Lobby > Amp and DAC Measurements
Audio-GD NOS-1704 DAC Measurements
Hands:
Test Hardware and Setup
-Acer Aspire 5560G Laptop - Locked at 1.4GHz and 0.9125V via K10Stat, dedicated GPU disabled, internal fan disconnected (low temps and stability verified), most Fidelizer tweaks applied, and other hardware, software, and services disabled. Battery powered.
-JKSPDIF MK3 - Input with generic USB cable, output with 75ohm RF attenuator and 75ohm BNC to RCA Coaxial cable to DAC. Battery powered.
OR
-DIY Gaming Desktop - i5 2500K locked at 4.5GHz, Biostar TZ77XE3 motherboard, GTX 780, Antec EarthWatts 650W Green PSU, Auzentech Bravura sound card, 4 140mm fans, goofy UV cathode lights in case, Fractal Design Define R4 case...you get the idea (not optimal for audio). Plugged into APC H10 power conditioner. I did run Fidelizer on it for the tests.
-Auzentech Bravura sound card - It's plugged into the beef rig. Digital coax out to DAC using a digital coax cable from Monoprice (should be 75 ohm).
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-Audio-GD NOS-1704 DAC - Fed from either Auzentech coax out of JKSPDIF. Plugged into APC H10 if hooked up to the gaming rig. Tests were done in high voltage mode (RCA out) unless specified otherwise (file names will have "L" or "LV" in them if low voltage, "H" or "HV" for high voltage). Used 6' BJC RCA cable plugged into large, recessed RCA plugs. Unpublished tests show that you generally get slightly better results using the other RCA plugs (maybe 0.1-0.2dB difference, but there).
I am also using the CS8416 "upgrade" option for the coax inputs on the NOS-1704.
-Creative X-FI HD USB (SB1240) - Takes line-out signal from DAC to line-in for recording purposes, powered by USB bus, always connected to Acer laptop for measurements (even when DAC was hooked up to desktop). Unit is limited to 48/96KHz input/output.
Software
RightMark RMAA 6.3.0, ARTA
Misc. Notes
Creative SB1240 has a slight roll-off in the bass.
I have seen as much as a 2dB variance with the same tests. What I've posted is the least you should expect from the unit.
I wasn't going to test the Auzentech coax out with the NOS-1704 originally, but I tried it one day out of laziness and decided I had to measure it and compare against the JKSPDIF. The results might surprise you.
Links
Audio-GD NOS-1704 DAC - http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/SA/NOS1704/NOS1704EN.htm
Auzentech Bravura sound card - http://www.auzentech.com/site/products/x-fi_bravura.php
JKSPDIF MK3 - http://www.johnkenny.biz/home-1/mk3-hiface
Creative SB1240 - http://us.creative.com/p/sound-blaster/sound-blaster-digital-music-premium-hd
RightMark Audio Analyzer - http://audio.rightmark.org/index_new.shtml
ARTA: http://www.artalabs.hr/
Hands:
Jitter tests using a 24/48 JTest file. JTest file was played back through JRiver Media Center 19 on both the laptop and desktop setups. Hardware sound device settings and software (ARTA) were set to 24/96, however. I ran tests with everything set to 24/96, and there was no difference vs. these results.
As mentioned in the first post, this is using the first RCA coax input on the DAC (technically coax input 2).
These results were surprising to me, and you'll see a difference in other measurements as well. Files attached are:
1. Laptop playing JTest in JRMC (no upsampling, kernel streaming) -> USB to JKSPDIF -> NOS-1704 -> SB1240 -> Back to laptop through USB
2. Gaming desktop -> Auzentech Bravura sound card coax out -> NOS-1704 -> SB1240 -> Laptop USB in (No bitstreaming or upsampling enabled in JRMC)
3. Same as above but with bitstreaming and without upsampling
4. Same as above but without bitstreaming and with upsampling (24/96)
Hands:
24/96 Spectrum tests in ARTA, using the laptop -> JKSPDIF setup. Files attached are:
1. 1KHz sine wave spectrum
2. 100Hz sine wave spectrum
3. 60Hz + 7KHz dual sine wave spectrum (4:1 ratio)
4. 25Hz + 66Hz dual sine wave spectrum (1:1 ratio)
5. Noise
Hands:
24/96 spectrum tests in ARTA, using the gaming rig -> Auzen Bravura coax out setup. I seem to have not saved the 100Hz sine wave spectrum results.
1. 1KHz sine wave spectrum
2. 60Hz + 7KHz dual sine wave spectrum (4:1 ratio)
3. 25Hz + 66Hz dual sine wave spectrum (1:1 ratio)
4. Noise
Hands:
RMAA tests at 16/96, using laptop -> JKSPDIF setup, kernel streaming mode. KS mode with this setup tends to produce better results than other modes in RMAA. I'll attach a zip of all my tests later.
Frequency response (from 40 Hz to 15 kHz), dB | -0.00, -0.65 | Good
Noise level, dB (A) | -95.9 | Excellent
Dynamic range, dB (A) | 94.1 | Very good
THD, % | 0.0033 | Very good
THD + Noise, dB (A) | -84.4 | Good
IMD + Noise, % | 0.0075 | Excellent
Stereo crosstalk, dB | -92.2 | Excellent
IMD at 10 kHz, % | 0.027 | Good
General performance | Very good
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