Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Ok,I'm not a golden ear kinda of listener, but for the money this DAC sounds great. I hooked up my 7yo laptop and also my Marantz 8001 CDP.The CDP sounded a little better but the best part was the laptop.I didn't expect it to sound as good as it did. Sure a 2k DAC will kick this unit to the curb, but for 429.00 I can't complain. The only thing that I didn't like was the box said British Audio Engineering and under that made in China. I'm sure this thing cost nothing to produce. Good value overall
An as for the guy who sold his after 3 days? give the thing a chance to burn in bro!

bogeman

Overall Rating
 1 of 5

Value Rating
 1 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 4.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
terrible machine, I bought it from USA, and I sold it only after 3 day I brought it back to my country, there is no sound quality improve at all, my cheap Marantz CDP can sounds same quality with this DAC, unless you use PC or DVDP to listen music, don't buy it. and I won't buy anything Cambridge anymore.

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harrie kuipers

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
4.50 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
A while ago I decided to replace my 20 years old Philps CD player (CD471). I was in for for a major sonic upgrade but set my maximum to spent on 400 Euro's. My set comprises a modified Pioneer A400 amp, Chario Syntar 100 towers and a Philips cdr800 (mainly used for MP3 replay). For more than a year I've been reading an studying reviews and articles. At the end I found a Hifi shop which allowed me to compare the two objects of my final choice: either it would be a Marantz CD6002 or a CA dacmagic fed by a second hand Philips CD753.

First lived for 2 weeks with the Marantz CD6002, then I returned it. Although the overal sound was impressive (thunderous lows, lots of detail, deep soundstage) it still had this digital harshness in the higher mids and highs. A lot my of elderly records simply sounded too sharp. This was not the major upgrade I was looking for.

Next the CA dacmagic. Wow.... definitely in a different league: very neutral, no emphasis on whatever part of the sonic spectrum, transparent and still warm sounding. This was a major step forward. The dacmagic comes with 3 filtersettings: 'lineair' fase, 'minimun' fase and 'steep'. Most reviewers are in favour of the lineair fase setting. I decided to do my own comparison but sticked to only comparing lineair and minimum setting.

Lineair fase setting:
Definitely the best....... but not my final choice. It presents the music to you in fine layers, every single instrument or voice can be easily recognized. For instance on some of the tracks of Melody Chardot latest CD it's clearly exposed that the background strings have been recorded in a different room (so different acoustics) the her voice. And that's exactly the problem I have while listening to this setting for a longer period. The music is presented to you as if it is an artificial composition of musical layers. In my opinion it should however provide you with the illusion that you're enjoying a live performance, create a kind of sonic view on a group of players performing for you. It should bring the theatre into your room. This setting fails to get you emotionally involved, although it's technically almost perfect.

Minimum fase setting:
A bit Less precise, lows and highs a bit less defined, still a warm, neutral and detailed presentation. After having listened to it for more than a week I came to the conclusion that this filter setting presents you a more coherent sonic picture. The voice of the singer, having a bit more air around it, now being portrayed in front the accompanying band like it should be. This is my definitive setting.

A big shame:
The cheapish wall wart power supply that came with the (400 Euro's costing) is a big shame. It hums and runs very hot. I already replaced it by a home brewed one based upon a decent 2 Amp sealed transformer and shielded mains filter.

Is it worth the money ?
Definitely YES. As for upgrading your mid-level CD player (assuming it has a digital output) this is the tip of the year.

Stevenbell

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
I recieved my Dacmagic alittle over a month ago.After burning it in for four days straight, I decided to try it out.What a difference it has made. My Redbook disc's come close to my SACD and DVD-A disc's. The harshness that was there before the dac is gone and I can listen to most disc's all the way thru. I would get fatigued listening to CD before the dac. Thats is a thing of the past. Redbook disc's now are natural and smooth. But more dynamic and the imaging is spot on.Also there is a greater depth,width and height to the sound now. I listen to everything from Bartoc to Zappa from Beastie boys to Monk. And yes every type of music has benifited from the Dacmagic. My System consists of a B&K PT3 Preamp,B&K ST1400 MK2 Amp,Denon DVD1940CI SACD?DVD-A player,Musical Concepts CDB624 Redbook player,Calabrine IC's,Calabrine Speaker cables, Polk LSi7 Speakers and a Polk Pro 400 Sub, Last PS Audio power cables all arond with a Belkin Pure/AV PF31 Conditioner for everything but the Amp. How ever I cannot compare the Dacmagic to another Dac as I have never heard a Dac by any other company. I have to say that Cambridge Audio has made me a believer in there equipment. The build qulity is very good at this price point and I do mean Very Good. I hope this helps someone else in there decesion to buy a dac.

pullrich

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
3.50 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Wow...I can't believe nobody has reviewed this product yet.

So I'm your basic music lover who also loves good sound, but only consider upgrades if justified in terms of value. I've been using the same Denon AVR3000 amp and Definitive Technology BP10's for about fifteen years now and very happy with the sound.

What I have been doing is making the transition from cd to digital. I've painstakingly put all my music on my laptop's Itunes software. I was playing through the headphone jack and noticed the sound quality was noticeably inferior to cd.

Then I purchased the Dacmagic. I hooked up my $100 cd player via digital out and my laptop via usb and experienced a true revelation! The sound (thanks in part to dual Wolfson dacs) is amazing. Listening to 'Gypsy' from Fleetwood Mac's (remastered) greatest hits is a joy. The only 'weak' link in my system is the quality of the recording (which varies more than many realize).

But alas I'm sad....it may be another fifteen years before I purchase anything!