First Impressions of the Weiss DAC204

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 Editor’s Note:

If there is a harder working audiophile in Florida, we’ve never met him. Despite being a practicing veterinarian who is very active in state and national associations, Rick approaches the perfecting of his sound system using analytical, scientific methods. He is, frankly, relentless in his pursuit of superior sound. So, when we received our demo of the new Weiss DAC204 ($3,495 retail), we knew exactly what needed to happen: get it to Rick for a Sutliff evaluation.

The Weiss DAC204

Dr. Rick Sutliff

For the past several days my digital music appreciation has been challenged and elevated. A short background is in order to properly peel the layers back to savor the central item to this renewed experience. 

Analogue has been my primary music storage and playback for over 60 years. Starting with building Dynaco kits with my father in the early 70s up until today, the focus has been on strengthening my analogue reproduction chain. This has the side effect of ensuring that the power, cabling, amplification, and speakers are capable in providing the musical euphoria we seek irrespective of the initial source type. My analogue pursuit has provided the performance platform for quality digital to also be appreciated and enjoyed.

The core of my current system includes Gryphon amplification, Synergistic Research cabling and power conditioning, and Rockport Technologies speakers; not their top of the line and some items a few models ago, but all up to the challenge of providing me the musicality that has been central to my enjoyment of this crazy hobby. Analogue input comes from a SoundSmith Hyperion on an Origin Live Enterprise mk4 tonearm, or the equally enticing Miyajima Zero for my growing collection of mono recordings. These two arms are mounted onto a capable dual arm Origin Live Sovereign turntable and feed into the Dynamic Sounds Associates Phono II preamp.  

The analogue presentation I have worked all these years to improve and enjoy, after reflection, seems to be focused on two core items: tone and texture. Does the instrument’s tone resemble what I have heard in live concerts or in other systems that I have come to admire? Within that tone, the next layer is  hopefully a pleasing texture giving  life, body, and possibly a little potential reality to the sound actually portrayed. These two items have been a challenge to pursue as they can only emerge when so many other things come together, simple things like:

1) Is there enough space portrayed around the source to even allow an appreciation of the individual tone in the original recording?

2) Is the background quiet enough that subtle details are not awash with other sounds in a mass?

3) Is the system able to portray the proper placement in space of the music producer whether in the actual studio/concert venue or just in the engineers vision?

4) Is there adequate articulation with the attack and dissipation of sounds in the listening space (system and room are fairly equal players here)?

5) Is there balance within the space of the frequencies so as to allow the tone and textures to flow?

These are only few of the things creating the layer over tone and texture in my system and in my room. My experience, as stated earlier, has been focused on analogue as my main investment and pursuit. Digital did enter my system many years ago with the R2R based CD player Lector 0.6t – a beautiful presentation with a tube buffer. Eventually I moved towards music downloaded onto a hard drive. This led me to the excellent Wolf Audio Alpha 3SX server networked with my Network Audio Server (NAS) providing my digital feed while Qobuz expanded my digital world in exponential ways and directions. 

The Wolf has been feeding the excellent DAC module of my Gryphon Diablo 300 for a few years. This DAC presentation has a lot of meat on the bone along with detail and soundstage. They communicate by USB cable also employing the optional Wolf re-clocker board audio output. Simple system, no interconnects, no additional power cord. An IPad on my lap and the Gryphon remote at my side. All is good in digital land.

At the beginning of this year I had the opportunity to hear the Weiss 501 DAC in a top system. It had many filters, adjustments, and so much versatility that it made my eyes glaze over. (Maybe it was just my digital ignorance since I tend to deal well with the minutiae of analog cartridge setup and all the iterations and commutations involved including instruments and computer analysis). 

The sound of the Weiss 501, its ability to jump to my core pursuits of tone and texture within the music certainly left an impression. Sadly, in my head, it did not make sense to invest in all the adjustability, filters, volume controls, room adjustments, and the seemingly other multitude of excellent features that I would never probably use. 

“I’m a purist!”, “I want unadulterated output of the source!”, “Why would I pay for all that?” All the small single ended dialogue within my tiny analogue perspective mind (actually translates to “That investment is not going to fly on so many levels at home…). I even shared with my fellow participants at that demo the statement “If Weiss would just make one with just a simple DAC that gives that presentation… now that’s the one I would want.” Sometimes secret desires do come true.

