, just out of curiosity. But I haven't found anyone yet who has heard both.


 
  
 Note that with my HD 800, I prefer the Schiit Bifrost Multibit and Valhalla 2 (or Woo WA2 or HDVA 600) to the Deckard which tames the HD800's treble aggressiveness which can be over the top, especially in poorly mastered recordings.


----------



## Vigrith

freitz said:


> I am really looking for someone who compared the Wa7+Wa7tp vs the Deckard.


 
  
 Apologies for the mini-bump but I'm extremely curious regarding this comparison as well - obviously it may be pretty hard to get a concrete answer seeing as woo tubes tend to sound very distinctive but I'd love to hear general thoughts of people who have heard/owned both of those.


----------



## shahgarrett

Freitz, I experienced the SAME exact issue with the Deckard.  That damn tick tick tick noise.  I am on my second Deckard and had the same problem.  I emailed Audeze and they never replied.  Never had that problem with any other amp/dac.  For a completely separate reason, I decided I was going to sell the Deckard and upgrade to a balanced Schiit stack.  For whatever reason I decided to switch the location of my Deckard and my wifi router on my desk...I flip flopped them on my desk trying to arrange my crap in a better way...and the ticking stopped. Very similar to what you are saying.  There is some kind of interference going on between the DAC and the router, no question about it.


----------



## freitz

shahgarrett said:


> Freitz, I experienced the SAME exact issue with the Deckard.  That damn tick tick tick noise.  I am on my second Deckard and had the same problem.  I emailed Audeze and they never replied.  Never had that problem with any other amp/dac.  For a completely separate reason, I decided I was going to sell the Deckard and upgrade to a balanced Schiit stack.  For whatever reason I decided to switch the location of my Deckard and my wifi router on my desk...I flip flopped them on my desk trying to arrange my crap in a better way...and the ticking stopped. Very similar to what you are saying.  There is some kind of interference going on between the DAC and the router, no question about it.


 
 To be honest I never notice it anymore its only on high gain when nothing play. I never use high gain.
  
 Also as soon as I moved the router problem gone. Other then that the Deckard is awesome. No complaints.


----------



## jamesng45678

wilcox said:


> A very positive review of the Deckard by Michael Lavorgna was just posted over at AudioStream.  This is very timely, since I just received mine on Tuesday and find it to be a superb amp for my LCD-2s as well as my Alpha Dogs.  What's even more surprising is that it works extremely well with my HD 800s with strong, foundational bass and smooth, non-fatiguing treble.  I need more listening time, but right now, I think the Deckard is a better match for the HD 800 than the HDVA 600 -- and a bargain as well.



How does the the audeze deckard compare against the lehmann BCL?


----------



## smial1966

Just a heads up to UK/European members that my pristine Deckard is for sale in the classifieds for £380 *£365* shipped.


----------



## WilCox

jamesng45678 said:


> How does the the audeze deckard compare against the lehmann BCL?


 
  
 I sold my BCL long ago, so never had the chance to compare.  I like the Deckard very much.  It has more power, greater headroom than the BCL and, from memory, is smoother and more musical than the BCL.  It's a great match for both the LCD series as well as the Sennheiser HD800.  The fact that it has a good built in USB DAC and sells for $699 makes it a bargain compared to the BCL.


----------



## DanDorn

I just ordered the Deckard as a potential replacement for my current Mac desktop DAC/amp, the CEntrance DACmini Cx. Has anyone compared these two and can offer some thoughts? The reviews I've read of the Deckard are pretty positive. I've been fairly happy with the DACmini over the several years I've owned it, though I use it only occasionally since I do most of my listening via portable rigs (Chord Hugo or Mojo with various DAPs). I'm hoping the Deckard leans toward the bright side because my main headphones are the Audioquest Nighthawk (LOVE them), which lean toward the warm-ish. Thanks!


----------



## WilCox

dandorn said:


> I just ordered the Deckard as a potential replacement for my current Mac desktop DAC/amp, the CEntrance DACmini Cx. Has anyone compared these two and can offer some thoughts? The reviews I've read of the Deckard are pretty positive. I've been fairly happy with the DACmini over the several years I've owned it, though I use it only occasionally since I do most of my listening via portable rigs (Chord Hugo or Mojo with various DAPs). I'm hoping the Deckard leans toward the bright side because my main headphones are the Audioquest Nighthawk (LOVE them), which lean toward the warm-ish. Thanks!


 
  
 I owned a CEtrance DACmini for about a year and finally sold it since I felt it lacked ultimate transparency and seemed to be somewhat soft in the upper treble region.  Not so with the Deckard.  I would not call the Deckard bright though.  It seems neutral, similar to my reference DACs (BelCanto DAC3 and Bryston BDA-2).


----------



## DanDorn

Thanks for the insights! I'm thinking "neutral" may fit the bill given not just the NHs but the rest of my headphone inventory. We shall see...


----------



## freitz

dandorn said:


> Thanks for the insights! I'm thinking "neutral" may fit the bill given not just the NHs but the rest of my headphone inventory. We shall see...


 
 Audeze has 30 day trial I think with Headphones and DAC AMP. I love my Deckard but I also pair it with EL-8's


----------



## DanDorn

Good to know.


----------



## pmronline

hoth said:


> Well I had my Deckard on my computer table unused for about a week.  Just fired it up now that I have time to listen, and the computer cannot see it.  I've tried different USB cables and different USB ports with no luck.  I have turned it on and off a few times also with no luck.  I guess I have to get it in for a warranty repair.  I don't have a lot of hours on it either.  The only thing that gives me a little pause is that I updated to El Capitan this week and wonder if that has anything to do with it.  Bummer.
> 
> Edit:  I'm actually having problems with another device now so it's starting to look like it's El Capitan and not the Deckard.  Ugh Apple.
> 
> Edit #2:  After doing much under-the -hood troubleshooting and reworking, the issue was El Capitan.


 
  
 How did you fix this issue?  I am going through something similar with El Capitan and Audeze Deckard.  Thanks.


----------



## Jonfairway

I had an issue when I first baught mine, and had to play with USB drivers somewhat, not sure about apple though...   just to be sure it is the Computer, etc try it with a different computer ?  just to be sure


----------



## pmronline

jonfairway said:


> I had an issue when I first baught mine, and had to play with USB drivers somewhat, not sure about apple though...   just to be sure it is the Computer, etc try it with a different computer ?  just to be sure


 
 Thanks.  I found the workaround (refer 3rd para) in this article - http://audiophilereview.com/cd-dac-digital/apple-messes-up-usb-30-audio-big-time.html
  
 I have a question - What is the best gain setting in Deckard for HE400i?  Any suggestions?
  
 I was talking to Audeze support team and understood that Deckard may not work with Win 10?  The drivers work good with Win 7 but not with Win 10.  Is this true?  Any experiences?


----------



## freitz

I really do enjoy my Deckard.
  
 I am curious if anyone is feeding the Deckard amp through different DACs.


----------



## Jonfairway

> I have a question - What is the best gain setting in Deckard for HE400i?  Any suggestions?


 
  
 not familiar with He400i   however I find the Deckard works well on mid gain with my Orthos/planars
  
 sounds more dynamic . powerful, punchy.... if you do want a slightly softer sound, no gain and wind the volume control around a little further...  never use hi gain has to be said....


----------



## pmronline

jonfairway said:


> not familiar with He400i   however I find the Deckard works well on mid gain with my Orthos/planars
> 
> sounds more dynamic . powerful, punchy.... if you do want a slightly softer sound, no gain and wind the volume control around a little further...  never use hi gain has to be said....


 
 I agree.  "Mid" gain setting sounds clean and enjoyable.  
  
 I also did try "high" gain and sound was really dynamic, powerful and punchy.


----------



## Daeder

pmronline said:


> Thanks.  I found the workaround (refer 3rd para) in this article - http://audiophilereview.com/cd-dac-digital/apple-messes-up-usb-30-audio-big-time.html
> 
> I have a question - What is the best gain setting in Deckard for HE400i?  Any suggestions?
> 
> I was talking to Audeze support team and understood that Deckard may not work with Win 10?  The drivers work good with Win 7 but not with Win 10.  Is this true?  Any experiences?


 
  
 My Deckard works fine with Windows 10. No problem whatsoever.


----------



## sheldaze

I do not detect an audible change, switching between the various gain settings. Unlike my previous experience with the Asgard 2, where there was an audible change between the two, which I think likely was caused by the feedback. I would recommend simply picking the gain setting that provides the best volume control per your headphone. My guess though is low gain is plenty for HE-400i. I'm using middle gain setting as I'm listening to HE-1000.
  
 In short, I would basically use the same gain setting on the Deckard as I would use on my Ragnraok - this amplifier indeed has plenty of power.


----------



## sheldaze

Regarding internal versus external DAC (or other external source), I highly recommend the listener give the internal at least a day or so of play. It sounded unlistenable when I first plugged it in, cold, straight from the USPS drop off. Today, I would call the sound of the internal DAC "a little extra". That is, there is something in the sound that I do not hear on other DACs. There is perhaps a slight emphasis in a part of the treble region that is not balanced. This adds a small bit of extra information, or more generally extends the sound in both pre and post. Whereas the original pluck of a guitar was only a small duration, this extra adds just a little more before (attack) and after (decay) for each note. And this additional sound I do not hear on any other DAC.
  
 My preference is still to listen to the internal DAC, for convenience primarily. But also, I have other amplifiers I'd rather listen to - if I'm going to use a DAC costing $700 - $2100, I'd rather use another amplifier that does something special to the sound. That's just my personal take. With the Deckard, I'd much prefer to use it as a USB DAC/AMP.


----------



## pmronline

daeder said:


> My Deckard works fine with Windows 10. No problem whatsoever.


 
 Cool, good to know this.  Thanks.  
  
 On another note, those that drive the Deckard from their Macbook, I wanted to see what "sample rate" some of you are having under you "Audio Midi Setup" settings.  As I understand, Deckard DAC accepts all sample rates from 44.1kHz through 384kHz at bit depths of 16- through 32-bit.  
  
I played by adjusting the sample rates from 44.1KHz upwards at 32 bit and the sound quality seems to improve.  Wanted to get feedback from others on this.


----------



## Steven Stone1

pmronline said:


> Thanks.  I found the workaround (refer 3rd para) in this article - http://audiophilereview.com/cd-dac-digital/apple-messes-up-usb-30-audio-big-time.html
> 
> I have a question - What is the best gain setting in Deckard for HE400i?  Any suggestions?
> 
> I was talking to Audeze support team and understood that Deckard may not work with Win 10?  The drivers work good with Win 7 but not with Win 10.  Is this true?  Any experiences?


 

 Youmight want to check my follow-up article - http://audiophilereview.com/audiophile-news/apple-support-makes-my-day.html
  
 If you've been an Apple user for a while you may have old Kext and Firewire drivers that are conflicting with El Cap's ability to see your DAC.


----------



## pmronline

steven stone1 said:


> Youmight want to check my follow-up article - http://audiophilereview.com/audiophile-news/apple-support-makes-my-day.html
> 
> If you've been an Apple user for a while you may have old Kext and Firewire drivers that are conflicting with El Cap's ability to see your DAC.


 
 Thank you for the useful articles.  Do you remember those kext files that the apple technician deleted?  
  
 Reached out to Apple chat support, they denied providing support for this specific problem


----------



## pmronline

How does deckard pair with i) HD650, ii) T50RP MK3 and iii) DT880 600 ohms? Any comments?


----------



## Steven Stone1

I don't remember most of the files, but we started with the oldest. Also Firewire drivers and dedicated audio drivers from DACs long gone were deleted.


----------



## Tenzo

I'm really considering upgrading from my odac+o2 amp combo to the deckard. I think what gets my attention is that the deckard isnt a reference amp which is what i prefer. I like a warmer punchier sound. LCD-X are my main cans.
  
 any thoughts or other recommendation?


----------



## GU1DO

tenzo said:


> I'm really considering upgrading from my odac+o2 amp combo to the deckard. I think what gets my attention is that the deckard isnt a reference amp which is what i prefer. I like a warmer punchier sound. LCD-X are my main cans.
> 
> any thoughts or other recommendation?


 
 same as my upgrade with LCD-X .. i had before a (JDC Labs The Element) which is the updated version of odac+o2
  
 And i got the Deckard , which is much much clear and have more details ..
 you will be very happy ...
  
 your next move .. get a WyWires Red cable and you will have sound orgasm for  sure


----------



## Jonfairway

I can't see anyone upgrading from an entry level amplifier to the Deckard being disapointed in it... The sound quality it can reproduce is amongst the best at its price level, it will drive anything well, it looks cool, well built, and it pairs with many heaphones with its natural balance. its maybe not the best there is, but its sure damn close !


----------



## WilCox

jonfairway said:


> I can't see anyone upgrading from an entry level amplifier to the Deckard being disapointed in it... The sound quality it can reproduce is amongst the best at its price level, it will drive anything well, it looks cool, well built, and it pairs with many heaphones with its natural balance. its maybe not the best there is, but its sure damn close !


 
  
 I agree.  I just sold my Bryston BDA-2 and BHA-1 which was displaced by the Deckard.  Was the Bryston combo better than the Deckard?  Sure. At $4K for the pair, it better be, but truth be told, it was not significantly better in my opinion.  The point of diminishing returns is something that everyone will have a different take on.


----------



## VlahdiVahstard

Hello all, long time reader but first time to post.  
  
 I currently have the Deckard on burn-in but also contemplating on the other.  I have a Grado RS1i hooked up to my PC with a Sound Blaster X-Fi and using Foobar2000 with 24bit flac files.  Hooked up the the Deckard to my PC running Windows 7 64bit and impressed with the huge difference in sound quality.  Soundstage was incredible, warmth and smoother highs.  Was amazing and enjoying my music files all over again.  
 Also ordered the TEAC UD-301 but is still in shipment process and only have a few days left with the Deckard. How do you think this compares to the TEAC UD-301 in sound quality?  Also have a couple of IEM's that aren't up to par with what you guys have, maybe one day I can finally afford them (hehehe).  Can anyone please chime in on this?
  
 Thank you in advance and more power to all.


----------



## XSAMURAI

vlahdivahstard said:


> Hello all, long time reader but first time to post.
> 
> I currently have the Deckard on burn-in but also contemplating on the other.  I have a Grado RS1i hooked up to my PC with a Sound Blaster X-Fi and using Foobar2000 with 24bit flac files.  Hooked up the the Deckard to my PC running Windows 7 64bit and impressed with the huge difference in sound quality.  Soundstage was incredible, warmth and smoother highs.  Was amazing and enjoying my music files all over again.
> Also ordered the TEAC UD-301 but is still in shipment process and only have a few days left with the Deckard. How do you think this compares to the TEAC UD-301 in sound quality?  Also have a couple of IEM's that aren't up to par with what you guys have, maybe one day I can finally afford them (hehehe).  Can anyone please chime in on this?
> ...


 
 hi , i havent tried deckard , but almost 2 week i'm using UD-301 in one word it is amazing device , i only use dac section pair with my amps , it is refrence dac , you get neutral flat sound and smooth across the spectrum , very details , amp section dosen't have much power to drive hungry headphones , but very nice sounding with 2 opamp muses 8920 which is replacable , sometimes i use device direct with headphones such as , HD700 , HD800 , HD800S , and work perfect , and i'm impressed becouse i never expected such details sound quality direct from device and before buying i didnt look to this device as dac / amp , i bought this only to use stand alone balanced dac , but now using direct without other amp ,  and i tried HE560 on the max volume you'll get normal loudness not enough so for the planar magnet headphone better to have alternative amp
  
 Teac UD-301 is really underrated device by head-fi people , for this price i can't think about something else , highly recommended


----------



## VlahdiVahstard

xsamurai said:


> hi , i havent tried deckard , but almost 2 week i'm using UD-301 in one word it is amazing device , i only use dac section pair with my amps , it is refrence dac , you get neutral flat sound and smooth across the spectrum , very details , amp section dosen't have much power to drive hungry headphones , but very nice sounding with 2 opamp muses 8920 which is replacable , sometimes i use device direct with headphones such as , HD700 , HD800 , HD800S , and work perfect , and i'm impressed becouse i never expected such details sound quality direct from device and before buying i didnt look to this device as dac / amp , i bought this only to use stand alone balanced dac , but now using direct without other amp ,  and i tried HE560 on the max volume you'll get normal loudness not enough so for the planar magnet headphone better to have alternative amp
> 
> Teac UD-301 is really underrated device by head-fi people , for this price i can't think about something else , highly recommended


 
 Thank you.


----------



## Smazz

freitz said:


> I am really looking for someone who compared the Wa7+Wa7tp vs the Deckard.


 
  
  


vigrith said:


> Apologies for the mini-bump but I'm extremely curious regarding this comparison as well - obviously it may be pretty hard to get a concrete answer seeing as woo tubes tend to sound very distinctive but I'd love to hear general thoughts of people who have heard/owned both of those.


 

 Just got the 2nd generation Wa7+Wa7tp yesterday, I will post impressions as soon as I can. Have been using the Deckard with my Ether Cs, rented LCD-3, LCD-X and Sennheisers HD 800 for about 2 weeks. I have also been using it with my LCD-XC for almost a month. Had a short listen last night, but I was pretty exhausted from work and couldn't concentrate on my poor attempt at an A/B comparison.


----------



## Pharmaboy

I read this entire string last week, but can't recall if my question was answered anywhere in it...sorry if I'm covering old ground here. Has anyone compared the Audeze Deckard (used as both HP amp AND preamp) to the Burson Soloist (not the SL, but the full function version)?
  
 I ask because I have a Burson, which I used both as HP amp and preamp. It's easily the most expensive and "biggest name" piece of gear I have in the desktop system, but IMO it has some issues (overly bright; not enough steps on the stepped volume pot) that offset its amazing bass qualities.
  
 The Audeze interests me because it is praised as a powerful, slightly warm HP amp (exactly what I would prefer) that can also be used as a pre-amp (again, perfect for me). So I'm looking for details on how it really compares to the Burson, in terms of sound quality.
  
 Thanks in  advance to anyone who can chime in here.


----------



## sheldaze

smazz said:


> Just got the 2nd generation Wa7+Wa7tp yesterday, I will post impressions as soon as I can. Have been using the Deckard with my Ether Cs, rented LCD-3, LCD-X and Sennheisers HD 800 for about 2 weeks. I have also been using it with my LCD-XC for almost a month. Had a short listen last night, but I was pretty exhausted from work and couldn't concentrate on my poor attempt at an A/B comparison.


----------



## acia

how does it compare with mojo?


----------



## freitz

acia said:


> how does it compare with mojo?


 
 I use the mojo for travel but prefer the Deckard for home use. Mojo has more character and the better DAC I dare say. However Deckard IMO is a better combo dac amp.


----------



## Jprod

How is the deckard as just a headphone amp alone or am I better off going another route? I currently have the el8 and mass drop fostex purplehearts for now. As I am new to this hobby who knows what headphones I will have later.


----------



## Pharmaboy

What amp are you currently using? I've heard the EL-8's are relatively easy to drive. And until recently, I owned the TH-X00 mahoganies and know how easy they are to drive (but they do well with a high qualityk not overly bright SS amp). .Point being that your current 'phones may not be tough to drive, but future ones may well be.
  
