Neko Audio D100 Mk2 Dac
First, I must praise Wesley Miaw for not only designing a great Dac but for offering it for in home audition. Many of us don’t have local dealers and nothing substitutes for hearing a new piece of equipment in your own home. Thanks Wes!
The Neko Audio D100 feels good the minute you open the box. It is a heavy, well built small piece with a power switch on back and source selection knob. The simple design was both functional and attractive. It fit in nicely on my rack with the other hardware. I must say that it was a much nicer design than most Dacs at a compatible price point - Very high wife acceptance factor. I connected it to the Pass Labs preamp with the XLR to RCA interconnects shipped with the Dac.
I started with an informal listening session while the D100 “warmed up” from the cool outdoors. After a few moments, my wife and I both started paying close attention to the music. I had started a playlist of demo tracks via the Squeezebox. Initially, I found that I had to adjust my Pass Labs preamp for high gain. Although I was auditioning the D100 Mk2 with higher output, it was still quite a bit lower than my other sources. My wife and I both very familiar with the tracks in the demo playlist and both of us immediately noticed how well defined the instruments were. The most alluring aspect of the sound however was vocals. The sound was clear and clean. We were both impressed and spent the next 2 hours cruising through our music library. We had fun.
The next night, I began my more formal evaluation of the Dac. I have a series of tracks that I have used to evaluate gear. All are stored in lossless format and were presented to the D100 from the Squeezebox.
I began with a Dave Brubeck solo piece “Variations On Brother Can You Spare a Dime”. The sound was smooth well defined. The overtones on the piano sounded good. I then played the 2 versions of “Tea For Two” from the Art Tatum performance “Piano Starts Here”. Again the sound was clear and unstressed. The difference in the two recordings was completely revealed. On one cut, I was seated in the concert hall and on the other I was seated on the piano bench. My final piano cut was “I Got Rhythm” from “Soul Shadows” by Joe Sample. Once again, the piano sound was full with no hit of grunge. Unfortunately, I felt none of the piano attack was properly reproduced. Both Brubeck and Sample are masters at controlling the attack of the notes and much of that subtle nuance was lost. Tatum’s performance was playfull and direct but again the sharp attack of the notes was not fully reproduced. The power of Tatum’s playing was subdued.
I next listened to “Still Dead” from the score of “American Beauty” by Thomas Newman. This recording usually presents a complex three dimensional soundstage and tests transient attack from a wide variety of percussion and string instruments and deep electric bass. The instruments were well defined, but the soundstage was forward and flat. The deep bass was well defined and tight, but the mid bass was lacking. The transients were simply lost.
To give the D100 a vocal work out, I played “Lately” by Stevie Wonder, “Freedom” by Bird York, “Willingly” by Burton Garr and “Hallelujah, I Love Her So” by Livingston Taylor. The voices were spectacular. The Dac was at its best with a great singer and a small backing group. Stevie Wonder was amazing over the simple piano and bass. Liv Taylor was alive and in love with his guitar and bass. Burton Garr never sounded better over an electric blues band and Bird York’s voice just soared. I was so impressed that I immediately played Ella Fitzgerald singing “How High The Moon” from the “Complete Ella in Berlin” concert. She was heaven. Her voice soared over the driving band – She was alive in my room.
I wanted to further test the limits I had heard in the first session and I listened to “The Philosopher’s Stone” by Van Morrison. Again, Morrison’s voice was great, but the amazing Hammond organ work on the cut was thin and too laid back. The mid-bass was somewhat lacking. I played a Damien Rice cut and noticed that the cello was also a bit thin in the lower registers. The sound was good, just not perfection. I put on “Paranoia in E” by Lou Reed and verified again that deep bass is tight and full.
I also wanted to try another cut that would test the transient response. I selected “Juniper Bear” from Paul Winter’s record “Icarus”. The acoustic guitars are played with force and aggression. They also are used to produce percussive sounds and chiming overtones. The sound was good. The guitars were clear, but again the attack was slightly lacking it affected the power of the cut. I played a couple of Prince cuts to further test the transients. Often, these recordings can be fatiguing, but the D100 tamed the edge of Prince’s mix. On “Damn U” the vocals were clear above the instruments and never distorted by the slam of the guitar or drum.
I thought the drum kit on several Beatles remasters sounded superb. The D100 clearly handled bass drums, snares, cymbals, tambourines, claps and about any other percussive sound on the recordings. The sound was warm, full and lovely. I was especially pleased in how the Dac revealed the position of the strike of a stick or brush on a cymbal. Again, I have to comment on the beauty of the voices on these recordings. The Beatles vocals were simply amazing.
I enjoyed the D100. It was always listenable and never showed any sign of grunge. I even tried playing my Audiomeca transport through it only to prove that it handles jitter well. I could tell little or no difference between the cheap Squeezebox and the expensive transport.
I believe this Dac will appeal to listeners who have very revealing systems. It is almost tube like in its smoothness. Over the weeks, I never found it fatiguing or in any way harsh. The D100 shines brightest with singers and smaller bands. I thought is has some difficulty with complex orchestral passages, but they were still very listenable. My main issues were the lack of transient response, a slight drop off of the mid-bass and a somewhat flat and disjointed soundstage. However, I must admit I was comparing the D100 with my Audiomeca Enkianthus Dac that was 5 times the price. Moreover, the Audiomeca can be a little dry and hash with vocals and this is where the D100 is truly outstanding.
As I boxed it up to send to the next audition, I was a little sad. It was fun to hear my collection through this piece. It is a great value for the price and I could definitely live with it for quite a while. I have already recommended it to a friend who is looking to replace his aging CD player.
Sources: Audiomeca Mephesto transport, Mac Mini/Squeezebox Classic
Preamplifier: Pass Labs X-1
Amplifier: Pass Labs X-350
Speakers: Dunlavy V Signature
Wires: 4 20 amp dedicated circuits, Cardas Neutral Reference interconnects, Goertz MI2 speaker wires, various power cords
Room: 32’ X 24’ X 12’ with cathedral ceilings to 20’ and open second story. Speakers on 32’X12’wall, 15’ apart, 1.5’ from wall toed in, equal distant from side walls. Listening location 17’ from wall. Floor covered with thick wool rug.
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