Boulder 812 + Boulder 1161 + B&W 804D4

[@danieljones8587]

Very nice, sounds live. 👌

[@perfectsoundpursuit007]

I am a fan of B&W.. I like this tiny Boulder. BR

[@cesargutierrez4999]

Great sound

[@highendaudio]

Thank you!

[@tomc878]

What volume level is the preamp at while playing?

[@xsamitt]

I have the 28 cubed Bryston amps.......Ordered the speakers a week ago.Can't wait!

[@highendaudio]

Nice!

[@volumestudio4717]

Hi Mike, great video with this gear! Could you please tell me what is the thing in the middle of the front wall positioned on top of the absorber/diffuser? Many thanks! Keep on posting

[@user-eh3qz4zv1o]

Thanks Mike this is good info. When you start talking about quality vs cost this might be a winner! I have been looking for something for a second system and was thinking about the Gryphon Diablo 120 with the added dac. If possible it would be nice if you could do a shoot out between these two. Maybe then we can see how good the Boulder can be at the lower price point.

[@highendaudio]

Thank you! That is a Stein Music Harmonizer. It’s passive and works with the active Harmonizer

[@stevenoconnor5693]

@@highendaudio do you notice a difference in sound with the grills on or off?

[@highendaudio]

@@stevenoconnor5693 Yes. Off is better.

[@stevenoconnor5693]

@@highendaudio thank you for your reply

[@klaymoon1]

Amazing set up. Boulder seems to be completely controlling B&W 804D4.

[@AudioElectronicsChicago]

wow, nice

[@viorgu]

does this combo sounding better than the Boulder 866?

[@TWALBEVA]

YES, I am also wondering if 1161 has the same power as 866

[@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461]

😎 if I lived on the Sun ☀️ coast … I would order the system today …. BUT 😁😍😍😍

[@topkho]

Do we know the DAC chip used?

[@highendaudio]

The 812 DAC section and the 866 DAC section are the same. FROM BOULDER: The 866 and 812 DAC section design is largely derived from our flagship 2120 DAC. We use fairly uncommon multi-bit Delta Sigma DAC chips that require a lot of external circuit design. They are not the common "plug and play" DAC chips that most companies use. We use this DAC chip because we want to create a truly optimized DAC section and are not afraid of the complexity required to implement it ourselves. We don’t discuss the specifics of the DAC chips themselves because we feel strongly that there is way more to performance than any one part that is involved in a design. People tend to paint with wide brush strokes when talking about DAC chips and that discussion seems to usually have a lot of incorrect conclusions and assertions. That being said, we haven't found a DAC chip that we like better for implementing our approach to the digital to analog conversion process. Application is everything. Any DAC chip is only as good as the system designed around it. DAC chips are very complex devices having many distinct and complex subsystems inside. This includes a very high speed digital input section, a digital filter/up-sampler, the digital to analog converter, and the analog output section. The semiconductor process used to produce the chip is optimized to create the type of internal transistors that the chip’s circuitry requires. The major challenge of all DAC chips is that the digital filtering and up-sampling stage requires high speed switching transistors that are either on or off, while the DAC and analog output sections need transistors that have excellent linear characteristics. These qualities are direct opposites and require a compromise to be made in either the digital or the analog section of the device. The chip that we selected has the most accurate digital to analog converter and the lowest noise analog output stages that we have tested. It also allows bypassing the digital filter/up-sampling section completely, which all Boulder DAC products do in a separate computing platform using our proprietary algorithm optimized for each different sample rate. The system around the DAC chip can also optimize the chip’s performance in several ways. By using differential digital inputs and not using the internal digital circuitry, we eliminate much of the digital noise that can get into the audio output. By using fully differential multi-pole Bessel analog filters that exhibit a linear phase response, we achieve flawless transient performance best described as Boulder’s characteristic fast but smooth sound. Hope this is all helpful and makes sense, let me know if you have any other questions.

[@topkho]

@@highendaudio very interesting, thank you very much, definitely a piece to consider

[@spacejaime]

Solidly dense presentation. Wide, spacious. A little fat on the mid bass.

[@peterkuntz6076]

Agree with you on mid bass issue. Very noticable; bet it is the speakers.

[@spacejaime]

@@peterkuntz6076 - a couple of bass traps can ameliorate that.

[@michaelmityok1001]

So the 812 is also a good preamp?

[@highendaudio]

Yes

[@michaelmityok1001]

@@highendaudio sorry mike dumb question i missed the first section of the video