 I read every review I could find for the Audeze Deckard (which still interests me a lot), and it was routinely described as a strong, sllightly warm SS headphone amp. If I'm not mistaken, there's a thread on Head-Fi.org in which various members experienced w/this unit speculate that the HP amp section outclasses the built-in DAC. That hardly disqualifies it for me...I have an end-game DAC & don't need it for that, but the HP amp + preamp capability could really be useful to me.
  
 So IMO, the real questions you should consider here are:
  
 1 - Is the HP amp section of the Audeze Deckard an improvement over whatever you're currently using?
 2 - And could its preamp capability be of any use to you (ie, use the volume-controlled RCA outputs to drive powered speakers or something equivalent)?


----------



## Jprod

Thanks for the reply. I don't have a headphone amp in that area of my house. I have a marantz tt15s1 into a Graham slee accession amp that has dual outputs. One output goes into the parasound p5/a21 amp that powers my ascend acoustics Sierra towers. The other output will go to a dedicated headphone amp for night listening when I cannot listen to my towers 
In my home office I have a gen 1 wa7 /wa7tp


----------



## Pharmaboy

OK--situation is clearer. So in that part of the house, you could use a dedicated HP amp, now or later; it could be the Audeze Deckard (used strictly as an amp), or something else. No idea of your budget or space constraints, if any. Clearly you like tube amps, but maybe not in that part of the house. Then there's the usual SE vs balanced concern (a future concern).
  
 If you're looking at the Deckard, you're thinking SS, at least for the moment. Staying with that thought, there are some excellent, compact units that sound good and don't cost a ton. I've heard great things about the Violectric line, pretty much top to bottom. My personal best/favorite HP amp is the Lake People G109A (available new for under $500). Because the tech-specs are partly in German, it's a hard to compare apples-to-apples w/the Deckard...but I suspect the units' amp sections are roughly comparable power-wise. 
  
 I love the expansive, slightly warm sound of the Lake People unit--it just sounded right from the 1st moment I powered it up. This is not a bright, fatiguing SS amp; it's flexible and self-effacing, allowing the headphone's basic sound signature to be heard. Plus it has a high-quality stepped volume pot with plenty of steps.


----------



## harpo1

The dac in the Deckard is actually really good.  No it doesn't play DSD but other than that it's an extremely capably dac.  Overall the Deckard is a great value.  The overall sound is slightly on the warm side.


----------



## Jprod

Budget is 1500 or less. I believe in the law of diminishing returns as you go up the price ladder. I'm ok with 80-90% of performance for 50% percent less cost for example. I would like to stay away from overly bright sounding as I am sensitive to sibilance. I went with tubes in my office becuase of that perceived warmth and because every other piece of gear in my home is solid state. I have been eyeing the wa6 also for use with the turntable.


----------



## Pharmaboy

RE: "I would like to stay away from overly bright sounding as I am sensitive to sibilance." This has proven rather difficult in selecting a quality headphone amp, just as it was years ago in selecting audiophile speakers, preamps, amps, etc. I've found that many people value brightness in audio equipment. They consistently use certain words & phrases to describe the qualities they value ("accuracy," "faithful to sources," a component that "doesn't editorialize," etc).
  
 This seems to boil down to some listeners valuing audio reproduction that emphasizes the midrange on up, whereas I value audio reproduced as I hear it in the unamplified concert hall--wide, nuanced midrange; plenty of lower mids/upper bass; treble filled with natural detail & decay (ie, bows on strings of violin; subtle overtone structures) yet not sibilant or peaky; bass that can be felt in the chest.
  
 These divergent views of ideal audio reproduction  extend to headphones, where certain cans with great capabilities in the treble (ie, Sennheiser 800) are highly prized by some, but avoided by others.
  
 I've learned the hard way to read "between the lines" in formal or informal reviews of headphone amps & headphones, since I've purchased at least 1 pricey example of each that proved very bright, despite others failing to describe them as such. Of course, this is strictly my problem--no one else's. I have to be careful, because when I purchase headphones or a HP amp whose top end hurts my ears, I have to sell it (possibly at a loss) and move on.


----------



## wordfool

Reviving this thread to further explore the similarities between the Matrix M-Stage HPA-3U and the Deckard -- or more precisely the newer M-Stage HPA-3U+ that has an upgraded DAC (XMOS/Cirrus CS4398). I'm curious if anyone has been able to listen to both side by side.


----------



## Jonfairway

Would love to help there but alas I am not familiar with the Matrix amplifier....  have however been enjoying the quality of the Deckard now for months and have not felt the need to upgrade which is a first for me !!!
  
 I am guessing they are both similar due to the info on the net about both builds ...  and therefore good value...   
  
 I do know it blows away my Beyer A1 in terms of dynamics and detail, can drive any headphone I have... and makes a great partner to the LCD 3 and LCD 2...    gets a little hot when its been on all day... but thats Class A  for you....  Crisp, Fast, Detailed, Natural...  an all round winner... not into spending £2000 for a small improvement...  and it makes a damn good pre amp too when connected to a decent power amplifier and some speakers


----------



## Terumo

I am looking into buying this amp, but there doesn't seem to be allot of impressions paired with an hd650. And there aren't really alternatives in my country.
 Would this amp make a good pairing? I am currently using a Marantz sr5009 and a micca origen+ with my 650's on pc.
 In dire need of an upgrade! Any feedback would be appreciated!


----------



## Jazz1

I'm wondering how the Deckard is going to compare to the Schiit Jotunheim (with DAC)?


----------



## raoultrifan

Hi, interested question, hope someone having access to boths DACs/combos will be able to reply.
  
 Meanwhile, having a look only at the specs and the internal circuitry, Jotunheim is way above the Deckard; it's in a totally different league because we're comparing here a fully balanced dual-DAC with a single-ended one. Jotunheim has also a fully balanced headmap and its also more powerful than the Deckard (though, in single ended usage is about on pair). Also, most of the reviews I've read about the Deckard stated that its internal amp is above the internal DAC, so if I would need to choose between the 2 equipments I would choose Schiit in no time, but I might be too subjective here.
  
 Hope someone able to really listen to both of these combos will get here and reply more objectively.
  
 Regards, 
 Raul.


----------



## Jazz1

raoultrifan said:


> Hi, interested question, hope someone having access to boths DACs/combos will be able to reply.
> 
> Meanwhile, having a look only at the specs and the internal circuitry, Jotunheim is way above the Deckard; it's in a totally different league because we're comparing here a fully balanced dual-DAC with a single-ended one. Jotunheim has also a fully balanced headmap and its also more powerful than the Deckard (though, in single ended usage is about on pair). Also, most of the reviews I've read about the Deckard stated that its internal amp is above the internal DAC, so if I would need to choose between the 2 equipments I would choose Schiit in no time, but I might be too subjective here.
> 
> ...


 

 Follow-up question. Would the Deckard (I wonder) be anymore magic with my LCD2's over the Jot?


----------



## TWerk

I am so impressed with the low end of the Deckard. Dang, this this just has total tight control over the bass.
  
 Very defined, tight, hard hitting and impactful and punchy on the right headphones.
  
 I've never heard my Ultrasone Pro 900's sound better. My DT1770's do great too.
  
 This is probably why people say the TH900's pair so well with this amp, it's just a great amp in the bass department.


----------



## Pharmaboy

Nice! "It's all about the bass" (after all)
  
 How does the Audeze sound in the upper midrange & treble?


----------



## Dkoukou

pharmaboy said:


> Nice! "It's all about the bass" (after all)
> 
> How does the Audeze sound in the upper midrange & treble?


 

 Non-fatiguing. Smooth yet clear, no sibilance at all. Complements the LCD series sound signature very well.


----------



## ScubadudeSA

Quoting myself from another forum ... seems to fit in here quite nicely ...
  
  
 After previously posting some less than flattering comments about the Audeze Deckard on this and other forums I picked up a lightly used unit. I have now spent some serious time with this DAC/amp and am a changed man. This is a $700 amp that gives my usual $3500 SPL / Wadia rig a very good run. Not better I would say but certainly not significantly worse. Even if the Deckard is a molested Matrix M-Stage under that sleek BMW Designworks styled exterior, I now rate this as one of the best values in head-fi .... authority and finesse, clarity and warmth, and a wonderfully involving presentation of the sound stage. Mega bang for buck here!
  
 OK, so I did a bit of reading on the similarities (and more importantly differences) between the Deckard and the Matrix M-Stage HPA-3U. Pics of the innards of the two amps can be found here ... http://www.head-fi.org/t/749486/audeze-deckard-class-a-amp-usb-dac/120#post_11872066 and http://www.head-fi.org/products/matrix-m-stage/reviews/13475

 Clearly a lot of shared design and components here, but not identical. In all cases Deckard first, M-Stage second:

 - DAC Chip: TI Burr Brown PCM5102A vs TI DSD1793
 - DAC Resolution: 32/384 (no DSD) vs 24/192 and DSD64
 - Power Supply: Uprated vs standard
 - Component Mounting: Through-board vs surface mount
 - Component Selection: Different output stage caps
 - Buffer Stage: Discreet "diamond buffer" vs integrated circuit
 - Exterior Industrial Design: BMW Designworks vs Chinese utilitarian
 - Output Impedance: 3 ohm vs 0.4 ohm
 - Power Output: 4W at 20 ohms, 795mW at 33ohms, 465mW at 300ohms, 235mW at 600ohms vs 2800mW at 33ohms / 420mW at 300ohms / 210mW at 600ohms at THD+N=0.01%
 - Mass: 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs vs 1.7 kg / 3.75 lbs
 - Price: US$699 vs US$419

 So definately not identical twins these! I have not heard the M-Stage but after spending some quality time with the Deckard I am quite smitten!


----------



## TWerk

It sure is a great amp, and amp + dac combo unit to use as a USB all-in-one solution. So sexy too!


----------



## Pharmaboy

scubadudesa said:


> Quoting myself from another forum ... seems to fit in here quite nicely ...
> 
> 
> After previously posting some less than flattering comments about the Audeze Deckard on this and other forums I picked up a lightly used unit. I have now spent some serious time with this DAC/amp and am a changed man. This is a $700 amp that gives my usual $3500 SPL / Wadia rig a very good run. Not better I would say but certainly not significantly worse. Even if the Deckard is a molested Matrix M-Stage under that sleek BMW Designworks styled exterior, I now rate this as one of the best values in head-fi .... authority and finesse, clarity and warmth, and a wonderfully involving presentation of the sound stage. Mega bang for buck here!
> ...


 
  
 "Even if the Deckard is a molested Matrix M-Stage under that sleek BMW Designworks styled exterior, I now rate this as one of the best values in head-fi .... authority and finesse, clarity and warmth, and a wonderfully involving presentation of the sound stage. Mega bang for buck here!"
  
 Molested Matrix M-Stage! Awesome word-smithing there.
  
 Well, I'm fascinated by this post. I've been jonesing over the Audeze (on & off) for months, and this really ups the ante (this + the previous post about great bass w/the Audeze--I'm a total bass 'ho).
  
 "clarity and warmth" being a truly rare combination, I'm really interested.
  
 I flat-out love the original Matrix M-Stage HPA-1, so much so that I bought 2, 1 for me, 1 for my brother. Listening to it right now. It's a warm, lush, just-relax-and-listen HP amp & preamp (terrific pre-amp). By contrast, the HPA-3U has been described as the HPA-1 shorn of the warmth & romance: very accurate, flat, even clinical (in other words, count me).
  
 So I'm even more interested in the way people describe the Audeze, in light of its evident lineage as a re-badged (or reimagined) HPA-3U. Clearly, more than just that sexy exterior has been changed.
  
 I really have too many headphone amps (and a couple HP amp/preamps) already. But I'm interested in this one, all the same.


----------



## TWerk

Anyone use this with an HD650? I'm curious for the HD6XX drop coming up.


----------



## harpo1

twerk said:


> Anyone use this with an HD650? I'm curious for the HD6XX drop coming up.


 
 Drives them with no problem with plenty of head-room left to spare.  Sound great too!


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## Dkoukou

Just allow the Deckard at least 30 minutes of warm-up before any listening session. 
It definitely improves sonically when the upper lid gets warm to the touch.


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## DanDorn

The best review I could give the Deckard (for a DAC/amp in its price range) is this:
  
 I purchased the Deckard to replace my Centrance Dacmini CX mac desktop unit, which I'd had in place for years. I'd always thought it was pretty good. Then I bought the Deckard because, well, I just needed something new -- a new toy, which Head-Fi-ers can relate to. I was really impressed with the Deckard, thinking, "wow, this is a great improvement." I'd put the Centrance away, thinking I'd sell it on ebay eventually.
  
 Then, the other day I decided as an experiment to switch back to the Centrance to do a comparison to the Deckard (and mInd you, the Centrance is about 100 bucks more expensive than the Deckard). WOW. By comparison, the Centrance was a dud to me. I found the midrange to be recessed and lifeless, the soundstage small, and the highs anemic. The Deckar bests it on all counts. No where near as flat-out brilliant as the Chord Hugo when I hook it up to my Mac, but a great sound at its price range.


----------



## Scott Branham

For Deckard fans/owners, how would the Denon d5000 pair? I will have and LCD-2, DT770 Pro, HE-400s, and d5000 and would like a an amp that can make them all sing to potential.


----------



## Hifi59

scott branham said:


> For Deckard fans/owners, how would the Denon d5000 pair? I will have and LCD-2, DT770 Pro, HE-400s, and d5000 and would like a an amp that can make them all sing to potential.




I have heard all LCDs,fostex th-900 ( similar signature to d-5000) and Hifiman with the Deckard and they all sound great! It also drives my rather inefficient LCD-4 headphones nicely. A lot of bang for the buck with this amp.


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## TWerk

Also, the lower the impedance, the more power (watts) the amp can provide.
  
 It does like 4 watts into 20 ohms, so those lower impedance Denon and Fostex cans should have ear deafening levels of volume with the Deckard.


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## TWerk

hifi59 said:


> I have heard all LCDs,fostex th-900 ( similar signature to d-5000) and Hifiman with the Deckard and they all sound great! It also drives my rather inefficient LCD-4 headphones nicely. A lot of bang for the buck with this amp.


 
  
 I wish I had my Deckard when I owned the TH900. Many seem to say it is a great match.


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## Scott Branham

hifi59 said:


> I have heard all LCDs,fostex th-900 ( similar signature to d-5000) and Hifiman with the Deckard and they all sound great! It also drives my rather inefficient LCD-4 headphones nicely. A lot of bang for the buck with this amp.


 

 ​Thanks for giving you opinion on those Hifi59. Glad to know as I decided to take the plunge for the Deckard. Maybe in a few days I will get to experience it for myself!


----------



## ironpeg

Just picked up Deckard. It drives LCD-3 pretty good on high gain.


----------



## pmronline

ironpeg said:


> Just picked up Deckard. It drives LCD-3 pretty good on high gain.


 
 My Deckard drives LCD-2F in low gain and pretty loud in medium gain.  Did not (want to) try high gain!


----------



## pmronline

rshuck said:


> It powers the LCD2.2s just fine, even on low gain. I think their literature kinda sells the amp short of its capability. The K1000 is actually too loud for me past about 2 O'Clock on the dial. I just bought this for my work rig, but it is really very good.


 
 BTW, what is the ideal gain setting for LCD-2Fs - low or medium?


----------



## ironpeg

I noticed hiss on high gain with LCD-3 on the right side but not with mid gain.


----------



## raoultrifan

Same hiss on both USB and RCA inputs?


----------



## ironpeg

raoultrifan said:


> Same hiss on both USB and RCA inputs?


 
 Haven't tried RCA yet. Still waiting for the cable.


----------



## raoultrifan

Basically, I was wondering if the hiss comes from the DAC or from the amplifier itself. We can probably see that if you switch to RCA input, without any cables connected.


----------



## rs0cal

pmronline said:


> BTW, what is the ideal gain setting for LCD-2Fs - low or medium?




Medium. Audeze recommends that gain for their headphones.


----------



## dkuster

Excuse me if this had already been asked -- I searched but couldn't find an answer:
  
 I understand that the deckard volume control does affect the RCA preamp outputs.  My question is, are these outputs muted when headphones are plugged into the front jack?
  
 I have powered desktop speakers next to my monitor that I would want to be off when listening to headphones...
  
 Thanks!


----------



## freitz

dkuster said:


> Excuse me if this had already been asked -- I searched but couldn't find an answer:
> 
> I understand that the deckard volume control does affect the RCA preamp outputs.  My question is, are these outputs muted when headphones are plugged into the front jack?
> 
> ...


 
 I use mine in this way, The speakers do not work when you have headphones plugged in. When you remove them they work.


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## dkuster

Thank you, kind sir!


----------



## WayTooCrazy

I just picked up a Deckard from eBay. The ad states minor scratches on the top. Due to the heat, has anyone put a vinyl sticker or anything on it to "spruce" it up? I was thinking a custom Carbon Fiber Vinyl sticker for the top with the Audeze logo... but don't want to cause the unit to over heat. Thoughts?


----------



## bildar

Put a great big Budweiser sticker on it


----------



## WayTooCrazy

bildar said:


> Put a great big Budweiser sticker on it



Lol.


----------



## loplop

waytoocrazy said:


> I just picked up a Deckard from eBay. The ad states minor scratches on the top. Due to the heat, has anyone put a vinyl sticker or anything on it to "spruce" it up? I was thinking a custom Carbon Fiber Vinyl sticker for the top with the Audeze logo... but don't want to cause the unit to over heat. Thoughts?


 
 The entire thing becomes a giant class-A heat sink in use, so if you leave it on for a long time, that sticker glue would get awfully liquid.  I doubt it would overheat, though, due to the aforementioned use of the case as a heat sink.
  
 FWIW, the heat is centered more towards the front than the back, so taking that into consideration you might find a copacetic position for the sticker.


----------



## loplop

I am one of the (probably many) who grabbed a Deckard in the Audeze BF sale.  I simply intended it to be a nice little addition to my office, where I (previously) just used my ZX2 straight into 'phones or an ifi iDSD if I needed more juice.  
  
 I'm finding it to be a really great amp, however, and worthy of a serious listening rig.  It's tonally on the warm side of neutral, and not quite as subterranean in the bass as some, but it sure is an enjoyable listen.  The midrange, in particular, strikes me as quite lucid yet not analytical at all, being silky and with some of the lilting touch that great tubes give you.
  
 The internal DAC is quite serviceable and responds well to various cables; haven't tried any decrapifier stuff yet, but if it responds to cables, it should respond there.  Even with an inexpensive AQ USB cable it sounds great straight out of a laptop.  No digititis.
  
 I wish it had DSD (from my work Windows machine) but that's really just my defective audiophile gene rearing it's ugly head.
  
 Not at all bad for a relatively inexpensive Class-A SS dac/amp.  I'm really enjoying it!


----------



## TWerk

It's a great amp! For the price plus the included DAC (which is quite good) you can't beat it.
  
 The amp has lots of power and sound great with planar headphones and dynamic ones as well.
  
 It has great control over the bass. My Pro900's never sounded better. With a bass emphasized can, there is some serious slam.
  
