Dac Henry Audio (QNKTC)

Recensito di recente su hi-fi Choise.... qualcuno che sa altri particolari...?
www.henryaudio.com
Sandro

da HI-fi CHOISE FEB 14


THIS CATCHILY ENTITLED
‘Quantisation Noise Killed The Cat’
DAC is the hardware embodiment of
an open-source Audio Widget
project, started by a group of tech
geeks who wanted to make an
excellent, but affordable way to play
hi-res Þ les. The Norwegian designer
Børge Strand-Bergesen assures
people that it has nothing to do with
eighties fop popsters Curiosity Killed
The Cat!
It’s interesting then, inasmuch as it
is a hi-Þ product that has its roots in
the computer world. We’re seeing
this more, as mainstream audio gets
progressively more ‘digital’ and
music itself gets ever closer to
computers in the way that it is sold.
The AB-1.2 USB has the third
version of the analogue board, and
plays hi-res audio (up to 24/192)
from Windows, Linux and OS X
computers. Inside are good basic
building blocks for a budget DAC
– the very respectable Asahi Kasei
AKM4430 DAC (the excellent
£3,650 LongDog DAC – HFC 377
– uses similar), Golledge crystal
oscillators running at 22.5792 and
24.576MHz (giving multiples of
44.1 and 48kHz), and an Atmel
AVR32 general-purpose MCU
programmed in open source C.
Rather like the Raspberry Pi PC,
this DAC has been designed with
experimentation in mind, so you’re
effectively buying a whole world of
fun if you’re that way inclined!
You got the look
It’s very nicely Þ nished, considering
the modest £110 price. A single LED
tells you it’s on, and round the back
you get decent quality gold-plated
phono sockets, but they’re a little
recessed – which may present
problems with chunky RCA plugs.
The unit is powered from the
computer’s USB feed, which isn’t
ideal, but the maker says there is the
option of modifying the power
supply. Oh, and you bring your own
USB cable; it needs to be USB 2.0
mini-B type. It has built-in drivers
for USB Audio Class 1 mode (UAC1,
up to 24/48), but if you want the
full 24/192 smash (in UAC2) then
DETAILS
PRICE
£110
CONTACT
+47 90639918
WEBSITE
qnktc.com
OUR VERDICT
you’ll have to download drivers for
Windows; Mac and Linux are
supported. The LED glows green for
UAC1, red for UAC2, and there’s a
rear switch to toggle between modes.
Hooked up to a MacBook Pro
running the latest version of
Audirvana and feeding a Creek
Destiny 2 and MAD MyClapton
speakers, the QNKTC makes a
surprisingly nice noise. With a
product of unknown provenance such
as this, I am expecting the grinding,
searing sound of cheap components
remorselessly nailing themselves to
my cranium, as I bravely try to endure
a few minutes of music before
retreating to the kitchen for glass of
water and an Aspirin. Actually, things
couldn’t be more different, as I Þ nd
myself rather mesmerised by Art of
Noise’s beautiful Moments In Love.
There’s no point getting a hi-res
version of this, as it was recorded on
a mid-eighties Sony digital recorder
running at 44.056kHz, but you
wouldn’t know it. The sound is best
described as clean – but not in a
sterile, antiseptic way. Rather, it is
smooth, spacious and well textured,
and this is completely unexpected
given its very modest price.
Compared to the Audiolab M-DAC
(at almost six times the price, HFC
368), there’s a slight lack of low-level
detail and it doesn’t give you the last
few percent of the song’s dynamics.
But on the other hand, the Audiolab
doesn’t quite have the tonal
smoothness and sweetness; in an
attempt to render every last bit of
data off the Þ le, it sometimes sounds
more gravelly than the rather suave
QNKTC. Still, Herbie Hancock’s
Rock It at 24/96 shows that the
Norwegian DAC is tonally quite ‘well
lit’; it’s never harsh, but you get the
sense of a crisp autumn morning
with brilliant sunshine throwing
everything into sharp relief. If you
match it with forward ancillaries, it’s
not going to sound as balanced as
the bassier, punchier Audiolab.
Contrast and compare
Compared to the likes of Musical
Fidelity’s V90-DAC (HFC 374, £199),
the QNKTC stands up very well; if
anything it is more open and less
processed sounding, with a nice ß uid
rhythmic gait and a sense that it
steps back from the music, letting it
ß ow through your computer and out
to your speakers. Again, it’s not a
completely comparable product, as
it doesn’t have coaxial or optical
digital inputs; the MF is a more
versatile, jack-of-all-trades. Overall
then, if USB is your only game in
town and you’re on a tight budget,
the QNKTC DAC is an excellent
product to consider – a perfect
example of how tweakiness and
geekiness can raise hi-Þ ’s game. DP