ProtoDAC TDA1387 X8 project

[hifinet]

@eculcea Nice work! How do you think the SMD tantalum resistors sound compared to the TX2575 metal foil? Which brand did you use? You are using two 2200uF caps (total 4400uF capacitance), right?

I found out about the thin film tantalum resistors in this diyA post. Different application.

Thank you. First I build one ProtoDac using the standard configuration with TX2575 metal foil as you recommended.
Then I build this second one. I doubled the capacitors to a total of 4400uF as recommended.
For the SMD tantalum I used Yageo 100R in serial from Mouser. NT1206BRD07100RL
Listening between the 2 versions, I think the second version with 16 DAC chips in parallel, has a better lower frequencies sound. It sounds to me  more full and more defined. Since is all subjective, it could be a placebo due to me thinking more is better.

Thank you for your review. The DAC with two modules should sound fuller in the bass, due to the lower output impedence. If the tantalum resistors sound equal to the metal foil, that is a significant cost savings. Listen to the 16 chip DAC for a week, and then go back. The differences should become more obvious. Also, listen for soundstage depth, in comparison to the 8 chip version. Increasing the decoupling caps too much can improve bass at the expense of soundstage depth.