 Although you guys comment on the "warmish" sound I find it's got nice detailed and extended highs, it's not like a dark amp.
  
 My Nuforce HA-200 is deff warmer/darker, and in comparison the Deckard sounds neutral. Both nice depending on the HP.
  
 I think it is really at a point of serious diminishing returns. To improve upon the performance of something like a Deckard, you've really got to get spendy.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

That is the main reason I went with the Deckard vs the Oppo HA-1. I have yet to hear the Deckard DAC, as BestBuy didn't have it connected to anything, so I had to feed it from the DAC on my LG V20... but what I heard there was FANTASTIC. I just hope I enjoy it even more with the built in DAC. I listened to the McIntosh HMA100, and while it sounded very nice, it took away some of the Warmth of the Deckard, but added power and clarity. I do think the MHA100 is a step-up, but at a large cost.


----------



## loplop

twerk said:


> Although you guys comment on the "warmish" sound I find it's got nice detailed and extended highs, it's not like a dark amp.
> 
> My Nuforce HA-200 is deff warmer/darker, and in comparison the Deckard sounds neutral. Both nice depending on the HP.
> 
> I think it is really at a point of serious diminishing returns. To improve upon the performance of something like a Deckard, you've really got to get spendy.


 
 You know, that's a good point.  Warm != Dark.  
  
 The Deckard isn't dark.  It's just on the tonally full/warm/glass half full side of the spectra.  It's a pleasing warmth, in some ways akin to classic tube sound.
  
 I suspect the Deckard got off to a bad start when it was revealed to be a Chinese amp with some changes...  and so never really achieved "buy this!" status.  Folks (myself included) mostly like to see a bespoke design.  But there was definitely care and listening put into the configuration, and the proof is in the listening and it does sound good.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

Finally here... now to queue up a few tracks... and enjoy.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

Is anyone else using their Deckard as a Pre-Amp to their 2.1 system?  Do you leave the Deckard on all the time? When I had my Schiit stack, I never turned off the DAC, as it fed into a SYS to be split to the Vali 2 and my AudioEngine A2+ setup. I'm just wondering if I would do any harm to the Deckard if I leave it on for most of the day (just turning it off when I go to bed)?


----------



## UNOE

It's Class A so you will be using all the power at idle probably around 25 watts idle.


----------



## TWerk

Which technically is very little no? I mean, a lightbulb is like 40-60 watts, so it's less power than one lightbulb.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

I'm more concerned about heat and longevity of the amp.
  
 Well, I turned off the Deckard and used the USB Dac of the AudioEngine A2+ to power the 2.1 system. I don't understand how they think that the stock sound signature is good. They really need to re-configure them with a better x-over or at least set them up with a "sub" out that changes the x-over points. It sounds so bloated (the bass) without my Active X-over in play. Grrrrr
  
 So, I was looking around at Heatsinks... and I came across this...
 http://www.heatsinkusa.com/5-375-wide-extruded-aluminum-heatsink/  (5.375"x9.75" will pretty much cover the entire top plate of the Deckard).
 https://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-Thermal-Pad-1-5-Conductivity/dp/B00UYTTXSM/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1482523081&sr=8-7&keywords=thermal%2Btape&th=1  (5.7" square thermal pad...to adhere the Heatsink).
  
 That should make for a reversible mod that will lower temps on the Deckard (I'd reckon).


----------



## Aeromarine

jazz1 said:


> I'm wondering how the Deckard is going to compare to the Schiit Jotunheim (with DAC)?




I am waiting on someone can give an answer on that too... anyone?!


----------



## Jazz1

aeromarine said:


> I am waiting on someone can give an answer on that too... anyone?!


 

 Well as the OP I had the Deckard in my hands, but did not try it out because I didn't want any problems returning it (Audeze took it back with no hassle). Instead I got the Jotunheim and have been very happy with it driving my Audeze LCD2's. I also use it with a Massdrop Foster Purple which I like too. To be honest about it I don't remember what changed my mind on the Deckard vs. the Jot. It was probably the publicity it was getting as a new headphone amp/DAC. I hope someone will do a comparison.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

I'm considering picking up the Jot next month if no one else here does. I'm kind of curious, and at the price i was able to get the Deckard, i should be able to turn it around without losing money (if the Jot is indeed better).


----------



## DomieMic65

Has anyone listened the Deckard with the Sines?
 Impresions?
 I want an amp/dac that pairs well with the HD 600 along with the Sines!
  Thnx


----------



## loplop

I've been really enjoying my Deckard.  I'm using it in my office rig, where the goal is the ability to listen for hours on end while accomplishing and enhancing my work.  For that role, the Deckard is really a home run:
 1. It doesn't seem picky about what I feed it. It always is enjoyable.
 2. The somewhat warm, full sound is enjoyable at low volumes for many hours of good listening.
 3. Even though it's not the most articulate or resolving DAC section, it will still surprise you with it's organic manner of presenting texture and rich timbre.
 4. I find myself enjoying music and not sound.  Very important to me.
  
 On the negative front, it does have a detectable sonic signature which would prevent it from being the last amp you'll buy, if you are cursed with the audiophile addiction (as am I).  It can't do DSD which annoys me, as I have some nice DSD.  IMO it paired poorly with my LCD3's, IMO.  The resulting sound was too laid back and boring.  It mates well with the LCD2 (my main work headphone) and I found a surprisingly good pairing in the Beyerdynamic T1v2--I need to investigate the latter further, but it blew my mind with a few days listening last week.  That headphone can soar to sonic peaks like no other--but only about 10% of the time, the other 90% being essentially unlistenable for any duration 
  
 The Deckard is unfussy, has a dead-simple user interface, and simply gets on with it's job, which is giving you music.  An absolute steal at the BF <$400 sale.  To be honest, I'd buy it at full MSRP for the role above, knowing what I know now.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

I didn't like the Deckard originally, but it could have been the music, the listening area, or a numerous amount of other things. When I went back to BB Magnolia with my BF LCD-2f in tow. It bowled me over. It was such a different experience. Now, I did feed it with my LG V20 and it sounded just Awesome! I'm currently using the internal DAC on the Deckard and I still find it fantastic. I think the LG V20 makes the Deckard sound more like a "tube amp" than the internal DAC. Though it doesn't matter, I agree with @loplop, I'd probably pay retail for this amp if I knew how well it paired with the LCD-2f. I'm actually thinking of testing out the SMSL SAP-9 from the Pre-out on the Deckard to see how it sounds. Might be a cheaper intro to balanced headphone than getting a Jot anyway.


----------



## TWerk

Totally agree. Fantastic amp, sounds amazing, looks great. Perfect for listening and enjoying music. I'd rather it lean on the warm side of neutral than it be fatiguing.

Great comments above. It really is a versatile unit which just offers great sound.


----------



## Mosauwer

Anyone here is selling Deckard in mint condition?


----------



## thyname

jazz1 said:


> Well as the OP I had the Deckard in my hands, but did not try it out because I didn't want any problems returning it (Audeze took it back with no hassle). Instead I got the Jotunheim and have been very happy with it driving my Audeze LCD2's. I also use it with a Massdrop Foster Purple which I like too. To be honest about it I don't remember what changed my mind on the Deckard vs. the Jot. It was probably the publicity it was getting as a new headphone amp/DAC. I hope someone will do a comparison.




I am interested in a comparison on these too. I can get a Deckard for $569. Schiit is $499, but seems more versatile, including balanced outputs / inputs/ headphones jack


----------



## ScubadudeSA

thyname said:


> I am interested in a comparison on these too. I can get a Deckard for $569. Schiit is $499, but seems more versatile, including balanced outputs / inputs/ headphones jack


 

 Incredible value both.  Listen to both with your cans and your music.  Unless you need balanced in which case yuo got your Schiit booked.


----------



## geoffalter11

I couldn't agree more. I have this amp/dac and it easily drives every headphone I have. It drives my ZMF Omnis flawlessly. I can drive my HD600's on medium gain at like 11:00. I actually love the Utilitarian look, and couldn't be happier with the Deckard. It is clean, smooth, neutral and augments every headphone and music file I throw at it. For the price, it is a killer. I urge you all to try it before determining its validity. I have never seen a bad review, not even a mediocre one. From my experience, it is exactly what I wanted and needed for my current set up and headphone stable.


----------



## geoffalter11

Does anyone know how the Deckard compares to a Chord Hugo, Wells Audio Milo or Enigma, and the Pass Labs HPA-1?  I know these amps are significantly more expensive, but from my experience in owning a Deckard and from everything I have read, it punches way above it's price class.  I am interested in going upstream and want to know what to expect.  I am looking to either pair the Well Audio (either the milo or enigma), or the Pass Labs HPA-1 with a Chord 2Qute or the Hugo.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

thyname said:


> I am interested in a comparison on these too. I can get a Deckard for $569. Schiit is $499, but seems more versatile, including balanced outputs / inputs/ headphones jack


 
 If I understand it. The Jot is basically a Modi2U (dual of course) connected to a much more powerful Magni2. It might sound pretty good. I personally like the sound of the Deckard better than when I had my Schiit stack (Modi2U & Vali 2 w/E88CC BEL tube upgrade). The single ended output of the Deckard is is a little different than that of the Jot. 

  Jot:                                                                                              Deckard:
Single-Ended Headphone Output:
 Maximum Power, 16 ohms: 2500mW RMS per channel                      20ohms (Sine, EL-8, LCD-X/C): 81/20= 4W
Maximum Power, 32 ohms: 1500mW RMS per channel                      70ohms (LCD-2): 1.15W
Maximum Power, 50 ohms: 800mW RMS per channel                        110ohms (LCD-3): 740mW
Maximum Power, 300 ohms: 350mW RMS per channel                      200ohms (LCD-4): 400mW                
 Maximum Power, 600 ohms: 175mW RMS per channel                      300ohms: 270mW
 THD: <0.001%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 1V RMS                                          600ohms: 135mW
                                                                                                      THD+N:  0.00045% at 1kHz 2VRMS (A-Weighted) (5Hz-100KHz)
  
Balanced though, the Jot beats the Deckard upside the head for power ratings, SE...they are somewhat comparable. Though, look at the THD on the Deckard (and it sounds SWEET! and not Dry like my Modi2U).


----------



## dallasmarlow

I'm very impressed with the deckard performance/sound and have been using it with lcd-x, elear and p9 headphones, but I was very disappointed to see that it's made in china. I had assumed that it was made in the USA as many of audeze's products are, I probably would have bought the jotunheim if I had known this beforehand.
  
 I've never heard the jotunheim, but I've heard a lot of good things about it and it appears to be more compact. The deckard sounds great and the build quality is excellent, but I would have happily paid more for an american made version.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

dallasmarlow said:


> I'm very impressed with the deckard performance/sound and have been using it with lcd-x, elear and p9 headphones, but I was very disappointed to see that it's made in china. I had assumed that it was made in the USA as many of audeze's products are, I probably would have bought the jotunheim if I had known this beforehand.
> 
> I've never heard the jotunheim, but I've heard a lot of good things about it and it appears to be more compact. The deckard sounds great and the build quality is excellent, but I would have happily paid more for an american made version.


 
 I much felt the same way, but no denying the build and sound quality. I originally wanted to do an all Amercian audio setup, but it doesn't look like that would be possible without serious cash outlay, so I'm happy to go with sound quality and robust build quality (regardless of where it is built), as long as I can get it serviced if needed.


----------



## loplop

I've decided to sell along my Deckard, I've decided it (along with my LCD2's) is a bit too over-the-top for my particular office environment    I really thought long and hard about using it in my secondary/bedroom system at home, but decided to keep my micro-ifi stack there as it offers some portability when I need it.
  
 I sure enjoyed it, though.  I'd buy it again, knowing what I know now.  I really don't think you can beat the sound for the cost--even at full retail.
  
 In any case, mine's on the FS forum if anyone needs a nice one!


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

Just got the tip from someone on the Utopia/Elear thread that the Elear has good synergy with the Deckard. Had to give it a shot! This amp gets over looked for some reason and I can say that I have done the same. BUT it is very capable... so far I have listened to the Elear and Z1R. Next I'll try out the range of LCD's to see what has best synergy.


----------



## TWerk

Hook up an HE-500 to it, perfect beautiful sound.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

twerk said:


> Hook up an HE-500 to it, perfect sound.


 
 Man if we carried Hifiman I would try er out. Going to go to hd800 next so I can get a  better sense of what the amp by its self sounds like. Run through some of my test tracks. Then move onto the LCD's. Don't laugh at me but I just listened to Beyonce's "Don't hurt your self" on the Elear and it was really good ha


----------



## TWerk

I tried an Elear and while it sounded good on the Deckard, it wasn't anything that blew me away.
  
 The HE-500 on the other hand....


----------



## WayTooCrazy

mtmecraig said:


> Man if we carried Hifiman I would try er out. Going to go to hd800 next so I can get a  better sense of what the amp by its self sounds like. Run through some of my test tracks. Then move onto the LCD's. Don't laugh at me but I just listened to Beyonce's "Don't hurt your self" on the Elear and it was really good ha


 
 Sorry... I'm laughing... LOL!  I'd be interested in what your take is with the LCD line. I love the LCD-2F with it already, and someone posted an article with Bob Katz who likes it with the LCD-4.


----------



## TWerk

I think probably the design was for made to power planars, which is why it sounds so great with the Hifiman.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

waytoocrazy said:


> Sorry... I'm laughing... LOL!  I'd be interested in what your take is with the LCD line. I love the LCD-2F with it already, and someone posted an article with Bob Katz who likes it with the LCD-4.


 
 I think the whole Bob Katz review on Utopia thread is probably what triggered that person to say their thoughts about the Deckard and Elear. Ill do probably LCD 3 with it just because I have the most head time with that.  
  
 In regards to that Beyonce track, let me just say that I don't want that guilty pleasure to be a reflection of my auditory credibility!


----------



## loplop

mtmecraig said:


> I think the whole Bob Katz review on Utopia thread is probably what triggered that person to say their thoughts about the Deckard and Elear. Ill do probably LCD 3 with it just because I have the most head time with that.
> 
> In regards to that Beyonce track, let me just say that I don't want that guilty pleasure to be a reflection of my auditory credibility!


 

 I personally didn't like the LCD3/Deckard matchup--too laid back for my tastes.  The Deckard worked best with the LCD2 for me, and actually sounded fantastic with the Beyer T1v2 (when that headphone wasn't stabbing me in the brain with its elevated treble).  I only tried LCDX very ,very briefly with the Deckard, that might have been one to explore more thoroughly.
  
 Regardless, I'm interested in your thoughts of the LCD3/Deckard combo (and others!)


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

So I was doing my A/B and I had a newly acquainted friend/customer come in and he told me to listen to "Eve of Destruction" by Barry Maguire. Never heard it before but excellent track lyrically. Sound quality was so so ha. Anyways we just kept going back and forth with tracks so I didn't get to critically listen to the Deckard that long. I am not complaining since sharing music with others is more important in the moment.
  
 (These are the notes I took before he sat down with me) I listened to "My book of regrets" by Steven Wilson 
  
 LCD 2- set it to high gain and about 10:30 on the volume pot, really good PRAT I feel. 
  
 LCD 3- I was expecting the same PRAT that I got from the LCD 2 but instead I got what sounded like slightly  wider sound staging and the tone seemed to be more mellow in comparison. It was not bad as much as different. Once my brain adjusted to the sound I then was able to focus more on the increased detail of the sound. If LCD 2 is a couple rows back, then i moved forward a couple seats forward. But tonally it wasn't the same. 
  
 I am listening to the LCD 2  and LCD 3 now with "Romantic Warrior" by Return to Forever (my favorite test track right now!) The LCD 3 has more speed then the LCD 2 but its not drastic. Still the LCD 2 is tonally sharper then then the LCD 3. I can understand why @loplop hears them to be too mellow for him.
  
 Ill try to do some more comparisons when I can get back to the store. Want to do the LCD X with it.
  
 -Craig


----------



## alpovs

waytoocrazy said:


> THD+N:  0.00045% at 1kHz 2VRMS (A-Weighted) (5Hz-100KHz)
> Though, look at the THD on the Deckard (and it sounds SWEET! and not Dry like my Modi2U).


 
 The THD you listed is for Line Out. It is <0.1% for Headphone Out. Much higher than Jotunheim's <0.001%.


----------



## WayTooCrazy

alpovs said:


> The THD you listed is for Line Out. It is <0.1% for Headphone Out. Much higher than Jotunheim's <0.001%.


 
 You are correct.


----------



## loplop

@MTMECraig , that is a fair characterization of the sound, and what I felt with the Deckard/LCD3 combo. I do think many would like that sound a lot, but for me, it was too mellow.

All that said: you really need to spend some serious coin to get a drastically better sound than the Deckard. I could easily see it being endgame for many who just want to enjoy music..!


----------



## TWerk

I was buying and selling amps for a bit and all that madness stopped once I got my deckard.

Totally agree with it being at that perfect point when diminishing returns dramatically sets into place. I'm so glad to have discovered the deckard as I am confident it is an exceptional amp and will power nearly anything on the market adequately and sound excellent while doing it.


----------



## EarDrumExplode

Have had my deckard a little over a month now and have a set of 4 solid tech isoblack vibration pods a friend has given me I was wondering if any one has had expierance with these and could offer a good spot to put them. Meaning right on feet or place them directly to the bottom of the unit


----------



## h2rulz

I recently got the Deckard for my LCD2. I couldn't pass up a good deal, despite originally eyeing something from Audio-gd. Anyways, surprisingly, I find my self using the HD800 more than the LCD2 with the Deckard (using Bimby as DAC).
 
My reference amp is my Onkyo A9555 integrated amplifier for the LCD2. Unfortunately, my quest to find a dedicated headphone amp that matches the Onkyo is still on going (if only it wasn't so far away from my headphone setup). The Deckard does well in some aspects for the LCD2, but I just find the sound through the speaker amp much more open and clean with greater bass extension and soundstage.
 
However, pairing with the HD800 (sdr modded) was a pleasant surprise. The Deckard did a surprisingly good job at taming the highs of the HD800. My bias against pairing the HD800 with solid state amps was proven wrong with the Deckard. I still might prefer the more organic?/musical sounding Bottlehead Crack (speed ball), but the Deckard is no slouch nonetheless.


----------



## EarDrumExplode

I've had my deckard paired with the LCD-3's for a little over a month now with about 50 hours of use and am considering a USB cable upgrade. Any recemandations? I'm using a budget Pangea USB cable I've had for about 2 yrs. it's a good cable with 5% silver coating i feel like the cable is a step up from the one audeze supplied but am sure there is a better cable out there, Wether it's $20 to $200 I don't care. What are you guys using?


----------



## loplop

The Deckard reminds me of tubes, in a good way. Not surprised it pairs well with the HD800 @h2rulz 

I forget: which version of LCD2 do you have? I think it paired marvelously with LCD2F...

Two tweaks that are helpful: I liked the ifi iPurifier2 with the Deckard. I also liked feeding it via HQPlayer upsampled to avoid the internal upsampling. 

Good stuff, the Deckard!!


