DAC 1.1X ii

The Audio Note (UK) DAC1.1x/II Digital to Analogue converter has been specifically engineered for sonic performance rather than technical specification, and fulfils all Audio Note (UK) Level 1 criteria: -

Current available models

• DAC 1.1x/II
• DAC 1.1x.II Signature

Materials and component quality DAC 1.1x/II

Extensive research into the fundamental properties of the data stream itself have shown beyond doubt that, regardless of the theoretical advantages of the signal manipulation employed in our competitors products, such as higher over sampling, noise shaping, re-clocking or jitter reduction, these corrective measures greatly interfere with the critical time domain requirements of the signal.

Music is a time continuum from start to end which when broken is irreparably damaged, and no amount of clever manipulation can restore it to its original time / frequency / amplitude duration or relationship, regardless of what the theorists may tell you.

As a result, we have developed a way of excluding or bypassing all these corrective measures, to allow the conversion from digital to analogue to be done without any manipulation whatsoever. All we do is to reformat the data stream to allow the converter chip to be able to interpolate the incoming information correctly.

In other words, the Audio Note (UK) DAC1.1x has no over sampling, no jitter reduction, no noise shaping and no re-clocking. Having removed all of the digital filtering that is required for over sampling, all filtering is done in the analogue domain where it is easier to retain good, wide band phase-frequency and dynamically coherent behaviour. It uses the highest grade Analogue Devices AD1865, 18Bit stereo converter chip solely because we found it to be the best sounding available (yes, even better than the 20Bit versions!).

Materials and component quality DAC 1.1x/II Signature

The DAC1.1x/II Signature also features an abundance of upgraded components in comparison with the standard edition, including our own Audio Note (UK) Tantalum resistors in key areas.

Engineered with audiophile-grade components — premium drivers, hand-matched crossovers, and a hardwood enclosure tuned for natural decay. Every cabinet is internally braced and damped to suppress resonance below the threshold of audibility.

• Custom 6.5" mid-bass driver with paper-pulp cone for transient accuracy.
• Soft-dome silk tweeter with neodymium motor for airy, fatigue-free highs.
• Point-to-point hand-wired crossover using silver-foil capacitors.
• Bi-wirable terminals plated in pure copper.

Place each speaker on its dedicated stand, toed-in toward the listening position. The hardwood enclosure resonates in concert with the drivers — a deliberate, musical interaction rather than a flaw to be eliminated.

Connect to a quality amplifier using bi-wired speaker cable for the most transparent presentation. Allow 50–100 hours of break-in for the drivers and crossover capacitors to settle into their final voicing.