[Sam Spade]

Conductor 3X has built-in DAC chips 32-bit volume attenuator, while Soloist 3X has a separate chip to do volume control.

There's not a general rule to state what's good or bad and both ways of controlling the output volume are perfectly accepted in the Hi-Fi world as providing a better channel imbalance vs. the analogue potentiometer.

Thanks
I guess if there is a difference then it's likely to be imperceptible. So I don't have to feel like I'm missing out on anything

 

[DjBobby]

I have the conductor 3x reference. It is sublime. As a head amp, preamp or DAC. I did a brain dump review of it here: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/burson-conductor-3x.24156/reviews

I know it is $1000 more, but the DAC is unbelievable, It kicked my other DAC sources in the butt. So if you have the cash, I suggest considering getting it.

If you don't, then I'm sure the soloist will be sensational with whatever you pair it with.

Oh and I'm paired with LCD3s, LCDxc's and a hi end Rotel power amp/Dali tower speakers. Well not extreme hi end, but it would be a $10k combo if I had to replace it.

The Conductor made everything sound better. Including AV, not just music.

I already have Conductor 3, completely agree with you. I was more interested to compare it with the Soloist because of the volume control difference.

 

[Sam Spade]

I already have Conductor 3, completely agree with you. I was more interested to compare it with the Soloist because of the volume control difference.

raoultrifan suggests the difference is marginal if any. I can email my contact at Burson and see what they say. They are always so helpful.

 

[DjBobby]

raoultrifan suggests the difference is marginal if any. I can email my contact at Burson and see what they say. They are always so helpful.

The C3 is magnificent, using it every day as my primary source (out of many laying around).
Only somehow I couldn't never get used to the digital attenuators in general, nothing to do with the C3. I've read the ESS papers explaining the tech and why does the 32 bit digital beat the analogue, in their opinion. Only for my aging ears the analogue volume control sounds more natural and more "logical" for the lack of better word.

 

[raoultrifan]

Let's wait few more weeks and do a side-by-side compare.

 

[JWahl]

So Jwahl and @raoultrifan, do your posts above mean that my conductor 3X volume control will perform just as well as the new Soloist for my Audeze LCD3 and LCDxs planars and rotel power amp/ dali speakers?

Although even if it isn't as good I can't see myself adding a soloist.

I won't ever use IEM's with the CX3R. I do have some Shure SE530's that I love, but would only use with my A&KSP1000M when I need IEM's.

Oh and some Sennheiser PMX686G sports headphones that I will only use with my A&K AK70, that's my running, gym, cycling and snow skiing combo as it's smaller in size and cheaper and If I kill it I won't be as upset as the more expensive gear, and it's smaller so it's a great package for active use.

To be honest, if you’ve already got the Conductor 3 Reference, the Soloist would likely be no better or perhaps slightly detrimental. The internals appear more similar to the Performance series with which it shares a namesake.

I think the Soloist is more intended for people who really like their own DAC, and would rather the internal DAC be swapped for a good analog volume control. If I wasn’t so inseparable from my RME now, I’d probably go for the Conductor and keep things simpler, but I value it’s features too much.

 

[raoultrifan]

By looking to the internals of Soloist X Performance I really think that the preamp and output stage are pretty much the same as the C3 Reference.

I expect a similar THD+N on both, but I think that Soloist X will have a darker background, due to the different input stage and more granular gain.

 

[ishmaelk]

I preordered the new Soloist and the Composer, and when I started having the same doubts (I thought I may just get the C3 R), I contacted Burson.
Alex from Burson told me the new Soloist 3XP and Composer were the best headphone amp and the best dac they had ever made.
He said the combo Composer+Soloist had slightly better performance overall than the Composer 3XR.
With the presale offer under 1800$, it all sounded very interesting.

 

[Sam Spade]

I preordered the new Soloist and the Composer, and when I started having the same doubts (I thought I may just get the C3 R), I contacted Burson.
Alex from Burson told me the new Soloist 3XP and Composer were the best headphone amp and the best dac they had ever made.
He said the combo Composer+Soloist had slightly better performance overall than the Composer 3XR.
With the presale offer under 1800$, it all sounded very interesting.

Alex is a straight up guy. He'd be telling the truth i reckon. But i suspect the difference between the pair and the conductor 3x would be slim

 

[rmsanger]

In the various reviews I've seen/watched around the Conductor 3XR & 3XP the general feedback has been extremely positive with possibly only the DAC holding it back a bit. I'm wondering if the Soloist 3XP for the amp section is comparable to the 3XR or 3XP? Will it likely be as good or better than those?

So you can get a Soloist 3XP and a Topping D90/MHDT Orchid/SMSL M400 / Holo Audio Spring 2 lvl 1 for the same price as the Conductor 3XR. I would assume you can get better performance out of the separates but the AIO option does represent ease of choice and the beauty of an AIO solution is there.