Enter the Weiss DAC204. A simple small unassuming box with a few toggle switches, which I love, and a few LEDs to help inform one how a USB input is being handled. Do not expect that visual input if you are using the other inputs as I have read that the DAC204 just goes about its business with no LEDs lit. This DAC has many technical features including the ability to just pass the digital signal through while converting it from USB to AES/EBU or S/PDIF formats if your system needs this service. My time with the DAC204 was focused on a USB input and the analogue output (both single ended RCA and balanced XLR). I was able to download the appropriate windows driver from the Weiss site and Roon immediately was able to recognize and implement the “device setup”. 

This Roon function had to be revisited as my listening journey proceeded based upon the data the DAC204 LEDs provided. I have a good volume of DSD64 files on my NAS. Each time I chose to listen to this format all the LEDs except the power one ceased to be lit. My curiosity had me review the device setup in Roon only to realize it was set for Roon to convert the DSD files to PCM 352.8khz before sending them to a DAC. This PCM level. according to Weiss, is downsampled to one half their value (176.4 in this case) as they are played. But it does not light the 176.4 indicator LED as it does if a PCM file of 176.4khz is directly received from the server - a small, but interesting, finding for both Roon’s automatic device setup based on the Weiss driver and the LEDs on the front of the DAC204. 

Once I discovered that my DSD files could be converted to PCM either in the Wolf Server or in the Weiss, depending on instructions I had control over in the Roon device setup, I had another comparison added to my plate. Honestly, the output was very similar with clarity possibly being increased by a minute amount when the Weiss did the conversion. 

So on to some thoughts and observations about the music experience. Multiple music choices were recruited to be used for comparisons with the ultimate goal being to reference tone and texture in the context of space and performance. Does the music entice and emotionally gather me in or are their chronic barriers to that experience? My original “DAC” experiences after my CD player always had a barrier that was present- music presented with a slight haze and grittiness that always intruded between me and the music. Some could be described as sibilance distortion, either in the attempt to properly convey the appropriate sibilance in a singer voice and failing or creating a sibilance within the presentation that never existed in the recording of the piece being played. Either of these experiences just redirected me back to improving my analogue setup. 

I finally acquired the Wolf Server and an Ayre QX5/20 DAC to set my digital on a proper path forward. Most of my reservation evaporated and the music was clear and open. The Ayre departed when the Gryphon Diablo with its DAC module arrived and I have continued to enjoy Digital music as well as improving and enjoying vinyl. The Gryphon DAC has excellent detail and extension with a lot of engaging midrange (meat on the bone) and I enjoy it daily. I have considered what to do if the Diablo ever decides to find a new home and I will need a DAC. This is exactly where my mind had wandered when the Weiss 501 crossed my path earlier this year. 

In my system the DAC204 has an excellent presentation of space and soundstage. Each instrument or performer occupies their place and within that place the tone and texture I so highly desire exists in spades. The space around the entities slightly exceeds what my Gryphon is able to provide, though both the soundstages are deep and allow instruments to exist well outside the right and left speaker positions. Bass articulation with clearer attack and clarity is won by the Weiss, though the full impact and feeling score goes to the Gryphon. The treble extension such as cymbals and percussion allows the Weiss to provide a individualization of the sound sources that does exceed my Gryphon. The texture of these hits is consistently lifelike with nothing excessive or distorted.  The all-important midrange is a tossup between the two with a slightly denser Gryphon juxtaposing a slightly more open sounding Weiss. The DAC204 never fails to offer up its work as the “whole”. Nothing sounds incorrectly prominent or recessed. Everything just works to provide a soundscape of music that draws in not only your attention but your emotions. As with everything in this hobby there are DACs that perform on a higher level than the Weiss DAC204, but at this price level I am not sure they will be easy to locate. For me, in my system, the Weiss DAC204 provides an excellent source of what I consider core - Tone and Texture! And these are provided in the proper space and delineation to allow you to possibly just fully enjoy the music. 

Music selections employed for comparison:

Song Artist Album  

Liberty     Anette Askvik    Liberty (Bird)

Duende    Stevens/Stevens/Bozzio    Black Light Syndrome (Magna Carta)

In a Sentimental Mood    Ellington/Coltrane    Ellington & Coltrane (Impulse)

Mozart: String Quartet No. 14    Alban Berg Quartet (Teldec)

Sibelius: Symphony No. 2     Vienna Phil/Maazel (Decca)

Ravel: Chansons madecasses    Dame Janet Baker   The Rosette Collection (Decca)