Prior to listening to today's TotalDAC for the first time, I had some expectations related to the number of parts in its fancy resistor matrix. The more Vishays are on the job, the greater their switching accuracy. That's how this portfolio steps up sonic sophistication. My sample packs twice as many than Vincent's entry-level d1-unity which most likely would impress with the same type of desirable wholesomeness and correctness. Having the two on the same rack for confirmation would have been convenient. Even though I couldn't map such differences, I had my guesses. While the d1-biunity very quickly struck me as a highly competent multi-bit type, the more time I spent with it, the more alive, spatially open, nimble, elastic, powerful and resolved it became. I hadn't noticed that right away because early on my focus was on the breed's usual perks related to color, tone and atmospherics. It was either this or I pre-biased given the d1-biunity's innards. Once I finally cranked the volume and steered away from calm instrumental and vocal numbers to party music, this DAC revealed the second ace it had up its sleeve the entire time.
Toto's "Manuela Run" is a nicely recorded explosive song that's helpful in mapping dynamics, momentum, snap, control and speed. On this track and many more I sampled right after, the gap between the AMR and TotalDAC was criminally large. The way how the latter got to work rendered my backup DAC slow, distant, woolly of bass and all in all rather monotonous. That was a hard pill to swallow yet a selection of songs by Tool, Kodo and Idles reinforced the impression. On such fare the TotalDAC felt enormously ripped, spatially huge, immediate, slamming, punctual, fresh, dynamically charged, effortless, smooth, spot-on focused, articulate and still very easy to listen to. In these regards it was as gifted as the Hercules and Pacific had been before it. What impressed me most was that the d1-biunity managed to pull this trick without the competitors' direct-heated triodes. As spatially monstrous, informative and keen on bass as they are, my Boenicke floorstanders played proper enablers to gracefully magnify the effect. This is why I found them so enormously useful this time. As for the TotalDAC's unusually sporty behavior atop all other virtues, I truly hadn't seen that coming and started to wonder. If copious amounts of color, sensuality, moisture etc are inherent to the R-2R breed, then perhaps all the extra resistors of the new Unity architecture are what unlocks such large dynamic reserves? Or was it Vincent's live-clocking option? Or his power supply built upon a heavily massaged EI transformer customized for this specific project? Maybe all these factors played an equal part?
Beats me. I'm no DAC engineer. Odds are, all my guesses are wrong so I best stick to trusting my ears instead. On that score, while the d1-biunity follows the brand's signature utilitarian dress code, that's just become a tricky disguise for sonic excellence of very high calibre. This machine not only goes above and beyond the posh R-2R topology's usual menu but does so without direct-heated triodes which not long ago I considered necessary to get this fantastically dynamic, tonally rich and spatially vast. While this clearly is a high-performance proposition aimed at enthusiasts of deep wallets and brand familiarity, such an audience should find the expense fully justified. Considering how it goes about its business, as a paying customer I certainly would. So I tip my hat at Vincent for refining his formula to a degree that spawned this wonderfully voiced effort. Considering how brilliant it sounds, it's also thrilling to think what its siblings still higher up in the roster can do.
