ANK DAC 4.1 Build

For the first Peter (in Sweden)

I do like the Shrink-Wrap.

Belt, suspenders and Velcro!

As for me, I said precisely what I meant. And, with a BA in Speech Communications, an MBA, a CPA and CFA I can assure you that English is my first language.

Peter W, you really do need to examine your motivations and online social skills, and others here would agree, I'm very sure.

audiobill wrote:As for me, I said precisely what I meant.  And, with a BA in Speech Communications, an MBA, a CPA and CFA I can assure you that English is my first language.

Peter W, you really do need to examine your motivations and online social skills, and others here would agree, I'm very sure.

Again, with respect - I would value accuracy over social niceties 100% of the time when in the realm of the technical. Generally, my motivation in this venue is to convey information as clearly and as accurately as I am able. Neither my 'feelings' nor those of others are at issue. We have all seen the consequences of poor information in other discussions. William of Occam pretty much summed up this sort of discussion back in the 1300s. Either something is, or it is not. And, if something is not, it need not be the opposite. Something is black or not black. Not black or white.

None of us, least of all me, are perfect. But not being perfect does not invite deliberate sloppiness.

cci1492 wrote:For the first Peter (in Sweden)

Nice solders !

Thanks, I was just waiting for any excuse to pull out the macro lens!

Just send it to me and I will build it!!! Lucky dog. Enjoy the journey. Hey is that some sort of helping hand setup your using with what looks like CNC machining tubing used for lubricating cuts? I need something like that for fine detail electronics soldering and would love a link to what it is or am I right about what it is and you made it yourself?

Yes as I posted further up: made that one out of a piece of thick aluminum I got on eBay. Drilled the holes, tapped the holes and then screwed those cnc coolant nozzles.

https://www.amazon.com/Uxcell-a15091400ux0601-Nozzle-Flexible-Coolant/dp/B018RT31R4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1544617733&sr=8-3&keywords=cnc+coolant+nozzle

Reason for showing the USB at all is that the chassis had to be drilled. Got lucky, with it turning out pretty centered.

Aha!

Was wondering if you went with the optional USB connection. I use that here, and it's all about the chipset. The USB tops out at 96/24 (like yours in that mode, I assUme?) and sonically runs rings around what I hear at the max higher 192/24 available via coaxial and optical. Be fascinating to hear your report on how the modes compare. I'd love to compare it to what I hear from my Maverick TubeMagic D1+, which is quite nice and performs well above it's price point.

This one only does 96/24.

"The latest version of the DAC 4.1 boasts numerous features and supports up to 24/96khz sampling and data widths."

http://ankaudiokits.com/Non-Oversampling-Valve-Rectified-Tube-DAC.html

Line board

Beautiful soldering!

I am sure this DAC is Phenomenal but 3k for just a kit is alot of mula considering you have to do all the hard work yourself.

If you consider that the Schiit Yggdrasil, also a well regarded multibit dac is $2,400, not so much considering all the good stuff in the ANK. Look at the interior pics of these two dacs and you'll see the value here.

Getting closer to done, more pics later.

pedrocols wrote:I am sure this DAC is Phenomenal but 3k for just a kit is alot of mula considering you have to do all the hard work yourself.

Yes Bill I do get it from the value stand point. I am just hopeful that this kit would be around the 2k mark so I could get one

audiobill wrote:If you consider that the Schiit Yggdrasil, also a well regarded multibit dac is $2,400, not so much considering all the good stuff in the ANK.  Look at the interior pics of these two dacs and you'll see the value here.

Yes Bill I do get it from the value stand point. I am just hopeful that this kit would be around the 2k mark so I could get one

You can email them and ask if a sale is in their near future. That's what I did.

Holy banoonies!
That's a whole lotta kit!

Looks like fun.

That much fun though, is out of my price range.

Testing on a cheap pair of PC speakers, tracking down a little noise on one of the channels...

Have you done a sound test yet???? I can't wait to hear your impression of the sound quality. Please share what you used previously and corresponding equipment if possible. Beautiful work!! It looks lovely and the journey looks like it was so much fun it makes me want to save up for one. Been considering upgrading my thoroughly self modded music hall dac some day and was looking at Metrum, Schiit, or maybe Border Patrol SE but someone mentioned using this with an SP14 which I too use and it being a good match. ST-120 and Joseph Audio speakers. I've not had a chance to hear any of them unfortunately so have to go on others impressions.