[drifter74]

It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built.
The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.

 

[lowrider007]

It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built.
The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.

Interesting, I've also been eyeing up the Chord Qutest to pair with my Deckard, will be eager see what you think.

I'm still enjoying my amp, love the style and build, and has bags of power.

 

[drifter74]

Interesting, I've also been eyeing up the Chord Qutest to pair with my Deckard, will be eager see what you think.

I'm still enjoying my amp, love the style and build, and has bags of power.

I order and paid for mine about a month ago via the local dealer. ETA was supposed to be 4 to 6 weeks.
Received a call yesterday from the dealer stating that the next batch of Qutest will only land Feb 2022 (I am in South Africa).
I was told such is the global demand for the Qutest that Chord cannot keep up with supply. Don'y know how true that is but looks like I will have to wait quite a bit longer.

 

[Pharmaboy]

It is a great headphone amp. It is quite powerful, wonderful design and well built.
The internal DAC is not the most resolving though. I have ordered a Chord Qutest (which is on order) to use as an external DAC with the Deckard.

Whatever that thing is the 2 headphone stands are sitting on--I like it.

 

[lowrider007]

I order and paid for mine about a month ago via the local dealer. ETA was supposed to be 4 to 6 weeks.
Received a call yesterday from the dealer stating that the next batch of Qutest will only land Feb 2022 (I am in South Africa).
I was told such is the global demand for the Qutest that Chord cannot keep up with supply. Don'y know how true that is but looks like I will have to wait quite a bit longer.

That's a shame, I'm on the lookout for second-hand one on eBay so I might end up with one before you!

What Gain setting do you prefer to use with your LCD-2's? In the photo it looks like your Deckard set to high?

 

[drifter74]

Whatever that thing is the 2 headphone stands are sitting on--I like it.

LoL. That is my desk. It has a burgundy leather insert.

That's a shame, I'm on the lookout for second-hand one on eBay so I might end up with one before you!

What Gain setting do you prefer to use with your LCD-2's? In the photo it looks like your Deckard set to high?

To my ears there is a sonic difference between low and high gain. Gain adds a touch more forwardness to the sound while low is smoother.
I prefer low, but I do switch between them.

The dealer offered me a TT2 as those are available in stock but my pockets sadly are not deep enough. Also, how much better can the TT2 be compared to the Deckard/Qutest combo - I don't know?

 

[TWerk]

Love my deckard. Beautiful sound. This is it. Highly recommended. It is detailed, neutral, tons of power. Beautiful sound very organic but also crisp. Not sterile like some other amps. Pairs well with everything and is all you need if you are looking for clear, crisp, open, musical sound. Gorgeous look on a desk as well.

Switching from headphone to headphone and this thing just mates beautifully with them all. Sounds excellent as a pre-amp with speakers too.

End game as far as amp for me. I would suggest avoiding the built in DAC, the amp sounds much better with a separate input.

 

[JoeTho]

It is a kick ass Amp/DAC. I've had mine since 2016, and it still works just fine.

 

[Spyronight]

Will this be a good step up from the magni/modi? people are saying the Dad on this isn't the best, should I keep the modi? I will be powering a Grade RS-1, Audio Technica ATH A2000X and hopefully a LCD-2/3 in the future.

 

[ShaolinGrump]

@Spyronight keep the midi and compare to Deckard’s internal DAC

Deckard is a older excellent Matrix amp design with flashy BMW casing and quality onboard DAC.

 

[ShaolinGrump]

https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/audeze-deckard.1252/

 

[lowrider007]

Will this be a good step up from the magni/modi? people are saying the Dad on this isn't the best, should I keep the modi? I will be powering a Grade RS-1, Audio Technica ATH A2000X and hopefully a LCD-2/3 in the future.

Big step up imo, bags of power,

"The Deckard outputs 10.5 Volts with full input. Here's a simple formula to determine its output power at a given impedance: divide 110 (voltage squared) by the impedance of the headphones (ohms) and your answer will be in watts (110/ohms=W).

So to run through our headphones, the output power of the Deckard into each is thus:
20 ohms (Sine, LCD-X/C, MX4, LCD-4z): 121/20= 6 W
30 ohms (EL-8): 4 W
70 ohms (LCD-2): 1.73 W
110 ohms (LCD-3): 1.1 W
200 ohms (LCD-4): 600 mW"

I find the DAC more than adequate, not quite as good as my Mojo 2 but not a world apart either, the Deckard isn't a measurement king by any stretch but that doesn't bother me, I just like what sounds good and the Deckard is still one of my fav desktop amps, big bonus for me also it's single ended only topology so I don't have to mess about cable swapping which saves me money and hassle, I'm personally not a fan of the trend of balanced amps.

 

[Spyronight]

thank you all, It appears I have purchased in the 220V version, unsure of the frequency (hopefully its 60hz), I believe I need a transformer to use it in the U.S.

 

[ShaolinGrump]

Looks like voltage is switchable inside. Be careful or get some experienced help.

 

[Spyronight]

i dont know electronic much, I messaged audeze but they didnt really help; Ill try to figure it out when i receive the unit, Appreciate it, If I dont have to get a transformer all the better, My stax already has one and I get stressed every time I run it since their might be an electrical problem