----------



## WayTooCrazy

eardrumexplode said:


> I've had my deckard paired with the LCD-3's for a little over a month now with about 50 hours of use and am considering a USB cable upgrade. Any recemandations? I'm using a budget Pangea USB cable I've had for about 2 yrs. it's a good cable with 5% silver coating i feel like the cable is a step up from the one audeze supplied but am sure there is a better cable out there, Wether it's $20 to $200 I don't care. What are you guys using?


 
 Schiit Pyst Cable.  Though, I have an AudioQuest Forest that I use with my Mojo every now and then.


----------



## Pharmaboy

eardrumexplode said:


> I've had my deckard paired with the LCD-3's for a little over a month now with about 50 hours of use and am considering a USB cable upgrade. Any recemandations? I'm using a budget Pangea USB cable I've had for about 2 yrs. it's a good cable with 5% silver coating i feel like the cable is a step up from the one audeze supplied but am sure there is a better cable out there, Wether it's $20 to $200 I don't care. What are you guys using?


 
  
 I've been following Head-Fi's Audio GD DAC-19 thread forever (I now own an Audio GD NOS 19). Several people I trust on that thread strongly recommend the Supra USB 2.0 cable (Swedish-made and rather inexpensive):
  
 http://www.ebay.com/itm/Supra-USB-2-0-for-audio-1-meter-3-28-WHAT-HI-FI-5-STAR-RATED-Made-In-Sweden/152312449181?_trksid=p2385738.c100677.m4598&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160908110712%26meid%3De5103d05409c4f899f0ba708411a853a%26pid%3D100677%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D19%26sd%3D152131344830
  
 I see glowing reviews for crazy/expensive USB cables ($800-$1,000) but that just seems insane. I'd rather buy an endgame headphone or amp than do that--especially because I also use a USB Regen + S/PDIF converter (Musical Fidelity V-Link 24/192). I haven't used any inputs on any of my DACs other than coax or toslink in over 10 yrs.


----------



## EarDrumExplode

The regan has awesome reviews, does it muffle the sound like the jitter bug does? I cant see spending $1000 on a USB cable either I worked my ass off to get the 3 and deckard and would rather just get another pair of headphones.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

eardrumexplode said:


> I've had my deckard paired with the LCD-3's for a little over a month now with about 50 hours of use and am considering a USB cable upgrade. Any recemandations? I'm using a budget Pangea USB cable I've had for about 2 yrs. it's a good cable with 5% silver coating i feel like the cable is a step up from the one audeze supplied but am sure there is a better cable out there, Wether it's $20 to $200 I don't care. What are you guys using?




I use a Nordost Blue Heaven USB cable. Forgot what we sell it for but it's solid.


----------



## Scott Branham

loplop said:


> The Deckard reminds me of tubes, in a good way. Not surprised it pairs well with the HD800 @h2rulz
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
  
 Using the Deckard with LCD2.2, TH900, D7000, 5000...impeckable!!!


----------



## WayTooCrazy

scott branham said:


> Using the Deckard with LCD2.2, TH900, D7000, 5000...impeckable!!!




Every time I think of putting these up 4 sale and getting an Ether C Flow or something else that can be driven by my Mojo, impressions like this smack me upside the head to remind me I do have nice stuff already.


----------



## Scott Branham

waytoocrazy said:


> Every time I think of putting these up 4 sale and getting an Ether C Flow or something else that can be driven by my Mojo, impressions like this smack me upside the head to remind me I do have nice stuff already.


 
 Yeah, I don't know that the grass gets much greener unless you reach DEEEEEEEEP in pockets. Remembering the law of diminishing returns may not be as exciting as that very brief moment of expectation of something new, but it sure helps prevent remorse


----------



## walfredo

dallasmarlow said:


> I'm very impressed with the deckard performance/sound and have been using it with lcd-x, elear and p9 headphones, but I was very disappointed to see that it's made in china. I had assumed that it was made in the USA as many of audeze's products are, I probably would have bought the jotunheim if I had known this beforehand.
> 
> I've never heard the jotunheim, but I've heard a lot of good things about it and it appears to be more compact. The deckard sounds great and the build quality is excellent, but I would have happily paid more for an american made version.


 
  
 ???
  
 What is wrong with made in China?  Isn't it a good product?
  
 ????


----------



## geoffalter11

I am a proud Deckard owner and have been using it as my amp and dac for about 4 months now.  I just picked up a Metrum Musette NOS DAC.  I have my Musette plugged into The Deckard using RCA interconnects and the difference is unbelievable.  The Musette has completely opened up my music in a way I wasn't expecting.  I have learned a couple things about my Deckard.  First, the DAC is really good for an all in one at this price range.  Second, the amp section is significantly better than the DAC portion.  Third, when only powering the amp section, therre is significantly more power and headroom with the volume pot.  The difference is staggering.  The amp has just completely come alive with a better DAC.  I am finding this hobby to have no end.  Each time I try something new, I am able to hear my music in a different way.  I am so glad I have a Deckard and that I am able to try it in different incarnations.


----------



## TWerk

Thanks for the post, also a proud Deckard owner.
  
 I agree that the deckard is a fantastic piece of kit. The USB DAC isn't my favorite part of it, but it is still good and appreciated... The amp section is indeed amazing. Literally stopped buying amps once I got the Deckard, and have no interest in changing out my amp, since the deckard sounds so darn amazing. Maybe one day I will look into grabbing an alternative DAC for it like you did.
  
 But yeah, this thing rocks. The sound it makes is simply beautiful and I must say, it just mates beautifully with planars (HE-500 ftw). Hats off to Audeze on this amp, they really created something special.


----------



## geoffalter11

twerk said:


> Thanks for the post, also a proud Deckard owner.
> 
> I agree that the deckard is a fantastic piece of kit. The USB DAC isn't my favorite part of it, but it is still good and appreciated... The amp section is indeed amazing. Literally stopped buying amps once I got the Deckard, and have no interest in changing out my amp, since the deckard sounds so darn amazing. Maybe one day I will look into grabbing an alternative DAC for it like you did.
> 
> But yeah, this thing rocks. The sound it makes is simply beautiful and I must say, it just mates beautifully with planars (HE-500 ftw). Hats off to Audeze on this amp, they really created something special.


 
 Thanks Twerk.  I completely agree that the Deckard shines with planars.  My Alpha Primes just sing with the Deckard.  I didn't think I would ever buy another amp either, and 2 weeks ago I pulled the trigger on a Wells Audio Milo with the Khozmo Attenuator.  However, I will not part with my Deckard.  It will be going to my office as I cannot part with it.  The only challenge I have with my Deckard is that it doesn't make my ZMF Omni's sing to their full potential.  They sound good, but need more power to be willed into submission.  
  
 If you go the DAC route, get a Musette.  I bought it from Zach at ZMF.  For the money, I don't think there is a better DAC.


----------



## TWerk

I do have a question for you, since I am not knowledgeable on DAC's at all...
  
*How would you describe the DAC section of the Deckard, generally speaking?* I find at times the sound can be a bit hot using this USB DAC depending on my headphone choice. This is only certain headphones, not all of them (like my T1). I think it is because the T1 has a bit of a hot top end to start. I think I would prefer a DAC which is just a little smoother. (When I switch to a cheap alternative DAC, it seems I lose just a bit of detail and resolution, but it becomes smoother and less fatiguing at the top end and I enjoy it).


----------



## WayTooCrazy

I'm going to try feeding my Deckard from my Mojo.


----------



## geoffalter11

twerk said:


> I do have a question for you, since I am not knowledgeable on DAC's at all...
> 
> *How would you describe the DAC section of the Deckard, generally speaking?* I find at times the sound can be a bit hot using this USB DAC depending on my headphone choice. This is only certain headphones, not all of them (like my T1). I think it is because the T1 has a bit of a hot top end to start. I think I would prefer a DAC which is just a little smoother. (When I switch to a cheap alternative DAC, it seems I lose just a bit of detail and resolution, but it becomes smoother and less fatiguing at the top end and I enjoy it).


 
 I find the Deckard DAC to be really good overall.  I do find that the treble can be a touch shouty.  That was the reason I bought the Musette. It made it difficult for me to set the volume right.  I would get fatigue when listening at the volume I like for rocking out.  When listening at moderate to low levels, I found it wonderful.  However, the Musette has completely rid my system of any feeling of upper mid shoutiness and everything now sounds a bit more analog.  The DAC is good, the AMP is stellar.


----------



## geoffalter11

waytoocrazy said:


> I'm going to try feeding my Deckard from my Mojo.


 
 Interested in hearing how that turns out.  I bet it will be tremendous.


----------



## Pharmaboy

geoffalter11 said:


> I am a proud Deckard owner and have been using it as my amp and dac for about 4 months now.  I just picked up a Metrum Musette NOS DAC.  I have my Musette plugged into The Deckard using RCA interconnects and the difference is unbelievable.  The Musette has completely opened up my music in a way I wasn't expecting.  I have learned a couple things about my Deckard.  First, the DAC is really good for an all in one at this price range.  Second, the amp section is significantly better than the DAC portion.  Third, when only powering the amp section, therre is significantly more power and headroom with the volume pot.  The difference is staggering.  The amp has just completely come alive with a better DAC.  I am finding this hobby to have no end.  Each time I try something new, I am able to hear my music in a different way.  I am so glad I have a Deckard and that I am able to try it in different incarnations.


 
  
 I love reading this post! We've all probably had a similar moment with audio equipment--where all the money & the hassle are suddenly totally worth it.
  
 After all, this hobby begins & ends with music, so when the music really comes alive, life is good.
  
 I've been lurking here for some time, interested in the Deckard. My amp journey has taken me in the balanced direction...just bought 2 (reportedly) excellent balanced amps. So my interest in the Deckard will be back-burner for awhile, but someday I hope to hear it.
  
 Re the Musette NOS DAC, I tried hard to get one of these used. After a few months I gave up & went with and Audio GD NOS 19. It's a quiet/calm revelation to me. I hear "digital" so differently now. NOS & R2R are perfect for my sonic tastes. The highest compliment I can pay this technology is that once the NOS 19 burned in (many 100s of hours), I stopped thinking about the DAC entirely. I take it for granted, rely on it, don't even think about changing DACs.


----------



## geoffalter11

pharmaboy said:


> I love reading this post! We've all probably had a similar moment with audio equipment--where all the money & the hassle are suddenly totally worth it.
> 
> After all, this hobby begins & ends with music, so when the music really comes alive, life is good.
> 
> ...


 
 Pharmaboy, thank you so much for your kind words.  I am on day 1 with my Musette, so to think that a month from now the sound will only continue to improve has me giddy.  I almost bought the NOS 19, but a friend talked me into the Musette.  From the first notes, I knew I had made a good decision; not necessarily the right decision as I don't think I would have felt differently with the NOS 19.  Truth be told, I bought a Wells Audio Milo 2 weeks ago.  It has yet to arrive.  I have no plans of selling my Deckard, as my emotional bond to it is too great right now.  If you are ever ready to try one, reach out to me.  You don't seem to be in a hurry, and neither am I.  So the timing on that day may just be right for both of us.  I treat my components like children.  It is and will remain in perfect condition.
  
 I finally understand first hand what it means when I read that something sounds more analog than digital.  Thank you again for your comments.


----------



## Scott Branham

pharmaboy said:


> I love reading this post! We've all probably had a similar moment with audio equipment--where all the money & the hassle are suddenly totally worth it.
> 
> After all, this hobby begins & ends with music, so when the music really comes alive, life is good.
> 
> ...


 
 Musette..$1300... Any cheaper options for those who just wanna test the waters for a DAC outside what the Deckard comes with?


----------



## geoffalter11

scott branham said:


> Musette..$1300... Any cheaper options for those who just wanna test the waters for a DAC outside what the Deckard comes with?




The NOS 19 is under $900 and is an incredible dac. The Deckard's dac is no slouch. It punches above its price. I would look at audio-gd dacs as they go from $500 or so up to $2000 and make an incredible product.


----------



## thyname

scott branham said:


> Musette..$1300... Any cheaper options for those who just wanna test the waters for a DAC outside what the Deckard comes with?




As a starting point, you can try a Schiit Modi Multibit (Mimby) at $250.

From there, you can go to Bifrost Multibit (Bimby) at $600, and then Gungnir Multibit (Gumby) at $1,250. Prices are for new, MSRP. You can get them used for slightly less, as these are at high demand


----------



## geoffalter11

thyname said:


> As a starting point, you can try a Schiit Modi Multibit (Mimby) at $250.
> 
> From there, you can go to Bifrost Multibit (Bimby) at $600, and then Gungnir Multibit (Gumby) at $1,250. Prices are for new, MSRP. You can get them used for slightly less, as these are at high demand




Thyname is right. However, I do not believe the mimby or bimby would be an upgrade to the Deckard's dac. I do believe to Gumby would be. The Deckard's DAC is good. So are the mimby and bimby. The Gumby is a great DAC equal to the Musette in quality, albeit a different sound sig... IMO.


----------



## thyname

geoffalter11 said:


> Thyname is right. However, I do not believe the mimby or bimby would be an upgrade to the Deckard's dac. I do believe to Gumby would be. The Deckard's DAC is good. So are the mimby and bimby. The Gumby is a great DAC equal to the Musette in quality, albeit a different sound sig... IMO.




I had Deckard, and did not care much for it. Overpriced. Have the Matrix combos (M-stage HPA-3B Amp and Quattro II for DAC), much better for the price. Deckard is made by Matrix (OEM), without the design and price markup.

Bimby would definitely be an upgrade to Deckard DACs. And possibly Mimby. Multibit, and its "cousin " R2R / Ladder in my ears, is an improvement to delta sigma chips.


----------



## geoffalter11

thyname said:


> I had Deckard, and did not care much for it. Overpriced. Have the Matrix combos (M-stage HPA-3B Amp and Quattro II for DAC), much better for the price. Deckard is made by Matrix (OEM), without the design and price markup.
> 
> Bimby would definitely be an upgrade to Deckard DACs. And possibly Mimby. Multibit, and its "cousin " R2R / Ladder in my ears, is an improvement to delta sigma chips.


 
 That is what makes the hobby so great.  We all hear different things.  I found the Deckard DAC a touch shouty in the upper registers and I would fatigue easily after 90 min or so.  Since moving to the Musette as the DAC, that is gone.  
  
 I didn't care for the Mimby.  I found it too digital sounding.  I can see the Bimby being an upgrade.  And the Gumby would be of close relation to my Musette in price and performance.  As an amp, The Deckard is quite good.  Natural, clean and a touch warm.


----------



## gward4

I am using the Deckard AMP and DAC with my LCD3s (Tidal lossless from MacBook). 

Do you guys think it would be an improvement to use the Emotiva Stealth DC-1 as the DAC (while still using the Deckard as the amp)?

Thanks!


----------



## WhiskeyJacks

I have read through this thread a couple times here and there, Because I was on the fence on purchasing one of these units when I was having issues with my balanced rig. I use ZMF omni's( or now oris) planar headphones, and I wanted to ask has any one used with this with the HD650? or the HD6XX ? because I have been using that headphone past few days just to get a change from the ZMF since it has been my only full size for quite some time after selling off my other gear.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Current setup is an audio interface (Steinberg UR22) into an Elemental Watson feeding my LCD-2F. I love the tubes, always have. 
  
 HOWEVER, I'm so intensely curious about the synergy between these two. I'm positive the DAC would be an improvement, but can't decide if it's worth it and if I'll lose the nice warm/impactful sound I get with the Watson. Any thoughts?


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Well, pulled the trigger. Upgraded a good bit actually. Deckard -> LCD-X. I actually feel confident in my end game.


----------



## Povell42

Anyone ever compare the Deckard Amp vs. Aune X7s?  

I am currently using: Schiit Fulla 2 (DAC) > Aune X7s (AMP - 4 pin XLR) > LCD-3.  I am really curious about the Deckard paired with my LCD-3.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Povell42 said:


> Anyone ever compare the Deckard Amp vs. Aune X7s?
> 
> I am currently using: Schiit Fulla 2 (DAC) > Aune X7s (AMP - 4 pin XLR) > LCD-3.  I am really curious about the Deckard paired with my LCD-3.



I can't say 100%, but my inclination is the Deckard is gonna do better largely because it's a significantly better DAC than the Fulla. You'd lose the balanced output but for the life of me I could not hear a difference going balanced/unbalanced on a Questyle CMA800R so I would wager the overall increase in power and fidelity would be the better option. 

Plus, hey, it's made BY Audeze, it's a good bet they tuned it with their products, right? I'm loving it with my LCD-X.


----------



## Povell42 (May 3, 2017)

I'm shocked there still hasn't been a comparison with the Schiit Jot yet!

I went ahead and bought the Deckard.  It will be at my house on Friday!  It kinda worries me see that some think it pairs worse with the LCD-3 vs. the 2

I will compare the Amp capabilities and compared it to the $250 - $300 Aune X7s.

If the Aune amp is on par, or better, I would most likely return the Deckard and buy a Bimby instead.  That would be the same rough price Bimby + Aune X7s.  Might just be the next best bang for buck combo.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Povell42 said:


> I'm shocked there still hasn't been a comparison with the Schiit Jot yet!
> 
> I went ahead and bought the Deckard.  It will be at my house on Friday!  It kinda worries me see that some think it pairs worse with the LCD-3 vs. the 2
> 
> ...



I was really torn between Jot and Deckard, just because the balanced appealed to me, but I cannot possibly imagine how it would pair badly with the LCD-3. The thing was made for their own products.


----------



## Povell42

Updated thoughts:  
I got the Deckard this weekend and compared it with my current options.

I could tell a difference in the Deckard's DAC compared to the Fulla 2.  The Deckard DAC seemed to be a little brighter and tighter than the Fulla 2.  It seemed to mostly cure my complaint of some songs sounded a little congested in comparison to the Fulla 2. 

I could not tell a real difference between the Deckard and the Sound Blaster X7 DACs. They shared the same signature and improvements to the Fulla 2.  

However.... I compared the AMP in the Deckard to my AUNE X7s and I could not tell a difference.  I used the pre-out of the Deckard into my Aune and volume matched them.  A/B-ing the two with the 1/4 inch connection, the Aune amp did reflect the Deckards DAC without any changes to my ear.

When I swapped to the Balanced output on the AUNE X7s with the Deckards amp it seemed to be even better then the Deckard's output. 

So...I believe the best route for me is to get a better DAC and use my Aune X7s amp instead of the Deckard.

One other very weird thing that happened with the Deckard. After having it on for about 8 hours, it suddenly just lost it's power.  By this i mean the sound went very quite.  I turned it to high gain, and volume all the way up and it was still very soft in sound.  It even did this from the Pre-out.  My Aune had to be turned all the way up with the Deckard volume all the way up...and it was still soft.  

I checked the connections, turned it off and disconnected the power.... it would still do it.  About 24 hours later, it was working properly again?   

It is enough of a concern that I would probably return it either way.


----------



## zackzack

All this talk of Deckard having too much treble energy: maybe Deckard is especially designed that way to power dark-sounding orthodynamics like the LCDs?


----------



## WilCox

zackzack said:


> All this talk of Deckard having too much treble energy: maybe Deckard is especially designed that way to power dark-sounding orthodynamics like the LCDs?