 

[ishmaelk]

The difference in performance between the 3XR and combo is probably, like Sam said, slim.
Alex himself said "slightly" when he referred to the better performance compared to the 3XR.
And I think the combo is priced accordingly. It's not like it's priced way above the 3XR.

 

[ishmaelk]

In the various reviews I've seen/watched around the Conductor 3XR & 3XP the general feedback has been extremely positive with possibly only the DAC holding it back a bit. I'm wondering if the Soloist 3XP for the amp section is comparable to the 3XR or 3XP? Will it likely be as good or better than those?

So you can get a Soloist 3XP and a Topping D90/MHDT Orchid/SMSL M400 / Holo Audio Spring 2 lvl 1 for the same price as the Conductor 3XR. I would assume you can get better performance out of the separates but the AIO option does represent ease of choice and the beauty of an AIO solution is there.

More than for the performance, I chose the pair more for convenience. I can always, later on, use the Soloist with any other dac if I chose to change, or move the dac to another system and keep the Soloist for amping purposes.

 

[Sam Spade]

More than for the performance, I chose the pair more for convenience. I can always, later on, use the Soloist with any other dac if I chose to change, or move the dac to another system and keep the Soloist for amping purposes.

I got the conductor 3XR and Audeze LCD 3s as a pair in an unbelievably good pre release deal. I didn't expect to replace my musical fidelity nuvista as a preamp but i have. The burson is better. That was a massive surprise. The nuvista is remarkable. Im sad to let it go. https://hometheaterreview.com/musical-fidelity-nu-vista-preamp-reviewed/

The dac beat all my current options. The synergy of the burson and the Audeze is awesome. I needed closed back and have LCDxc now too. If burson called me and asked if i wanted to switch to the 2 box solution for free i would for 1 reason. I'm assuming the combo would give me more inputs.

The SQ is unbelievable as a head amp, pre amp and dac. I wrote a rambling brain dump review on it here https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/burson-conductor-3x.24156/reviews

@raoultrifan wrote a much better review there too

Not that i do this regularly but the combo i have reaches insane volume levels with no audible distortion. It's easy to turn it up so loud so when your wife taps you on the shoulder and you lake the headphones off they sound like a pair of bookshelf speakers. And you don't even reaalise it's so loud.

If you are looking at burson get on their mailing list. The pre release offers are great. Balanced has worked really well for me with headphones and preamp.

And my Astell and Kern SP1000M ran the lcd3s well single ended. But a balanced 4 pole 2.5 mm cardas parsec cable and the LCD3s are unbelievable on my A&K. And the A&K runs the LCDxc unbelievably.

 

[Sam Spade]

In the various reviews I've seen/watched around the Conductor 3XR & 3XP the general feedback has been extremely positive with possibly only the DAC holding it back a bit. I'm wondering if the Soloist 3XP for the amp section is comparable to the 3XR or 3XP? Will it likely be as good or better than those?

So you can get a Soloist 3XP and a Topping D90/MHDT Orchid/SMSL M400 / Holo Audio Spring 2 lvl 1 for the same price as the Conductor 3XR. I would assume you can get better performance out of the separates but the AIO option does represent ease of choice and the beauty of an AIO solution is there.

If Alex says the soloist 3XR is as good or better a head amp/preamp as the conductor I'd trust him. Ill post about this.

Check this but isn't the Conductor 3XR dual dacs fully seperate channels and the performance is only 1 dac. The performance probably also isn't as good preamp/head amp I'd check the configuration and specs. . Having said that if i only had the base performance model with vivid opamps I'd still be ecstatic i truly believe that Bursons products are at the cutting edge for performance. Outstanding value too. You can get better but at what cost? And how much better? At this level of performance the headphones and/or speakers you use will struggle to have the resolution to distinguish significantly between the electronics. But matching gear is also important. Is there a DAC/amp that anyone would be equally happy running sennheiser 800s and audeze planars?

I dont want to sound like a brand snob but are the best topping DACs as good as bursons? This is a genuine honest question. I havent tried the topping d90.

Note i have a topping d10 and an ifi iNano that are going back and forth between my pc desktop system as a DAC and my car as a USB to SPDIF converter into my helix ultra DSP. I haven't yet worked out my preference but the are both great products the nano might win in the car due to bluetooth functionality. But i know car hifi buffs competing in SQ comps strongly using topping d10 as a USB to SPDIF convertor.

 

[Sam Spade]

The difference in performance between the 3XR and combo is probably, like Sam said, slim.
Alex himself said "slightly" when he referred to the better performance compared to the 3XR.
And I think the combo is priced accordingly. It's not like it's priced way above the 3XR.

Alex is a dead set legend. Completely understated with his claims and straight out honest if he doesnt know something.

Chris at Audeze is the same. Two great companies with outstanding service and unbelievable quality, performance and value products.

I have no conflict of interest here. Just a customer. And bought both the C3X and LCD3 without listening based on reviews and the exceptional help from chris and Alex. They were very generous with their time. Ive never bought new gear unauditioned before. I thought it would be good. It massively exceeded my expectations