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The sonic gait of the D33 is easily captured but let's quickly talk digital filters. 1 is a minimum-phase type with fast roll-off, 2 peters out slower for which Arcam claims more relaxed long-term listening. To my ears—cough!—the D33 sounded excellent already with BB's standard filter but it still was fun to experiment with the options.
To my ears 1 added stage depth but stole a bit from timing immediacy. 2 felt more direct, incisive and tonally juicier but spatially less teased out. It's ultimately a matter of taste and how one means to integrate the machine with the ancillaries on hand. Does your amp tend to the analytical or laid-back? With three filters to choose from, one should be well armed for most eventualities.
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A few words on A/Bs. I recently reviewed the Accustic Arts ES Streamer/DAC which I liked very much. At €2.749 the Arcam asks €1.200 less but sonically had nothing to be worried about. Obviously the AA adds streaming and can process passive data storage so comparing on price isn't fair. Both impressed with immaculate linearity, steep resolution and brilliant dynamics. As to differences, the Arcam struck me as having a tad more fun though I'm hard-pressed to identify exactly why. Better timing? More trigger-happy on the attack? You see how I'm unsure about cause though that's how I responded emotionally. What's certain is that both decks operate in a quality and price class where offsets are down to preference and what features one needs. On sound neither left room for doubt.
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Against my Audiolab 8200CDQ meanwhile the Arcam definitely came out first. Switching to the Audiolab flattened the stage, diminished pressure and timing and roughed up the treble some. Little wonder really when the Arcam merely concerned itself with data conversion whilst for less than half the coin the Audiolab had to add a transport, preamp stage and headphone output. This comparison thus merely served comprehensiveness' sake. Time for concluding remarks.
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Did you hit upon the connection to my introductory Labor Party header? It was my hobbled attempt to pigeon-hole the Arcam into an easy drawer. That's because this DAC approaches all disciplines with laboratory quality – linearity of the frequency response, micro and macro dynamics, resolution and fine nuance. Obviously the laboratory connection often suggests clinical or vivisectionist. But that's exactly what the FMJ D33 avoids, hence party. It's good for bona fide listening parties because the presentation remains fluid, exciting, involving and energetic. Behind that buttoned-up facade lives a pleasure machine whose fun doesn't stem from superficial effects but from stern commitment to uncompromised quality. If you will, a muscular bouncer in an Armani suit guarding heavy festivities. A brilliant deck!
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Psych profile of Arcam's FMJ D33 ...
• Traverses the audible range flat as the horizon to treat every range with the same love of detail.
• Impresses with a highly rhythmic, energetic and involving presentation.
• Shows excellent and for this price class absolute micro and macro dynamics.
• Has a particular talent for realistic clearly delineated stereophony with accurate image localization.
• Responds noticeably positive to high-resolution data where the listener gets hardwired to the music.
• Combines audiophile quality with plenty of raw fun.
Facts:
• Concept: D/A converter with fixed output
• Inputs: Galvanically isolated USB 1.1 class 1 + USB 2.0 high-speed 480Mbits/sec. Class 2, AES/EBU, 2 x coax, 2 x optical
• Outputs: 1 x XLR, 2 x RCA
• Resolution: up to 192kHz, Toslink limited to 96kHz
• Dimensions and weight: 433 x 370 x 110mm (WxDxH), 6.2kg
• Other: included driver for >96kHz data
• Power consumption: 13 watts
• Warranty: 5 years with registration card return |
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redaktion @ fairaudio.de
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