I have both the Deckard and the Jotunheim.  I find them both to be excellent amps for Audeze and Sennheiser phones.  So good in fact that I have sold my Bryston BDA-2/BHA-1 combo as well as my Schiit Gungnir/Mjolnir combo.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

zackzack said:


> All this talk of Deckard having too much treble energy: maybe Deckard is especially designed that way to power dark-sounding orthodynamics like the LCDs?



I've heard it's tuned specifically to the LCD-X. Maybe so, because the X sounds goddamn incredible with it.


----------



## Gamergtx260

I own the XC and X, currently using them with Marantz HD DAC1. The XC sounds beautiful as the HD DAC1 is warmer sounding, was wondering if I should stick with it or should get the deckard? As the deckard is clearly more powerful but I really like the warmer sounding Marantz, though the HD DAC1 can get loud at high gain. 

Suggestions?


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Gamergtx260 said:


> I own the XC and X, currently using them with Marantz HD DAC1. The XC sounds beautiful as the HD DAC1 is warmer sounding, was wondering if I should stick with it or should get the deckard? As the deckard is clearly more powerful but I really like the warmer sounding Marantz, though the HD DAC1 can get loud at high gain.
> 
> Suggestions?



IMO the Deckard isn't that warm, but in fairness the X/XC are pretty warm to begin with. The Deckard, from what I've seen, was tuned _specifically_ for the X/XC, so I absolutely recommend it.


----------



## abirdie4me

After reading the last 20 pages or so of this thread, I decided to pull the trigger on the Deckard and EL-8 (Open) headphones. Both were open box at my local Best Buy, paid $499 for each of them. I'm new to high-res audio, and my previous setup is HD600's fed via the Oppo HA2-SE. Since my ears aren't very experienced yet, I was having difficulty picking out the differences between the 2 setups. Then I finally found a few FLAC songs that I know very well and did a couple of hours of A/B testing, using only the EL-8 to isolate differences in the dac/amp combos. Now I get it....the bass is MUCH tighter on the Deckard, some songs come across as muddy on the Oppo. I'll be keeping both setups though, I'll just use the Oppo with my laptop when I'm at a client site and keep the Deckard for my desktop. I'm going to stick with the DAC in the Deckard for now, but I think I'll eventually upgrade it to something a little cleaner sounding. From the advice on this forum, I'll need to spend in the $1000 range to get an appreciable upgrade to the Deckard DAC, so that will have to wait a while.

The EL-8 to HD600 comparison is a little tougher, as I like them both. The EL-8 has more bass, but the HD600 is cleaner sounding overall. Not sure which one will end up as my main set. I have the Massdrop Fostex TH-X00 ordered, so that will be an interesting comparison next week.


----------



## abirdie4me

Do you think there would be any issues with placing the Deckard on its side on my desk? It would take up much less room that way, I just don't know if it would cause any issues with the components inside in the long run.


----------



## Gamergtx260

abirdie4me said:


> After reading the last 20 pages or so of this thread, I decided to pull the trigger on the Deckard and EL-8 (Open) headphones. Both were open box at my local Best Buy, paid $499 for each of them. I'm new to high-res audio, and my previous setup is HD600's fed via the Oppo HA2-SE. Since my ears aren't very experienced yet, I was having difficulty picking out the differences between the 2 setups. Then I finally found a few FLAC songs that I know very well and did a couple of hours of A/B testing, using only the EL-8 to isolate differences in the dac/amp combos. Now I get it....the bass is MUCH tighter on the Deckard, some songs come across as muddy on the Oppo. I'll be keeping both setups though, I'll just use the Oppo with my laptop when I'm at a client site and keep the Deckard for my desktop. I'm going to stick with the DAC in the Deckard for now, but I think I'll eventually upgrade it to something a little cleaner sounding. From the advice on this forum, I'll need to spend in the $1000 range to get an appreciable upgrade to the Deckard DAC, so that will have to wait a while.
> 
> The EL-8 to HD600 comparison is a little tougher, as I like them both. The EL-8 has more bass, but the HD600 is cleaner sounding overall. Not sure which one will end up as my main set. I have the Massdrop Fostex TH-X00 ordered, so that will be an interesting comparison next week.



Never heard the Deckard but from what I read many say that the DAC section isn't par with the amp section (Something similar to HDVD 800, though I found the DAC section pretty good). So I'm guessing deckard's DAC is simply cleaner sounding but of course, this hobby has no limits so people aren't satisfied 

Haven't heard the EL-8 as well but have owned the HD600/650 for many years now, have changed many headphones over the ears but never sold the HD6-series. They are simply good without any extra expenditure or some fancy DAC. To me, the best experience of the HD600/650 was from the Marantz HD DAC1. To answer you question, if you are planning to scale up to the LCD-series in future, then it is better to do right now as I think the EL-8 is an intermediate step to the LCD series.


----------



## Gamergtx260

Pulled the trigger on a open box deckard, should receive them in few days. Couldn't resist as i believe that extra power will really make my X/XC open up. I hope the dac section isn't disappointing as I only use Apple Music and no high-res files. 

Will post comparisons with the Deckard and HD DAC1 and also as a standalone amplifier soon.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

Gamergtx260 said:


> Pulled the trigger on a open box deckard, should receive them in few days. Couldn't resist as i believe that extra power will really make my X/XC open up. I hope the dac section isn't disappointing as I only use Apple Music and no high-res files.
> 
> Will post comparisons with the Deckard and HD DAC1 and also as a standalone amplifier soon.


I think your going to love it.... I had a great time using our Deckard with a plethora of headphones when we had it. Get back to us what you think whenever you get some head time with it!


----------



## Natarian

Gamergtx260 said:


> Pulled the trigger on a open box deckard, should receive them in few days. Couldn't resist as i believe that extra power will really make my X/XC open up. I hope the dac section isn't disappointing as I only use Apple Music and no high-res files.
> 
> Will post comparisons with the Deckard and HD DAC1 and also as a standalone amplifier soon.


Where's those comparison's my good man


----------



## SomeGuyDude

MTMECraig said:


> I think your going to love it.... I had a great time using our Deckard with a plethora of headphones when we had it. Get back to us what you think whenever you get some head time with it!



Aw dang, what happened to your Deckard...


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

SomeGuyDude said:


> Aw dang, what happened to your Deckard...


LOL what a punk!!!


----------



## SomeGuyDude

MTMECraig said:


> LOL what a punk!!!



But hey, if y'all ever get a King and an LCD-4 I might be willing to give the Deckard back...


----------



## lowrider007 (Jul 2, 2017)

I have the chance to grab a Deckard fairly cheap secondhand from my forum, wondering what to expect going from from an original M-Stage HPA-1? Also does the Deckard work well with sensitive headphones? (No hum etc)


----------



## Gamergtx260

Gamergtx260 said:


> Pulled the trigger on a open box deckard, should receive them in few days. Couldn't resist as i believe that extra power will really make my X/XC open up. I hope the dac section isn't disappointing as I only use Apple Music and no high-res files.
> 
> Will post comparisons with the Deckard and HD DAC1 and also as a standalone amplifier soon.



Guys, I received the Deckard yesterday. Did a quick test after about 30 minutes of warmup time (Haven't burned them yet). They sounded very muddy compared to the HD DAC1 in direct comparison.

Then, I connected the DAC section of the HD DAC1 and the amp section of the Deckard and they were stunning. They opened up the LCD X/XC with more details and wider soundstage. I used low gain and they are dead silent, although high gain had some noise but I only have the LCD X/XC for now and low gain is more than enough.

Like everyone else mentioned the Deckard's amp section is very very good, probably the best amp for X/XC. The DAC section needs more burn-in maybe, they sounded very grainy and less euphonic.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

So my Deckard up and died this morning. What's Audeze's replacement policy like?


----------



## Gamergtx260

SomeGuyDude said:


> So my Deckard up and died this morning. What's Audeze's replacement policy like?


Never knew their amps die too :|
Sorry for you, fortunately their customer service is quite nice.


----------



## Gamergtx260

Update on the Deckard's DAC guys. I let it on and playing music for 2 days straight. Now I listened to it and I really like it. It is surely not a laid-back sounding DAC (which I like) but it is really a clean sounding DAC. Now I'm thinking if I should sell the Marantz and keep the Deckard


----------



## lowrider007

I just upgraded to the Deckard from the M-Stage HPA-1, and God does this amp make my K712's sing! Really nice amp and a very noticeable jump in quality, much cleaner sounding, not nearly as warm as I was expecting, controls the bass on the K712's amazingly well.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

lowrider007 said:


> I just upgraded to the Deckard from the M-Stage HPA-1, and God does this amp make my K712's sing! Really nice amp and a very noticeable jump in quality, much cleaner sounding, not nearly as warm as I was expecting, controls the bass on the K712's amazingly well.



Gotta remember it was made to go with the LCD-X, so it's definitely not going to be warm.


----------



## lowrider007

SomeGuyDude said:


> Gotta remember it was made to go with the LCD-X, so it's definitely not going to be warm.



I think that's why it might be paring really well with the K712's becuase I consider that a fairly warm headphone so they meet in the middle well, the top end was a little fatiguing at times with my Grado's, I'm hoping to get some refurbished LCD-2's in the future but I'm in no hurry, just want to enjoy what I have for now.


----------



## Gamergtx260 (Jul 14, 2017)

lowrider007 said:


> I think that's why it might be paring really well with the K712's becuase I consider that a fairly warm headphone so they meet in the middle well, the top end was a little fatiguing at times with my Grado's, I'm hoping to get some refurbished LCD-2's in the future but I'm in no hurry, just want to enjoy what I have for now.


 If you can afford the LCD X used or new, then go for it first. Not that the LCD 2s are bad with it (They are amazing on the Deckard) but it really sounds sublime with the LCD X. 

I quickly tried my HD 600s on mid gain and wow. They sound so clean and never harsh. Surely the DAC section isn't par with the others. Comparing back and forth with HD DAC1, there is a clear loss in resolution but maybe that makes it sound a bit warmer than the other DACs I guess.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

lowrider007 said:


> I think that's why it might be paring really well with the K712's becuase I consider that a fairly warm headphone so they meet in the middle well, the top end was a little fatiguing at times with my Grado's, I'm hoping to get some refurbished LCD-2's in the future but I'm in no hurry, just want to enjoy what I have for now.



You're gonna loooove the LCD-2. If you like your AKGs, go for the fazor model of the LCD, not the pre-fazor. It's a lot more clear and even.


----------



## TWerk

I agree that the fazored one sounds better. Highs are better and not just rolled off and soft.


----------



## Gamergtx260

Today I had much free time and compared extensively the X and XC with the Deckard. I should say the XC is one heck of a closed back. The vocals and midrange are amazing than the X. The X seemed to have more air and deeper bass.
I like them both


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

TWerk said:


> I agree that the fazored one sounds better. Highs are better and not just rolled off and soft.


Interesting.... We have a demo of the LCD 2 here and it is fazored. I never got to get extensive listening with non fazor (and possibly never heard it in my travels either). Do some people prefer the unfazored do you know because they just like it that laid back?


----------



## MarkC303

First post!

I bought the Audeze Deckard last week. I upgraded from a cheap Focusrite audio interface so the standard to beat was quite low!
At the moment I'm using a set of Focal Spirit Pro cans until I can afford to upgrade. 

Here's my thoughts on the Deckard:
Pros: Incredibly, almost unbelievably, detailed, open, spacious sound. Fantastic with vocals, Huge, but controlled, bass extension.
Cons: High frequencies seem slightly exaggerated. They are bright, almost piercing at times. 

I'm a bit concerned by the high end on my unit. It really is very pronounced and is making loud listening sessions quite tiring. I've been running it in overnight since I got the unit, so it's probably clocked up 50 hours so far. 
I haven't seen this mentioned in any reviews (or in this thread). Is it just my Focals not being up to the job? The only other cans I have are the Sennheiser HD25Mk2 which I use when DJ-ing, they also sound very bright when hooked up to the Deckard. I'm interested to hear if anyone else has experienced this. 

I'm running it on a Windows 10 desktop, with Foobar2000. Most of my music is 16-bit, 44.1kHz FLAC or WAV.


----------



## Gamergtx260

MarkC303 said:


> First post!
> 
> I bought the Audeze Deckard last week. I upgraded from a cheap Focusrite audio interface so the standard to beat was quite low!
> At the moment I'm using a set of Focal Spirit Pro cans until I can afford to upgrade.
> ...


Unfortunately, I only have Audeze headphones (2,X,XC) and HD600s, so I cannot really tell about the high frequencies
. 
From the FR graphs, I see the Focal's have a treble peak around 6KHz (similar to the HD800) which to me sounded bright. 
The HD25 has a peak at 10KHz too but I do not know if this is a problem. 

The Deckard is quite transparent and I would only think it sounds bright because of your headphones. Any chance of borrowing a Audeze?


----------



## MarkC303 (Jul 19, 2017)

Thanks for the info! I suspect that the Focals are to blame, I will find out if there's a stockist nearby where I can audition some Audeze headphones.

As an example track where the issue is most noticeable - Money by Pink Floyd on Dark Side of the Moon (Experience Edition). The middle section of the track with the sax and guitar solos, when both the sax and the guitar start rising into the upper-mids, and higher, they really pierce the ears!

I just read through the thread on here regarding the Focal Spirit Pros - some people mentioned that they sound "metallic" - that's exactly how I would describe them when driven by the Deckard.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

MarkC303 said:


> Thanks for the info! I suspect that the Focals are to blame, I will find out if there's a stockist nearby where I can audition some Audeze headphones.
> 
> As an example track where the issue is most noticeable - Money by Pink Floyd on Dark Side of the Moon (Experience Edition). The middle section of the track with the sax and guitar solos, when both the sax and the guitar start rising into the upper-mids, and higher, they really pierce the ears!
> 
> I just read through the thread on here regarding the Focal Spirit Pros - some people mentioned that they sound "metallic" - that's exactly how I would describe them when driven by the Deckard.


The spirit pro's might just benefit from a different amp that will try and tame the highs instead of letting them breathe. disappointing you can't really enjoy the Deckard until you do another headphone upgrade... What you could do in the mean time is try to EQ your spirits with something online to tame the treble a bit? Just a thought...


----------



## MarkC303

Yeah, it's starting to annoy me to be honest. I'm considering returning the Deckard and looking for another solution. I'm still not convinced that the issue is at the headphone end, the treble sounds way out of control at times - I've had the Focals for years and never noticed them being particularly forward, until now.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

Gotcha. I only thought keep it just because I had a fantastic time listening to it with a ton of our headphones here. our Demos range from midfi to hifi so that is why I thought it might be worth keeping till you jump up. But I don't blame you for wanting to return if it isn't enjoyable now.


----------



## MarkC303

Treble-aside, everything else about the sound is fantastic. I'm hearing new detail in tracks that I've listened to thousands of times. I'm going to see if I can borrow some high end headphones over the weekend to confirm if it's an issue with the Deckard or my cans.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

Determining that will help you make your next move... Best of luck!


----------



## Gamergtx260

MarkC303 said:


> Treble-aside, everything else about the sound is fantastic. I'm hearing new detail in tracks that I've listened to thousands of times.


What was the previous source you were using? 
The Deckard is fantastic.. for the price but surely they are not very resolving because of the under performing DAC though the amp section is great. I keep the Deckard because I do not do any critical listening.

If you plan to keep only the Focals then the deckard may not be the right choice, also audition the Marantz HD DAC1. I have them and they sound quite analog.
If you plan to upgrade your headphones (preferrably a headphone with warm signature, like HD 600/650s or one of Audeze's LCD series ) then keep the Deckard.


----------



## MarkC303

Previous headphone source was a cheap (i.e. <£100) Focusrite audio interface. However, my HiFi setup is a Roksan Amp, Roksan CD player and a pair of Quad standmount speakers - I've had that system for 10 years and it still sounds absolutely stellar.

I left the Deckard again running in overnight and most of today. This evening I've tried the B&W P5 cans (borrowed from a colleague), and my ancient Sennheiser HD200 (bought for £40 in 2002...)

Both the B&W and the HD200s were less forward than the Focals (to be expected), but they were also generally awful in terms of...well everything. I switch back to the Focals and the high end seems more refined than before. Either I've gotten used to the extended top end, or the Deckard has calmed down due to the additional run in time?! 

Anyway, it seems I'm keeping it, and probably saving up for some Audeze headphones in the future.

Thank you for your advice, much appreciated!


----------



## jbsu30

Hello, 
Are the drivers compatible with windows 10 Creator Update ? No issue ?


----------



## Ashah

I have had the Deckard since last November 2016 ,  and a LCD 2.F I liked the amplifier section of the Deckard  but not  the internal DAC so I purchased a Schiit Multibit and used it for day to day listening  Recently a friend offered to sell me his non multibit  Schiit Gungnir(delta-sigma) which he had purchased in just  march of 2017,   for a very good price so I asked him to bring it in when we set it up with the Deckard and did some listening both of  us were" blown away" by the Deckard/Gungnir combination the detail , the soundstage,  air , Bass , Punchiness !  heard things that I never hear before be it tidal Hi-Fi, Sportify It looks like an end game for me for now unless I go for tube amp like a Woo audio WA 6SE, just debating wither I should upgrade it to multibit or not the price I paid for it makes it very cost effective for me to upgrade it .


----------



## Gamergtx260

I sold my Deckard recently, wasn't happy with the DAC section. Also sold my LCD collection and moved on to a Violectric V200/V800 stack with the HD800. Such a wonderful synergy that made the LCD X sound very grainy.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Gamergtx260 said:


> I sold my Deckard recently, wasn't happy with the DAC section. Also sold my LCD collection and moved on to a Violectric V200/V800 stack with the HD800. Such a wonderful synergy that made the LCD X sound very grainy.



I mean, good for you, but I can't imagine any possible situation in which I would ever want an HD800 over the X.


----------



## escknx

Povell42 said:


> I could not tell a real difference between the Deckard and the Sound Blaster X7 DACs. They shared the same signature and improvements to the Fulla 2.


How about AMP section of SB X7?

I have Deckard and really like the way it sounds with almost everything, but I'm considering X7 for gaming plus I like the way its designed w 2 simultaneous headphone outs.

Is AMP section really bad on x7?


----------



## escknx

What would be the AMPs with similar warm bassy audio signature to Deckard?
Shiits are pretty neutral, as far as I've read.

