Neidal Audio Lab has seriously worked on its flagship Merason DAC1 DAC – now this full-sized device is presented in the Mk II version. There were no fundamental changes in circuitry. This is still a fully balanced DAC based on a pair of Burr Brown 1794A converters.
All inputs, DAC1 USB, RCA and Toslink in DAC1 are galvanically isolated. USB uses Amanero technology, where low jitter is provided by a pair of galvanically isolated precision oscillators. The current analog signal is converted to voltage in a class A discrete circuit. Each functional block has its own power supply module, and there are twelve of them in the device.
The Merason DAC1 version Mk II has completely redesigned the circuit board, which lowers the impedance so that power is supplied to each individual component with reduced losses. At the same time, protection against external interference has been improved. The proportion of high-precision SMD components has increased to replace THT parts. The capacitors in the low-pass filters have been replaced with versions with a polystyrene dielectric. The power transistors are now pressed against the heatsinks by specially designed belleville springs. This, according to Neidal, reduced harmonic distortion.
Improvements in the Mk II version, according to the manufacturer, greatly improved the quality of playback. The updated Merason DAC1 is available now in silver, black and cider. In addition, the firm said that all existing DAC1 owners will be able to upgrade their units to Mk II status soon.
In the US, the manufacturer’s recommended retail DAC for the Neidal Audio Lab Merason DAC1 is $8,000.
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