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Majestic DAC impressions |
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Wiscos
Regular Joined: 10 Apr 2017 Status: Offline Points: 39 |
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Now, msphil, that's the kind of review that tickles my ivories and I am truly looking forward to hearing for myself. Wonderful, and thanks!
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Wiscos
Regular Joined: 10 Apr 2017 Status: Offline Points: 39 |
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Received the loan Majestic with some cables yesterday and have now spent a few hours listening. Here's a dump of my thoughts so far.
There's no doubt that what has been described as an analogue-like sound is what you get with the Majestic. There's a smoothness that very slightly softens the sound and helps avoid any digital glare. It's a very 'easy' listen and you soon forget that it's hi-fi and not just music, which may be all that counts in the end. It's quite a dinky little thing, nicely constructed and worked exactly as described in the manual with good quality furnishings front and back, if just a little bit obviously low-volume manufacture / design. The integrity and quality of GSP thinking comes through and the whole thing reminds me of many years ago listening to my dear departed Uncle's system with it's BBC-like warmth and generally cosy and enveloping sonic arms. So, did I find any downsides? I guess I did find a few, and hope you don't mind me sharing these with you. I may well change my mind and will be very happy to have my findings rejected by others. The manual does warn about clicks and digital noise getting through at times and I experienced this a lot when using the computer / usb as source. Some of the noises were quite loud and unpleasant, and the need to flip the digital mute button is inconvenient and less than ideal. I also had quite loud switching thumps when switching to usb from optical. The high frequencies were nice and smoothe, but the smoothness took away a little sparkle that I get from my existing Dac/Preamp (a modified 'Signature' Oppo 105D that cost me £3,000 but is also a universal disc player of course). Having tried 'back to back' with the 2 Dacs the usb cable seems to be calming down the slight glare of the Oppo at high frequencies but this needs further testing, but I have nothing but praise for the usb cable so far. (I still don't understand why on earth a digital cable should or can make a difference but am happy to trust my ears. I've taken the Audioquest Jitterbug out of the equation, but to be honest have not noticed it does anything on my system anyway.) To my ears and in comparison to the mod'd Oppo the overall sound from the Majestic is a bit softer, with a very slight warmth through pretty much the whole sound spectrum. Pleasant enough, but the Oppo sounds more exciting and clearer. Bass from the Majestic is strong but possibly a little less controlled. Overall, my initial findings are that the Majestic is a very nice and easy listen but in my system seems to slightly reduce the accuracy of the sound compared to the Oppo. Of course, the Oppo also benefits from remote control, higher res file playback etc. and no thumps or digital noise. As we have no doubt all found before I may totally change my mind on a different day. Music I use for testing is classical and jazz (8 years at the Royal Academy of Music). The loan programme is fantastic, and I would like to more publicly thank Jon for sending the goodies over. They will all be looked after with great care. I totally get why you GSP disciples are so happy with the sound, and am totally convinced that in a vinyl system the components are ideal. I hope to change my mind, but don't yet feel the Majestic is quite what I'm looking for, but the usb cable is certainly making very sweet music for my computer / Oppo / Janszen active hybrid ESL speakers. Warm regards to all of you. P.S. My son and daughter are much more into vinyl than I am, and will be properly educated with the kit while I have it! |
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Fatmangolf
Moderator Group Joined: 23 Dec 2009 Location: Middlesbrough Status: Offline Points: 8960 |
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Thanks for this rich and thoughtful review Cosmo. You're right, I think, about how well the Majestic complements vinyl sources with the musical and engrossing sound we love but without the surface noise.
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Jon
Open mind and ears whilst owning GSP Genera, Accession M, Accession MC, Elevator EXP, Solo ULDE, Proprius amps, Cusat50 cables, Lautus digital cable, Spatia cables and links, and a Majestic DAC. |
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Wiscos
Regular Joined: 10 Apr 2017 Status: Offline Points: 39 |
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Thanks Jon, much appreciated. Perhaps I need to re-discover my love for vinyl. I still often believe that I'll never quite get the same 'highs' from reproduced sound as I did with a very odd but basic set of kit in the 70s. Oh, the hours I'd spend fiddling with my various unreliable and hugely imperfect turntables (Goldring G101 with G800 cartridge - and then a 'bargain' Strathearn thingy with an M75ED II. Both very plasticky but I still loved 'em.)
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Wiscos
Regular Joined: 10 Apr 2017 Status: Offline Points: 39 |
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The Majestic is singing away like a trouper and has probably benefitted from a nice long warm up.
I really don't think I've ever heard a digital source sound so 'analogue' (if I know what I mean), and the sound is relaxing and un-fatiguing. Wonderful stuff! |
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Aussie Mick
Senior Member Joined: 21 Feb 2014 Location: Bendigo Aust. Status: Offline Points: 1091 |
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Your experiences are a little like mine upon first installing the Majestic. As with all things GSP, please make no judgements until near the end of the loan scheme! The benefit of a few weeks constantly powered up are very substantial. The bass tightens considerably, revealing a lot more detail above. The soundstage opens up, too.
Keep us updated with any changes you hear! Mick. |
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Rega RP8 - Apheta 2 - Accession MC Enigma PS -Solo ULDE (Focal Utopia) - PS Audio M700 - Fical Kanta No2
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Wiscos
Regular Joined: 10 Apr 2017 Status: Offline Points: 39 |
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That's great advice and I'll very much bear it in mind. Thanks!
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