Love Deckard's sound but not utilizing its DAC part


----------



## Pharmaboy

escknx said:


> What would be the AMPs with similar warm bassy audio signature to Deckard?
> Shiits are pretty neutral, as far as I've read.
> 
> Love Deckard's sound but not utilizing its DAC part



3 amps spring to mind:

*Cavalli Liquid Carbon: *has balanced + S.E. output; no balanced input. Has a very seductive warm-ish character but with terrific bass & dynamics. The Deckard has >2X the top power of the LC (4W vs 1.5W), but I've found this doesn't really matter in actual usage. The LC has more than enough juice to drive my power-hungry planar (ZMF Ori) to brain-blasting volume...and never exhibits any of the symptoms of any underpowered amp (parched bass or dynamics, changes in tonality at high volume, etc).
*Violectric V200: *Single-ended only, quite powerful, acclaimed for its slightly warm, forgiving quality--yet a real asskicker of an amp that can drive just about anything. I don't own the V200, but I do have the endgame Violectric balanced design based on the V200 (the V281). Let's just say that Violectric amps are memorable in many ways, all good.
*Lake People G-109:* Violectric and Lake People are the same company. This affordable, over-achieving amp was the first really serious, great-sounding amp I purchased (scored the "A," or anniversary edition of it for a bit under ~$450 incl. seasonal discount 2 yrs ago...current list is $550). I can't say enough good things about this terrific, fine-sounding amp. It has somewhat more max power than the LC (2.3W vs 1.5W) and is plenty powerful to drive any headphone I have to the point of deafness-inducing. More to the point, every headphone I've heard through it sounds really really good. A great, affordable amp...slightly warm, very dynamic & powerful.


----------



## escknx

Pharmaboy said:


> 3 amps spring to mind:
> 
> *Cavalli Liquid Carbon*
> *Violectric V200*
> *Lake People G-109*



Thanks.

I don't need balanced out.

These 3 are pretty much more expensive that Deckard. Are they really sound significantly better, cause it doesnt look like a great idea to upgrade to them from Audeze.

I am actually looking for something that sounds as good as Deckard but without DAC, just pure warm bassy amp w analog in that costs less that Deckard, otherwise whats the reason to change it.

The only thing that I dislike in Deckard, except I dont use its DAC, is that its a big heat sink, it generates so much heat that I have to run AC few degrees lower just to keep room cool.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

escknx said:


> Thanks.
> 
> I don't need balanced out.
> 
> ...



Bassy warm amp without the DAC? Elemental Watson, no questions. Tube goodness, only like $200, and it's powerful enough to run pretty much anything.


----------



## escknx

SomeGuyDude said:


> Bassy warm amp without the DAC? Elemental Watson, no questions. Tube goodness, only like $200, and it's powerful enough to run pretty much anything.



Yes I use Burr-Brown PCM1794 DAC.

I've recently listened to amp that looked pretty similar to Watson, Bravo V3 hybrid tube w passive eq implemented and I found its sound too flat compared to Audeze amp. Not bad, but Audeze sounds much more 'musical' w HD700, 800, 558, TH-X00.

Maybe its not a issue with Watson, since its ~150usd more expensive, may want to try, sad thing they don't sell in in big retailers.


----------



## BunnyNamedCraig

escknx said:


> Yes I use Burr-Brown PCM1794 DAC.
> 
> I've recently listened to amp that looked pretty similar to Watson, Bravo V3 hybrid tube w passive eq implemented and I found its sound too flat compared to Audeze amp. Not bad, but Audeze sounds much more 'musical' w HD700, 800, 558, TH-X00.
> 
> Maybe its not a issue with Watson, since its ~150usd more expensive, may want to try, sad thing they don't sell in in big retailers.


Sad thing you don't live closer to us... Anyways the Watson is not a really tubey sound (with stock tube that is, I have never rolled any to compare). I think with that said It will have warmth but it shouldn't be a smothered sound with your DAC.

We encourage people to bring in their gear if they want, that way they can hear how the EW sounds to them. Your ears may be different then mine in this regard!


----------



## Pharmaboy

escknx said:


> Thanks.
> 
> I don't need balanced out.
> 
> ...




1 of these 3 is not much more expensive than the Deckard--the Lake People G109. You can get a new one for ~$500 ($549 list less 10% discount). Or you could get one used for ~$400.

I just listened to the E-Mu Teaks on my G109 this morning (the amp hasn't gotten much action lately...I forgot how great it is). The G109 made the best sound out I ever heard out of these headphones. Excellent bass, slam, soundstaging. Like many Violectrics, this amp isn't overtly "warm," but it also isn't bright in the least--and has such a full/impactful lower register, along w/a full, organic midrange, that the overall sound is the opposite of thin, overly detailed, "accurate," etc. The G109 gives the body of the instruments, not just the treble transients...


----------



## Pharmaboy

(to moderator--sorry to hijack this thread talking about a different amp. I'll shut up now)


----------



## escknx

Pharmaboy said:


> 1 of these 3 is not much more expensive than the Deckard--the Lake People G109. You can get a new one for ~$500 ($549 list less 10% discount). Or you could get one used for ~$400.


Yes Lake People G109 is an option here for sure.

To your ears, does it outperform Deckard, if you listened to it?

Also, heat distribution, Lake People G109 can be used as household heater as well as Deckard, or its not that brutal?

Thanks a lot for help here.


----------



## Pharmaboy

escknx said:


> Yes Lake People G109 is an option here for sure.
> 
> To your ears, does it outperform Deckard, if you listened to it?
> 
> ...



Sorry to say I haven't been able to hear the Deckard. To hear one, I'd have to buy one...and even used, I'd have to pony up ~$450-$500 to get an amp that is said to sound very much like a couple I already own (and is equivalent or somewhat less in power than 2).

I have too many amps and love something about each one...can't seem to pare it down.

Re heat, the G109 gets slightly warm during use, but it's far from being in the the "space heater" category. The Liquid Carbon gets twice as hot, for example.

From reading about the Deckard, I see that, like many designs, it uses the thick aluminum exterior shell as a heat sink. Apparently it's designed to be that warm.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Pharmaboy said:


> From reading about the Deckard, I see that, like many designs, it uses the thick aluminum exterior shell as a heat sink. Apparently it's designed to be that warm.



You are correct. It's also why you don't want to put the Deckard too close to anything that's easily heat damaged.


----------



## daniel_hokkaido

Anyone have a pov of how the amp section compares to the Burson Soloist SL mk2?? I don't need a DAC as I'd be running from my Mojo... thanks


----------



## SomeGuyDude

daniel_hokkaido said:


> Anyone have a pov of how the amp section compares to the Burson Soloist SL mk2?? I don't need a DAC as I'd be running from my Mojo... thanks



I gotta be honest. I wouldn't run a Mojo into the Deckard. Own both.


----------



## daniel_hokkaido

SomeGuyDude said:


> I gotta be honest. I wouldn't run a Mojo into the Deckard. Own both.



Care to elaborate??


----------



## SomeGuyDude

daniel_hokkaido said:


> Care to elaborate??



Doesn't do anything useful. The Mojo's DAC isn't an upgrade over the Deckard's. I don't see the point in sticking a portable DAC into a dedicated desktop one. Unless you're dazzled by the uselessly high bitdepths and sample rates the Mojo is capable of.

Again, I love my Mojo, using it right now, but chaining it in with the Deckard to me makes no sense.


----------



## daniel_hokkaido

SomeGuyDude said:


> Doesn't do anything useful. The Mojo's DAC isn't an upgrade over the Deckard's. I don't see the point in sticking a portable DAC into a dedicated desktop one. Unless you're dazzled by the uselessly high bitdepths and sample rates the Mojo is capable of.
> 
> Again, I love my Mojo, using it right now, but chaining it in with the Deckard to me makes no sense.



Hmm OK I see your point. Well if I were to get the Burson Soloist instead I'd have no option but to hook up the mojo. Would you really just spring the extra $200 over using the Mojo for the Deckard with its Dac?


----------



## SomeGuyDude

daniel_hokkaido said:


> Hmm OK I see your point. Well if I were to get the Burson Soloist instead I'd have no option but to hook up the mojo. Would you really just spring the extra $200 over using the Mojo for the Deckard with its Dac?



Do you already have the Mojo? Because if you have nothing, I'd say just get the Deckard. If you already have the Mojo, then I'd say the Soloist is gonna be a good purchase. I know that they're both on the neutral side (the Deckard is built to complement their LCDs and Burson amps are usually cool), so you might as well line-out the Mojo and save the cash.


----------



## daniel_hokkaido

SomeGuyDude said:


> Do you already have the Mojo? Because if you have nothing, I'd say just get the Deckard. If you already have the Mojo, then I'd say the Soloist is gonna be a good purchase. I know that they're both on the neutral side (the Deckard is built to complement their LCDs and Burson amps are usually cool), so you might as well line-out the Mojo and save the cash.



Hi, Yeah I have the Mojo already. Yeah, Burson is a strong option as you say ..thanks for the feedback etc


----------



## Ashah

I run my Deckard both with LCD 2 and the New LCD -X , but do not use the Deckard DAC , instead I have have connected it to a Schiit Gungnir , via it's analog inputs  the combination just sounds amazing, Gungnir digs deep and gives me the LF & and HF, the amp section of the Deckard gives me the layering , clear vocals and a huge soundstage !


----------



## Jodet

Apparently this has been discontinued so Audeze can concentrate on headphones.  

I see Underwood hi-fi has a close-out price of $499 for these.   Seems like a really good deal! 


http://www.underwoodhifi.com/specials


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Source? Does that mean the King is done, too?


----------



## funkur

Amazon has a few refurbs left for $339 from Audeze.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

For anyone curious, this thing does not play nicely with the HD-650. Leaves it sounding too thin.


----------



## Here2rock

How does this amp compare to Oppo HA-1?


----------



## Here2rock

Anyone has views and experience with these two amps/dacs?


----------



## Here2rock

How do you change the AC voltage, thinking of importing from USA to Australia but the voltage down under is 230V. The specification sheet show:

AC Input AC100V: 90V-110V
AC110V:100V-120V (Factory Default)
AC230V: 210V-230V


----------



## figgyburn

I have recently bought the deckard and the audioquest nighthawk carbons.The deckards neutral sound temper the warmer nature of the carbons perfectly.Now it's time to just listen to the music and not the components.


----------



## black9white

figgyburn said:


> I have recently bought the deckard and the audioquest nighthawk carbons.The deckards neutral sound temper the warmer nature of the carbons perfectly.Now it's time to just listen to the music and not the components.



I was thinking about that combo a long way back, since there opposite sound nature seems to compliment each other. Can you explain more at how it sounds thanks


----------



## figgyburn

I'm afraid describing the sound in great detail like some people on head fi is way beyond my capability.My previous headphones were the hifiman he 400i amped through an old but faithful creek obh11se and a cozoy aegis Dac.The amp was struggling with the 400i as my hearing is poor these days and I needed to turn up the volume way up on the creek to get to a level I listen to these days.Time for an upgrade.I bought the deckard with a view to buying an audeze phone to compliment it as the 400is were just a bit to clinical through the deckard.at my first port of call to listen to other phones the stockist did not have audeze only fostex th600/900,kennerton odins and audioquest nighthawk carbons through a questyle ca600i.after trying the fostex's which were ok and,not really being interested in the odins I put on the carbons and was immediately smitten.the questyle and the deckard have I feel similar sound qualities so I felt assured that the deckard at home would sound similar.i tried them with the cozoy dac just using the deckard amp but I felt that was again just a bit to clinical for me so I have been using the onboard dac which despite some criticism from some posters here is I feel perfect for myself.i use a audioquest jitterbug as well.if I could sum up the sound of the deckard/nighthawk carbon sound is "old school 70's analogue sounding".Non fatiguing,long listening,comfortable,sound.To my aged ears obviously.


----------



## Here2rock

Finally bought the Deckard. I am getting the hiss noise on medium and high gain when there is no music playing, just wondering if it is normal for all units. There is no issues on low gain.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Here2rock said:


> Finally bought the Deckard. I am getting the hiss noise on medium and high gain when there is no music playing, just wondering if it is normal for all units. There is no issues on low gain.



None for me, I use Medium for my LCD-X.


----------



## Tompo88

Here2rock said:


> Finally bought the Deckard. I am getting the hiss noise on medium and high gain when there is no music playing, just wondering if it is normal for all units. There is no issues on low gain.



What headphones are you using. May be too sensitive for med/high. I get hiss using my th900 but not LCD 2, hd650 or 400i.


----------



## Here2rock

SomeGuyDude said:


> None for me, I use Medium for my LCD-X.



I am using the same combination after reading your feedback that how well this combination worked for you. Are you using the USB cable supplied in the box? I will test whether I am getting the same problem through RCAs to eliminate the root of the problem. 

Having said all that there is plenty of juice to drive LCDX at low gain so I can live with it even if the problem persists.


----------



## Here2rock

Tompo88 said:


> What headphones are you using. May be too sensitive for med/high. I get hiss using my th900 but not LCD 2, hd650 or 400i.



I am using the LCDX. I wonder but causes it? I would like to know the technical explanation for the issue.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

Here2rock said:


> I am using the same combination after reading your feedback that how well this combination worked for you. Are you using the USB cable supplied in the box? I will test whether I am getting the same problem through RCAs to eliminate the root of the problem.
> 
> Having said all that there is plenty of juice to drive LCDX at low gain so I can live with it even if the problem persists.



I thiiiiink I am? My system has a good bit of shielding because I do audio stuff so I might have less USB noise than others might.


----------



## mattering (Nov 23, 2017)

How does the DAC of the Deckard compare to other dacs/amp combos at the 400-600 range? Specifically, I was looking into the Grace M900, Schiit Jotunheim, and the Burson SL9018 but the Deckard has me wanting to press the buy button more than any other. My Geek Pulse X crapped out and my DragonFly Red is good but not satisfactory as it does not compare with my Pulse X.


----------



## wantan

Many reviews regarded the amp section of the Deckard higher than the DAC section.

I'd be very curious how the Deckard as an amp compares to the balanced matrix m-stage. The price difference between the two allows for a decent seperate DAC.


----------



## Pharmaboy

I'm curious about that, too, since Matrix apparently OEM'd the Deckard amp for Audeze.

The only problem would be factoring in the different way balanced amps typically behave vs SE on the same headphone (ie, additional power & greater separation/imaging). One way to do it would be run the M-Stage SE for 1st part of comparison; then balanced for 2nd. 

Even that plan isn't perfect since some balanced amps are optimized for balanced output & the SE output doesn't sound quite as good (not sure if the M-Stage is one of those).


----------



## wantan

Some reviews say the Matrix sounds better balanced than SE. Also the Deckard has many different parts including a differend PSU so it might sound very different (depending on the personal grade of audio nervosa) than the Matrix. 

They both look very good in my opinion, the Deckard is an especially nice looking amp.


----------



## mcbaon (Nov 28, 2017)

The Deckard amp is excelent. Compared with a benchmark Dac3, and is much better as a amp. As a dac.. not so good. It sound a little worse than a Schiit modi 2. I'm using  tha modi 2 instead as a the internal DAC. Will get a bifrost multibit for it. Using the benchmark as a DAC, it sounds fantastic, using a Hifiman editionn X V2.


----------



## wantan

@Bifrost Multibit, many people seem to prefer the Modi Multibit and some expect an Bifrost Multibit update in the (near) future. Might be worth to keep in mind if you're in the market for a new dac.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

I have no idea how people are saying the DAC is bad. This is confusing the crap out of me.


----------



## Pharmaboy

Anytime any DAC is mentioned (here or anywhere), some people love it; some can take it or leave it; and some pull out their Uzi's and start blasting.

*Any* DAC (it's human nature, apparently).

Re the Deckard's DAC, I've many comments about it. Seems to me that, since this unit accepts RCA inputs from other sources (including other DACs), the amp section--the thing most people seem to like the most--can be used independently of the DAC. Which means IMO you basically get a bonus DAC along w/a pretty well regarded headphone amp. Not the worst problem to have...


----------



## Tompo88

SomeGuyDude said:


> I have no idea how people are saying the DAC is bad. This is confusing the **** out of me.



I never really understood that either. I have several DACs that I would put it on par with. Only thing that I have that I like significantly more is a Gungnir multibit. But that remains at my desk and typically move my Deckard to other rooms. Perfectly happy with the internal DAC.


----------



## mcbaon

For me, I realized the shortcomings of the internal DAC when  I changed my headphone from the Hifiman 400i to the Edition X V2. Before, I was very happy with the internal DAC. Now, the differences between DACs are much more easy to spot.


----------



## freitz

Has anyone used this Dac Amp with the Mr. Speakers Aeon Flow's Closed Back?

I have the EL-8s look to move to the Aeon Flow's. But was considering selling this Amp/Dac for the Schiit Jot instead of keeping the Deckard. Thoughts?


----------



## maheeinfy

Spec shows Line-out as Class-A. Is the headphone amp section also Class-A ?


----------



## gLer (Dec 9, 2017)

wantan said:


> Many reviews regarded the amp section of the Deckard higher than the DAC section.
> 
> I'd be very curious how the Deckard as an amp compares to the balanced matrix m-stage. The price difference between the two allows for a decent seperate DAC.


That’s exactly what I realized when building a system, and so paired the Matrix HPA-3B with an ifi Micro iDSD (original silver as I’m only using it for the DAC). I now have a “supercharged” Deckard with a more powerful balanced amp and a more powerful dac (dual multibit customized Burr Brown 1793 dac chips) with native DSD support and the flexibility to go ‘mobile’ with the iDSD as a portable DAC/amp. The ifi pairs beautifully with the Matrix, and even though it’s not a fully balanced system, it has most of the advantages (including incredible power and control over both my LCD-2F and ZMF Atticus).


----------



## maheeinfy

Here is the 'Bass i love you' track

When i played it through Deckard using internal DAC,  headphones distort like crazy

But if i run the same track with my m9xx as DAC, there is no distortion. If anyone can give it a try and report back, i'd appreciate it

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwGS92F7YA7rZUxrdE9zRW16WG8/view


----------



## gLer

maheeinfy said:


> Here is the 'Bass i love you' track
> 
> When i played it through Deckard using internal DAC,  headphones distort like crazy
> 
> ...


Ok so I've just tried this track out on my ifi and Matrix 3B combo. Zero distortion - and I was playing it loud using both the LCD-2F and Atticus. Which headphones are you using? Maybe the Deckard has too much power for your phones? Have you tried it on low gain? By the way, cool song, but it actually has more treble and midrange energy than bass, so if anything is distorting it shouldn't be the 'bass' because there really isn't that much bass in the song...


----------



## maheeinfy

gLer said:


> Ok so I've just tried this track out on my ifi and Matrix 3B combo. Zero distortion - and I was playing it loud using both the LCD-2F and Atticus. Which headphones are you using? Maybe the Deckard has too much power for your phones? Have you tried it on low gain? By the way, cool song, but it actually has more treble and midrange energy than bass, so if anything is distorting it shouldn't be the 'bass' because there really isn't that much bass in the song...


I suspect the DAC on Deckard is the problem. When i use an external dac m9xx and Deckard as amp there is no distortion


----------



## gLer

maheeinfy said:


> I suspect the DAC on Deckard is the problem. When i use an external dac m9xx and Deckard as amp there is no distortion


Not sure how a dac can distort the sound. Surely that’s the function of the amp? Maybe someone with more tech know how can enlighten us? In any case, the Deckard is meant to be an absolutely superb amp, providing plenty of power and control for some of the best headphones in the world. Just read Bob Katz’s LCD-4 review on Innerfidelity to see what he thinks of it. I suspect, if it is the Deckard, there’s a technical issue with your unit.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

maheeinfy said:


> Here is the 'Bass i love you' track
> 
> When i played it through Deckard using internal DAC,  headphones distort like crazy
> 
> ...



Zero distortion for me, brotha.


----------



## maheeinfy

SomeGuyDude said:


> Zero distortion for me, brotha.


