HiFi Rose RD160

Lord knows I try to keep an open mind, but those good-measuring delta-sigma chip DACs rub me the wrong way.

- HERB REICHERT

Their processing complexity vexes my mind, and there's never been a reconstruction or upsampling filter that I've been a fan of. Nevertheless, I believe that every audio component must be judged by how it sounds and feels in use. With digital converters as with other products, I don’t need to know their price or technology before I listen. It might be better not to know. But usually I do know. This review is unusual in that when I first started listening with the HiFi Rose RD160 DAC, I did not know it used delta-sigma chips, and no one had told me its price.

Description

HiFi Rose’s RD160 is a D/A converter built around a pair of Asahi Kasei (AKM) chips: the AK4191EQ delta-sigma modulator and the AK4499EXEQ DAC. The AK4191 receives digital audio and applies filters, noise shaping, and oversampling. The AK4499EXEQ, according to the Asahi Kasei website, “is a stereo premium DAC chip based on the Switched Resistor DAC method employing VELVET- SOUND technology. When used in conjunction with the AK4191EQ the AK4499EXEQ is the suitable analog conversion solution for playback of high-resolution sound sources." I love that line!!

SPECIFICATIONS

Description