It uses an identical CNC machined face-plate to that of Pegasus and the only difference is that Draco comes only in a black color scheme. All their creations are having similar design cues, face plates and the fiery Draco is no different. There are some units that will be providing such features, but we’re talking about 5-figure prices already.įirst and foremost, I’m glad that Musician Audio are sticking with a design language that I can easily recognize from afar. This shouldn’t come as a con, as most R-2R DACs are coming without preamp functionalities, cutting massively on manufacturing costs. Forget about a remote control with such a device, as you’ll need to control its volume with integrated amps / head amps or with dedicated preamps. Draco, like most R-2R DACs is a purehearted digital-to-analog converter that doesn’t carry additional features like preamp functionality. Liquid notes for live r2r manual#Inside the box you’ll find a warranty card, a simplified user manual and that’s it. Draco is a substantial looking unit, resembling their Pegasus, but losing some weight due to a less impressive chassis. There are 8 pieces of plastic that will be holding everything together like a sandwich and I’m pretty sure that Draco can’t be damaged during shipping with such care put into its safety. Today I’ll be conducting an in-depth review for their most affordable music making machine and before I move on to sound impressions, let’s unbox it and see what’s inside.Īs its bigger brothers Pegasus and Aquarius that came before it, I was not surprised seeing an identical packaging, arriving double boxed for a better protection during shipping and there’s a lot of foam in there that will work as the last line of defense. At this very moment, Musician Draco is the most affordable fully balanced R-2R ladder DAC there is, equipped with every possible digital input, capable of decoding the highest bit-rates out there, while costing only $749. They added not one, but two additional converters in their portfolio, challenging the notion of entry-level for one last time, firing alarming shots into the high-end R2R crowd. A sub kilo-buck converter would gather a lot of followers and a year later, a fire breathing Draco DAC was released - that uses similar tech and components, while lowering its build quality and disregarding CNC machining for good. After publishing a review for their Pegasus DAC, I remember exchanging a few emails and suggesting a more affordable unit that wouldn’t compromise sonic performance in any way. While they are indeed hobby-driven, there is still a very long way to success. Musician Audio always felt like that, but they aren’t shy or inexperienced anymore, it’s not the same company that I’ve met a year and a half ago. The freshest HiFi brands always struggled finding their identity, a cult following and confidence from customers, some will be trying harder, proving that a good sound can still be obtained from less known names at lower price points. There is however a problem with the later ones and that is a very high R&D time and a costly manufacturing process.īut there is a new breed, that wants to deliver a similar performance, without killing your wallet for good and those are new brands that aren’t asking astronomical prices for a good signal-to-noise ratio. Some are using New Old Stock chip-based converters, while others are doing it in the most overkill way, using hundreds of hand-matched resistors, custom digital boards and FPGA coding, squeezing the last drop of performance from their creations. There are plenty such makers around the globe and that’s perfectly fine as we, consumers enjoy some popcorn time, while such companies are fighting for supremacy. If you’re looking for a DAC that would sweeten things up and add more soul into your setup, there’s nothing better than a proper R-2R ladder DAC built to the highest standards.
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