Is my DAC the Marantz or Oppo?

[TECH_TEST]

I have a USB drive of FLAC files, and two ways of playing them. I want to pick the best method for quality playback, which I believe is using my Marantz AV7005 Pre/Pro as the DAC.

METHOD 1: Plug the USB drive into the front panel of the Marantz AV7005, and use its interface to navigate the drive and play the FLACs. Obviously the Marantz acts as the DAC here.

METHOD 2: Plug the USB drive into an Oppo BDP-93, which is connected to the Marantz with an HDMI cable.

For method #2, is the Oppo or the Marantz acting as the DAC? Another way to ask this question is this way; Does the HDMI cable that connects the Oppo to the Marantz send 1's and 0's to the Marantz for decoding, or, does the chip in the Oppo come into play before sending actual "sound" to the Marantz?

If I were to guess, I'd say that HDMI cable can only send a digital signal by design, and in either of my configurations.... the Marantz is the DAC.

I ask because I kind of like the Oppo's interface a little better. And the corresponding IOS app, too. It just looks a bit slicker with album artwork, etc. But I have to think that I want the more expensive Marantz to be doing the work for me. Please keep in mind that this Oppo Blu-ray player is not the advanced model with balanced outs that can hook up directly to an amp.... it is HDMI-only.

This is a smart group of people on this forum... so what do you say? Does feeding my Marantz FLACs from an HDMI cable take the burden of processing off my Marantz (which I don't think I want), or does the Marantz Pre/Pro remain the DAC whether the USB drive is directly connected or indirectly connected (over HDMI)?

Thanks !!!

PS - please let me know if this should be posted in a different category... thanks!

[genkifd]

both methods to me should sound identical. have you tried and compared for yourself.

if you owned an Oppo 105 or 95 it would be a different story.

[TECH_TEST]

I think you're right, I can't really tell those two methods apart. I'm happy to have the Marantz doing the role of the DAC.... until I get the upgrade itch and move up the Oppo ladder!

(Nice gallery BTW, beautiful speakers!)

[Billy13]

Why not use the analog outputs of the oppo into the Marantz?

[Badas]

Originally Posted by TECH_TEST

I have a USB drive of FLAC files, and two ways of playing them. I want to pick the best method for quality playback, which I believe is using my Marantz AV7005 Pre/Pro as the DAC.

METHOD 1: Plug the USB drive into the front panel of the Marantz AV7005, and use its interface to navigate the drive and play the FLACs. Obviously the Marantz acts as the DAC here.

METHOD 2: Plug the USB drive into an Oppo BDP-93, which is connected to the Marantz with an HDMI cable.

For method #2, is the Oppo or the Marantz acting as the DAC? Another way to ask this question is this way; Does the HDMI cable that connects the Oppo to the Marantz send 1's and 0's to the Marantz for decoding, or, does the chip in the Oppo come into play before sending actual "sound" to the Marantz?

If I were to guess, I'd say that HDMI cable can only send a digital signal by design, and in either of my configurations.... the Marantz is the DAC.

I ask because I kind of like the Oppo's interface a little better. And the corresponding IOS app, too. It just looks a bit slicker with album artwork, etc. But I have to think that I want the more expensive Marantz to be doing the work for me. Please keep in mind that this Oppo Blu-ray player is not the advanced model with balanced outs that can hook up directly to an amp.... it is HDMI-only.

This is a smart group of people on this forum... so what do you say? Does feeding my Marantz FLACs from an HDMI cable take the burden of processing off my Marantz (which I don't think I want), or does the Marantz Pre/Pro remain the DAC whether the USB drive is directly connected or indirectly connected (over HDMI)?

Thanks !!!

PS - please let me know if this should be posted in a different category... thanks!

In Method 2 the Oppo will be the DAC via HDMI if you go into the settings and tell HDMI audio to output in PCM.

I would give that a go as well.

I have played around with DAC's a lot in the past year and have learned not all DAC's are equal. There is a reason that some DAC's are worth a fortune. Also DAC's seems to influence the sound the most. Far more than amps and speakers. I have purchased two outboard DAC's and still not entirely satisfied in either. I will likely pick up a pricey DAC in the next few years.

I was not pleased with the DAC in my Marantz SR7009. I'm not sure what chipset it is using. It sounded average. Nice bass, seems to have mid-range warmth. All good things but sounded closed in the treble. Needs more air to bring more life into the music.

Oppo's DAC in the 105 and Oppo HA-1 is a little better. The esbre chipset. Can get a little harsh and sparkly in the higher treble.

