Hooking up the B.DPR EX directly to the power amp(s) offers a shorter signal path, less cable and fewer connections than running via a standalone line-stage. In theory, that should offer a significant advantage, but in practice it doesn’t necessarily work out that way. I started this review by running the B.audio straight into the Linear Bs or the S-200, producing a detailed, organised and coherent musical presentation that came as something of a surprise. After years of disappointment when it comes to DACs playing at being pre-amps, here was a unit that was actually doing the job at least half decently. The approach looks good on paper and here it was sounding pretty good in practice. Except that, switching to the TL-5.5 brought significant improvements in spatial definition, tonal range, micro and macro-dynamics. But more importantly, it injected a sense of musical authority. I said earlier that the line-stage represents the reference point for temporal and dynamic reproduction – and that’s exactly what it sounded like when the TL-5.5 joined the party. It was like everything was starting and stopping from the same point, perfectly in step. The dynamics had a solid launch pad that enabled bigger overall jumps but more precise steps in between, too. Switch back and the sound closed in and lacked bite, jump, scale and impact…
Play Danzas Peregrinas (Horacio Salinas, from the beautiful John Williams disc/download Concerto – JCW3) and the VTL sets the gentle opening on a stable footing, establishing the location, scale and different disposition of the guitar and cello, clearly revealing the conversation between them, the bodies of the two instruments, their very different tonalities and textures. The step up in attack and tempo as the music steps forward into the second section is as effortless as it is incisive, the arrival of the extra instruments each readily identified and separate as the musical energy and density increase. Reverting to the DPR outputs, the instruments in the opening section lose their body and dimensionality, but also the intimacy in the relationship between the players. The rhythmic hitch kick that opens the second movement isn’t as fluid or secure, making the playing sound slightly laboured or clumsy, while the extra instruments don’t gel or lock to the rhythm in such a convincing and engaging fashion. It’s a conclusion that also carries over to the analogue inputs, which shared the general musical and performance traits of the digital sources, limitations that certainly undermine serious record replay.
Jack of all trades?
That might sound like a pretty damning conclusion – except for one thing: the VTL TL-5.5 will set you back around €12,000 (plus a power cord, a set of interconnects and a shelf to sit it on). The DPR module stands you in at €4,000 – all in! There are more affordable line-stages than the VTL, but the only ones that match its performance level (the SJS Model 7 and TEAD Vibe/Pulse combination) still come in around eight or nine thousand Euros. So no, the DPR module can’t compare with a serious line-stage, but it costs half (or less) of the price, keeps your box count down and can stand comparison with anything available at its relatively modest price.