Thanks! Was it using internal dac on the Deckard?


----------



## SomeGuyDude

maheeinfy said:


> Thanks! Was it using internal dac on the Deckard?



Yep.  Straight USB into the HD650 because my X is out.


----------



## resafety

Loving the Deckard so far! Great for planars! Although should I be concerned about how warm it gets? I usually have it on for like 10+ hours on my desk while listening to music and/or gaming.


----------



## SomeGuyDude

resafety said:


> Loving the Deckard so far! Great for planars! Although should I be concerned about how warm it gets? I usually have it on for like 10+ hours on my desk while listening to music and/or gaming.



It's designed to get hot. The whole body is a giant heatsink.  It keeps the internals from overheating. Don't stress it, brother!


----------



## resafety

SomeGuyDude said:


> It's designed to get hot. The whole body is a giant heatsink.  It keeps the internals from overheating. Don't stress it, brother!


Thanks!


----------



## SomeGuyDude

resafety said:


> Thanks!



Oh and another FYI. If it actually does overheat (and I'm not sure what that would take, I accidentally left it on for like two days before), it'll just shut off. Give it some time to cool down and it'll spring back to life.


----------



## mcbaon

Here in Brazil, it gets really hot when the room temperature exceeds 28ºC. Under 24º it gets only warm.


----------



## maheeinfy

SomeGuyDude said:


> Zero distortion for me, brotha.


Ok i think i figured out what was causing that distortion. Its the generic usb driver that Windows installs with the new Creators update. New generic drivers 'supports' all my DACs but looks like its not perfect. 

Installed the drivers from Audeze website, and everything sounds fine now


----------



## SomeGuyDude

maheeinfy said:


> Ok i think i figured out what was causing that distortion. Its the generic usb driver that Windows installs with the new Creators update. New generic drivers 'supports' all my DACs but looks like its not perfect.
> 
> Installed the drivers from Audeze website, and everything sounds fine now



YES, oh man. I made that mistake too haha.  The Windows drivers are GARBAGE. I have no idea what's going on there. Gotta use the Audeze direct and it'll sound loads better. Had the same issue with my Mojo.


----------



## GarageBoy

Class a amps are basically "on" all the time, it'll get warm. Anyone try the amp with an aeon flow, atticus, elear, or ether ?


----------



## gLer

GarageBoy said:


> Class a amps are basically "on" all the time, it'll get warm. Anyone try the amp with an aeon flow, atticus, elear, or ether ?


I tried my Matrix HPA-3B (balanced Deckard amp section) with the Atticus. Not bad, powers it well. Works Bettie with the Woo WA3 though (which I bought after comparing it to the sound from the Matrix. Matrix pairs beautifully with my LCDs however.


----------



## Pharmaboy

gLer said:


> I tried my Matrix HPA-3B (balanced Deckard amp section) with the Atticus. Not bad, powers it well. Works Bettie with the Woo WA3 though (which I bought after comparing it to the sound from the Matrix. Matrix pairs beautifully with my LCDs however.



Your post mentions 3 things of great interest to me:

Atticus (have a new pair burning in right now)
Matrix HPA-3B (very interested in this for Atticus & other HPs)
and Woo WA3 (    "             "                "               "             "     ) + want some quality tube sound on the desktop
(thanks for this!)


----------



## MyNickIsUnique (Dec 18, 2017)

Hello,

i recently sold my Chord Mojo and was on a hunt for new toy. My main goal was to improve sound on my pc for gaming/music/videos. First i turned my interest onto Astell Kern AK70 but i wasnt sure i want another battery driven device for my mainly home use. Also price and battery life were major reasons not to buy Astell. Next i discovered Sony Walkman NW ZX300, which is the newest walkman with 30 hour battery life and first walkman with DAC function and its same cost as ak70. I almost bought it but then i read about its major flaw, which is 0.5 sec delay in dac mode with pc. Its not problem for music. Not a big one for video as you can set delay, but it is problem for gaming, which i do a lot. So i turned into desktop dac/amp combos and bought Deckard. It was for roughly same price as ak70 and Sony and almost twice as Mojo, which is currently quite cheap in Europe. I use it with Hifiman HE400i and i found the sound quite decent but not mindblowing. I cannot compare it to Mojo much because i got Deckard after almost month since i sold Mojo. But if would have to try, i would say Deckard is more fun, has more detail and has V shaped sound, but can sound tiring and harsh with longer listening compared to Mojo. Both devices are huge improvement when compared to pc onboard sound card but nothing spectacular i was hoping based on superlative reviews. There are few notices after few days of use:

- it works without any problem and without delay under windows 10 usb 3.0 up to 192/24 and it is dead silent with HE400i
- medium gain seems to work best with he400i. On low its slightly more natural and spacious but it lacks bass and sounds kinda boring
- once my left channel was low on volume and i discovered, that if you slightly move with gain switch it drops in and out....not very sturdy..kinda afraid to touch it anymore

I want to ask: what windows player/codecs are you using to achieve max sound quality? I have foobar and have tried direct sound, kernel streaming,asio and wasapi and all sound the same. When using asio, kernel or wasapi, the XMOS driver outputs correct sampling rate and doesnt over/under sample to sampling rate which i got set in windows, BUT i can still control volume in windows, which is weird. I couldnt do that with Mojo. Windows shouldnt have to be able to control volume or do any bul***t to sound when im doing asynchronous usb perfect bit to bit output. So i wonder if im doing something wrong? Also... anyone using different usb cable and achieving better sound?


----------



## mattering

I just got my Deckard in today. Firstly, it looks way better in real life compared to pictures posted over the internet and there is some heft to its weight! I like it. I wish I could compare this to my now defunct Geek Pulse X, I can only compare it to my Dragonfly Red (DFR) DAC/AMP in which, the Deckard wins hands down. I also don't have a dedicated amp to pair it with to just test the DAC section of the Deckard or DFR. The Deckard is definitely erring on the warm side. What I noticed when I went from my DFR to Deckard is that the Deckard needs some warming up to get the optimal sound from it. So here goes. I'm just switching back and forth from the Deckard to the DFR as I am writing this. Also I'm using downloaded spotify songs as well as my Earsonic SM64s to test both DAC/AMPs. Volume matching/loudness of playback is done by ear.

DISCLAIMER: I am not the best at describing sound, nor am I very knowledgeable at discerning different frequencies. All my conclusion on frequency region comes from research through websites and clip examples/ messing with EQ. Also, I've been into head-fi/speakers since 2010 or more specifically, I started my journey during 2010. At 23, I may have lost hearing in the really high frequencies but I'm not sure as I have not done a hearing test.

*Sound Comparison: Deckard (Low Gain) vs Dragonfly Red (DFR)*

Bass Song: Sango - So Voce - Great Sub-bass representation with easy to distinguish mid-bass (think of a drum bass kick) while making it easy to tell if bass bleeds into the other regions. The snare does get muted a bit once the bass kicks in but that is due to mastering.
Mids Song: Point Point - F+L - Has a lot of mid-centric synths and instruments (I think). Simple yet complex track that is relatively well mastered in my opinion.
Highs Song: Darius - Carried Away - Hi-hats on this song shows how each product handles high frequencies. Mastering is good.


Bass
To test Sub-bass, bass that rumbles instead of bass that has impact (think of a drum bass kick), I used "Sango - So Voce". Bass starts at 0:41. Reason to choose this song? That sub-bass is just orgasmic in my opinion. To start off, the DFR does sub-bass pretty well but at the cost of mid-bass as the impact of the initial bass kick, though still present, is not very impactful.  The bass extends really well but there is a little bit of a bloat in the region (I'm thinking around 100Hz region). The reason why I say there bass is a bit bloaty is because though the DFR rumbles, there is more bass that just "floats" around in this track, making the bass sound a bit loose and not as tight/well controlled. The rumble is there but it relatively light.

Compared to the DFR, the Deckard really does bass well. That sub-bass rumble is amazing. Simply put, it rumbles all the way down and tickles my genital areas. Ok, that may be an exaggeration. But it outclasses the DFR in this region. Bass is tight and well controlled. There is no bloat in bass in which I don't really hear bass that just "floats" around in the track. The initial bass kick is also more impactful compared to the DFR and the rumble does not effect it's initial impact and the bass kick's decay. The rumble is real with this one.

Fun fact: The bass bloat is more apparent on my HiVi Swan M50W 2.1 speakers and the bass is just way better with the Deckard.

Mids
My specialty is bass (I guess you can call me a basshead) and I'm not the best at describing Mids although I have had Westone 3 and Westone 4R which are notoriously known for their mids. For mids, I chose to listen to "Point Point - F+L". It's a wonderful remix of Kanye West's song Flashing Lights. The DFR definitely has recessed mids as the viola and other instruments at the start has a higher pitch than it is supposed to be. I'll keep this short as I'm not too sure how to describe mids but it is not overly recessed, just a little bit.

The Deckard reproduces the sound of the string instruments really well, there is more weight to them and the violas have a deeper sound. Not only that, but background details like the snaps, especially at 2:51 where the song becomes more "congested", and the shaking that starts at 3:02 are more prominent. Mids just sound better on the Deckard.

Fun Fact: Bass bloat is really apparent with this track on the DFR

Highs
To compare details in the high frequencies, I used the "Darius - Carried Away". For this song I focused mainly on the hi-hats and how each product extended the highs from it. The DFR does the highs really well. It sounds clean, crisp, well extended and also is not sharp. It may sound sharp for some people as it could be considered near the boundary of sharp. People who like their treble might appreciate how the highs sound on the DFR. It also does not sound "tinny" or thin/metallic. I really don't know if I'm using the terminology right on the last sentence but I always associate high frequencies with metal and it being able to be too thin.

The Deckard's highs are also great. They are like the DFR in which they do nothing wrong with it but they are not as prominent or sound a bit more muted compared to the DFR.

Miscellaneous Comments About Sound Performance and Other Stuff
- Deckard made my rethink how big the soundstage of my SM64 can go and it really made me go wow. DFR has good soundstage but is small compared to the Deckard.
- Deckard has wayyyyyyy better in overall sound presentation in terms of sound positioning, separation, and imaging. I can't stop smiling when listening to music now.
- DFR has more a V-shape like sound though the mids are not really that recessed. DFR is not bad though but the Deckard is just way better.
- As you can tell, I hate that bass bloat from the DFR
- Overall, I think that the Deckard is definitely worth $400 - $500 more than the DFR.
- Don't be scared to buy refurbished! I got mine refurbished and I still have the full 2 year warranty. Product registration went fine.

Overall the Deckard is somewhat neutral in that it represents all frequencies really well. It also leans more to the side of a warm signature.
Well folks, that wraps up my first impression of the Deckard. Hope you guys enjoyed it and hope it was useful.


----------



## freitz

Need Help,

Deckard driver not working after installing another drivier (ifi driver for the other dac amp I have). Tried reinstalling rebooting can't seem to get it to recognize it as an audio device. Please help.


----------



## maheeinfy

freitz said:


> Need Help,
> 
> Deckard driver not working after installing another drivier (ifi driver for the other dac amp I have). Tried reinstalling rebooting can't seem to get it to recognize it as an audio device. Please help.


Remove another driver and reinstall audeze driver
If possible use the windows generic driver on the other device


----------



## mcbaon

Bob Katz made several measurements on the Deckard.. The amp is REALLY good 
https://www.innerfidelity.com/content/katzs-corner-episode-21-how-insensitive-part-3


----------



## SomeGuyDude

I don't know why the Deckard seems to get so much crap, it's clearly a VERY well made device.


----------



## alife

I recently purchased a Deckard (after going through all 39 pages of this thread!) and have been very impressed by it. 

The only issue I am having is that when the unit is being used as a preamp (driving an amp and speakers) and I plug in my headphones, the signal to the amp is cut, as it is supposed to be, but I get a buzzing sound in my speakers even if there is no music playing.  The buzzing goes away as soon as I unplug the headphone. (There is no buzzing heard through the headphones.)

Has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks


----------



## Pharron

Is the Deckard discontinued, or just sold out everywhere? I can't find one anywhere.


----------



## GarageBoy

I think so. Bought mine used, and there was a bunch on eBay at $450-500


----------



## MyNickIsUnique

Hi, i want to ask what gain i should use with LCD2C? It drives them loud enough even on low gain. I dont need even need to go over half volume. There is often said, that you should always use low gain unless you are out of volume, but from my own experience i would say higher gain sometimes brings more dynamics and better controlled bass. Maybe somebody could share their thoughts on this matter? Especially if you use this amp with any of Audeze headphones. thanks


----------



## SomeGuyDude

MyNickIsUnique said:


> Hi, i want to ask what gain i should use with LCD2C? It drives them loud enough even on low gain. I dont need even need to go over half volume. There is often said, that you should always use low gain unless you are out of volume, but from my own experience i would say higher gain sometimes brings more dynamics and better controlled bass. Maybe somebody could share their thoughts on this matter? Especially if you use this amp with any of Audeze headphones. thanks



I used medium with my LCD-X and kept the volume a good bit under half. I would imagine the 2C would behave similarly.


----------



## G_T_J

Hello. I just bought a new B-grade Deckard and it is on its way.

As I have heard mixed things about the embedded DAC ,I'm wondering if I'd be better off using my Modi USB (1st gen) instead?

I know that Burr-Brown DAC chips are highly-regarded and my experience in the past with a Cowon P1 can only agree with that consensus but at the same time, I'm a bit skeptical as there are many who eventually don't like Deckard's internal DAC. 

Needless to say, when I receive the unit next week I will try both options, however, your opinions on this are much appreciated.


----------



## alife

The DAC in the Deckard is very good.  I compared it to DACs from Wyred4Sound, iFi Micro, Marantz HD-DAC1, and found nothing lacking.  The W4S was a bit more dimensional and vivid, but the Deckard was no slouch. It presents a large, 3-D soundstage, with strong bass and a relaxed presentation.  I suspect you would have to spend a fair bit to improve on it.



G_T_J said:


> Hello. I just bought a new B-grade Deckard and it is on its way.
> 
> As I have heard mixed things about the embedded DAC ,I'm wondering if I'd be better off using my Modi USB (1st gen) instead?
> 
> ...


----------



## G_T_J

alife said:


> The DAC in the Deckard is very good.  I compared it to DACs from Wyred4Sound, iFi Micro, Marantz HD-DAC1, and found nothing lacking.  The W4S was a bit more dimensional and vivid, but the Deckard was no slouch. It presents a large, 3-D soundstage, with strong bass and a relaxed presentation.  I suspect you would have to spend a fair bit to improve on it.


Thank you so much.
Your words sound very promising!


----------



## G_T_J

alife said:


> The DAC in the Deckard is very good.  I compared it to DACs from Wyred4Sound, iFi Micro, Marantz HD-DAC1, and found nothing lacking.  The W4S was a bit more dimensional and vivid, but the Deckard was no slouch. It presents a large, 3-D soundstage, with strong bass and a relaxed presentation.  I suspect you would have to spend a fair bit to improve on it.


May I also ask you another question if you don't mind?

I have a Schiit Wyrd. Will it make any difference or there's no point in using it in the chain since Deckard has its own power supply?

Thanks for your opinion


----------



## alife

I don't know, I'm afraid.  Have toyed with getting a USB decrapifier but haven't tried any yet.


----------



## G_T_J

alife said:


> I don't know, I'm afraid.  Have toyed with getting a USB decrapifier but haven't tried any yet.


Thanks for taking the time to reply anyway.

Tomorrow I'll have the Deckard and hopefully the chance to try it.


----------



## Ad-Astra

How do you compare this to anedio d2?


----------



## raoultrifan

wantan said:


> [...] Also the Deckard has many different parts including a differend PSU so it might sound very different (depending on the personal grade of audio nervosa) than the Matrix. [...] .



Not sure Audeze has a different PSU, I really think it's about the same transformer, same diodes and same JRC7818/7918 regulators, same KG and MUSES caps.
However, PSU ripple & noise is quite low...if I remember correctly around 1mV peak-peak.


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## raoultrifan

maheeinfy said:


> Spec shows Line-out as Class-A. Is the headphone amp section also Class-A ?



Actually headphone amplifier is Class-A topology.


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## X-Frame

What are the usual prices you guys have seen for this amp when Refurbished from Audeze?

I’ve heard others say they grabbed some recently from Audeze (Amazon) for $340. Is a Refurbished unit worth $500 or so?


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## SomeGuyDude

It was $700 new so I'd say a refurb at $500 is plenty worth it.


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## mattering

X-Frame said:


> What are the usual prices you guys have seen for this amp when Refurbished from Audeze?
> 
> I’ve heard others say they grabbed some recently from Audeze (Amazon) for $340. Is a Refurbished unit worth $500 or so?



I would say it is. It is a discontinued product and finding stock for it is relatively hard.


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## G_T_J

I bought a refurbished unit from an official retailer in the UK for 400GBP.
If you do the conversion in dollars, I think that one you mention is a fair price.


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## X-Frame

Thanks everyone! I’m going to take the weekend and decide if I want to pull the trigger.

Follow-up question about the amp — the website says it is Class A, but A-Weighted. Does that mean this is not a full 100% Class A amp but only weighted towards A, but could switch to B at some point?


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## Pharmaboy

X-Frame said:


> Thanks everyone! I’m going to take the weekend and decide if I want to pull the trigger.
> 
> Follow-up question about the amp — the website says it is Class A, but A-Weighted. Does that mean this is not a full 100% Class A amp but only weighted towards A, but could switch to B at some point?



The manufacturer's specifications (link below) says it's "*Type: Single-Ended Class-A*"

(that's enough for me to call it a class A amp, not A/B)

https://www.audeze.com/products/amplifiers/deckard


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## raoultrifan (Apr 7, 2018)

It's really Class-A, you can feel its heat with your hand. 
A-weighted it has nothing to do with the way transistors are operating: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-weighting.


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## X-Frame

Gotcha, thanks guys!


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## X-Frame

So I managed to grab a Refurbished Deckard from the Audeze Headphone Amazon page and it arrived today. Everything was accounted for (save for the USB cable, which is fine since I have my own), but as soon as I removed it from the packaging the Deckard's volume knob just fell right off. 

Doesn't look like it is something where I can snap it back into place. I emailed Audeze and waiting to hear back. Otherwise, is my only option to use glue? I'm not very handy. Anyone have any ideas? Bummer!


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## harpo1

X-Frame said:


> So I managed to grab a Refurbished Deckard from the Audeze Headphone Amazon page and it arrived today. Everything was accounted for (save for the USB cable, which is fine since I have my own), but as soon as I removed it from the packaging the Deckard's volume knob just fell right off.
> 
> Doesn't look like it is something where I can snap it back into place. I emailed Audeze and waiting to hear back. Otherwise, is my only option to use glue? I'm not very handy. Anyone have any ideas? Bummer!


There's a hole in the side of the volume knob with a set screw in it.  It's probably just loose.  Find the right allen wrench to tighten it.


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## X-Frame

harpo1 said:


> There's a hole in the side of the volume knob with a set screw in it.  It's probably just loose.  Find the right allen wrench to tighten it.



Thank you! Yes, I didn't notice it then -- found the appropriate allen wrench and was able to tighten it easily. Easy peazy. Appreciate the help! This thing is a massive block steel, geez.


