Douk T8 Vs Schiit Lokius - Both Winners!

This video is a quick comparison between two EQ/Tone controls.
The Schiit Lokius 6 Band EQ and the Douk Audio T8 5 Band EQ w Tube buffer and Volume control.
Download WAV Files here:
drive.google.com/drive/folder...
Track 1 is Blue Mood by Robert Munzinger
Track 2 is Ice & Fire by King Canyon
Track 3 is Strollin' by TrackTribe
FYI: Schiit has had a price increase on Amazon, so I would recommend purchasing directly from Schiits website if you are looking to buy their products.
Check out these products:
Douk T8 : amzn.to/3WJSz21
Schiit Lokius : amzn.to/3qnX7yZ
Dayton Audio HTA200 : amzn.to/44SiHvl
Topping E30 II : amzn.to/3MdwHsb
Eversolo DAC Z6 : amzn.to/42ly5yu
Cambridge Audio CXNv2 : amzn.to/3pAoUvq on sale currently $999!!!
WiiM Mini Streamer : amzn.to/41yM5UA
Cambridge Audio Alva ST Turntable : amzn.to/3Fz9k8J At a great price! Currently $599!!!
Cambridge Audio Alva TT V2 Turntalbe : amzn.to/3YYYDTM Unfortunately not on sale.
Ortofon 2M Black : amzn.to/3yRpnei
Audio-Technica cartridge headshell : amzn.to/3mT09t9
iFi iPower X (12v) Ultra Low Noise Power Supply : amzn.to/42k2cXH
Oyaide 5N Pure Silver Headshell Wires : amzn.to/3n8vTLe
Neoteck Digital Stylus Scale : amzn.to/3FADYi4

[@Artemis_Prix]

Very nice and informative review. A perfect balance of practical advice and product review. Keep up the great work!

[@RickRuizAudio]

Thanks so much, @stephendamico4522 . You can't make everyone happy, but I'm trying to give people some info. I appreciate you watching!

[@paspolc]

Good video, thanks for the review. I already had the lokius and I wanted to buy and try the douk t8 as well; I am listening to it now and I like it, first impression is that it brings out a little more bass and it seems to have given some boost to the volume of my amplifier. Well, the price is affordable, I'll keep both of them and juggle or tweak a bit until I find the perfect sound. Go on with other reviews.

[@RickRuizAudio]

Yeah, they are for sure fun to play with! 👍

[@mateohinoxosa7799]

Great review!

[@RickRuizAudio]

Thanks! And thanks for watching!

[@oahupc4688]

I have both the t8 and the lokius . I have it hooked up like this... PC to su-9n to lokius to t8 (volume turned up to 90percent) to minidsp flex balanced to da-9 amp. All xlr and no rca for best sound quality . I have to tell you it sounds amazing!

[@RickRuizAudio]

🤔 Why not just do the EQ in the Minidsp Flex? Do you just prefer the tactility of the knobs?

[@oahupc4688]

@@RickRuizAudio I used the miniDSP to eq the sound too. I know this is to much eq for audiophiles but I found out it brings amazing results making your speakers sound WAY more expensive. Since the minidsp has a very wide Q range that I can play with, I can do the following.... 1 Bring out the lows that the speakers never had, 2 bring the vocals right in to the room , 3 bring out the micro details in the highs, and 4 and probably the most important of all that I never hear any one doing is completely remove all sibilance that's the harsh ssss sound usually in voices. The sibilance is removed by making a negative tight Q spike in the EQ band and then moving it around until you find the sibilant frequency. End result? Zero listening fatigue at any volume. Perfectly balanced lows mids and highs at very low volumes. And extreme detail at normal volumes with a pleasant warmth thanks to the tubes. It is sort of an endgame setup honestly. Why? Because if there is nothing to complain about sonically then what reason is there to buy something new?

[@gaulishrealist]

This doesn't sound right. Shouldn't the preamp come after the DSP? And why two preamps?

[@MrRickywallace]

Real good!

[@RickRuizAudio]

Thanks, and thanks for watching!

[@geraldcrook9504]

I really enjoyed your video well put together . The reason im looking at a EQ is i have a very awkward shape room being Narrow . I recently purchased a pair of Dynaudio emit 20s .I am finding them to much base and no B or T controls on my Arcam FMJ 29 amp . so this brings me to the Douk Audio T8 5 band EQ. The thing im worried about is how to put my CD & Phono through it. Some youtubers are saying its possible to loop through the tape in/out . If so How . keep up the great work . And if its any conciliation there are just some people out there must give you grief its what they think they should do to a new youtuber . many thanks gerald

[@RickRuizAudio]

Thank you, I appreciate it. On the Arcam, FMJ A29?

[@tedliu1025]

Great Review!I have been using T8 for three months. (My T8 is the 7-band EQ version) And I just discovered an incredible flaw in it today!(My source is PC, using XLR output for active speakers)If you set the left channel volume of your PC's volume balance to 0. Then play a song and you will hear a very small sound coming from the left channel...but it shouldn't be!Is this a special case? or is it an internal design problem of T8?

[@tedliu1025]

Do you guys' device also have the same issue? I writed an email to Douk Audio and got the respomse: "T8 uses a pure analog design architecture, but analog potentiometers and circuit construction cannot completely eliminate the phenomenon of left and right crosstalk, and a slight weak signal is a normal phenomenon. Thanks for your kind understanding." " I can understand that at this price point, the functions of T8 are fully worthy of its price, but only if you can accept this small flaw.