Arcam DAC using the Burr brown chipset is my go to DAC. However still not perfect. Nice Bass, nice mid-range, sweet high treble just a tad veiled.

The best DAC I have heard so far is the Aulric Vega. That lifted the sound to new heights. Tested on my own equipment. I will likely be in the market for that type of DAC in the next few years. Simply faultless. You get what you pay.

Hope this helps a little. Sorry for the long rant. DAC's are very important.

[solarrdadd]

Originally Posted by Billy13

Why not use the analog outputs of the oppo into the Marantz?

I'm with Billy. And I'll go a step further.

Use method 1 for the marantz DAC. If you want to not have room correction, you will have to select 'direct' or 'pure' or whatever the manual says to do to bypass digital correction. That will give you the purest unaltered sound from your marantz. Of. Ourse if you want room correction and bass management you need to use the room correction.

Do what Billy said and use analog out from the oppo to use its DAC and this ensures you are bypassing the digital circuits of the marantz to include room correction.

Another thing might be how much low end your speakers can produce in a 2.0 situation. If it's not low enough to reproduce the music to your liking when using the marantz DAC, you may have to use room correction to get bass management. With the oppo you can do analog bass management and send a separate interconnect out to the pre-amp for the sub input.

Also you say you want to pick the best method of playback. That will be determined by that think between your two ears. That's how you will make that determination. Nobody hear can tell you that. Using those two methods, whichever sounds best to you is your winner.

Let us know whatever you go with and why. Best of luck to you. Both are fine pieces of gear; it's gonna come down to your preference.

[genkifd]

the Oppo 93 hasnt got a nice DAC but still worth trying if you dont like the sound of the Marantz.

Even with my setup Oppo 105 to my Primare - I much prefer the DAC in my Primare.

[Badas]

Originally Posted by genkifd

the Oppo 93 hasnt got a nice DAC but still worth trying if you dont like the sound of the Marantz.

Even with my setup Oppo 105 to my Primare - I much prefer the DAC in my Primare.

Yeah the 105 has the esabre chipset in it. Same chipset and similar implementation as my Oppo HA-1. I find it nice and neutral however on occasion it can get sparkly in the treble. Esabre are known for treble sparkle. I switch to Arcam (burr brown chipset) and everything clears up.

I really like feeding the Arcam DAC into the Oppo HA-1 then use the Class A amp on the Oppo to drive my headphones. It is a killer combo.

[schan1269]

The only way, period, for the Oppo to be the DAC...

Run analog to the Marantz.

Changing the Oppo output to PCM...over HDMI, still means the Marantz is the DAC.

[TECH_TEST]

OK, so here's what I did. I got some decent stereo RCA interconnects (AudioQuest Evergreens), and hooked up the analog outs of the Oppo BDP-93 to the Marantz AV7005. On the Oppo, I change the Surround Mode to Stereo, set the size to Large (so the crossover settings don't come into play), and disabled Dynamic Range Control. Then I could play FLACs from a USB drive attached to the Oppo, with the ability to switch back and forth between the analog and digital inputs sent from the Oppo by using my Marantz remote. Although there was a pause for a few seconds each time I made a change, I could just leave the music playing. So I thought it was a pretty good "A/B test".

I started with some acoustic guitar tracks (with vocals) and I immediately found the music to be very spacious sounding with the Oppo's analog outs, and a little more "forward" than I'm used to with the Marantz (in a good way)... possibly due to the qualities of the midrange sent from the Oppo's analog outs. So for "Test #1", I thought the Oppo was doing great as the DAC.

For "Test #2", I switched to some rock tracks (Some Dream Theater HRA tracks from HDTracks.com), and cranked up the volume a bit more. The first thing I noticed is that the bass just didn't reach a low with the Oppo as the DAC (my speakers go down to 29 hz, and I'm pretty sure that the crossover settings of the Oppo's analog outs were disabled due to the speaker size being set to Large) Also, when the volume was up a bit, hi hat cymbals, and the vocalist singing a letter "S" could be a bit harsh.

So, I have yet to play any redbook CDs, or many different genres.... but to sum up my first afternoon of comparing the Oppo BDP-93 and Marantz AV-7005's DAC performance; I'd say they both have their strengths. I'd choose the Oppo's analog outs for acoustic stuff (classical guitar, singer/songwriter stuff, or "live in a small club" material. I'd go with the Marantz as the DAC for the rock, prog metal, or jazz-rock fusion bands I love.

Thanks to everyone for the great input, I hope this evaluation is helpful!