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## Luke-

Hi,

Picked up a Dackard a few weeks ago.what gain setting do you guys use for your LCD-2f ?

I Find medium to be more forward than low gain anyone else experience this.

Cheers


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## Pharmaboy

Luke- said:


> Hi,
> 
> Picked up a Dackard a few weeks ago.what gain setting do you guys use for your LCD-2f ?
> 
> ...



How do you like the sound of this amp?

I've never heard a Deckard. But there has been a slow-motion discussion here and in other threads about the sound of low vs medium vs high gain. Many believe, as you say, that there are sonic differences between gain settings. I tend to believe that also (high gain means greater amplification than low gain = more electronics brought to bear on that line-level signal coming into the amp. But since I only use low gain on all my amps, it's just conjecture.

I do have an LCD-2, one of the original ".2" versions (pre-fazor). I've tried this on 3 solid state amps of widely varying power (Liquid Carbon v2; Lake People G109-A; and Violectric V281. In all 3 cases, I got more than enough volume without ever reaching ~10:00 to 10:30 on dial(s).

_FYI, the Deckard's power output is 4W@20 ohms, which is somewhat less than the V281's but more than the G109-A's._

The only headphone I have that could possibly justify a higher gain stage is the power-hungry planar, ZMF Ori. But even there I get more than enough volume at ~11:30 to 12:00 on the dial(s), so never bothered changing gain.


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## X-Frame

I’m the same. I have the LCD-2C’s though but my max comfortable listening volume on Low Gain with the Deckard is maybe 11 o’clock. If I switch to Medium then I have no room for volume adjustment. It sounds wonderful to me on Low Gain as well.

I still am new to this hobby but I don’t understand the technical reasons why Gain stages would change the sound if the end volume result is the same. If measured that getting to for example 80 decibels volume is 12 o’clock on Low Gain but the same 80 decibels at 10 o’clock on Medium Gain — what is the difference? Isn’t the same exact power being outputted? I know this is more of a general question than exclusive to the Deckard.


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## Pharmaboy

X-Frame said:


> I’m the same. I have the LCD-2C’s though but my max comfortable listening volume on Low Gain with the Deckard is maybe 11 o’clock. If I switch to Medium then I have no room for volume adjustment. It sounds wonderful to me on Low Gain as well.
> 
> I still am new to this hobby but I don’t understand the technical reasons why Gain stages would change the sound if the end volume result is the same. If measured that getting to for example 80 decibels volume is 12 o’clock on Low Gain but the same 80 decibels at 10 o’clock on Medium Gain — what is the difference? Isn’t the same exact power being outputted? I know this is more of a general question than exclusive to the Deckard.



Well, I'm hardly the electrical engineering wizard around here. But your 2nd paragraph kind of misses the point: the end result of changing gain is not the same at all. Here's what I mean...a mental exercise:

Find the perfect spot on the volume pot for your LCD-2 at low gain on a given piece of music.
Now turn the music off
Then, without changing the position of the volume pot, increase the gain to medium, high, or whatever the next gain level is
Now start the music again. Of course it'll be 6dB louder, 10dB louder, or whatever the gain differential is going from "low" to "medium" or "high"
That additional volume is what changed. In other words, the amplifier is modifying the incoming line level signal considerably more at high gain than at low gain. Understand, "modify" means primarily the addition of volume; but it can also include slightly higher distortion output & other variations in measured output signal vs the signal coming in.

In a well designed amp with abundant, well-regulated power supplies, this may not have any sonic consequences at all. Or it may have tiny/subtle sonic consequences. What you get is totally amp- and system-dependent.
There's also an interaction with the amp's "load," the headphone. Higher sensitivity/lower impedance headphones will more readily convey any such subtle sonic changes.

In general, gain is a funny thing. Some people on Head-Fi described going from a DAC with nominal output voltage of, say, 2.0 volts, to a new DAC with higher nominal output (3.0 volts or higher)--and finding their downstream gear (headphone amp, preamp, speakers, whatever) sounds just a little different, even w/preamp volume pot optimally adjusted.


----------



## Damien Chung

Would the LCD 2.2 Pre-fazor match well with the deckard


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## Pharmaboy

I haven't heard the Deckard, though I nearly bought one at one time. I love the look of it; and many describe it as slightly warm, musical amp (ie, my cup of tea).

I have, however, heard a borrowed LCD-2F (fazor, ~2 yrs old) & my own LCD-2.1 (all original, 1st gen everything but pad)...on various solid state amps that are also often described as slightly warm (V281; Lake People G109-A; Liquid Carbon v2). I also heard the LCD-2.1 at length on an OTL tube amp (Woo WA3).

So my guess is the LCD-2.1 or 2.2 pre-fazor might sound good on the Audeze, all other things equal.

I wouldn't relish the thought of hearing either LCD-2 with amps described as "accurate," "detailed," "high resolution," etc. I say that for 2 reasons:

Despite all the descriptions of the LCD-2s as warm, musical, bassy, euphonic--I don't find them to be warm to any significant degree. The bass is rather nice for an open-back planar (though not basshead territory); and the rest of the range strikes me middle-of-the-road in tonality.
Both have a tendency to sound slightly bright/peaky in the upper mids on certain cuts (guessing this is a narrow & shallow spike in upper mids). I suspect that a "neutral" or "cold, clinical" SS amp might make these headphones sound brighter, to a point I would find objectionable.
I'm treble- and brightness-averse, so take this all with a grain of salt. 

Some favor wide open treble/slightly tipped up tonality...for them, a not-at-all warm amp might be the ticket on the LCD-2s.


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## Ashah

I have the Deckard and a mojo , sold my LCD 2f last year and now have the LCD X I use the Deckard , Love the amp side of the unit as I also have a Schilt Gungnir & a PS audio DirectStream which is in my main system but some time I use it with the Deckard  as  a DAC for my Desk top listening, I think Deckard is one of the most under rated headphone amps


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## Jay Smith

Ashah said:


> I have the Deckard and a mojo , sold my LCD 2f last year and now have the LCD X I use the Deckard , Love the amp side of the unit as I also have a Schilt Gungnir & a PS audio DirectStream which is in my main system but some time I use it with the Deckard  as  a DAC for my Desk top listening, I think Deckard is one of the most under rated headphone amps


I agree.  I also has mojo and Deckard to drive Beyer T1.2, amp is Beyer A2 and Icon audio mk2, run thru Macbook Audirvana plus.  I use deckard as Dac instead of Mojo most of the time,  Mojo is good but sounds too forward and it did not work out in my system.  Deckard as Dac is pretty musical and balance but not as details as Mojo.  Recently I acquired a used dac Matrix Audio X-sabre,  now I know how much better the dac can improve my system, I no longer use Mojo and Deckard as dac.


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## bungles

Has anyone paired the Deckard with the Chord Mojo?  I currently have a Mojo and and wanting a little more oomph from the amp section to power my lcd2c's


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## hawkwindx (Sep 29, 2018)

Never used a mojo but mine is paired up with a JDS Labs EL DAC and it sounds great with the LCD-3's I bought new in August of this year, 2018.


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## hawkwindx (Sep 29, 2018)

*


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## muscleking

anybody tried USB cable rolling with deckard? how is the usb cable that came with deckard. it's the black transparent one which you can see some metal shielding. i am using it with audio GD dac/amp and pretty good. just wondering if get some cable around 400 bucks will make a sound difference


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## Pharmaboy

Funny to get this msg today. I just purchased a used Lush USB cable (Phasure Audio)--a cable much praised for its beneficial effect on digital sound. The 1M Lush USB costs (I believe) $325 new. I paid $210, including shipping.

I'll get the cable in a couple days, then switch it into my secondary headphone listening station in place of a cheap USB cable. That system consists of the Audio GD DAC-19 + a rotating series of SS amps (usually LC v2, Lake People G109-A, or M Stage Matrix HPA-1).

Hoping I hear a positive difference.

I did go through something similar w/another digital cable, a coax cable: a couple years ago I replaced the 1.5M Billy Jeans coax cable running from my S/PDIF converter (Musical Fidelity V-Link 24/192) to main DAC, the Audio GD NOS 19. I put in a much-praised silver coax cable by Oyaide (DR-510, which I recall cost ~225). That was an outstanding success--instantly audible improvements. 

I tend to be a believer in things like effects of burn-in, differences in sound from changing cables, etc. Because that's what I hear, more often than not.


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## muscleking

i just saw someone selling the lush usb cable on USA audio mart, i am checking canuck audio mart every hour now for stuff ever since i identified the site, bought a deckard, audio gd 10.32, audeze 2.1 non fazor and HD800. none of these will lose money if i flip on ebay. but so far love everything. tomorrow the lcd2 and hd800 will arrive. comes with XLO cables. so first time i will see if i can hear the difference on headphone cables. right now the weak link is the usb cable. so looks like audiogd is sensitive to cables.

i think i noticed a difference with the NCF wall duplex set. i didn't do too much comparision since i got the audiogd. just kept buying and buying. don't really care at this point. either the usb cable i decide to buy is good or bad i will keep. no desire to buy any other dac/amp after audio-gd. looks like it's gonna be between curious and lush. the curious cable rarely have people selling on used market and if any sells very very fast. maybe wait for black friday/boxing day see if official website drop a bit.

i am using a crappy dell monitor USB cable with the deckard at work and it sounds much crappier than i remember. i don't even bother turn that one on just use my old iphone 5s + sine + lightning cable and sounds pretty good through apple music.


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## muscleking

anyone tried to connect this to iphone lightning port? what's the best otg cable i can get to go from iphone to usb then connect to deckard? want to use apple music to connect to this.


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## hawkwindx

In case you missed it...

Audio Science Review

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...surements-of-audeze-deckard-dac-and-amp.5571/


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## BlueThunder (May 14, 2019)

What are these like compared to the Sony WM1Z for a set of Audeze 4Z? If I can get one very cheap for home use is it worth picking up or should I stick with the WM1Z for home use?


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## BlueThunder

Guess the Deckard isn’t a hot topic!


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## baseonmars

If you can get a reconditioned one, the amp is decent and versatile but the DAC is lacking. I used to own one and I enjoyed it very much. It comes down to how you’re planning on feeding it music.


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## BlueThunder (May 16, 2019)

baseonmars said:


> If you can get a reconditioned one, the amp is decent and versatile but the DAC is lacking. I used to own one and I enjoyed it very much. It comes down to how you’re planning on feeding it music.


Thanks. Probably feeding from the WM1Z, single ended output, if that is possible, otherwise using USB from computer.


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## baseonmars

BlueThunder said:


> Thanks. Probably feeding from the WM1Z, single ended output, if that is possible, otherwise using USB from computer.



There’s RCA input. I highly recommend avoiding the USB input. I wonder if it would bring much to the table vs the WM1Z, but if you have the funds spare it is a lovely bit of kit so why not treat yourself.


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## BlueThunder

baseonmars said:


> There’s RCA input. I highly recommend avoiding the USB input. I wonder if it would bring much to the table vs the WM1Z, but if you have the funds spare it is a lovely bit of kit so why not treat yourself.


That’s what I was wondering. I can get it for £200 when buying the 4Z. I wondered if the 4Z would benefit from the extra power (or some future headphone i’m not aware of wanting to buy yet.....)


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## baseonmars

BlueThunder said:


> That’s what I was wondering. I can get it for £200 when buying the 4Z. I wondered if the 4Z would benefit from the extra power (or some future headphone i’m not aware of wanting to buy yet.....)



I used to use it with a pair of LCD-3F and MrSpeakers Aeon Flow Closed. It’s versatile for sure and can be used as a preamp too. I think at the price you’re getting it you can easily sell it on at minimal loss, maybe even a profit if/when you want something else.


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## hawkwindx

I have a Bottlehead Crack with Speedball, a tube amp that works best with high impedance headphones. I have LCD-3 headphones that are low impedance. I use them with the Audeze Deckard and JDS Labs “EL DAC”.  

Question - has anyone used the Bottlehead Crack hooked to a solid state amp like the Deckard? This would make the Bottlehead Crack a preamp to the Deckard. The way I would attach them is using a 3.5 mm to RCA cord, from the Bottlehead Crack headphone jack to the Deckard RCA input. 

I’m wondering if this will add the “tube” sound to the Deckard?


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## Jonfairway

Hello folks !
Have a good few years on my Deckard now ..well and truly used as they say and very happy still with its performance    well worth it if they come up second hand at £200  or so ... not going to get much better for double that amount...  its amp section is quality... and heats the room on winter nights !!


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## lowrider007 (May 28, 2020)

Luke- said:


> Hi,
> 
> Picked up a Dackard a few weeks ago.what gain setting do you guys use for your LCD-2f ?
> 
> ...



I know this is reply to an old post but I just wanted to chime in on this, low gain (0dB) on this amp sounds a lot better than med gain (10dB) imo, med gain is a lot more forward and even becomes a little shouty if you crank the volume, ultimately I guess it will depend on the headphones as to which you prefer, I'm using AKG K712's and on low gain my perfect listening volume is around 12'oclock which I think is perfect, it allows for good volume control and stays away from the low end of the potentiometer for better channel balance.


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## Arghavan (Nov 4, 2021)

Is this amp still viable in 2021? I've found a used one for 350$ (planning to use with Aeolus and DCA Noire)


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## ShaolinGrump

I really like the sound of mine with LCD-XC Bubinga. The DAC is neutral to my ears.  My Deckard is sensitive to cell phone noise and other RF/EMI, so I have to use airplane mode and place it away from my main desktop components.  I don't know if all units have this sensitivity, but Audeze knows about it:

https://audeze.zendesk.com/hc/en-us...-King-amp-is-humming-or-making-strange-noises


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## rhart00

I still love mine. I use a Schiit Bifrost 2 as a DAC instead of the built-in one and use either OG Audeze LCD2s or Focal Celestees. Still listen to it daily for streaming Tidal/Qobuz and gaming.


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## JoeTho

I still use mine. It's the best amp I've heard with my beloved XCs


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## drifter74




----------



## drifter74

It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built. 
The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.


----------



## lowrider007

drifter74 said:


> It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built.
> The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.


Interesting, I've also been eyeing up the Chord Qutest to pair with my Deckard, will be eager see what you think.

I'm still enjoying my amp, love the style and build, and has bags of power.


----------



## drifter74

lowrider007 said:


> Interesting, I've also been eyeing up the Chord Qutest to pair with my Deckard, will be eager see what you think.
> 
> I'm still enjoying my amp, love the style and build, and has bags of power.


I order and paid for mine about a month ago via the local dealer. ETA was supposed to be 4 to 6 weeks.
Received a call yesterday from the dealer stating that the next batch of Qutest will only land Feb 2022  (I am in South Africa).
I was told such is the global demand for the Qutest that Chord cannot keep up with supply. Don'y know how true that is but looks like I will have to wait quite a bit longer.


----------



## Pharmaboy

drifter74 said:


> It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built.
> The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.


Whatever that thing is the 2 headphone stands are sitting on--I like it.


----------



## lowrider007

drifter74 said:


> I order and paid for mine about a month ago via the local dealer. ETA was supposed to be 4 to 6 weeks.
> Received a call yesterday from the dealer stating that the next batch of Qutest will only land Feb 2022  (I am in South Africa).
> I was told such is the global demand for the Qutest that Chord cannot keep up with supply. Don'y know how true that is but looks like I will have to wait quite a bit longer.



That's a shame, I'm on the lookout for second-hand one on eBay so I might end up with one before you! 

What Gain setting do you prefer to use with your LCD-2's? In the photo it looks like your Deckard set to high?


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## drifter74

Pharmaboy said:


> Whatever that thing is the 2 headphone stands are sitting on--I like it.



LoL. That is my desk. It has a burgundy leather insert.



lowrider007 said:


> That's a shame, I'm on the lookout for second-hand one on eBay so I might end up with one before you!
> 
> What Gain setting do you prefer to use with your LCD-2's? In the photo it looks like your Deckard set to high?



To my ears there is a sonic difference between low and high gain. Gain adds a touch more forwardness to the sound while low is smoother.
I prefer low, but I do switch between them.

The dealer offered me a TT2 as those are available in stock but my pockets sadly are not deep enough.  Also, how much better can the TT2 be compared to the Deckard/Qutest combo - I don't know?


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## TWerk (Nov 21, 2022)

Love my deckard. Beautiful sound. This is it. Highly recommended. It is detailed, neutral, tons of power. Beautiful sound very organic but also crisp. Not sterile like some other amps. Pairs well with everything and is all you need if you are looking for clear, crisp, open, musical sound. Gorgeous look on a desk as well.

Switching from headphone to headphone and this thing just mates beautifully with them all. Sounds excellent as a pre-amp with speakers too.

End game as far as amp for me. I would suggest avoiding the built in DAC, the amp sounds much better with a separate input.


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## JoeTho

It is a kick ass Amp/DAC. I've had mine since 2016, and it still works just fine.


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## Spyronight

Will this be a good step up from the magni/modi? people are saying the Dad on this isn't the best, should I keep the modi? I will be powering a Grade RS-1, Audio Technica ATH A2000X and hopefully a LCD-2/3 in the future.


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## ShaolinGrump

@Spyronight keep the midi and compare to Deckard’s internal DAC

Deckard is a older excellent Matrix amp design with flashy BMW casing and quality onboard DAC.


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## ShaolinGrump

https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/audeze-deckard.1252/


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## lowrider007

Spyronight said:


> Will this be a good step up from the magni/modi? people are saying the Dad on this isn't the best, should I keep the modi? I will be powering a Grade RS-1, Audio Technica ATH A2000X and hopefully a LCD-2/3 in the future.



Big step up imo, bags of power, 

_"The Deckard outputs 10.5 Volts with full input. Here's a simple formula to determine its output power at a given impedance: divide 110 (voltage squared) by the impedance of the headphones (ohms) and your answer will be in watts (110/ohms=W).

So to run through our headphones, the output power of the Deckard into each is thus:
20 ohms (Sine, LCD-X/C, MX4, LCD-4z): 121/20= 6 W
30 ohms (EL-8): 4 W
70 ohms (LCD-2): 1.73 W
110 ohms (LCD-3): 1.1 W
200 ohms (LCD-4): 600 mW"_

I find the DAC more than adequate, not quite as good as my Mojo 2 but not a world apart either, the Deckard isn't a measurement king by any stretch but that doesn't bother me, I just like what sounds good and the Deckard is still one of my fav desktop amps, big bonus for me also it's single ended only topology so I don't have to mess about cable swapping which saves me money and hassle, I'm personally not a fan of the trend of balanced amps.


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## Spyronight

thank you all, It appears I have purchased in the 220V version, unsure of the frequency (hopefully its 60hz), I believe I need a transformer to use it in the U.S.


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## ShaolinGrump

Looks like voltage is switchable inside. Be careful or get some experienced help.


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## Spyronight

i dont know electronic much, I messaged audeze but they didnt really help; Ill try to figure it out when i receive the unit, Appreciate it, If I dont have to get a transformer all the better, My stax already has one and I get stressed every time I run it since their might be an electrical problem


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## maheeinfy

Anyone got the Deckard when Audeze had them on sale for $99


----------

