Soekris 2541 vs Topping D90se (dacs DO matter!)

Do DACs matter? Well, I’d say I’ve firmly landed in the camp that they do matter, and oddly enough, my DAC is just about the most expensive thing in my chain at this point in time. That DAC is the Soekris DAC2541, and it replaced my Schiit Bifrost 2 a couple of months ago. I’ve been meaning to get a review done for some time. Apos Audio recently sent me a Topping D90se, and I thought a comparison between the two would be a good opportunity to get some thoughts on each of these excellent DACs (I was not expecting the D90se to be as good as it is).

Timestamps:
00:00 - Opening
01:50 - Soekris Build & IO
05:00 - D90se Build & IO
06:28 - Begin Comparison
09:22 - Final Thoughts

Links to stuff mentioned in the video (some affiliate):

Bifrost 2 Review if you want to check that out:

A playlist with other DAC reviews / thoughts on it:

Look down below for links to all that gear and some other recommendations.

Of course, I always recommend you take a look at the used market, below are some sites that are great for that.

Some of my favorite equipment for various niches (some links are affiliate):

Entry Balanced DAC: SMSL SU8: (look used)

Headphone #3: OG NIghthawks: (look used)

Cables:

Recording Gear:

#soekris #d90se #dac

[oldson]

i recently sold my Qutest in favour of a Topping E50.
i heard no difference whatsoever!

[shawnpwatsons]

Great review. Very balanced, very generous, and respectful of all competitors. It really helps us zero in on value. So thank you.

[minhtruong]

Soekris is an interesting beast. You can just buy the DAC board itself and experiment with building it yourself. I've seen the process of building it shown on the web, and it's not that difficult if you know the basic electronics engineering. OF course with DIY you can experiment with exotic components, built by listening till your heart content.

[kurt]

these type of reviews are some times very misleading. For example I have Chord Qtest, that If I send to MrAyrit for review, most likely will come on top of both of those DACs in at least 2-3 categories. Does this mean Qtest is a good dac that I would recommend? No. It is details, it does better spatial presentation then other gear up to its price point, but at the end of the day when a consumer sits down with his audio system, with his music and just enjoys it, how much enjoyment does he get? Is it satisfying, is it enjoyable, relaxing? Even very small difference can make a huge difference over time. I sit down with my Qtest and while it is the smoothest and detailed I ever had, it is never satisfying. The zen dac, always left me with the impression of harsh and not enjoyable after 20 min. Project S2 Digital was harsh but bearable, so peopole need to keep in mind that "good" does not necessary mean enjoyable or satisfying.

[millenniummastering]

Ahhh man you need to retry the unit. The 1.88 firmware update improved things beyond belief. 2022-08-19 was the release date so after this video. Its absolutely insane how much better it is

[vlax]

You should try D70s. It does not sound like D90se but it's better in my opinion (and cheaper too)

[jameslevine]

Great comparison and keep up the good work - appreciate your easy going, straightforward style!

[adrianmorrish]

the bifrost 2 is/was my next goto but it's lack of volume control puts me off plus not being in US

[StegzGaming]

Interesting vid. I have a bifrost 2 coming from a modius and actually ended up throwing my bifrost 2 up for sale. For the record, I do think the bifrost 2 is better sounding and a bit more technically better in some areas than the modius. The reason I'm keeping the modius because it is so similar to the bifrost with the only differences being that the bifrost has more body and bass impact with a slightly more natural sound wheras the modius still sounds natural, but not as weighty and it smooths off the highs very slightly which I actually liked more. I'm limiting myself to 1 dac, so the modius is the one for now as it better serves gaming which I do quite a lot and saves me money. I do have a soncoz sdg1 coming in this week which is what I hope will be the one for me.

[alphaniner]

Great sharing of insights. I think that, unless somebody on beforehand knows exactly what to look for, direct A/B comparison of DACs is rather pointless. A DAC that sounds more detailed, impactful or whatever could get annoying after 20+ minutes of listening, and a DAC that sounds rather uninteresting compred to another at first might in fact be the better DAC for many. It can be compared to going on a 1500k holiday trip with a family car compared to a formula 1 car.

[yellow_noise]

“Crosfeed” function is for headphones dear author. It mixes L + R channels and add to the music, to avoid too much separation of channels in left and right ear…

[RUMBLEGO]

You probably get this question often since you get so many used items, but here goes. :) What platform do you use the most to buy your used gear? Wondering if there are ones you are more confident in and ones you may steer clear of?

[herrkrake]

How much is there difference measuring in % between ieMagni and this soekris? Appriciate very much your series "is dac Mattel?"!

[maupuravida]

I know you don’t have the BF2 anymore, but just sound wise how it compares against the modi multibit?

[JTB--]

I feel like the Denafrips Ares II and Bifrost 2 are the benchmark DACS under a grand. I'd be curious to hear the Soekris 2541 to hear the differences. One reason I like the Bifrost 2 is it has some punch and slam for Rock genres along with good Bass. Not only is BF2 a good DAC for music... but it's also a great DAC for Gaming and watching TV/Movies. Been thinking about getting the warmer, smoother sounding Denafrips Ares II DAC as a compliment to the more impactful Bifrost II.

[SuperSeltzer]

With Delta Sigma DACs I find myself analyzing each note. With R2R I get lost in music.

[kerryvanderkamp]

I would love to hear your thoughts on where the Mojo 2 sits in relation to these desktop DACs. I love mine in its primary DAC/amp config but haven’t been as impressed in secondary DAC-only configs vs my Soncoz SGD1. Have you experimented with this yet?

[Dilyaev]

Oh you would definitely love the Audio GD R2R11 MK2 + DI20HE

PS: back in the days the soekris dac1321 + Gustard U16 was a bliss.

[dungysphincter]

If Topping is Toe Ping, what is Toeping? LOL!

[NO_SIMP_ZONE]

Its TOPPING ( like hopping) not towping ( like hoping ). Its so jarring and unnatural to hear