Just in … a review of the maudifi Stage 2 tweaked Musical Fidelity A3.24 DAC. This Digital to Analogue Converter in standard form is maybe getting on in years and uses a DAC chip that would be humbled by the paper specifications of modern silicon. However, it is sturdy, well-made and has “good bones” as they say. It’s just that they skimped on the quality of electronic components used in manufacture. Here maudifi upgrades those components to decent quality audio grade ones and makes a handful of other tweaks to extract hidden detail in the music and allow an emotional connection, rare in all but the priciest of equipment.
Anyway, enough of my waffle … This review comes from Nick in Surrey, UK and is posted as written by him. I’ll let him do the talking.
maudifi Stage 2 Musical Fidelity A3.24 DAC
Originally I was using the internal DAC on my Audiolab streamer into a Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista 300 after which I tried running its output through a Cambridge Audio DacMagic 100. The DM100 showed an improvement over the Audiolab but it wasn’t a gamechanger. It did make me think that a better DAC was worth considering, however.
When I talked things through with Scott I explained that what I really wanted was greater involvement, to feel as though I was getting more of a live feel. More energy, more stomp, greater muscularity. After discussing various options, I opted to go for a Stage 2 Musical Fidelity A3.24 DAC. The Stage 2 adds something like 50 [ed: 66] upgraded components on the power supply and DAC PCBs over the original A3.24 and although I’m sure it’s doable on a DIY basis there’s no way I was going to attempt it.
I’ve never had this DAC in unmodified form so this is hardly a fair A-B test. And I fully accept that in stock form the Tri-Vista 300 is a bit clinical, albeit ludicrously powerful, so it’s not like I have a sonically perfect system to test the DAC.
Leaving aside the caveats, let’s talk about the results. In short, this DAC is an absolute revelation. The highs are higher, the lows are lower, the instrument separation is a lot more, well, separate. Things shimmer.
Jason Isbell’s live recording of The Last Song I will Write now sounds like the bass player has suddenly improved their technique and discovered a lot more precision. The backing vocal, piano and rhythm guitar are pulled from the mix in a way that simply wasn’t there before; you feel a lot more like you’re there in the room. The vocals on David Bowie’s Lazarus are more ethereal whilst the drum kit now feels as though it’s right next to you and the bass is just far more insistent. It’s not all a bludgeoning bass-fest though, not by any means; Lou Reed’s Walk On the Wild Side is more delicate and subtle than I’ve ever heard before, with the backing vocals soaring.
Awesome, just awesome; I am, to quote Sister Sledge, lost in music. Scott has delivered exactly what he promised, a more involving and live-sounding DAC. Obviously this is highly personal – I wasn’t interested in chasing the highest possible sampling rates and I definitively didn’t want a super-neutral DAC, but that’s the joy of getting Scott to Maudifi your equipment; it’s possible – within reason – to accentuate the sound to suit what you’re looking for.
This is a niche upgrade, but if you were looking at buying (say) a Musical Fidelity M6x DAC, you could have this for half the price. And, dare I say it, you’d have the better and more involving sound. It really is that good.