[@RickRuizAudio]

All potentiometers have this problem. The problem gets worse with time as you turn the know and the internal metal wears down. Stepped relay attenuator Pre-amps try to improve on this by using resistors and relays to keep the channel balance more even over a long period of time. There are some excellent potentiometers but they do start getting expensive. ALPS Blue Velvets retail for $20 USD, TKDs and Audio Notes from $40 to over $200 USD. In my opinion, I agree with you, the pots are acceptable in the Douk at this price point. 👍

[@danadirectmarketing]

Hi, enjoyed your review. Stupid question, how do you hook it up to a DAC and amp set up?

[@RickRuizAudio]

Hey @dandirectmarketing Thanks for watching. Well, the analog signal exits your DAC via the RCA OUTs which go into either the T8 or Lokius RCA INs, then from their RCA OUTs the signal goes to your power amp. In the case of the T8 you can use the volume on the T8 and keep the DAC at full output. In the case of the Lokius, you will for sure need a DAC with preamp feature or need a preamp.

[@samza9622]

Source>Dac>lokius>amp>speakers or headphones.

[@defkon99]

You explained this very well. I'm using an Denon DRA-800H AVR and a Emotiva BasX A2 power amp. Using Preouts on Zone 2 (on AVR no other preouts) into the BasX. One thing I noticed is the sound is flat compared to speakers connected to the AVR (DRA-800H). Is this because the preout cleans up any sound processing that happens within the receiver like the Preout is not full range..? If so how can I go about getting that big sound into my power amp? Do I need a preamp like the T8 in between the Preout on the AVR and the power amp? Thanks to you or anyone who can help answer my q's.

[@RickRuizAudio]

Hey Def, sorry for the late reply. I've been extremely busy. But to give you an idea on your question. Once the sound leaves VIA RCA pre out or zone 2 out, it is already analogue. No more processing is done. That sound goes into your additional power amps and now what you are hearing are the characteristics of your Power amp. Only way to "tweek" that sound would be to get an EQ or Tone control between the Denon and the Emotiva. Either if these would help shape your sound to your liking!

[@defkon99]

@@RickRuizAudio Thanks Ended up buying a Schiit Loki Mini+ to start- Def brought my sound back! Thanks again for the reply!

[@maverick85]

Is the t8 only or MM or does it also support MC?

[@RickRuizAudio]

@maverick85 The T8 is a line level EQ. It doesn't have phono pre. So you'll need to feed it a line level signal from a phono pre if your turntable doesn't have a phono pre built in.

[@maverick85]

@@RickRuizAudio thanks!

[@andrewkateb]

Great review thanks. I have the 5 band you reviewed and also the new t8 pro 7 band which is a big improvement on the 5-band. Check it out.

[@RickRuizAudio]

Thanks, I'll try to get the 7 band in!

[@MrRickywallace]

Use a tube mic!

[@RickRuizAudio]

Hopefully I can get my hands on one! Thanks!

[@aussie8114]

Your pre amp seems noisy.

[@RickRuizAudio]

Yeah, it seems that way in the video, but the pre was way higher than I would normally have it set to. I believe it was at 60 when I usually have it at 20 to 30. At 35~40 I'm getting 100dB SPL with music. It's a relatively affordable pre but I love it. It goes for around $550 and I have a few mods in wiring and copper XLRs and silver RCAs. When I am listening at night at level 8 to 10, it's super quiet and I hear Zero hiss at my listening area 8 feet away. It's not sate of the art, but sounds good to me. I'm budgeting for a Denafrips Athena. Maybe I'll treat myself for my birthday in March.

[@scottlowell493]

Douk/Nobsound are pretty infamous for basically fake tube gear. The tubes are either just a buffer, or not in the circuit at all. I had two products from them (pre amp and headphone amp). Changing tubes made no difference. Even going from a very cool to very warm sounding tube. I wouldn't buy douk at all.

[@RickRuizAudio]

Definitely not a high-end product. But fun to play with. Not everyone has or want's to spend $1500 on an EQ. or Tube buffer. The Bellari PA555 does give more tube sound. I heard differences in my system with both. I believe whether someone likes those differences is up to them. Stepping stones. It's great to hear your input though, Thanks @scottlowell493

[@scottlowell493]

@@RickRuizAudio I had a Bellari, they are up a few notches from Douk in sound and quality

[@RickRuizAudio]

I'm testing the Bellari with a Gold Lion tube right now. The bass is much nicer. Overall nicer tones. I don't think it makes sense though. Buying a $250 to $275 pre to add a $60 tube. I would rather save a bit to step up to something nicer. However my 22 year old nephew would love it. We all have different levels of expectation. What Bellari products were interesting to you? What did you have?

[@scottlowell493]

@@RickRuizAudio that’s one reason I gave up on tube power amps too much of a money pit. I use only tube preamps and a headphone amp Now. Even my quicksilver line stage ( long since sold) only came with generic Chinese tubes that isn’t a cheap preamp. You’d be into it a couple grand total to get really good nos or new tubes in it.

[@Cichlid_Visuals]

this one absolutely uses the tubes. all you need to do is pull a tube and listen for yourself. these dont need to do anything else BUT buffer, its not an amp. just there to take the hard edge off a high resolution DAC signal before leading to powered speaker system or phones.